Hi all,

sorry about the long-ish wait again. It's hard to write during the last year of school when I have so much work to do. I try my best to write whenever I can, but for now the update pattern is pretty much going to be nonexistent. Sorry!

Enjoy

Chapter 7

The rest of the week passed quickly for the group of friends. They spent the majority of their time together which was unusual, but most of the time they would be talking about their plans or if they had progressed at all with their powers. Despite how often they talked and the vast number of different plans suggested, by the end of the week the group still hadn't thought of a solid plan that didn't have a gaping hole in it that would prevent it from working. Even if everyone agreed to her uprising, they would they need to find a way out and would need to kill innocent guards, although Paul frequently argued that they were not innocent at all. The most glaring problem they faced, however, was what they would do once they got out. None of them knew where they were from or where they could go, and they would have no money and little possessions. The Arena was all any of them had ever known, so it would be most difficult for them to live on the outside. They were stuck.

Spending the week amongst her friends meant that May had seen very little of Ash again. She had barely spoken to him at all besides the notes they still wrote for one another, and she was beginning to miss his presence deeply. Despite countless invites to their group meetings, Ash had failed to attend a single one since the first. May figured he had decided he wanted to stick with his own group of friends, and while that hurt her slightly it was okay to her. The problem was that it was hurting their movement. People needed to see them together, so they could slowly begin to do more and more with each other in front of other people so they would become accustomed to fire and water types interacting.

The following weekend came quickly, marking for May that it had been 9 days since she and Ash had spoken in person. Of course, it was difficult since nobody knew that they talked yet, but it was not impossible. May had been by the lake a few times that week still and never seen him there, though she had seen him leaving to go there when he knew she had already come back. No, Ash had no excuse to not see her. Something was most definitely wrong. She didn't want to force contact, but pretty soon she would have to corner him somehow to ask about it, as he ignored the question when she asked via the notes.

For now though, she and Dawn sat together in Dawn's room. May rarely visited her friend's room, even though it was on the same corridor as Drew's. Dawn spent most of her time hanging around in the social areas of The Arena with Paul, but he had fallen sick the night before and was taken to the infirmary with a slight fever. Though she herself knew it was nothing to worry about, May could see that her friend had gotten little sleep.

"I gotta ask, May…" her friend suddenly started, looking up from a magazine she'd been flipping through. "I'm really confused about you and Drew. In fact, I'm confused about the entire situation. I didn't wanna bring it up incase it was touchy but I really have to know."

May felt herself tense at the mention of her antics this week. Suddenly, she and Drew were seen holding hands wherever they went together, kissing occasionally, and constantly whispering to one another, followed by giggles. With it all being so out of the blue, all of her friends were extremely confused, and she couldn't blame then. Only May and Drew really knew what was going on.

"Yes, I knew it was only a matter of time before you brought that up…"

"You told me you had feelings for Ash last week... So what changed?"

Dawn could see her friend's mood turn sour at the mention of Ash's name. Looking down, May seemed almost embarrassed, but also extremely hurt.

"Nothing has changed. I still have feelings for him, though… he has been avoiding me this week. I've hardly seen him at all, and we haven't spoken. I'm starting to think he doesn't want to talk to me anymore… I just wish I knew why."

Dawn had a lot of sympathy for her friend, and she couldn't answer why he would be avoiding her, but in the back of her mind an idea pushed its way in. The idea almost made her smirk. Ash had begun to avoid her just as May and Drew became a thing, and Dawn just couldn't get it out of her mind that it might not be a coincidence.

"I'm sure there's an explanation for it, May, and I'm sure he'll come around. I tell you what… let me talk to him for you. I'll do it tonight."

"Oh, no… You don't have to do that. I don't want to bother him."

"Trust me, it won't bother him. I'm going to do it, so don't argue with me." Dawn smiled. "Now… the Drew thing?"

May sighed. "Yeah… It started last week when I overheard quite a few people talking about Ash and I. They were accusing us of being romantically involved, and calling it disgusting. I couldn't have people believing that we were a couple, they weren't ready to hear that kind of thing… It would really have damaged the whole movement, and so… Drew and I, it's an act… and I feel horrible for it because he's told me he loves me. We talked about it just yesterday, and he told me it was okay because he could push the fact that it's an act from his mind and pretend he was really with me, but eventually it'll have to end and then what? It's stopped the rumours, sure, but with what consequences? I don't want to break Drew, I really care for him as my best friend."

"That is a tough situation you've gotten into. I would suggest if Drew is okay with it, he will blame himself once it's over for ever letting himself get that into it. On the other hand, I think he'll be fine, honestly. He's such a strong person. So, based on those guesses, I'd say you should keep the act up a little longer. Though, the longer Ash avoids you, the longer you'll need to keep it up. You need people to at least accept Ash as your friend before you can let go of Drew, or those rumours will start again. I can't imagine how hard this is for the both of you, but I know that you're doing it for all of us."

"You're right. Ash avoiding me is the biggest problem we face right now. We don't necessarily need a solid plan just yet, but people changing the attitudes they've had their whole lives will take a long time, and our time is limited."

Dawn nodded. "I'll speak to him later and sort this out."

The conversation quickly switched back to their usual topics and within half an hour May was leaving, saying she needed to shower before they all went to practice their powers. Dawn teased May about Ash, should look as nice as possible for him in case they were to see him. May had grumbled at the remarks but did not argue and left her friend alone. With only an hour until dinner, Dawn quickly left too in search of Ash.

After searching several rooms including the pool, the small social area and the gym, she finally spotted Ash as she passed by the window of the larger social area she often visited. He was sitting beside Misty on the sofa, his face twisting slightly as she lay her head on his chest with a smug look on her face. Dawn sighed and entered, and was relieved to see the room was relatively quiet.

"Ash," she called across. He turned to face her, his face expressing his annoyance. She ignored him and called again, trying not to look at Misty who was now glaring coldly. "I need to talk to you, please."

After a deep sigh and a grumble, Ash rose from the sofa, letting Misty flop against the sofa. He didn't say anything to his red-headed friend before he left, which seemed to annoy her, but Dawn said nothing. Once Ash reached her she grabbed his wrist and dragged him roughly outside, ignoring his protests. Misty had taken to staring at the pair angrily through the large window.

"What is it, then?" he asked impatiently. Dawn crossed her arms in frustration at his tone and his face eased a little as he calmed. "Sorry."

"It's about May."

Ash's face was instantly sour again.

"I need to know why you're avoiding her. I know there must be some good reason for it, and I want you to know that you can tell me anything and I won't even think about telling her."

"Why do you need to know? You just admitted that you know it's for a good reason so why not leave it at that?"

"Because this can't carry on, Ash. Think about it. How are the two of you going to work your way up to being friends in front of everyone if you're never even seen together, or if the two of you become distant because of this? We all need the two of you to get along."

Ash sighed heavily, though not in annoyance this time around. "Okay," he conceded. "It's about Drew." At that, Dawn's eyes lit up and she dropped her head so he wouldn't see. It was short lived. "I know that she doesn't like him that way so I can only assume he's being forceful with her and forcing her into it and she's doing nothing to stop it. She must be doing it just to please him. As a friend it makes me concerned, but even if that weren't the case it would upset me simply because I don't like Drew much."

Dawn's excitement at his first statement had quickly disappeared as she learned he had been mad because he thought that May was simply playing Drew's bitch. Still, it was easily cured, and so it wasn't all bad.

"Ash, it's an act."

Ash squinted down at Dawn, obviously not understanding her. "What do you mean?"

"She told me herself that she had heard rumours being spread about you and her and it was starting to stir up a hatred, and so she needed the rumour to be cleared. The only way she could do that for sure was to make people think she was already with someone else, and Drew agreed. It's an act. They don't act like that around our group when they don't need to keep the act up, and I noticed."

Dawn tried her best to read Ash's emotions from his face, but she couldn't tell what he was feeling, though she swore she saw a flicker of relief for a second before he hid it again

"Oh… Well, now I feel like an idiot."

"Don't, I won't tell her. Tell her you needed time to think about the whole situation or something. Come sit with us at dinner today. We need the two of you around each other some more."

"Alright. See you then."

With that, Dawn let Ash return to Misty, whose suspicious eyes hadn't left them the entire time they talked. After watching him sit by her and ignore her poking questions for a moment, she turned and headed back to her room, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. She was beginning to understand Ash's feelings, and she thought she saw something there that she liked. Now all she had to do was work to find out if she was right or not.

Returning to May, this time in her room instead, Dawn entered without knocking. May sat at her desk, fingering the pile of notes she'd received from Ash in the several weeks she'd known him, but whirled around when she heard her friend enter.

"Well?" she asked before Dawn had even closed the door. Dawn laughed.

"Don't worry May, it'll be okay now. I spoke to him."

"And what was it?"

"He was mad about you and Drew." She sat on the brunette's bed casually, spreading herself across is. May's heart skipped a beat.

"What do you mean?"

Grinning at the hope in May's tone, she almost felt bad that she had to tell her it wasn't what she thought. "He was mad because he knew you didn't like Drew so he thought he'd forced you into it or something."

"Oh."

May fell silent, disappointed in the real reason he was mad. She had hoped it would be because he was jealous, but she had known that was a crazy idea. All the same, she was more than pleased that he would start letting her see him again.

"I think you should tell him how you feel."

May choked at Dawn's sudden, unexpected comment. "What? No! I don't even love him, they're just silly feelings, and there's no chance he likes me too… then it would just be awkward and it would ruin our friendship."

"So you plan to just hold this in forever?"

"I'm sure it won't last forever…" May muttered, but she herself was doubting her sentence before it even left her lips. The connection she felt with Ash was stronger than any she'd felt with anyone, and she couldn't help but want to spend more and more time with him. She couldn't imagine herself staying by anyone else's side, even if her feelings weren't quite love yet. They just clicked together and got along so well as soon as they met. He made her feel safe, he watched out for her, and he cared for her, or at least acted as if he did.

"Perhaps not, but what about when Misty takes him?"

May's eyes shot up to her friend in fear. "What?"

"I know she likes him. What if she confesses and they get together? What then? You will just be suffering."

"I know…" May trailed off. "I'm not telling him, though. There's too much at risk. We need to get along if we want our plan to work. I can't risk ruining our friendship like that. I can't."

Dawn sighed for her friend. She knew what May was saying was correct, and that she had no proof at all that Ash liked her as more than a close friend. Before she could give her friend any more advice, there was something she had to do.

"I promise you I'll try to find out how he feels. I won't force you to say anything, but it would be best for you, and I just want to see you happy."

May smiled sadly. "And I just want to see him happy, Dawn. Really, that's all I want. If that's with Misty, then so be it."

Dawn sighed once again, but no more was said on the subject, and the girls returned to talking about other things, though both of their minds were on Ash.

That night, May left her room to meet her friends in the social area to practice their powers again. She'd left late after debating whether or not to make an appearance at all. Her conversation with Dawn had left her feeling low, and when she had looked in the mirror it was painfully obvious that she had spent the last hour crying. Still, with puffy eyes and messed up hair, she left.

She stood before the door, psyching herself up, before pushing the door open in one quick swoop, and was met by the gaze of Ash. His face twisted in concern, but he had no chance to speak before Drew had glided over and took her face in his hands.

"Are you alright, May? What's wrong sweetheart?"

"I'm fine, it's nothing." She pulled away from his hands gently and they dropped back to his side, while his expression turned to stone. May was sorry, but she knew he knew he didn't have to keep the act up here. I'm sorry, Drew, but I can't tell you the problem when it's standing right next to you.

Wiping her eyes with her sleeve roughly, she closed the door behind her. An awkward silence had fallen now. Looking around, May sighed at the fact that only 3 other people were present.

"Where's Dawn?"

"She said she had some business to attend to," Drew answered. "In those words."

His answered immediately raised suspicions in her mind. After their conversation earlier, May couldn't shake the idea that her 'business' was something related to her and Ash. She could only pray that her friend wasn't getting herself too involved or giving her away.

"Sounds like Dawn." She sighed. "Alright… Hi, Ash."

She hadn't made eye contact with him yet. She was almost afraid to.

"Hi, May. I thought I'd come to see what I can do… to help and all."

"Thanks… we need all the help we can get."

Pushing her worries from her mind, May forced herself to think about the task at hand. Despite spending the majority of the week together, most of the time the group had been speaking about how they would gather information needed or how they would start things off. It had been days and days since May had seen any of her friends try to use any powers.

"I have something to show you, May," Serena spoke up, seemingly excited. With May watching her she quickly spread her arms apart. She bent her elbows and brought her hands together until they were inches apart in front of her and pulled her arms back, keeping her hands in their position. May noticed that between her hands an energy had grown and now it was spiralling around her, an invisible wind lifting her hair. Then, as Serena pulled back, the wind grew stronger like a small tornado around her, glowing with a hint of pink. Serena pushed her arms forward suddenly, sending the wind forward in a blast that almost knocked her off her feet.

"That was incredible, Serena!" Drew was saying before May managed to steady herself and react. Serena's face softened from the determined look she'd worn to a sheepish smile. May was stunned.

"Was that wind?"

"Yeah, it's a move my Sylveon knows called Fairy Wind. While I was battling Dawn the other day out on the field I watched her perform it and it hit me, somehow I just knew I'd be able to do that if I tried. So I spoke to her, and she helped me, and it took a few days but I managed to finally do it, though that's the strongest one I've managed so far."

"That was amazing, Serena."

Serena blushed. "Thank you."

Drew sighed heavily. "I wish I could offer something, but all my attempts have been fruitless. I still can't figure out how to do it."

"It's alright, Drew." May placed her hand on his arm. "You'll figure it out, it might just take some time. I mean, it's not like you've ever had to worry about this before. Just be patient."

He brightened up at her kind words, smiling down at her and putting an arm around her shoulder. "Thanks, May. I'll keep trying for you."

May smiled up at him genuinely. Having convinced herself that she had no chance with Ash, she didn't mind that he was watching, and assumed he would have no objection either now that Dawn had reassured him that she wasn't doing it against her will. She continued to look up at Drew who had turned to speak to Serena, but May couldn't hear what she was saying. Looking up at him, a crazy thought came to her mind. He really loves me… And Ash doesn't… Perhaps if I were to stay like this with him I'd learn to love him and he'd look after me.

May almost convinced herself that it was true, but once she finally turned away from gazing up at Drew and smiling, her eyes met Ash's, and the stab of pain in her chest brought her back to reality. Her face fell once again.

A floor below them, Dawn found the person she had been looking for. Ash's friends often hung around outside until late, though he was rarely seen with them. Seeing that he wasn't with them tonight either, Dawn stepped out into the dark, smiling in their direction. Misty's smile back was forced but Dawn didn't mind. Reaching their group, she stood in the cold, her hands tucked into her pockets.

"Could I have a word, Brock?"

The rock type looked up at her from his position on the grass. Brock had spoken to Dawn a few times beforehand and knew who she was, so while the request confused him a little, it didn't concern him. Dawn knew that she liked Brock and hi friendly, goofy personality. He lifted himself of the grass and followed her back inside the building, where she turned a corner and stopped, leaning against a wall.

"Alright, what's up?" he asked.

"Actually, this is about Ash."

Brock raised an eyebrow. "Ash? What about him?"

"I wanted to ask about his feelings."

"Feelings?"

"Yeah, romantic feelings. You know."

"Romantic feelings? Ash?" Brock gave a hearty laugh. "I doubt he even knows what they are. I don't think I can think of a time Ash has expressed any interest in anyone, even people that are interested in him. It may be because he just isn't interested, but he has always seemed more interested in other things. I don't think he knows what romantic feelings are yet."

Well that's not promising, although Ash may just be good at hiding feelings. Of course he would have to if they were for May, even if I am clutching at false hope here.

"Why are you asking, anyway?" Brock spoke again. Dawn looked away.

"For a friend that's interested."

"Ah," Brock said, rubbing the back of his head with his hand and grimacing. Dawn looked up at him, a sudden wave of panic hitting her.

"What?"

"Well, you'll have to apologise to your friend, they're gonna have a hard time…" Dawn's heart dropped as Brock paused and stuck his hands into his pockets. "Misty is his girlfriend."

May returned to her room exhausted. She'd managed to recreate the fireballs she'd fired at Misty, but it drained her of her energy. Tired from the crying and the powers, her eyes were heavy and she dragged herself into her room. Sitting on her bed, she pulled Blaziken's pokeball out from her pocket and pressed the button to enlarge it, then released him. Appearing before her, he glanced down at his trainer. Noticing her miserable mood he sat on the floor by her bed and purred slightly when she stroked his head gently. With one hand stroking Blaziken, she rested her head in the other, her elbow propped up on her knee. Lost in her thoughts, she failed to notice the door open. Blaziken tensed up under her.

"May?"

"Hi, Ash," she replied, still staring ahead. She was barely fazed by his appearance. She had almost expected him to pay her a visit now that they were speaking again. A large part of her wished he hadn't.

"Are you okay?" He asked, staying by the door. May flinched, realising he felt awkward. After days of not speaking, Ash was struggling to look at her. Neither of them knew what to say.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"It doesn't seem that way to me," he said, still not managing to look at her. "What is it?"

May sighed. "I couldn't possibly tell you. I'm sorry. I wish I could."

Looking up at him to see if he would return her glance, she noticed her answer had hurt him. He almost seemed angry.

"Look," he started, anger hiding in his tone," I'm sorry I avoided you this week, but something's going on to do with what I was annoyed about. I can tell that's what you're upset about, so why won't you tell me? Aren't we supposed to be friends?"

His words were becoming angrier. May's lip began to tremble. "I… I really don't think that's your business."

Ash turned to face her suddenly, catching her off guard. He took a step towards her and Blaziken shifted suspiciously.

"Not my business? Really, May? After the way I saw him speak to you before, and you hid behind me as soon as he appeared? I'm not allowed to be concerned?"

He was raising his voice now. With May's emotions stirring up inside of her, it was almost too much to handle. Her hands had fallen into her lap, and now they were clenched, her nails digging into the palm of her hand more and more with every word he spoke. A lump had caught in her throat, and her eyes were threatening to well up. She took a shaky breath.

"Well?" he demanded.

"What do you want me to say?!" she snapped, her hands pressing down into her lap angrily. She tried her best not to shake. "You ignored me for a week, you bastard! You ignored me!"

Stunned by her outburst, Ash fell silent, the anger disappearing from his face. He sighed. Her head had fallen, and he noticed her hands pressing angrily into her legs.

"I'm sorry, May. But… something's wrong, right?" he asked her calmly.

"Yeah," she answered, moving her hands to release them. "Something's wrong."

He said nothing, not wanting to push her to tell him. After a moment she was calm again.

"So, this is your Blaziken?" he spoke up, desperately wanting to drag her attention from whatever was bothering her so badly.

May's lip curled into a small smile as he began to ask her about Blaziken, about his attacks and his history, and eventually sat by her desk. They continued to talk, about Pokemon and each other's friends, their interests and their hopes. They talked for hours into the early hours of the morning, and the for the entire time, May forgot about everything but the conversation she was having, and once he left fell asleep easily with a smile on her face.