On The Run

Conan's mind was under pressure and panicked but a plan quickly formed in his mind as they usually did. The plan would ensure Daphne stayed out of prison, although like most of the ideas that Conan came up with it was not without its risks. However they didn't have a choice. Murder was still murder, even when done by accident. The term 'manslaughter' did nothing to keep a teenager like Daphne out of the slammer and Conan couldn't let her end up there. He would do everything in his power to keep her free.

Conan eyed Rick's body warily. He was as still as stone and probably as cold as one too. Conan had never seen a dead body before and he was taking it rather well considering. The same could not be said for his comrades, however. Daphne was still in a state of daze and Conan wasn't sure that she was still with him, mentally. Amina was freaking out: rushing around the room with cries of 'ohmygod' and 'Ican'tbelieveit!'. As Daphne didn't look like she was going to snap out of it any time soon, Conan grabbed Amina and ran his plan by her quickly. She seemed to approve but it was hard to tell since her eyes continuously darted around the room as if she was afraid the police would jump on them at any second. Conan turned his attention back to his partner and he noticed the blood gushing out of her hand.

"Daphne? You're bleeding quite heavily. Do you have a first aid kit?" asked Conan softly. Slowly, Daphne lifted her head and looked at Conan. Her brown eyes were filled with tears that refused to fall and her face was paler than Conan had ever seen it. It took Daphne a while to realise what Conan had asked her and even longer to think of the answer. At last she nodded.

"Upstairs in the bathroom," she replied in a small voice. Conan gently nudged her in the direction she pointed him in and was soon patching up her hand, wiping the blood away with disinfectant and covering the wound with plasters. Although the disinfectant stung horribly, Daphne didn't flinch. She found it hard to feel – for lack of a better word – real. Daphne felt as if everything was an awful nightmare and she'd wake up any moment now.

She didn't wake up and Conan asked her if she had any spare Pokéballs in the house. She did and Conan rushed to retrieve them. He had left Amina downstairs to keep a look out in the event anyone decided to make a visit to the Davies's household. They prayed that didn't happen. The three of them gathered in the hallway by the front door and discussed what was to happen next. Daphne simply stared blankly at them as if she wasn't a part of the group. Amina wanted to know if Daphne was mentally unhinged now that she'd killed her dad. The look Conan shot her could have withered a plant.

"I'm not crazy. I'm in shock," defended Daphne firmly.

"Well we'd kind of prefer you to not be in shock because we need you to be alert for the plan to work," said Amina wisely. Daphne promised she'd try for the sakes of her friends. A small part of her understood the lengths they were going to for her and she was touched that they cared so much about her. They left the house. Conan had left the curtains open in the living room because he reasoned that the people on Lavender Town would be used to seeing Rick passed out with a bottle in his hand. It would be a couple of days before they realised something was wrong but by that time he, Daphne and Amina would hopefully be long gone.

They hurried back to the Pokémon Centre where they collected their things and checked out of their room. Nurse Joy was surprised to see them in such a rush to leave but didn't question it: after all, they'd paid for the rest of the week and hadn't exactly asked for a refund. What with the low amount of visitors to the town recently, the Pokémon Centre needed all the funds it could get yet Nurse Joy couldn't escape the feeling of guilt at robbing innocent teenagers' money. News quickly spread that the three were leaving and the locals heaved a great sigh of relief – they had suspected them as being thieves but had no proof to back them up. Now they were going, things would return to normal and the residents of Lavender Town could stop clutching their bags so tightly whenever they saw a person younger than twenty walk past.

The next place they went was to The Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House. Well, technically they didn't go there; they snuck around the back and to the open window above the play pen where the abandoned Pokémon were. The Gloom, Sandshrew, Pinsir and Abra were still there, interacting quietly with each other. None of them held out much hope of them ever having trainers again. Who would want a Pokémon with a petal missing; with a scar; that only had one and a half horns or walked with a limp? Kids in today's world wanted only the best of the best Pokémon so they could have the strongest team and never lose a single battle. No-one wanted to own a reject, which was precisely why Conan had decided to take all of them.

They would need a team of Pokémon where they were going and it would be hard work catching some from the wild. Stealing them from another trainer would be too dangerous as ten to one they'd get caught within the first five minutes of holding them. Pokémon that no-one wanted weren't exactly going to be reported missing, were they? Conan and Daphne sidled up to the window and from there they could see the four Pokémon beneath them. Conan gave the signal and they threw two balls each at the Pokémon. The balls shook simultaneously three times before signalling that the Pokémon had been successfully caught and returning to the throwers.

"Someone's coming!" warned Amina – but it was too late. Kelsey bounded over to them and they only just had time to hide the Pokéballs. Kelsey smiled at Conan.

"So I was wondering if, you know, you're not doing anything later then maybe we can go out for dinner," she simpered, twisting a lock of hair around her finger in what she thought was a cutesy way. Conan thought of the best possible answer to get her off his back. He didn't want their cover to be blown by a cute but air-headed girl.

"Kelsey, I'm dating Daphne," he lied easily. Kelsey looked disbelieving, then surprised and then embarrassed. Her face turned as red as her clothes and Amina couldn't help thinking that at least she matched. Kelsey congratulated them both and made an excuse to 'leave them to it'. It had been a close shave. What if she had seen what they were up to and told someone? Or worse, told the police? Conan let out a sigh of relief once she was out of sight although a small part of him regretted that he couldn't have gone on a date with her. She was a stunning girl and he would have liked to have a chance at being her boyfriend. Daphne could see the hint of disappointment in her friend's eyes and put a hand on his shoulder awkwardly.

"She talks with her mouth full," informed Daphne. Conan pictured the dinner date he could have gone on with Kelsey and grinned. He wasn't going to tell Daphne that he thought Kelsey still looked beautiful with food spewing out of her mouth. He became conscious of the fact that they were running out of time and he urged Amina and Daphne to get going. He didn't want to miss their chance for escape. They walked as fast as they could without looking like they were in a rush to go anywhere until they were on Route 12. Conan and Daphne sprinted with Amina whizzing through the air close behind them. Fishermen stocked with many a Magikarp only had time to ask 'would you like to bat–' before they realised they were talking to thin air. The trio stopped for nothing and no-one. They were going so fast that they didn't notice they had missed their turning until they were fast approaching Route 13. They double backed on themselves until they caught a glimpse of Route 11 and headed up west in the direction of Vermilion City. It wasn't long before they arrived at their destination, huffing loudly but glad to be away from Lavender Town.

None of them wasted any time taking in the beautiful scenery the sea combined with the late afternoon sun provided. They made off towards the port located on the southern area of the city and were thankful to see the ship they wanted to board hadn't left the dock yet. In fact there were still people lining up to get on it. This worked even better with Conan's plan and he purposefully pushed his way through the middle of the line, rubbing up against a rather gorgeous girl who was hugging a Togepi and gazing at her reflection in a small hand-held mirror. Her burly boyfriend didn't seem to like Conan being so close to her and glared at the smaller boy menacingly, silently daring him to try anything. Conan backed off immediately, not wanting to start any trouble that would get him self noticed and returned to his friends who were now lining up at the end of the queue.

"Well?" asked Daphne, looking worried. Conan and Amina had brought her up to speed on the whole plan on their way there and now that she knew everything, she was nervous. Supposing they got caught? Or something went wrong? What if they were followed..? Conan gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry: I'm a pro," he said, showing off the S.S. Anne tickets. Amina applauded his great steal and Daphne, overcome with gratitude, threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. She couldn't believe what he was doing for her. It wasn't like he couldn't just abandon her and let her deal with the consequences by herself. Conan and Amina didn't even have to be involved with Daphne anymore. Anyone else would have handed her into the authorities without thinking twice about it. She asked them if they were sure about this. Conan opened his mouth to reply but Amina got in there first.

"Would you just shut up? We're a team which means we stick together no matter what! Jeez, I can't believe you forgot that already," she huffed. Daphne smiled and meekly apologised to the insulted Pokémon. The line surged forward suddenly and they were that much closer to escaping.

Once everyone was on the ship – with the exception of a certain girl and boy, whose tickets had mysteriously disappeared – Daphne, Conan and Amina boarded themselves up in their cabin and braced their selves for a long journey. They weren't even sure where they were going; just that it was far from Lavender Town and Rick's body. They had a bunk bed in their cabin and Daphne was lying on the top one whilst Conan was reclining on the bottom. Amina grew bored of no-one talking during the first five minutes of their travelling and rummaged through her trainers' bags until she found their Pokéballs. She released the four Pokémon and decided to get better acquainted with them. They were now a team, after all and would be together for a long time.

It was the middle of the night and the ship was still slicing through the water. All the other boarders had gone to sleep in their cabins but Conan, Daphne and Amina were still awake. Neither of them could sleep: the image of Rick's dead body prevented that from happening. Conan had climbed on to the top bunk with Daphne and Amina had followed him. They weren't saying anything: they were simply being comforted by the presence of the two friends they had been through so much with. None of them wanted to talk about what had happened although they all knew what they were each thinking about.

Amina had gotten on well with the other Pokémon when she spoke to them earlier, especially Scar the Sandshrew. Daphne had explained that Scar had received his namesake years ago when Daphne had accidently sliced his face with a screwdriver. She had burst into tears as soon as it happened but her mum had assured her that accidents happen and Scar hadn't been too badly hurt. The scar just never faded. She had abandoned him shortly after deciding that she wanted to join Team Rocket and had left it in the so called 'Reject House' the day she left home.

On the bottom bunk, Gloom, Scar, Pinsir and Abra were snoozing softly, blissfully unaware of the turmoil going through the minds of the three personas above them. They were just grateful they had trainers to care for them once more, after believing for so long they would never again know what it felt like to be owned. The ship rocked gently from side to side as it sailed through the sea, the moon and stars the only light for miles around. On the top bunk, Daphne silently reached for Conan's hand and squeezed it. Words couldn't describe how indebted she felt to have friends as good as him and Amina. Conan imagined he understood what Daphne was trying to tell him and smiled to himself. He cleared his throat suddenly.

"We're going to have to change our names." Amina gasped loudly.

"What? But I like my name!" she complained. It had taken her a fairly lengthy amount of time to come up with it and she didn't much like having to think of a new one. Conan explained to her that it would be dangerous for them to go around using their real names because if the authorities ever came to suspect their involvement in Rick Davies' death, it would be easy to track them down. How many other groups of two teenagers and a Gastly had the names Daphne, Amina and Conan? Seeing that Conan had a point, Amina relented although she still didn't like having to change her name.

"You could be Verity," suggested Daphne quietly. She had had a school friend named Verity who didn't mind telling anyone and everyone that it was Latin for 'truth' – and had of course turned out to be a pathological liar. Amina considered it, saying the name out loud over and over. It wasn't bad. She decided to stick with it for now – she could always change it later on, right? Conan rolled his eyes at Amina's – Verity's – speculation and simply announced that his name from that point on would be Connor. It was similar to Conan and rather simple: he didn't want to make a big fuss about it.

Daphne mulled over using her mum's name, 'Veronica'. Somehow, Daphne didn't think she was good enough for it. Her mum had been a good-hearted, kind woman who had loved Daphne even when she didn't deserve it. There was no way Daphne could live up to such a name: the expectations were set too high. Daphne was a horrid girl; she stole, she fought and she killed. Veronica wouldn't suit her at all.

"Ronnie." It wasn't Veronica but it was a small part of it and wasn't that exactly what she was: a small part of her mum? The ship bobbed up and down as it glided across the water and three brand new additions to the world rolled over in an attempt to sleep, cuddled up to their best friends. Connor, Ronnie and Verity would need all the sleep they could get for the life that awaited them once the ship arrived at its destination. They had had to give up their dream of working for Team Rocket as field agents after they had worked so hard for it – but perhaps it was for the best. This way, they had the knowledge, intuition and training to commit any crimes they desired and wouldn't be doing it for anyone but their selves. Their life wouldn't be easy but then, whose was? It would be difficult to keep up the charade of being someone they weren't but it would grow easier over time. Maybe one day they'd even forget who they used to be, when they were comfortable with the personalities they had chosen for themselves.

And maybe Swinubs would fly.

Note: The end :) lol, I can hear you screaming "noooooooooooo!" and "whyyyyyyyyyyy?". You'll be glad to know a sequel is being planned but it might not be out for a while...Hope you enjoyed this fic while it lasted! Your reviews/favs/alerts meant a lot to me, so thanks for liking what I write :3