A/N: Hey guys! Sorry about the wait. I've been trying to post this for about two days now, but FFN would never let me log in! I kept getting 503 Service Error messages. But here this is, finally!
As for upcoming projects, I'm planning to get a Steven/May Valentine's fic done by next weekend. I can't guarantee that one for sure, though, because I'm not sure of this next week's schedule yet. Also, SamKo and I are currently spitballing ideas for a collaborative Steven/May piece, so you'll hopefully see that sometime in the future.
In the meantime, enjoy!
May was not going to win this race.
Brendan had challenged her to a race back to Mauville, and May had stupidly accepted the challenge. But the boy had gotten a head start on her, and now she was barely out of Petalburg and already out of breath.
Halfway through the Petalburg woods, she jogged down to a stop, stumbling a bit as her momentum tried to pull her feet forward. She practically doubled over, trying to hold her breath in for a few seconds before letting it out in a feeble attempt to stop herself from panting. She forced herself to straighten her back and lift her arms over her head, knowing that it would open up her lungs and allow more air in.
"Hey, May!"
May whirled around, thinking, Dear Arceus, I hope they didn't see me practically hyperventilating.
In the back of her mind, she had sort of hoped it was Steven, pursuing her to ask if he could come with her. It wasn't, though, of course; Steven didn't even know where she was going or which direction she had turned once she got out of the city.
It was Wally and his uncle.
"Oh, hey, Wally," she said to the boy in surprise as they jogged up to her. She smiled at his uncle, who nodded to her in response.
"Hi, May!" Wally exclaimed happily, grinning. She eyed him up and down. His normally sickly-white skin had a bit of a flush to it, and he wasn't as slumped over as usual. Even his olive-green hair had more of a shine to it. He certainly looked much more healthy than the last time she had seen him.
"You look great," she commented with a smile, and Wally laughed excitedly.
"I know, right?" He seemed so happy- so unlike the nervous young boy that May had helped to catch a Pokemon and then battled in Mauville City. She couldn't help but feel a bit proud- both of Wally and of herself. "I've been seeing a new doctor in Verdanturf for treatment, and it's actually working! They think I might actually be healthy enough to travel in a few months!"
May smiled nervously at the boy, but her eyes shot over to his uncle. He was frowning, a crease between his eyebrows, but didn't correct his nephew.
"That's awesome, Wally," May smoothed out, tearing her eyes away from the man.
"Oh, and guess what? Ralts evolved into a Kirlia!" Wally's smile was so big that May had to wonder if it hurt his face.
A real grin tugged at May's lips. "That's great! You must be a really good trainer, then. Because Ralts themselves don't learn many powerful offensive moves, it isn't always easy to evolve one- even if you were out training every day and battling all the time, like me. I'm impressed."
Wally blushed, but his smile remained, albeit a bit smaller now. "Thanks," he mumbled shyly, then perked up once more. "Hey, do you want to have a battle?"
Right now? May frowned, glancing behind her and farther into the woods. Bug Pokemon echoed eerily in the darkness. It was already the afternoon, and it got dark even earlier in the woods. She needed to get through them and catch up with Brendan before he started assuming that she gave up completely.
"I would, Wally," she began, and bit her lip as his face fell, "But I have to catch up with Brendan, my r-" she caught herself; Wally had wanted to be her rival, so it might be a bit rude of her to reveal to him that she already had one. "-Professor Birch's son," she concluded, slapping a smile on her face.
"Oh," Wally said, looking dejected.
"We won't keep you, then," Wally's uncle interjected. It was the first time that May had heard him speak since they got there. Wally looked up at the man in surprise and hurt. "We just wanted to give you this," he finished, pulling a disk out of his pocket and handing it out to May.
She took it slowly, examining it. It was a TM- or maybe an HM? Wally's uncle had given her rock smash before…
"It contains the move surf," he clarified, and May's eyes widened. Surf? But that was so hard to come across!
"Oh, Arceus, thank you so much!" she exclaimed, and immediately blushed. "I mean, uh. Thank you, sir," she said more quietly.
The man chuckled. "No problem."
Wally was staying oddly silent. May noticed that his eyes were trained down on her left wrist, and when she looked down, she realized why. She quickly raised the arm with her Mega Bracelet and hid it behind her head, making it look as if she was rubbing her neck. Though she was proudly displaying the Bracelet for all to see, she was suddenly a bit nervous about it; Steven hadn't seemed all-too-sure about giving it to her, so what if she got him in trouble?
She knew one thing for sure, though. The second she got her hands on a Mega Stone, she wouldn't hesitate to use it.
May used her other hand to tuck the disk into her bag, making a mental note to check her Pokedex later to see which Pokemon could learn surf. Slowly, she glanced up at Wally's uncle in puzzlement. "But, um, why me, sir? Not that I'm ungrateful, or anything," she added quickly.
The man smiled. "Just think of it as a thank-you for helping Wally, and for being such a good friend to him. Part of the reason why he's getting better is directly linked to how happy he's been lately, and that's because of you."
Wally's face turned as red as a tomato. "Uncle-"
"I'm glad I could help," she said honestly, the sentiment making her slightly uncomfortable. "And really, thank you so much. It was great seeing you both again…" Once again, she glanced behind her.
Wally's uncle got the hint. "You too, May. Now, come on, Wally, we'd better be getting back to your mom's house before it gets dark."
All traces of Wally's happiness from earlier were gone, and May felt bad, even as he sighed, "Yes, Uncle."
May said her farewells, promising Wally that they could have a battle on their next encounter. Wally left with a grin on his face once more, and May felt warm.
"No way," May whispered to herself. Without even looking, she returned her still-wet-from-surfing Linoone back to its Pokeball.
The creature in front of her made a noise. "No way," she said again.
The Latias, floating several feet off the ground in front of her, threw its head back and cried, "Shwaaaaaa!"
May looked all around her. The beach was empty. Nobody would ever believe this.
She took a hesitant step forward, and was surprised when the legendary Pokemon didn't move back. She raised a shaking hand up slowly, and stumbled back when the Pokemon pushed its head against the extended limb forcefully.
"Shwaaaa!" Latias cried again, jerking its head over its shoulder. May could suddenly see the worry in its eyes, and she frowned.
"Is… something wrong?" she asked hesitantly. She had never attempted to communicate with a Pokemon that wasn't hers; when you had a strong connection with them, it was slightly easier to get the gist of what they meant, but this was a whole different story. She must have been right, though, for the Pokemon bobbed its head eagerly and cried out again. When it again motioned over its shoulder, May asked, "Do you want me to come with you?"
The Pokemon cried out and flew even closer to her, surprising May and almost knocking her backwards. She took that as a yes, and when Latias dipped lower to the ground, she climbed on its back.
Flying on Latios' back was almost indescribable. May had never experienced anything like it before; she had never even flown on a Pokemon, let alone a legendary that flew at sonic speeds and dipped close enough to the water that May could feel the sea breeze hitting her face.
They landed on an island, and Latias quickly dropped May to the ground before flying farther down into a dense forest, ignoring May's calls to stop.
"Great," she mumbled. Now I'm all alone on an island in the middle of nowhere. The eerie silence quickly got to her; there weren't even the calls of bird Pokemon or the chattering of bug Pokemon, like there would be in normal forests. May let Linoone back out of its Pokeball simply so she didn't feel so alone.
The ferret Pokemon stuck close to her heels as she approached the woods. She had to crouch down to read a deteriorating wooden sign, half-hidden in moss.
Those whose memories fade seek to carve them in their hearts.
May frowned. That was grim. This island was getting creepier by the minute.
She and Linoone quickly made their way through the forest, which wasn't quite as dense as it had looked from the outside. It was weird, going through woods and not being ambushed by wild Pokemon or trainers. The utter lack of noise coming from around them sent shivers down May's spine, so she hummed loudly to herself- to the point that Linoone had started to give her weird looks.
They came to a clearing, and May stopped in her tracks. She had been expecting to see Latias there- she hadn't, however, expected to see Latios.
She approached the legendary slowly, and it cried out- it didn't sound like Latias' cry, though. It sounded pained, and May's heart instantly went out to the creature. Was it hurt? Was this why Latias had called her here?
Why me, though?
"Hey, kid! You can't be here!"
The voice startled May so bad that it sent shocks through her body as she jumped. She quickly pivoted on one heel, and came face-to-face with several people- all dressed in the Team Magma uniform.
A short girl in front of her, seemingly the one who had spoken, sighed. Her face didn't fall, exactly; she didn't really seem to be showing much emotion at all. If anything, she looked annoyed. "Great. It's you."
A thicker man next to her frowned. "Hey, you're the kid who thwarted Leader Maxie's plans at Mt. Chimney!"
Behind her, Latios cried out again, and May retreated a few steps, placing herself protectively between them and the Pokemon. Linoone stood back on its hind feet and growled. By the blank looks the Magma members gave the ferret Pokemon, its intimidation methods weren't very effective.
"I don't know what you're planning to do here," she said slowly, dangerously, even though she had a pretty good idea, "but you're not laying a hand on this Pokemon."
The girl- who had purple pigtails under her Magma hoodie- rolled her eyes. "You don't know when to shut your mouth, do you?"
The man, despite being much larger than this tiny girl, still seemed to look to her for authority. "Do you want me to take care of her, Courtney?" he asked. His tone held respect, and May had to wonder if the girl was an executive or something.
The girl- Courtney- seemed to size up May before sighing again and replying, "No, I've got it."
May braced herself. When the man stepped back and one of the silent grunts from behind them stepped forward next to Courtney, May reached for another Pokeball. Linoone looked at her and she nodded. The small Pokemon ran out several feet onto the makeshift battlefield. May threw her Pokeball, calling out Beautifly as well.
The Magma members sent out a Koffing and Camerupt. When the male grunt laughed at May's choice of Pokemon, she narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth. Barely giving them the time to retreat back to a safe spot off the battlefield, she called out, "Beautifly, use gust! Linoone, use fury swipes!"
The opposers cried out in unison for their Pokemon to dodge the attacks, which was futile, as Beautifly's attack was certain to hit both. They both stumbled back, but the wind didn't seem to faze them.
Only Koffing managed to dodge Linoone's fury swipes. When the ferret Pokemon failed to hit it before it rose higher in the air, it seemed to move its attention to the other one. Camerupt grunted in pain as Linoone landed a direct hit against its side.
After a bout of yelling from its trainer and somewhat recovering from the attack, Camerupt shot out a flame blast. Beautifly flew up higher desperately in an attempt to avoid the flames, calling out its name. Linoone used its speed to its advantage and quickly darted around the field, confusing the Camerupt, whose eyes had been following it and now just looked dazed. It ended up with Linoone somehow coming up from beneath Koffing and crunching right into its side without even having to be ordered to.
May hoped desperately that the grunt wouldn't have Koffing use self-destruct or explosion; if he did, she wasn't sure her Pokemon could handle it. She let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding as he called out for Koffing to use sludge.
Despite May's quick orders to dodge it, Linoone was caught off-guard, still looking proud from its speedy attack, and took the hit directly, crying out loudly and stumbling around before falling to the ground.
"No!" May cried, reaching a hand out as if she could reach the Pokemon. Beautifly swooped lower over its teammate, crying out. When Camerupt took a step closer to them, the butterfly Pokemon flew up once more. May clenched one fist and used the fingers of the other hand to dig into her thigh. "Linoone, please get up!" Still, the ferret Pokemon did not react. Courtney smirked- the first real sign of emotion that May had seen on her face.
"Camerupt, finish off the other one with lava plume," the girl called, returning to her bored facade.
"Beautifly, dodge it!" May cried, but the butterfly Pokemon was only able to get so high before the flame licked at its wings, forcing it to dip lower. "Use stun spore!" she yelled feebly, knowing that it was almost over.
The Camerupt was so concentrated on trying to avoid Beautifly's attack that it didn't see when Linoone rose off the ground- until it was too late. May stared in shock as the ferret Pokemon threw itself against the Camerupt, sinking its teeth in. Courtney was yelling out in outrage, and a few seconds later, the Camerupt fainted.
"Yes!" May exclaimed, grinning. Linoone had been playing dead- a dirty trick, but one common among the species. May felt a bit ashamed that she herself hadn't recognized that it was happening, though.
Courtney angrily called her Pokemon back. "This isn't over yet," she sneered. She nodded at her partner.
The grunt nodded back before yelling, "Koffing, use smog!"
May didn't understand the big deal until the purple fog filled the air. Her eyes widened, and she took a step back. "Hold your breath!" she shouted to her Pokemon.
When battling in an official arena, poison-type moves weren't an issue. The indoor environments were controlled enough to be able to alter the levels of air toxicity, so the trainers giving the orders were in no immediate danger. Even the Pokemon involved in battle were given special medicine and checkups after the battle, just to make sure that no lasting damage had been done. When trainer battles occurred outside and somebody used a move that poisoned the air, the trainers were usually far back enough to not be in the danger zone. Now, though, May was far closer to the battling Pokemon than she had ever been before. She had known she had been putting herself in danger, but she didn't realize it would get to this extent.
No humane trainer would ever do something to put another human being's life in danger.
She cupped a hand over her mouth, and through it, called out, "Beautifly, use venoshock!"
The Magma members had already gotten mouth-coverings from somewhere and placed them over their faces. They planned this, then, May thought. They knew that they'd be using smog, and that it could hurt me.
Beautifly swooped down for the attack, and the Koffing, too slow to dodge the move, fell from it. May expected more anger, as she had just won, but the grunt simply called back his Pokemon and the team began to retreat.
"It's not worth it," Courtney said to them. She looked back at May. "You're not worth it."
May couldn't do anything as they all called out flying Pokemon and took to the air on the back of them. She was too concerned with checking up on her Pokemon. The purple fog was still in the air, and every breath of it that she was forced to take in burned her throat all the way down to her lungs. With her hands shaking, she called Linoone and Beautifly back into their Pokeballs.
"Shwaaaa!" cried the Pokemon behind May, reminding her that it was there. She turned around. Her vision was starting to swim.
Latios swooped down and nudged at her bag. It didn't seemed to be fazed from the poison at all. Staring at the legendary in confusion, May grabbed the bag and reached in. Right at the top was an empty Pokeball. Could that possible mean...?
She lifted the Pokeball, and Latios touched its nose to the sensor on the front. In a flash of red light, it disappeared inside. The ball glowed red and shook once before settling with a clicking nose.
May widened her eyes. She had just... caught Latios. Or Latios had caught itself. Whatever-
May coughed as a result of holding her breath, forcing her to take in more of the poisoned air. She dropped to the ground and started rooting through her bag for an Antidote. Tears stung behind her eyes.
She finally found a vial at the bottom of her bag and didn't even think before ripping the cork out and throwing back the entire thing. She had lost consciousness by the time it hit her throat.
