HOLY CRAP, WHY AM I DOING THIS WHY WHY WHY?
You can't have a two-parter on your hands!
THIS IS A ONE SHOT! XC
But, alas, I have... a two-part chapter. I am so, so sorry. :C
I found this... little ficlet while I was organizing my files, and I just couldn't help myself...
So, my dear audience, if you cannot forgive me, then I understand.
Still Kicking Herself,
Rachel V.S. World
"…And last but not least, we have May from Littleroot, with her Plusle, Mimi!"
Mimi, ecstatic at her name finally being called, bounced on its two little feet around the stage, her paws lighting up with sparks from her electric pom-poms. May adjusted her skirt uncomfortably, trying to make it LOOK like it fit, at least. Her bright blue eyes scanned the crowd nervously, trying to find her two best friends in the sea of adoring fans.
Nothing. No white hat, no odd, bright green hair. She sighed unhappily and stepped forward towards the beckoning arm of the Contest MC, trying to ignore the screams of the crowd and the apprehensive stares of the other contestants.
"Where are they..?" May whispered to herself as she yanked up the Cheering Pokémon from the stage, setting her on her shoulder and striking a half-hearted pose.
"May from Littleroot, everyone!" The MC yelled into the mic, making the cheering grow impossibly louder. It was obvious that they wanted her to win. But, judging by the three pairs of holes she felt burning into her skull as she went and took her place on the stage, her current rivals didn't. May sighed in disappointment. Suddenly, she didn't really feel like competing at all.
Walking back to the dressing room when the MC dismissed them all, May let out a gasp as someone grabbed her arm, pulling her towards them. Shrugging her arm free, she turned to face the person, who was none other than Drew.
"What is it, Drew?" She snapped at him, "You here to threaten me again? 'Cause it's not going to work!"
"Plus!" Mimi squeaked at the Coordinator, sticking out its tongue. Yeah! What she said!
Drew replied with a piteous frown.
"I just wanted to wish you luck, that's all…" He glared at her protectively. "You are my rival. If I didn't have you, all of the Contests, all of my Ribbons, wouldn't have been a challenge at all." His frown was replaced with a confident smirk.
May glared at Drew, trying her best to keep her vision from turning red. All he wanted… was to rub it in my face! That asshole!Turning on her heels, she stalked down the hallway, stomping on her tennis shoes as she went.
"May!" Drew called out to the angry girl, "Wait!"
Ignoring him, May slammed her dressing room door behind her, cutting him off.
May grumbled through tightly gritted teeth as she yanked out the cushioned chair under her light bulb-bordered vanity a little too roughly. Sitting on it, May motioned for Mimi to sit on her lap.
The little Pokémon eyed her suspiciously, then with caution climbed up her long skirt and sat on her knee. As her Trainer petted her, Mimi thought about May's temper. She knew it all too well, and that it was only triggered by Drew or food. She also knew that when May was angry, she tended to not be so gentle when applying her Pokémon's costumes, causing them to be mentally scarred in the process. Mimi shivered, trying to keep certain memories from resurfacing.
May suddenly got up from the chair, sending the Pokémon flying to the floor. Zipping open the bag and rummaging through it, she cried "Ugh!" while throwing accessory after accessory from her bag. A toy microphone flew behind her, narrowly missing Mimi as she ducked.
"Where is that damned brush?" She fumed, tossing even more things behind her.
"Plusle!" Mimi squeaked as she dodged a Mudkip doll. This was getting out of hand! Quickly and stealthily, Mimi crawled towards May, and then unleashed her Volt Tackle on the unsuspecting girl. May collapsed to the floor like a doll, twitching and shaking.
"N-ngh…" She managed to moan. The Plusle climbed onto her chest, and looked directly into her sapphire eyes, which were dulled from the shock. Mimi gripped the Trainer's face with her stubby arms and squealed urgently. You need to CALM down!
May looked at the Plusle's black eyes, wondering why Mimi shocked her. Mimi squealed again, this time even more urgent. Finally, she understood. May sat up, groaning. "Okay…"
Steadying her shaking hands, she stiffly patted her Pokémon affectionately. "Alright, I'm calm now…"
May grinned, and laughed haughtily, looking at the now-messy room in embarrassment. "Heh…thanks Mimi, I really needed that."
Mimi snuggled against her neck appreciatively. She didn't care, as long as her Trainer wasn't on the warpath. May cradled the tiny Pokémon in her hands.
"I'm sorry, girl, I don't know what got over me."
"It's just that… Drew is such a jerk!" The fiery brunette griped, clenching her fist. "Pretending to be half-nice just to get to me!" Mimi squeaked as her cheeks crackled a little; expressing her Trainer's anger and irritation towards the dark-green haired young man.
It was true that Drew was being nicer than usual to her ever since that one particular Contest in Lilycove. Of course, May and Mimi knew that it was most likely another one of his schemes to trip her up, but…
May paused to think. Something seems a little off about it, though…
Shaking her head, May got up off the floor and started sifting through her Accessories again (this time much more calmly), pulling out the brush that she was looking for.
"Well, whatever." She said, pushing her musings into the back of her mind; "I'm not gonna let him get to me." Kneeling down, she began to stroke the cream-colored fur with the small brush.
Mimi sighed in content as she felt the gentle tug of the brush on her back. "Pluu…" she purred, closing her eyes.
"Well, you know what they say…" May muttered as she continued to brush Mimi's fur. Pausing to raise the brush high, she continued,
"The show must go on!"
"What do you MEAN we can't get in?" Brendan's voice boomed over the intermission crowd, "May is my best friend!"
"I'm sorry sir, but you don't have any tickets." The doorman said sincerely. Closing the door, he calmly uttered in a low voice, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
"Oh no, buster." Brendan growled sternly, stopping the door with his gloved hand. "We were told we had free admission, and…" He determinedly glared at the doorman, pointing a backwards thumb at the boy behind him,
"Me and Wally didn't travel all this way for nothing."
Wally shuffled nervously at the doorman's critical stare. He noticed the crowd had started to stare at him and Brendan and whispering to each other, which made him even more uncomfortable. Looking down at the ground and holding his Ralts close to him, he shyly whispered,
"He's telling the truth. We have traveled a long way for this, mister."
The doorman, who was now losing his patience with the duo, tried reasoning with the boy one last time. "Look kid, I don't want to have to get security to throw you out." He pushed Brendan's arm off the door.
"Leave, NOW."
"No, YOU look, Mr. Doorman." He said, shoving a threatening finger in front of the man's face, "Me and him NEED to get in there, one way or another, and we're not about have a mix-up get in our way. So why don't you just LET. US. IN."
"No." The doorman reached and pressed a button right next to the door. A big, burly man in a black T-shirt quickly came and snatched up the two boys by the collars. "You've had your chance to leave, but unfortunately, now I'll have to MAKE you."
"Hey!" Brendan struggled under the strong grip, while Wally just frozenly dangled, wide-eyed. "C'mon, we can work this out!"
"Not anymore. Escort them out, Hal." The doorman dismissed them with a wave.
"Wha-…? What kind of a name is "Hal" anyway? Let us go!" Brendan protested, kicking his feet. Hal smirked, sharp teeth gleaming in his mouth.
"Okay." He chuckled in a deep, baritone voice.
With enormous strength, he hurled them out into the street, sending the boys and the Pokémon rolling. Brendan moaned, wearily getting up, his body aching from the impact. After cracking his back, he helped Wally up, who was holding back tears.
"Wally… are you alright?" Brendan asked, placing a comforting arm on his shoulder. Wally closed his eyes, pushing the tears back while furrowing his brow in frustration and silent anger. "Wally, it's okay." Brendan squeezed the boy's shoulder. "I shouldn't have gotten us into this mess, anyway. It's my fault."
"…It's not...your fault." Wally muttered, an angry tone lining his voice. He opened his eyes, wiping away the wetness on his cheeks. Looking at his friend, the other boy was taken aback by the fire that filled his watery eyes.
Picking up his Ralts, whom had taken everything in silence, he walked slowly back to the Contest Hall.
"Wally, where are you going?" Brendan called out to him. Wally didn't even acknowledge him as he bravely trotted up the stairs and knocked on the door, clutching Ralts in his hands.
Yanking open the door in obvious irritation, the doorman scowled when he saw him. "What do you want?" He glared at the small boy, "Can't you two take a hint?"
Wally didn't answer him. Instead, he held up the Pokémon in front of the man's face, and yelled,
"Hypnosis!"
Brendan saw a flash of light, and watched in amazement as the man fell to the floor, snoring loudly. Wally stepped over his body, and motioned for Brendan to come in. Snapping back to reality, Brendan nodded in his direction and quickly scrambled towards the open door, being careful not to disturb the slumbering doorman.
"P! O! K! ACCENT… E!"
May bent over, her pom-poms on the floor, signaling Mimi for the big finish. "WHAT DOES THAT SPELL?"
Mimi cheered, doing a perfect flip onto her back, and then catapulted into the air, sending off sparks that burst in a rain of electric fireworks.
May then stood up, her arms outstretched, as Mimi landed gracefully on the top of her head. Illuminated by the shower of sparks that fell on the stage, May and Mimi struck a pose, while she shouted to the adoring crowd of fans.
"POKÉMON!"
There was a small silence, and then the noise exploded out of the room like a bomb. Everybody stood, cheering and clapping and throwing flowers, for they all were in awe of May's performance. Filled with happiness from winning over the audience, May looked around the overflowing auditorium, hoping that Brendan and Wally had seen the routine that she had practiced for months.
Suddenly, she spotted a flash of white in the sea of people. Bubbling with happiness, and not even bothering to listen to the MC and the other contestants stepping out and congratulating her for winning by a landslide, May jumped into the mob, pushing people aside until she saw Brendan and Wally; standing way in the back of the huge room.
"Brendan! Wally!" She screamed in delight, pulling both boys into a huge hug. "I'm so glad you could make it!"
"Well…" Brendan smirked as he pulled away from May's embrace, "It was all thanks to Wally that we did." May turned to the green-haired boy in front of her, giving him a questioning look.
"Hm..? Really?"
"Uh… I-..." He stuttered, playing with his shirt sleeve. "W-well, May, you see-…Guh!"
May had surprised Wally by giving him another big hug. Squeezing him tightly, she muttered, "Thank you so much, Wally!"
Wally didn't respond. Instead, he took to blushing intensely, a bright shade of pinkish-red instantly lighting up his pale face. Glancing over to Brendan, he noticed that the teen had given him a wink and a thumbs up. Whispering so that only Wally could hear, Brendan mouthed, "Way to go, tiger!"
Wally nervously pulled away from his friend's warm hug and gave her a shy smile, putting his hand on the backside of his neck. "Oh...Uh, really, it was nothing..."
Ignorant of the obvious awkward tension, May clapped her hands. "Anyway!" She voiced, getting them to attention, "Did you guys see my performance?"
"Yeah, we sure did!" Brendan high-fived her, "I liked it!"
"It was… pretty cool." Wally praised, "I especially liked the creativity with the cheerleader outfit. It fits you and Mimi perfectly."
May's eyes sparkled with joy. "You really think so?" She asked shyly, playing with her hair.
"YES." Both boys replied, which made her jump up and down in giddiness. Suddenly, Mimi burst out of the moving crowd, gasping and panting.
"SLE!" She angrily squeaked, her electric pom-poms fading. Finally… FOUND you all! Sheesh…
The three looked down at the poor Pokémon, surprised that she wasn't even there to begin with.
"You know…" Breaking the silence, Brendan remarked with a smile, "We should have a celebration!"
"…I think that we should." Wally agreed.
"…But where would we go?"
May thought for a little bit, tucking her thumb and forefinger under her chin. "Hmm…" The two boys turned in her direction, waiting expectantly. Wally noticed; with some relief; that the Contest fans had started to dissipate long ago, leaving the huge gymnasium almost empty.
"Ah! I know!" She snapped her fingers in realization, "Let's hang in my dressing room! My plane doesn't come in until tomorrow morning, and I think there might still be drinks and snacks!"
Brendan was quick to come up with a reply. "Ah…one question, though."
"Yes?"
"You wouldn't mind if Wally and I stayed the night… would you? Our boat is probably long gone by now, and we've run out of money, so…" Brendan shrugged his shoulders, "Me and him don't have a place to stay."
May gasped, "Of course! We haven't had a sleepover in AGES!" She smiled, along with her two best friends, who were relieved and happy that they didn't have to go to the Poke Center for the night. "Well, then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" She grabbed both their arms and hauled them out the door, dragging them hurriedly through the building; much to the dismay of Mimi, who ran after them, squealing in tired protest. "We'll have lots of stuff to do! My treat!"
We're going to have a fantastic night! May thought excitedly as ideas and plans ran through her head, her cheerleader's skirt flying as she ran ahead of the boys.
…Little did she know, however, of the presence of a certain dark-green haired boy watching in the shadows as the three friends entered the dressing room at the end of the hall. He slumped down to the floor, trying to work out the stirred up feelings that were developing inside.
"Damn it!" Drew slammed his fist on the floor, "I can't get it out of my head!"
He let out a sigh, thinking about what happened in Lilycove City, shuddering coldly. The fall evening air from the window beside him froze his breath, and he silently watched it turn into a transparent cloud and drift away, into the night.
Drew sat up and looked at the stars, hugging his shoulders and contemplating his rambling thoughts through the viewpoint of the small window. Ever since what happened, he had started to feel strange towards his rival. And no matter what he did, he couldn't stop thinking about her.
I've tried being nice to her... Am I just not trying hard enough?
Eventually, he had consulted his Absol; albeit accidentally; who had developed the ability to speak through to him telepathically, what he should do to resolve this matter.
(Flashback)
Drew walked out of the arena's stage filled with pride at winning yet another Ribbon, his Absol and Flygon trotting behind him while he made his way victoriously to the lobby outside. Sitting on one of the cushioned chairs and pocketing the shiny new Ribbon in his bag, his thoughts wandered yet again to the brown-haired optimistic girl that was his rival Coordinator.
Hmm… I wonder how she's doing? He thought as he summoned Flygon back into its Pokeball, Did she see the competition?
"Wait, no!" Drew put his head in his hands and shook it back and forth, trying to rid the invading girl from his brain. "I can't do this, she's my constant opponent!"
He shook his fist, a vein popping in his forehead. He growled lowly, and yelling out in frustration, he stood up, his body reacting to his growing irritation. "Argh, I hate her! It's just like her to do this; screwing me up so that I lose my focus! Gah!" Drew kicked over a fancy marble flowerpot in his anger, scattering roses and dirt all over the carpeted floor.
"Ouch!" Drew yowled in pain, clutching his stinging foot. Grumbling and defeated, he sat back down in the chair. His Absol, who was suddenly aware his Trainer was in pain, dashed over from his spot on the carpet and frowned, placing his white clawed paw on Drew's lap.
"I'm fine, Absol." He shoved the paw off of his leg and crossed his arms protectively over his chest. Absol's ruby eyes stared at the young man apprehensively. He knew he was hiding something.
Drew flinched awkwardly. He always thought it was creepy when his Pokemon did that. Finally, he uncrossed his arms, grunting something.
"May just thinks she's SO superior to me…" Drew faced the Disaster Pokemon and huffed arrogantly, tossing his forest-green locks. "When it's obvious I'm so much better than that."
Absol continued staring intently at Drew.
Obviously, that isn't it.
Drew stared at his Pokemon right back, undaunted this time. Absol sighed inwardly, knowing that if he wanted answers, he was going to have to probe the stubborn boy's mind.
Absol pounced up on the boy's lap, surprising him effectively. Leaning his head downwards, he connected his forehead gem to Drew's own forehead; his black-grey horn accidentally brushing away some of the other's hair. He glared into his companion's green eyes, and concentrated.
Drew gasped when the feline-like creature jumped on top of him, but he was even more surprised that an unfamiliar voice started talking in his head. Instinctively, Drew closed his eyes, tuning out the sounds of the busy lobby and zoning out.
"Tell me the truth." The voice pressed, "Or else I will have to see for myself."
The voice was strangely deep, like a grown man's, and soothing; echoing through Drew's mind and making him twitch. Absol was telepathically… talking to him?
"Why do you want to know?" Drew asked, wary. "And how the heck can you talk in my mind? Aren't you a Dark type?" He heard Absol sigh.
"First, answer mine." Absol paused, as if pondering what to say next; "Me and everyone else… we're worried about you, Drew."
Drew felt the urge to look away, but he couldn't. For some reason, he didn't feel anything in his body anymore. To his slight dismay, he was trapped in his subconscious, and he probably wouldn't be let out until Absol got what he wanted.
"Yes, you are right." Absol replied to his thoughts. " You and I are in the deepest and darkest part of your mind, and we are not leaving until I learn what is wrong."
Drew felt a little shocked that Absol replied to what he was thinking. He didn't like that his private thoughts were being read so easily.
"Look." He said sternly to Absol, "I didn't ask for you to read my mind." If he had control of his body, he would have crossed his arms again, "And I never asked you to be worried about me, either. I'm fine."
"No, you're not." Absol said, obvious emotion lining his reverbating voice. "The others and I have observed your behaviors, and we have reason to worry. You lose your temper much more often than usual, and we can obviously see some emotional frustration. You can't focus in the competitions, Drew, and we want to know what has you so… confused."
Drew paused, pouring over what Absol had just said. It's all true, he thought, not caring anymore whether or not Absol read his thoughts.
Drew tried to come up with the proper words to describe what he had been feeling lately, to describe the constant flurry of thoughts that always seemed to get in his head. But he couldn't. There was only one word to describe it, the constant subject of his emotions.
He took a deep breath, and silently breathed out the word.
"I see…" Absol mulled, thinking long and hard. "Drew."
"Yes…?" He questioned tiredly. He knew his Pokemon was probably going to ask another question, and he hoped it was the last one.
"It seems that whatever is troubling you is more than you think. And…" Absol paused, trying to choose his words carefully. "Well…"
"I know what you're about to ask." Drew tiredly droned. "Just…"
"…"
"Just get it over with already…"
"Alright, Master, if that's what you want…" Absol concentrated harder, peering into his heart's depths, guiding his energy through Drew's entire body. He had done so before, when he came into the teen's brain; which was harder to do than he previously thought. Just like now, he had to really focus hard and push through the mental barriers that he had unconsciously constructed out of his own protective arrogance.
Drew felt the blackness brighten and turn into a dull grey, sensing a burst of strange energy flow through his mind and body. Absol had broken through.
He shuddered as he felt small tingles erupt all over his body, like something small was exploring it. Drew almost reacted to this gut feeling to tell Absol to quit violating him, but he quickly stopped himself.
"I just want whatever she's doing to me… to go away…" He whispered, hoping Absol would hear his plea. "Please… just make it go away."
Absol probed a little further, until he found what he was looking for. He gasped in awe at what he had seen.
Drew heard him, and anxiously called out to his Pokemon. "What is it? What did you find?"
Absol ignored his Trainer's calls, too mesmerized by the sheer beauty of what was right in front of his eyes. He suddenly felt aware of himself drawing closer to it, feeling the intense warmth and the sheer momentum that blanketed him, and its light blinding his eyes.
"Absol! Answer me!" Drew called out in the endless gray space. It was useless, though, for Absol had been taken to a place that has never, ever been reached by the mind.
Absol snapped open his eyes, and propelled himself onto the floor; making the carpet tear in his sharp claws as he struggled to stop himself. He glared at Drew in shock, wondering how absolutely STUPID the boy could possibly BE.
Drew had felt the connection instantly torn away, and almost tipped over the chair from the momentum of it.
Luckily, it was in front of a wall. "Ow..!" he grumbled, rubbing his bruised head. He noticed Absol staring at him unusually.
"So, Absol…" Drew casually spoke after a while, "Err…What did you find?"
Absol shook his head doubtfully. It was obvious that his Trainer was completely oblivious to what happened in his mind. Growling frustratedly, the Pokemon leaped up and pushed his paws to the boy's chest, while connecting his forehead gem almost a little too forcefully.
Drew yowled in pain. "Hey, what was THAT for?" Absol growled again, glaring daggers at his Trainer.
"YOU IDIOT!" He screamed into the boy's mind, barking in his face at the same time.
Looking out at the shimmering stars again, Drew pulled a small rose out of his jacket pocket, recalling his Pokemon's short words of advice.
"Look, just give this to her. Everything should resolve itself after that."
"How? It's just a rose…"
"I've seen humans do it all the time when they have… problems like yours. Don't worry, everything will be fine."
Drew stared at the rose. As he turned it over in his hands, the starlight and the rising moon reflected off of the petals, making it alike to a dazzling midnight blue. The wind from the east suddenly blew through the small opening in the shutters, drifting the wafting scent towards him.
Taking in a deep breath of the beautiful scent that surrounded his senses, Drew realized how truly magnificent a rose really was. If it could solve his headaches with May, then he wouldn't deny that it was nothing short of a...
"A miracle…" the jade-haired boy silently uttered, bringing the flower to his chest gently. He didn't know how a plant would help him, but he ought to give it a try, right?
Drew sighed, the rose in his hand rising and falling to the breathing of his chest. "…I guess I know what I have to do."
Turning in the direction of the hall, Drew ran as fast as he could.
(*~END OF PART 1~*)
BUM-BUM-BUM-BUM-BUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! XD
So EXCITING! So DRAMATIC! WHEN WILL IT ALL END?
...When I find another hidden file in my faithful laptopper. ;)
Until next time, see ya!
(Insert Law And Order Drama Noise Here),
Rachel V.S. World