Perhaps the single most frightening thing to ever happen in her life was to see that home on fire: she stepped up to it, her eyes widening further by the second until she thought that her eyeballs would pop right out of their sockets. A dainty hand was extended, grabbing fruitlessly forward with the aim of grabbing Him and pulling Him out.
She realized a couple seconds later that the idea of this happening was absurd. She rushed forward into the burning home, ignoring the sweltering heat. If she could have, she would have ignored the flames themselves and just rushed on through, not caring a bit about the burns that she would have sustained. But she ducked and dodged burning things, hearing His anguished cries and using them as motivation.
"Gahhh! Shit, shit, my face, my fucking face!"
She heard His voice. She shut her eyes, and rushed further into the flames.
"Take my hand, boy!" she exclaimed.
She felt his hand grasp onto hers after a couple of moments. It was a weak grip. She didn't care. She held out hope, stomping out the flames that covered his body, thinking only secondly about the damages. She took his now flameless body into her arms and rushed toward the door.
"FUCK YOU!" she screamed, and burst through one of the holes in the walls of the home. She let his body fall to the ground, and took a hand, brushing it against his singed yellow hair.
"C'mon, Volk," she whispered. "C'mon, Volk! You can live through this... I know you can... come on!"
"Miss Cohen, it's not going to happen."
She heard the sound of a man's voice. She whispered another tired fuck you, and continued to chant her hopes, her encouragements. She knew He could fight through this.
"Lisa!" the same voice said. "Lisa! He's dead. C'mon, we need to move."
She turned her eyes to the sky, and realized it was true. She let out one last whispered curse to the man who had done this, got to her feet, and rushed away.
Rain began to fall. It wasn't a steady progression: it was a sudden downpour, as if someone had turned on a switch and it started coming down. She was a bit frustrated at this, but a bit glad at the same time: it helped confuse people as to whether it was rain or tears that gently trickled down her cheeks.
As she moved, she heard a voice, and stopped. There was no around her. "...Huh?"
"Wake up! C'mon, wake up! Yer screamin'!"
The voice sounded oddly familiar. She shrugged it off and kept on running to the safehouse.
Lisa Cohen, also known as Mana Aname, woke up and sat bolt upright. She felt the gentle trickle of sweat down her forehead, which also felt so hot that it seemed on fire. She felt a jolt of pain in her back, and she lowered herself smoothly to the soaked bedsheets.
"'ey, girly, what was with that? You have a nightmare?"
Mana allowed herself a soft, nervous giggle. If only, she thought. If only.
"...Don't wanna talk 'bout it? Okay, that's understandable, I s'pose," Gardenia said. Mana reached out and grabbed the other girl's hand, squeezing it.
"Any luck?" she asked. She looked up at the girl earnestly, saw the downward gaze and the furrow of her brow, and knew immediately that something had to have gone wrong. She let loose a small, barely audible, gasp of breathe.
"...We've found him," Gardenia said. "...But-"
"...He isn't...?"
"He's in bad condition. Very bad. The Doctors think he might not live through the night."
Jasmine, who - up until this point - Mana had not even realized was there, spoke up. "He's next door. Whoever got him beat him up pretty badly. Broken ribs. A hairline frac-...fracture in the skull. Both his legs were virtually snapped r-r-right in tuh-two... shots luckily missed any major organs... but the intention was to kill him. And they... they might..."
"...Be successful yet," Gardenia finished. "He's been unconscious for the entire day - yeah. You've... been asleep that long. We found him yesterday."
Mana sat up. The pain rushed through her back, and she cursed quite loudly. She swung her legs over the side of the bed.
"Oy! Stop it!" Gardenia said.
"I wish I could," Mana said in a matter-of-fact tone. She stood up, placing her hand on the side of the bed for support, while the other rested limply at her side. Jasmine popped up out of her seat, letting that arm sling around her shoulder.
"...W-what? What're you doing?" Jasmine asked.
"The one thing I can do," Mana whispered.
"Get back in the bed, ya damned fool!" Gardenia said sternly. She pointed to the bed, but to get her point through, Mana simply lifted her middle finger in Gardenia's direction.
"...It will all be explained. Jasmine, help me to Volk's room."
"No... get back into bed..." Jasmine said.
Gardenia looked to be in shock at the gesture. She stood there, mouth open, her face a bright red. The reaction for Jasmine would be worse, and she knew this all too well. She would have to be fragile with her wording.
"Jasmine. Do it. Now. I won't hesitate to do this on my own two legs, so just help me and make things so much easier."
Jasmine paused for a few moments, then nodded. "...A-...alright."
The two of them moved slowly but surely out of the door and into the next room. Gardenia followed them after a couple of moments.
The sight of Him in that bed, attached to so many machines, including a respiration device, broke Mana's heart. She limped over to him with Jasmine's help, leaned over, and placed a kiss on his bandaged forehead.
"Pull me a chair, Jasmine," Mana said.
Jasmine did so. Mana sat down, and proceeded to tell her story.
Love at first sight was not the most logical thing in the world to Lisa Cohen at one time. She was a logical person, running off calculating thinking: not things that she couldn't see. Like the soul, for instance - she didn't believe in those.
But then she caught sight of a boy. He was rough, a militaryesque type of guy with ruffled yellow hair, a blue, buttoned jacket, and a pair of faded jeans. That Pikachu of his on his shoulder only increased his appeal. She lost her soul to him upon first sight.
She approached him. "...Hiya."
The boy looked at her indifferently for a moment, then extended his right hand toward her. "Hola, senorita."
"...Smooth talker, huh?" Lisa asked, allowing herself a shy smile.
"Si. Name's Volkner," he said.
"...Lisa. Lisa Cohen."
She extended her own hand, grabbing his, and he shook it firmly but with a peculiar gentleness at the same time.
"A pleasure, Miss Cohen."
She felt her smile widen considerably. Volkner smiled back.
Lisa Cohen rapped lightly on the wooden door. She waited for a few moments, then waved as the door opened to the familiar, blue-eyed face.
"Lisa!" Volkner said. "Wasn't expecting you... c'mon in."
Lisa and Volkner stepped inside. The two of them sat down in the living room.
"So what'd you come over for?" Volkner asked.
"Ah, nothing important," Lisa lied. "I just wanted to see you."
"That so? I mean, I knew I had charm, but not that much."
Lisa giggled. "Volkner Denzi, I was kind of hoping to ask you to go to dinner and go see a movie with me, but I guess I shouldn't go with someone so vain, huh?"
"Oh. Certainly you should. What fun is someone who isn't?"
Lisa thought about it for a moment. "...Touche."
The two of them burst out laughing.
"And I thought you were a man, Denzi. I suppose I'll call you 'Boy' from now on. More fitting."
"And I suppose I'll call you 'Girl', then."
"Or you could call me girlfriend."
"Girlfriend it is."
"So, Volk," Lisa said. "What were you like as a kid? I'm kinda curious."
"Rude, a brat, and overall snotty."
"That so?"
"Indeed it is. I'm somewhat glad I'm out of that phase - I was angsty, and even abused Pokemon some."
Volk's Pikachu leaped down from his shoulder, turning around. "You see that scar on his back?"
Lisa's mouth opened wide. There was a long, white scar running through the Pokemon's fur.
"I made it," Volkner said.
"Why...?" Lisa asked, gasping.
"He wouldn't listen to me." Volkner's voice was thin, his eyes glancing toward the ground.
"...I think Chuseph forgives you," Lisa said. "Otherwise he wouldn't have evolved into a Pikachu."
Volkner nodded. "Yeah. But I... I still regret it to this day."
Lisa allowed herself a kind smile. This always seemed to calm Volkner down a bit. "Then that's good. If you regret it, it won't happen again."
"Did you hear the news, Volk?" Lisa asked as she stepped through his doorway, out of the rain. She shut her umbrella, and set it next to the door.
"Yeah..." Volkner's voice was thin for the first time in a while. He was not sad, like last time - she caught hints of anger in his voice. "This is tragic. Who could destroy... an entire -region- so easily?"
Lisa nodded slowly. "Horrible. No one can stop this guy... not with... who he controls."
"His next target is Johto. I feel it."
Lisa leaned in, giving Volkner a gentle kiss on the cheek. "Let's not worry about it, though. I'm sure I'm just over-exaggerating - SOMEONE can stop him."
Volkner nodded. "Yeah- me."
"Volk is dead," Lisa thought. "There's no turning back. Oh god, volk is dead, Lisa, it's no use going on - he's dead, oh GOD, oh GOD-"
"Calm yourself."
A voice in her head, Lisa realized, had said that. She hadn't heard it with her ears. She stopped dead in her tracks.
"What?"
"Do you want to save the one you love?" the voice continued.
"...He's dead. I c-...cuh-cuh-can't..."
"Yes you can." This was a second voice. Lighter, more kindhearted. "If you accept the offer to."
"I'll accept anything!" Lisa cried.
The two popped up in front of her. She grabbed their tiny hands - one green, one pink.
"Good." They spoke in perfect unison, sending shivers down her spine. "The spirit inside you is strong. You will do anything. We will assist you: we will do for you a great favor... as long as you do us one first."
Lisa Cohen smiled sadly, and allowed the darkness to take her over.
"... Mana is the concept of spirit inside inanimate objects. I considered myself inanimate - without Volkner. Aname is a simple combination of 'A' and 'name'. My real name is Lisa Cohen... and I'm here to make sure Volkner gets his wish. That's mine."
She whistled a slow, melodic tune.
Seconds later, the leafy green Pokemon, with its wide eyes and tiny appendages, appeared at Lisa's side. "...Find Chuseph. He was released."
"Chuseph was who brought him here. Along with a Luxio."
Lisa glanced toward the desk next to Volkner's bed, and she nodded. Three Pokeballs rested atop it - two cracked, one in perfect shape.
"Are you sure you want me to do this?"
"Celebi, I've never been more sure in my life. Healing Wish. Then Baton Pass it to me."
Celebi began to glow a bright shade of pink. The Pokemon then extended its tiny, glowing paw to Lisa, who grabbed it and held it firm. The pink energy began to channel to her, covering her in a bright aura. She used her free hand to touch Volkner. He too began to glow this shade, but mixed in with this was a lighter blue.
Lisa felt her muscles grow weaker. Pain rushed through her body. She fell to the floor, one hand still firmly dug into Volkner's skin by her fingernails. But in a few moments, those dragged off too. She heard the sound of Volkner moving, the sound of voices calling out for help, and she ignored them all.
"...Volkner can never know," she whispered. She wasn't sure if she could be heard, but she had to try. She felt the blackness begin to envelope her.
She was happy.
Lisa Cohen died with a smile on her face.