Hi everyone! I am so sorry for not updating in forever! This summer I was working at an overnight camp, and I both hated and loved the experience. I met many wonderful people, but my superiors were awful to work with. Anyway, I am back and can work on my story! Yay! I also have a blog which can be found here . I also have a tumblr which is here . And I might have set up a twitter for you guys! It can be found here karirinasan. Or you can email me at karirinasan . If you have any questions for me, or requests for a one shot, or a song fic you can contact me in any of these ways! I will do a fic for A:TLA, A:LOK, Fairy Tail, Soul Eater, and of course Pokemon. You can choose the universe, shipping, and/or song/topic. As a apology for not writing for so long I have also written an One Shot Song Fic for you all here s/9613435/1/Embers. Hope you enjoy it! So contact me, follow me, and don't forget to review this chapter! The next Chapter should be shorter so it should be up sooner!

~Chapter 6: Heat Wave~

"I hate you so much right now."

"I know."

"I hate you almost as much as I hate his frikin' damn dress I'm in."

"You look very pretty. Did you know you swear when you're upset?"

I stopped fussing with outfit and glared up at N. "Yeah, so what? I'm allowed to."

"Nothing, it was just an observation."

I began to fuss with my dress again. A few days ago we had arrived in Hoenn, during one of the biggest heat waves it had had in many years. We were now in Slateport City, walking around and trying to stay cool. After we had checked into our hotel room N had refused to leave until I had agreed to wear the dress he had picked out for me. It was a white halter top dress that billowed out at the waist. Normally I wouldn't have minded such a request, but I was angry at the reason behind it. Before we had left Petalburg City, I had convinced N to let me where my trademark shorts and tank top. Because of the heat he agreed, but once we were in Slateport he became livid and had ushered me into the nearest hotel. I knew that he was hiding something from me, and I was hurt. Ever since the day after our night we went to the club, N had been acting strange. His sudden change in plans without telling me, the quick glance he would make around crowd when we were in a new area, his always tense body, ready to move and drag me to some tourist attraction at a moment notice. He was also being very protective of me. He didn't want me walking around by myself and wouldn't let me lift a finger to do anything. At first it was sweet, but now it was overbearing.

"It feels like there's a fucking heatmor breathing down my neck."

N rolled his eyes at me, a look he had picked up from me that I saved for Cheren when he acted pompous. "You are being very dramatic, but I do agree with you. Let us go into that building to cool down." N led us into a brightly colored building that had the title "Hyper Rank Contests" written in curly script over the doorway. A blast of cold air hit us and I felt my body relax.

The lobby of the building was very plush, colorful cushioned chairs lined the walls. Above some of these chairs were beautiful hand drawn pictures of many different Pokémon native to the region. There were some tables set up with machines on them. Three or four people surrounded these machines and chatted as the machines whirled and buzzed. The rest of the people in the room were sitting next to their Pokémon, pampering them and cooing complements, or signing up to register in a contest at the front desk.

"Touko," N said. I turned to look at him and found his eyes fixated on the register counter. "Are contest the same as musicals?"

"Meh, they're similar. Both strive to showcase a Pokémon's talent, but contests also showcase a trainer's ability." N nodded and I could see the gears turning in his head. "N, no."

"But Touko!" N said whining slightly.

"No. No, no, no, no! Contests aren't my thing. Besides, I've never been in one."

"But you have participated in musicals."

"Yeah, cuz Bianca made me! I won't do it!" N tore his eyes away from the desk, and stared at me imploringly. His emerald eyes shone with disappointment. I felt like I had just punched a deerling in the face. "Fine. I'll do it." I stomped over to the desk to sign up. There was only one other person, a boy in a funny white hat who looked to be slightly younger than me, at the desk, but he seemed to be waiting for someone.

"Hello!" the receptionist chirped happily. "Would you like to participate in a contest?" I gave her a withering look and she fidgeted slightly. "May I see your ribbon case, please?"

My look of anger disappeared from my face. "My what?"

"Your ribbon case, so I can verify your standing as a coordinator. This is a Hyper Rank contest arena. WE can't just let anyone in, or they'll make a fool of themselves." The receptionist smirked at my clear lack of understanding. "I'll also need to see your trainer card."

"Forget it." I said turning away. I began to look around for N when I felt someone staring intently at me. I turned around and noticed the boy at the registration desk regarding me critically. "What?" I asked him annoyed.

"You're wearing my dress."

"What…"

"And you're Touko, Touko White. I read an interview you did in Poké-Weekly after participating in Pokémon Musicals."

"…This is my dress."

The boy ignored me and turned to talk to the receptionist. "This girl's Pokémon have participated in countless Pokémon Musicals in the Unova region. I think she is qualified to participate in a competition here."

The receptionist looked annoyed and opened her mouth to say something when the boy flashed her a ribbon case and trainer card. Her eyes widened and immediately talking animatedly to me, asking which type of contest I wished to participate in with which one of my Pokémon.

"That was such a waste of time!" I complained as we left the contest hall.

"You are only saying that because you did not win." N said as he regarded his travel guide. "Oh! There is an open market not too far from here!"

"Yes, but it was! It was boring! I don't see the appeal in it! I got bored during the middle of it, and I was a participant!"

"For someone who was bored, you appeared to be very competitive. I think we are going the right way…"

"Well, yeah. I'm competitive by nature. I aim to win. Not come in frekin' second!"

"Do not whine Dear, it is not becoming of you. You are also swearing again. Oh, there it is." N gestured to an area that was packed with people, but not in the busy shopper kind of way. It was more like they were gathering to hear someone better. This caught my attention, it seemed too familiar. As we approached I felt a sickening feeling of nostalgia crash over me. I looked up at N and saw that he had come to the same realization as me.

"-you claim that you love them, that they are your 'partners', yet you punish them daily! How can you express love for a Pokémon when you force them to fight! They are better off without us! We are inhibiting them, and they all resent us for it! Wouldn't you? If you truly cared for your Pokémon, you would let them go. You would let them make their own decisions, put themselves first, let them unleash their true potential! They cannot do that with humans! We inhibit them! We make them lazy and pampered, then force them to fight until they pass out! We are the monsters!" A red headed man in a chain mail outfit was standing on an overturned crate, preaching to the crowd.

Anger and hatred bubbled up inside of me. I had fought to hard and long to hear a speech like this again. I had sacrificed so much to eliminate the people who pushed for "Pokémon Equality". They had torn apart so many people's lives, and I could not let it happen here. Beside me N also shook with anger, his face had darkened, and his hands twitched. Before either of us could do anything, an Oran berry hit the Team Plasma Grunt on his jaw.

"Don't lisin' to 'im! He's just spewin a load of shit!" a gruff female voice said. I turned and say a girl wearing a blue bandanna and matching blue outfit standing on a crate as well. Sitting on the crate at her feet was a boy wearing a white hat, an Oran berry was in his hand, ready to throw at a moment's notice. "My father is a Pokémon professor an' I've worked with Pokémon all my life an' am extremely close with 'em! We all rely on each other to grow stronger!"

The boy stood up and brushed off his pants and tossed the berry to the girl. "It's true. I was once separated from my Mimi, and after we were reunited, she was able to become this!" As he spoke, the boy threw a Pokéball into the air and a Milotic came forth out of it. The regal Pokémon gazed at the crowed and cooed and wrapped itself lovingly around its trainer.

The grunt looked uneasy and began to scan the crowd who, moments before, had been nodding in sad agreement to what he was saying. Now he saw a fierce determination and pride in their eyes. Then he laid eyes on us. His eyes widened in recognition and the color drained from his face. Before we could do anything, the grunt leapt from his self-made pedestal and disappeared into the crowd.

"Damn, how could someone in chain mail blend in so easily?" I muttered as I craned my neck looking for the grunt.

"It is of no matter. I shall inform Agent Looker of all we have witnessed today." N quickly pulled out his XTransceiver and began to talk to Agent Looker about what we had just witnessed.

I felt someone tap my shoulder and I turned to find the boy in the white hat at my shoulder. "Hello," he said. "How did your contest go? You seemed mad, but that could have been from the idiot talking about 'Pokémon liberation.'"

"It was a bit of both," I said smirking at the boy. "I came in second in the contest, and I've dealt with enough people like him for a lifetime."

The boy looked at me apologetically. "I heard about what happened in Unova last year, but I thought that that organization was disbanded."

"It was, though its leader was never captured. He escaped."

The boy nodded his head, as if he knew all too well about leaders of evil organizations escaping the law in order to get the punishment they deserved. "My name is Ruby by the way. And this is Sapphire," he said gesturing towards the girl.

"Well, you know who I am, this is N," I said gesturing to N who had just finished talking with Agent Looker.

"It is very nice to meet you, Ruby and Sapphire. Thank you for helping Touko participate in the Pokémon contest. She does need to be humbled sometimes." N reached out and shook Ruby's hand.

Sapphire ears perked up at the mention of my name. "You mean THE Touko? I'm so honored ta' meet ya'! Our friends in Kanto have mentioned ya' and I was hopein' to meet ya'!"

"Who do you know in Kanto?"

"I've known Green my whole life! His grandpa and my Papa have worked together forever!"

As we talked, N placed a hand on my shoulder. I shrugged it off and began to look around. "It's still pretty hot out, is there a place we can go to cool down?"

"I know just the place," Ruby said grinning. "But you have to do something for me first…"

"Come on girls! What's taking so long?"

"I don't understand why I hafta do this to!"

"Stop complaining Saph, and get out here! You too Touko!"

Sapphire and I stepped out of the changing stalls, onto the beach. As it turned out, I had been wearing Ruby's dress earlier, or at least his design. As I learned, Ruby was an up and coming fashion designer as well as a top coordinator. I had also learned that he needed two people to try out his newest swimsuit design. Sapphire and I were matching blue and red swimsuits. Hers had a slightly more athletic design, while mine was defiantly more sexy, but you could tell that they came from the same collections. Ruby gave us a critical look over before giving us a sign of approval.

N came over and glanced at my outfit. "You look splendid Touko." He tried to kiss my forehead but I ducked under him.

"Let's get in the water guys! It's so hot!" I said leading the way. I refused to look back at N, knowing that he would have a hurt look in his eyes. We spent the rest of the day cooling off on the beach and talking with Sapphire and Ruby.

As the beach began to clear up, Ruby insisted that we all stay and watch the sunset because "it's sooooo pretty!" N and I humored the younger boy and sat down to watch the sun sink over the ocean horizon.

As we watched, I noticed that Ruby's hand slowly slid over Sapphire's so that it was gently resting on it. I smiled as I notice the back of Sapphire's neck turn red, and knew that they liked each other. All day they had teased each other in a very flirty way, but never gave any indication that they were a couple. I felt an arm wrap around me and N rest his chin on my shoulder. I slowly pushed away and saw N look at me sadly. All day I had done my best to avoid him and not touch him. "It's too hot," I said lamely, but he nodded and just took my hand in his.

"Did I do something to upset you, Touko?" N asked leaning against the bathroom doorframe. As soon as we had returned from the beach, I had rushed into the bathroom to wash up, and to escape from N. he had waited for me patiently, but eventually even his patience had run out.

"Jesus N, I'm only in a towel!"

"It is covering more of your body than the bathing suit you were wearing earlier did."

"…touché."

"You avoided my question."

I sighed and leaned against the sink. "Yes and no. It wasn't anything you did today, precisely. You've just been acting so weird lately, so controlling. I feel like you're hiding something from me, and I can't figure out what. I feel like you can't trust me and I hate that. I feel like I don't know you."

N approached me and placed a hand under my chin, raising my head so I looked him in the eyes. "I am sorry that I have made you feel this way Touko. I did not realize that my actions were so obvious to you. I am hiding something from you, and I will tell you what it is. Just not here, this town is not as safe as I thought it was. As soon as we are in a safe location, I will answer any and every question you have for me. Once we are away from Team Plasma, I will tell you. I just cannot be at ease when Ghetsis could be around, when I know that he is still angry at you and wishes to harm you. Please, just humor me for a little longer."

"I'm not afraid of Ghetsis. I can protect myself. But I will humor you, but just until we are away from them. But I'm not as patient as you N, I'll need answers soon."

"And you shall have them." N said as he kissed my nose.

On the outskirts of Slateport City, a very hot and tired man in chain mail dialed a number into his XTransceiver. "I saw them today. They're here, in Slateport. Do you want me to do anything?"

"No," a voice replied. "Just observe them for now. Keep tabs on them, but don't expose yourself."