Next chapter! Whoopee! I'm sure you all have been anxiously awaiting it!

Looks like we've got a long one! Here it is—6!

Ch. 6: Go!

Ash awoke to a bright light in his eyes. He stretched his arms as he got up, still wary from the night before. How long had he been asleep. He looked to the side and found the side next to him empty.

He frowned. Where had Gary gone? Had he simply left him there in the middle of the night, leaving him to fend for himself?

Just as that thought entered his mind, it left. Gary walked into the room with a big plate of breakfast, cooked, of course, by Brock. "Hey there, sleepyhead," he joked as he kicked the door close, his hands full.

"Mmmm, morning," he said, stretching his arms again.

"You've been asleep for a good nine hours," Gary said, putting the tray in front of Ash. "Its already four in the evening."

"Wow," Ash said, still yawning. "Didn't think I was that tired."

"I guess you must have not slept much back there, huh?"

Ash thought for a moment. "No, guess not. When I did get to sleep, I usually couldn't fall asleep until midnight at the earliest, and I couldn't sleep when the sun was out. It usually depended on when it was, but I averaged around 5 hours—seven if I was lucky."

"Well now you can catch up. Only problem is," he said, sitting on the bed next to Ash, "I don't know if you'll spend all that time sleeping or not with me."

Ash laughed, Gary's hot breath tickling his ear. "No, I'm up."

"Well good," Gary said, a triumphant smile on his face as he lent in for a kiss. The little peck on Ash's lips made the two blush.

"So, what're we doing today?"

"Dunno yet," Gary said, then picking up a pair of pants he had thrown on the floor earlier. "Misty found this when going through your old clothes," he said, pulling out Jesse's cell phone. "She said that your pants have been ringing all morning."

"Oh…well…" Ash said, a little embarrassed. "I don't know how that thing works."

Gary just chuckled. "Want me to look at it?"

"Please."

Gary flipped it open, laughing. "If this has been ringing all morning, you must've been out like a light. His eyes widened at the sight of all the missed calls. "24 missed calls! You sure are popular!" he joked. But then he went to the history and his smile disappeared.

"Who are they from?"

"All of them are from James."

Gary quickly pressed a couple buttons and held the ear to his phone. He could not afford to miss this call—it could be something serious.

"My God, it's about time you called!" an annoyed voice came from the other end.

"Jesse," Gary said, his tone changing from the previously joking mood, "what's been happening? Why did you guys try calling 2so many times?"

"Because Giovanni is looking for you two," Jesse said, "and he's pissed. You're so lucky that I've distracted him for you. I gave him false information and sent him looking the other way."

"Are you guys alright?"

"Jesse and James are hurt?!" Ash gasped, taking Gary's innocent question as an answer.

"Put the kid on," Jesse said. Gary handed the phone to Ash, pressing a button on the side. Ash grabbed the phone and shouted into it rather loudly.

"You're hurt!" he screamed, as Jesse pulled away on the other end of the phone.

"We're fine, but I will be deaf if you keep talking so loud!"

A sigh of relief escaped Ash's lips. Jesse cleared her throat and continued.

"Giovanni instantly started questioning us. He told us to give us information or else."

"What did you do?"

"I gave him what he wanted."

Ash's heart sank. How could Jesse and James have betrayed him like that. Gary, who had slipped the device on speakerphone before handing it to Ash instantly snapped.

"You sold us out!" he yelled.

"Will you two stop shouting? Geeze, my ears will be ringing all morning!"

"How could you sell us out you lying two-faced…"

"Relax, lover boy."

"Relax! How can I relax? You basically sent a psychopath straight to our door, not only endangering Ash and I, but my sister and Brock and…"

"SETTLE!" Jesse screamed, the volume of her voice sending Ash and Gary cowering away from the phone. "I did not sell you out. I sent him in the other direction. You should both be thanking me for buying you two more time!"

"Buying us more time?" Ash asked. "Jesse, I don't know what you mean."

"Listen, I'm just taking a shot in the dark that wherever you are, you're not far from here. You need to get as far away as possible, you hear me?"

"But what about you and James?"

"James and I are leaving today. But…" she paused, thinking of how to word her next statement. "We'll be keeping a close eye on what's going on and give you updates. Look, I can't say much more…"

"I understand," Ash said. "Thank you."

"Take care, kid."

And she hung up.

"Gary…" Ash whispered, almost too inaudible for the other boy to hear.

"Yes, Ash?"

"I'm scared," he said, bringing his knees to his chest and curling into a little ball. "I don't want to go back there."

"You're not. You heard Jesse, we need to keep moving. I know you've been here for only a day, but we need to do as she says."

"But where are we going to go?" Ash moaned, his head ducking between his knees.

Gary hadn't really thought where they should go. What was a place he knew of where Ash would be safe? Somewhere far away, a small town perhaps….

It hit him.

"We're going to Pallet Town."

"What's Pallet Town?"

"You'll see when you get there. Now come on—we need to get you dressed up before we leave."

--

Ash stood outside of Gary's home as Gary finished loading his things into the vehicle. He stood in some of Gary's old clothes—ones that fit him just right, odd since Gary thought he didn't have any that would fit him. A back shirt underneath a blue vest with white short sleeves, complete with a pair of blue jeans and a pair of sneakers.

"It's not enough…" Misty said as Gary loaded the bags one-by-one into the trunk. "It's missing something…"

"Well gee, wouldn't want to go against the word of the fashion police."

Misty sent a glare at her brother, and then an idea hit her. "I've got it! Wait here!"

She ran back into the house as Ash chuckled as she left. Sometimes that girl could be such a character. Gary finished putting the last of their belongings into the car, pushing down on it hard to make sure it locked tight.

"Are you sure you got the okay from your grandpa that we can stay?"

"Of course," Gary said. "I'm sure he won't mind. He's a pretty nice old man."

"But you never asked him?"

"I don't think I need to. His grandson is in trouble, and he'll be happy to help me out."

"Here!" Misty said, running back out of the house, a pair of green fingerless gloves in hand. "This should do the trick!"

Ash slipped them on, shrugging at Misty. She formed a square with her hands and held it up around Ash, squinting.

"Hmmmm…its still missing something…"

"Misty, can you hurry up? We've gotta get going as soon as we possibly can."

She looked around, glancing at anything that would give Ash the right look for his outfit. She looked back at the porch, glancing at a hat rack. "Aha!" she gasped, running toward it and taking the red and white cap hung on the rack, with a small green check in the middle of the white section.

"Misty! That's my favorite hat!"

"Oh quit your whining," Misty said, ignoring her brother's protests. "You never wear it anyway." She put the hat on Ash's head, stepped back, and smiled. "Perfect!" she squealed. "It looks better on you than it ever did on Gary!"

Gary, irritated by his sister's antics, motioned for Ash to get in the car. "C'mon. Let's head out."

"Wait," Ash said, turning back to Misty and Brock. He gave them both a hug, wrapping one arm around each of them.

"Thank you so much," he said, his face buried between their shoulders, "for everything."

"We'll miss you, Ash," Misty replied, getting teary-eyed. "Oh, and you just got here. We never got to do anything fun."

"It's alright," he said, patting Misty on the back. "I'll be back when its all over. Promise."

"Take care, Ash."

"Thanks, Brock. I will."

And with that, he let both of them go, bounding towards the car. He opened the door and looked back one last time before climbing in, waving to them. He hopped in as Gary rolled down Ash's window, and he stuck his head out and continued waving.

"Don't forget!" Misty shouted as they started to pull out of the driveway. "You promised you'd come back!"

"I won't!" he yelled back.

She smiled. "Bye, Ash! We'll see you soon!"

As the red car pulled onto the road and headed south for Pallet Town, Misty stopped for a moment.

"Please," she thought, "keep Ash safe."

--

All Ash could remember from the time they left Misty and Brock to the time they pulled up at Gary Oak's grandfather's house was waving to them, promising he'd come back. He then remembered sitting back in his seat with the wind in his hair, taking it all in as they sped down the highway. He remembered his eyes growing heavier and heavier, and then the darkness of sleep overwhelmed him, and in minutes, he was out.

The next thing he knew, it was evening. Not that late, but the stars had come out and it was a bit darker. Gary was gently shaking his shoulder.

"Ash?" he whispered. "C'mon sleeping beauty. We're here."

Ash blinked, his eyes closing again as he stretched out his arms. When he opened them, he was sure he heard Gary cough, turning to the side. He saw the small droplets of red come down from Gary's face as it dripped onto the ground. "Gary! What happened?" Ash gasped.

Gary had, indeed, had ANOTHER nose bleed. His vision became once again clouded with pink fuzzies and sparklies surrounding Ash.

"Gary?"

"He…he…he does look cute in that hat!"

"Gary?"

He coughed again, wiping the small trickle from his nose down his face onto his sleeve. "I just…hit my face with the car door! Heh-heh…silly me…"

Ash stepped out of the car and stood on his tip toes right in front of Gary's face. "Do you need me to check it for you?"

Of course, all that did was make it about a million times worse. And if it weren't for a certain someone who had stepped out of the house, Gary would have ended up lying on the pavement, fainting from his fantasies, or even worse, acting them out.

"Ah, Misty called me and told me you'd be coming."

Both boys turned to the direction of the voice—a grey haired older man with a red shirt, brown pants, and a clean white lab coat came towards them down the steps. Gary snapped out of his daydreams and turned to the old man approaching them.

"Hey gramps," Gary said.

"Gary, it's been so long since I've seen you! Since you're mother decided to move to Cerulean city, well, it's just been too hard to come and see you with all this work I've got."

"I understand," Gary nodded. "It has been awhile, gramps."

"And who is this?" Gary's grandfather asked, turning to Ash.

"My name is Ash," he replied. "It is very nice to meet you."

"Hmmm…Ash…that name rings a bell…" the old man replied, scratching his chin for a moment. "Ash…Ash…well, no matter! I am Professor Oak, Gary's grandfather and Pokemon researcher of Kanto. It is very nice to meet you."

Professor Oak offered his hand to Ash, smiling at him kindly. Ash just stared back and him in surprise, wondering what he should do.

"Ash," Gary whispered, "shake his hand."

So he grabbed out and gently shook the old man's hand, Oak giving a very hearty shake back. "Well, let's get out of the cold, shall we? I've got some more Pokemon to tend to before heading to bed, and I need to get them done by tonight. So bring your things in and head up to your old room, Gary, and I will be in the lab."

"Right. Thanks, gramps."

As Professor Oak headed back inside, Gary sighed, silently thanking his grandfather for coming out just in time. He would've been mortified if his grandfather had seen him fall face first on the pavement for no reason, and even more so if he'd caught him doing something inappropriate with Ash. He cough, opening the trunk to take out the various bags he and Ash had packed.

"C'mon—I'll show you where we're staying."

"Are we gonna be in the same room?"

The thought had never occurred to Gary that the two could possibly be sharing a room. His face flushed a bright red, trying to mentally push away the pictures forming in his mind.

"Damnit, Oak, keep your mind outta the gutter!"

He coughed again, hauling two bags up the front steps and into the house. "Do you want a separate room? I'm sure gramps has one open for you."

Ash closed the trunk after he had taken out the final two bags, hastily running up the driveway to catch up to Gary. "Well, I don't know," he replied as Gary showed him in. "Up the stairs and to the right. We'll put you in Misty's old room, which is right down the hall from mine."

"Gary, I…" Ash started, but stopped. He trudged up the stairs, trailing behind Gary with his head down. "I can't ask him that. He let me sleep with him last night, and I'd be too much trouble asking him to let me do it again." His head drooped even lower as he stared at his feet. With every step they went up the stairs, he just became more and more upset.

"But…" he thought, a tear dripping down his cheek, falling off his chin and soaking into the carpet, "I'm so scared of being alone."

"Is something wrong, Ash?"

Ash looked up, the single tear stain dried up. Gary stood at the door, waiting for Ash's reply as Ash stood at the top of the stares, looking dumbfounded at Gary. "No, it's alright."

"You were crying."

"No I wasn't. My eye is watery. I didn't blink."

"Bullshit," Gary thought, but he just shrugged. "Whatever."

He opened the door and went inside, setting his stuff down in the room before poking his head out again and pointing down the hall. "Misty's old room is down that way on the left. You should be able to recognize it."

Ash just nodded and continued up the last stair, setting a steady pace to make it down the hall to his room.

He stopped by Gary's door just as he was about to close it.

"Actually…" he said, just as Gary was closing his door. The brunette stopped, opening it again, staring Ash square in the face.

"I'm really scared…"

"Scared of what?"

"Everything. Being alone. Being in the dark. Feeling like no one is around to comfort me," he stifled another cry, his shoulders shaking.

"Idiot," Gary said, pulling Ash's head into his chest. That comment really hurt him, as tears began forming in his eyes. But Gary wasn't done there.

"You should've told me you wanted to sleep in the room with me. I wouldn't have cared. In fact," he said, cupping Ash's chin in his hand, bringing it up to look at him. Ash's watery eyes shined a look of hope on his face. Gary gave him a small peck on the lips, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

"So does that mean…"

"Yup," he replied, patting the other boy on the back. "C'mon in. I'm gonna tell gramps goodnight before heading to bed though, so I'll be back in a second."

"Let me go with you," Ash said.

"No one's stopping you."

--

Downstairs in the lab, Professor Oak was just finishing up for the evening. On his last inspection before bed, he looked more puzzled than happy that he could potentially be sleeping in a few minutes. Then again, with what was happening in the situation, he could be up all night.

He heard footsteps clanking down the stairs and returned to his work. He wasn't surprised when he looked out of the corning of his eye to see Ash and Gary standing behind him as he inspected the Pokemon in front of him.

"Heading to bed, boys?" he asked, opening its mouth and taking a peek inside.

"Yeah, almost," Gary responded, looking over his grandfather's shoulder. "Whatcha doin'?"

Professor Oak sighed. "This Charmander's tail is getting smaller by the minute. And I can't seem to find what the problem is! It started earlier today, and I gave it some medicine and let it rest outside its Pokeball, and I thought it would be fine! But now it seems to have gotten even worse."

"Did you run any tests on it?"

"Yes, but it came up blank! I don't know what is wrong."

Ash approached the Charmander as it let out a weak "Char…". He examined it from the front as Gary and Professor Oak continued their conversation. He whispered to it, the strange hissing note barely audible for the other two to hear.

"Maybe you should just let it rest more overnight?"

"I think so too. I think a night's rest will do it a lot of good."

Oak pulled off his gloves and set them on the opposite table, taking his checklist and checking off the last item.

"Wait," Ash said, continuing to speak to the Charmander. It let out some very weak replies, coughing as it did.

"Gary, what is he doing?"

"Gramps, you're never gonna believe this, but…"

"It says," Ash translated, interrupting Gary, "it's caught a rare Pokevirus. It can be cured, but if it's not caught in the early stages of its development, it won't make it."

"That's impossible," Oak laughed. "I've checked every Pokevirus known to man and none of the symptoms matched any of them."

"Well maybe it's something new," Ash said, whispering to the Charmander again. "It says it can be cured by finding a Passho Berry and mixing it with some Antidote."

"Ash, I'm not sure what you're getting at…"

"Gramps, he might be on to something."

"I'm just a little skeptical, that's all…" Oak responded, once again scratching his chin. "And Passho Berries are hard to find! I do have one, but it took me a lot to get that."

"How about we wait then? Say, an hour? If its condition gets any worse…"

"Then I'll make the medicine immediately. In the meantime, I think you boys should get some sleep."

Ash, looking defeated, whispered something to the Charmander. It let out another weak cry and nodded, the boy smiling and patting it on the head. He then turned back to Gary as they began their accent back up the stairs. He took one last look down the stairs and into the Charmander's round green eyes. There was so much pain in them that you didn't have to be able to talk to Pokemon to know something was wrong.

"He'll be okay," Gary said, giving at a reassuring hand on his shoulder. Although he could see it too. But he had faith that whatever the problem, his grandfather would solve it. "Gramps knows what he's doing. Everything will be fine."

They were at the top of the stairs to the basement, as Ash gave one more nod to Charmander and turned toward the hallway that led to the second floor, closing the door behind him. "Gary, you know something is wrong with him too."

"I know, Ash," Gary replied, "but my grandfather is…well…he's very passionate about his field work and sometimes he gets a bit carried away that he won't listen to reason."

"So he could see it too?"

"Probably."

"Then why won't he do anything?"

"Because…he's…stubborn like that sometimes."

It was a quiet walk up the remaining flight of stairs as they trudged up to Gary's room. He opened the door and let Ash in first, closing it behind him. The two stood in their flannel pajamas, Gary now stepping ahead of Ash as he tried to climb into bed. His plan to fall asleep right away was to no avail, as Ash snuck behind him and pulled him into a hug from behind.

"Stubborn like you, right?"

Gary just laughed, lifting Ash's hands from around his waist as he placed a gentle kiss on his knuckles. The slightest touch of Gary's lips on his skin set his body on fire, as he felt that tingle that travelled down his spine whenever Gary made him feel happy.

Gary then turned around and took Ash's hand into his, dragging him on top of the older boy as they fell into the bed. Gary gave Ash a sly grin as his face inched forward, the darker-haired boy almost too stunned to move. "I have to do all the work, don't I?" he chuckled, his head tilting forward to meet Ash's lips in a kiss.

Ash just moaned, closing his eyes slowly to allow the kiss to really take effect as he wrapped his arms around Gary's neck.

Of course, maybe closing his eyes wasn't such a good idea...

Someone was kissing him. Harshly, biting at his lip, demanding entrance to his mouth. But Ash didn't want it. He squirmed in every possible direction, moving furiously as he tried to escape his attacker.

But he couldn't get him off. Whoever was on top of him was much stronger, and held him down with more force the more he tried to crawl away. He felt the tears run down his face, as he heard the familiar voice to stop squirming, or else. So he just closed his eyes as tight as he could, stopping the tears from flowing and hoping that soon it would be over.

The kiss had stopped. Now he was being shaken, as a fresh tear had made its way down his cheek. A voice called out to him rather loudly, the abrupt motions and loud commotion sending Ash out of his flashback and into the real world.

"Oh thank God," Gary said, pulling him in for a hug. "Ash, what's wrong?"

"I…I…." he stuttered, at a loss for words. What was wrong? And what the hell had just happened? "I don't know," he whimpered, his head burrowing into Gary's pajamas as he continued to cry. "I don't know."

"Shhhhh, it's okay," Gary cooed, rubbing Ash's back with one hand and his hair with the other. "You're alright. Nothing is going to hurt you."

His head lifted up from Gary's chest, realizing he had just ruined an intimate moment between the two. "Gary, I…"

"Shhhh," he said, stroking his hair softly, whispering into his ear. "Let's just get some sleep, okay? We can talk in the morning."

Ash nodded as he felt the two fall backwards into the bed from their sitting position, Gary pulling the comforter over the two. He still had Ash in his arms, ruffling his hair and massaging his back in a very soothing manner. His eyes began to close once again as he nodded off, falling into a deep and peaceful sleep.

--

The morning came earlier than the two had expected. It almost felt as if they had laid their heads down on the pillow, closed their eyes, and then immediately opened them.

Of course, when they did immediately open them, Professor Oak was sitting at the edge of their bed, snoring in a chair. Gary sat up first, not letting go of Ash as he looked curiously at his grandfather. He leant forward even more and gave him a light tap on the shoulder.

"Gramps," he said, his voice quieter than usual, having just woken up. "Hey Gramps…"

"Hmm?" he mumbled. As the old man began to woke up, he stretched, his arms making an obscenely loud cracking noise. He frowned, grumbling underneath his breath about, "being too old for this" and "damn chairs being so damn uncomfortable."

"Professor Oak?" Ash asked, "Are you alright."

"Better than ever!" he said somewhat truthfully. His bones ached and he was a bit grumpy, but otherwise he was in high spirits. Odd for a morning like this, when he had slept so uncomfortably the night before. Add in the fact that he wasn't a morning person and it was just downright strange.

"And forgive me, Ash," he said, a tone of seriousness in his voice. "I should have listened to you. You were right—that Charmander was very sick. It is a new kind of Pokevirus that has never been discovered before. And very tricky to cure once in its later stages. The problem is, you cannot spot any viral activity until a good while after it's developed. But by then, it could be too late! But I made him the medicine using what you had told me and almost instantly it was cured!"

Ash just stared blankly at Professor Oak. He was definitely happy that the Charmander was feeling better, but the stubborn, individualistic person he had met last night almost seemed to fade away.

"I owe you an apology, Ash," Professor Oak said, "so I came up and decided to wait until you two were awake! I must've fallen asleep though…"

"Gramps, its too early for any of this. C'mon Ash," he said, draping an arm around Ash's neck and pulling him down, "lets go back to sleep."

"Not yet! I need to discuss with Ash how he did that!"

"Did what?" Gary groaned, burying his head into his pillow. Ash slipped out from under Gary's arm and scooted to the edge of the bed, eager to listen to what Professor Oak had to say.

"How he successfully communicated with the Charmander, of course!" he responded. "I've never seen anyone do that in my whole life! It was absolutely amazing!"

"Gramps," Gary groaned again, stuffing the pillow against his head. Professor Oak leaned over toward Ash and whispered to him.

"You my boy are a miracle worker. Who knows what possibilities—what heights in Pokemon research we could achieve with your ability! The world could successfully know how to tend to a Pokemons needs, scientists could learn more about Pokemon in general—what they eat, how they live, how they came to be!" his voice grew louder with each sentence. "We could learn how to cure ailments! Become better communicators with Pokemon and the world! You could be the missing link between Pokemon and humans!"

"Shut up, gramps!"

"Oh, quit your whining, Gary!" Oak snapped. "Really, talk about being an ungrateful grandson!"

Gary just grumbled, his head burying further into his pillow. "Anyway, Ash, I was wondering if you'd like to go on a trip with me today to the fields just south of Pallet Town. There has been a lot of strange activity going on there, and I've been waiting for the perfect opportunity to go investigate."

Gary's ears perked up from underneath his pillow. The fields were absolutely stunning this time of year, and Gary hadn't gotten a chance to see them since his last visit.

"Gramps, I want to go!"

Professor Oak glared at his grandson. "I should just keep you behind for rudely interrupting the conversation Ash and I were having."

"But gramps…." Gary whined. His lower lip quivered in a way that when Ash looked, he couldn't help but laugh. There was no way Gary could pull that off the way Ash did, since his lip made him look as if he was going to hurt somebody, while Ash always looked as if he were truly upset.

Gary just responded to Ash's random chuckling by pulling him by the neck so his head was just under his chin, rubbing his hair wildly giving him a noogie. "Why you little…"

"Stop it, Gary! That hurts!"

"Laugh at me, will you?"

"Boys, settle down!" Oak barked, the two boys stopping to look at him. "Be ready in ten minutes or neither of you are going!"

And with that, the two scrambled out of bed, hurrying to get ready so they wouldn't get left behind.

--

The two were just ready to leave, their backpacks slung over their shoulders and their clothes changed. They headed down the stairs to hear a very startled Professor Oak talking to someone. "No, no, there is no one else here," they heard him say.

"The tip they gave us stated the two boys were headed towards Pallet Town at this address."

"You must be talking nonsense," Professor Oak said, waving it off. "No one lives here but the Pokemon and me."

"Mind if we search your house?"

"You most certainly may not! I like to keep things to myself, thank you very much, and with a warrant you are not allowed here."

"Gary, what's going on?" Ash whispered, only to have a finger placed at his mouth. "Don't say a word. C'mon, let's go to the observatory on the roof…"

"What? You have a warrant!"

"Yes, we do. Now if you don't mind…"

"Oh just hush up and do your damn search already. There is nothing to hide here anyway. But you better be quiet—I've got some work to do upstairs and if you disturb me you're out of here!"

As Ash and Gary stopped at the railing of the stairs, they heard Professor Oak's angry footsteps coming toward them, hearing them soften as they reached the top. Oak let out a relieved sigh. He glanced at the two boys, wondering what they could be running from that there were people searching for them.

"No matter," Oak whispered aloud. There is not much time. Quickly, boys, follow me to the observatory."

--

Oak closed the door to the observatory behind him, locking it. He then stepped to the side and paced about, deep in thought as he pondered what to do next.

"Gramps, what's going on?"

"Someone from the Cerulean Circus is looking for you two."

They both froze. Their fears heightened even more as they heard more voices coming to the observatory, feet trudging up the stairs.

"The old man seems suspicious. I think he went this way."

Oak gasped, quickening his pace as he walked to the edge of the platform and looked out the glass windows.

"They've surrounded the building!" Professor Oak whispered, the men in the next room carefully monitoring his conversation for as much information as possible. "You're going to have to sneak out another way."

"Gramps, have you finally gone senile?" Gary murmured under his breath rather harshly. "If they're surrounding the place…"

"There is a Pokeball sitting on the desk to my left. In it is your ticket to escape."

"Ticket to escape? Gramps, you make no sense!"

"Press the button to open up the roof, and then you'll be able to leave. In the Pokeball is the Charizard…"

"Charizard!" Gary gasped. "But that thing isn't tamed yet! It's uncontrollable behavior could get us killed!"

"Ash," Oak turned to the darker-haired boy, staring into his eyes. The look of utmost seriousness stood in his eyes. "I'm relying on your skills as a communicator to help yourself and my grandson escape safely. There is a very slim margin for error, and if not done right, both of you could get caught."

Ash nodded. "I understand."

"Now hurry," Oak said, walking back over to the door. "I'll distract them for as long as possible."

He opened the door and closed it, brightening his voice. "What did I tell you—nothing."

Ash ran over to the desk and immediately saw the Pokeball. No idea on how to open one, he threw it on the ground, letting it bounce to open itself up. In a great blast of light, a giant rawr rang threw the air.

"My God," Gary thought to himself. "That Charizard…" he gulped, staring into its fiery eyes. It looked outraged at whoever had disturbed its slumber.

"What was that?" they heard one of the voices from outside. Ash climbed atop the Charizard, which immediately started thrashing as soon as Ash had strattled it, almost ready for take-off.

"Get off!"

"Please, you need to help us!"

"Help you with what? You humans are all the same—dirty, disgusting, vile creatures! You torture us and make us your slaves!"

"Please, I'm begging you! If you help us, we'll set you free!"

"How can I trust a human, one of them who has enslaved us for personal enjoyment?"

Its thrashing and rawring increased, the rapid movements almost throwing Ash off. There was now a loud banging noise on the door. "Whoever is in there, open up!"

"Gary, open the roof!"

"Are you kidding me? They'll see and come up and get us if we do that!"

"Open up in there!"

"Please, Charizard! You need to help us!"

"Why should I help you? I don't even know why I am talking to a filthy human! Since when could you speak with us anyway?"

A soft mewl was heard in the air. The boys and the Pokemon turned their heads to try to see where the mystical noise was coming from.

"Help them. He is chosen."

The Charizard's eyes grew wide at the soothing noise, stopping its thrashing. It lowered its head in respect, nodding to itself as the voice repeated itself.

"He is chosen."

"Climb on. Don't bother opening the roof."

"Gary, just get on!"

"Are you crazy?!" he screamed, the banging on the door becoming louder. The door shuttered and shook as if it were going to break. "I need to open the roof…"

"No time!" Ash said, offering his hand. "Just get on now!"

Gary looked to the door and then back at Ash's hand, then to the glass room overhead. No doubt this could end up killing them both.

"Trust me, Gary!"

He took one last look to the door. He could always stay behind and tell Ash to go on ahead. Then at least he'd be free.

"Damnit…" Gary said, taking Ash's hand. No way in hell was he being left behind. "You better be right about this."

Ash lifted him up and the two secured themselves, holding each other close. The door flew open as four men barged in. Charizard let out a loud rawr as he jumped into the air, beginning their accent into the sky. As they clutched onto each other, their eyes clenched shut as they neared the glass ceiling ahead. Closer and closer they got, their grip on the other tightening as the Charizard approached the glass. 3…2…1…

Tiny pieces shattered everywhere, glistening in the sun as Charizard let out another mighty rawr. It flew higher and higher into the sky as Ash and Gary opened their eyes, Professor Oak becoming a small speck on the floor of the observatory covered in glass.

"Go!" he shouted. "Go!"

TBC

17 pages…

I had a lot to squeeze into this chapter. I tried to avoid rushing, but it might sound that way anyway. Oh well.

There are only two chapters left. The names of them are "Some Things They Fight" and "Something Takes A Part Of Me". Why am I telling you this? Because you're not getting a chapter preview.

Don't hurt me! I can promise one thing that every yaoi fan likes that will be in the next chapter.

SMUT.

It will be in the next chapter. Promise. Pinky swear. Cross my heart and hope to die. I will not stick a needle in my eye though. It sounds painful. Maybe I'll just poke my thumb really likely with that needle. Or re-pierce my ears. I think they're closing again.

So, with that, I bid you ado for now. It's freakin' late. I'm tired as hell. Read and review, over and out! -Nibzo