IMN: HEY EVERYONE! Welcome to the next chapter of Mewmans: Story of the Dark Ice Maiden!
Keith: *Looking around the set nervously*...
Rhythmi: Hey Keith, you okay? You seem a bit odd lately.
Keith: Kate seems off today and...
IMN and Rhythmi: And?
Keith: *Starts shaking IMN's shoulders in a panic* MINI KATE IS MISSING! I CAN'T FIND HER ANYWHERE! WHERE IS SHE?!
IMN: *Being shaken by Keith* Stop shaking me! Don't make me call Snuggle-Buns!
Keith: *Pales and let's IMN go* Sorry!
IMN: Anyway, let's get onto the story! Rhythmi, if you please?
Rhythmi: Okay! *Turns towards the audience* Infusion Masters Nightmare doesn't own Pokémon or its characters, thank Arceus for that.
IMN: Yep and... WAIT, WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'THANK ARCEUS FOR THAT'?!
Rhythmi: *Nervously looks away* Oh, look! The story is about to start, better be getting ready. ON WITH THE STORY! *Runs out of the room*
IMN: DON'T IGNORE THE SUBJECT! GET BACK HERE! RHYTHMIIIIIIIII! *Runs after Rhythmi*
Chapter 25: Q&A of Terror!
Keith's Pov
"Hold... Still..."
*Pluck*
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Those sounds were the first thing I heard when I entered the main Ranger center in the morning. I looked to the source of where the sounds came from and was shocked at what I saw: Crawford lying face down on the mechanic's counter with Luana holding down the Grass type Mewman while Elaine stood behind Crawford with tweezers.
"*Pluck* OW! That hurts, Elaine!" Crawford wailed as Elaine pulled out what looked like a thorn from his... behind.
"Stop whining. At least I'm getting them out," Elaine argued as she pulled out another thorn, earning a scream from Crawford.
"What the hell is going on?" I asked as I stared at the scene. That was when Rhythmi walked in with two glasses of orange juice.
"Morning Keith, did you have a good night's sleep?" my childhood friend asked as she handed me one of the glasses.
"Yeah... Where is Barlow and what is going on here?" I questioned Rhythmi just before Crawford let out a loud scream as another thorn was extracted.
"Don't you remember? Barlow announced it last night that he would leave for Boyleland early this morning. He went to investigate why the island's Pokémon are disappearing. He left Crawford in-charge until he comes back since Crawford is the second senior Ranger in the base," Rhythmi explained.
"Okay. Then how come Crawford got thorns in his butt?" I asked as Crawford let out a howl of pain.
"Well from what I heard from Luana, Crawford went out early to patrol the area. When he got to Vien Forest a Taillow flew towards Crawford thinking his hair was a nest. Crawford got surprised and tripped backwards over a tree root. Unfortunately for him a horde of Roselia was behind him at the time and, well, you know the aftermath of that incident," Rhythmi answered as she sipped her orange juice.
*Pluck*
"AAAAHHHH! Careful Elaine! I'm fragile!" whimpered Crawford as Elaine pulled out another thorn.
"Then stop squirming! I have to deal with the thorns fast or the poison will seep into your body. That horde of Roselia you fell on had the Poison Point ability," Elaine seethed. With that comment, Crawford's face went pale like he saw a serial killer in front of him.
"POISON?! Do you know what that does to a Grass type Mewman?! It's deadly to me!" yelled Crawford. Elaine's right eye twitched for a second before giving Crawford a creepy smile.
"Well, since you put it that way... All the more reason to take these thorns out!" Elaine said as she pulled out another thorn. Crawford let out a wail of pain before he saw me.
"Oh, Keith, just the person I want to see. *Pluck* OW! I have a mission for you and Kate today. *Pluck* GAH! You know that today is the Ranger School's Outdoor Class? *Pluck* SWEET ARCEUS! You see Barlow and I were supposed to be the 1-day teachers for today but- *Pluck* MOTHER OF MEW, THAT HURTS! As I was saying: Barlow and I can't do it today since he went to Boyleland and I got my injur-*Pluck* EEEAAAAAAHHHHHH! THAT WAS THE WORSE ONE!" Crawford told me as Elaine continued taking out the thorns.
"Wait, so is the event cancelled?!" I asked with worry. I remembered how excited I was for the Outdoor Class back when I was in Ranger School a year ago. I would have been devastated if the teachers told me it was cancelled.
"Don't worry, it's not cancelled! *Pluck* EGAD! Barlow voicemailed me when he arrived at Boyleland and I replied by telling him about my... injury. *Pluck* GAAHH! He said 'Let Kate and Keith do it. They would be perfect for today. The school needs a Mewman and a human to partner up for today. This job is made for them'. *Pluck* MERCY! Even though this is not an actual mission, you both should treat it like one. *Pluck* THE PAAAAAAAIN!" Crawford continued on. How many thorns does he have?
"Why does the school need a human and a Mewman to partner up? That didn't happen last year," I questioned our stand-in leader. Inside I was completely nervous, as I have never taught anyone anything in my entire life! This is completely out of my depth!
"Apparently the school is starting a new program and they want to have a human/Mewman pair in today. Who knows? It might be interesting- *Pluck* FOR THE LOVE OF SHAYMIN! Elaine, are they all out yet?" Crawford mentioned. Elaine grimace and motions me over with her free hand. Luana held Crawford's hand to comfort the afro Ranger. Once I walked over I saw that Elaine was making hand gestures saying that the last thorn was big, like 'the size of Barlow's thumb' big.
"I'm almost done back here. I just need to get one last thorn. Hold him down," Elaine said and she whispered the last part to me. I did as I was told and Crawford started to panic.
"What's going on? Keith, what are you doing? Why are you holding me down? How bad is it-" Crawford rambled on before Elaine pulled out the last thorn. That day Crawford screamed so loud that half the region's peaceful morning was ruined by the decibels of his scream. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Kate's Pov
I was up on the roof of the Vientown Ranger base, aimlessly looking at the landscape. Well, not exactly aimless. I was mostly looking at the direction of the Peril Cliffs. I couldn't get my mind off of what happened a week ago; the scene flashing into my mind, the wall that the Rampardos were bashing into thanks to that Dim Sun grunt, the new Miniremo and mostly what Noir said to me yesterday.
"Won't be long before the grand event now, Icecia. Your destiny is right around the corner". Those words keep echoing in my head. She knows, Noir knows about the Icecia prophecy and my destiny. How? How did a Hunter find out? The truth about my destiny and the prophecy is known only to anyone who bares the 'Icecia' name. The only group of people outside the family who knows about it is Wes and my Mewman friends, all except Rosie. Her weak heart condition couldn't handle the weight of the prophecy. Wes and the others would never tell anyone about the prophecy, much less a Hunter. No-one in the family would betray each other... unless my twin brother Luke-
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" WHAT IN THE NAME OF MEW WAS THAT?! Why is Crawford screaming?!
"IT HUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRTTTTTTTTTTSSSSSSSSSSS! CALL 911! OOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!" Crawford screamed as I rushed inside to see what happened to my big brother. When I got inside what I saw that Crawford was howling in pain and Elaine was getting something from the shelves as Keith, Rhythmi and Luana tries to calm down my big brother.
"What... happened?" I asked with curiosity, I couldn't tear my eyes away from the scene. Keith seemed to notice me and walked towards me.
"Morning Kate, are you feeling okay after the Peril Cliff mission last week?" Keith greeted me with a grin, ignoring the chaos behind him.
"I'm fine. Just needed a few good nights' sleep," I answered. I feel guilty about lying to Keith but it's for the best that he doesn't know about the prophecy or my destiny.
"That's good to hear. You were a little distant after the mission. I'm glad that you're alright, Kate."
"Thanks for the concern. By the way, what's wrong with Crawford?"
"...Long story. Anyway, Crawford said that we're going to be the teachers for this year's Outdoor Class today."
"What? It's been a year already? Ha ha! It only felt like yesterday that we were students." I reminisced on the memories of Ranger School. I still remember the first day of class, Keith challenging me to a capture contest, the Ranger School Ghost mystery (Fro), meeting my cousin Kellyn and all my old friends, making new friends, almost kissing Keith- WHY WAS I THINKING THAT!
"Kate, why are you blushing?" Fro suddenly asked me as she and Jet materialised out of nowhere. I felt my face heat up more and I willed my Mew ears and tail to not pop out.
"Man, I wonder what this year's students are like. I bet there might be some students who probably jump with excitement," Keith said with a smile on his face.
"Says the guy who wrote thirty-eight questions and bounced around like a sugar high Buneary last year," I teased and Keith blushed at the memory of last year's Outdoor Class.
"Okay Luana and Rhythmi, hold Crawford down," Elaine ordered as she was rummaging in the drawers. Rhythmi and Luana did what they were told as Elaine was holding a spray bottle of...Antidote and smirking evilly. Oh sweet Mew...
"You guys can go to the school now. We'll handle things here. Oh! Watch out for the Q&A of Terror session. They're a real nightmare from what Barlow and Crawford told me. Good luck!" Luana called out as she tried to calm down Crawford.
"We better get going now, Keith. You don't want to be here for the next part. Trust me. See you guys!" I said as I dragged Keith out of the base with Fro and Jet on my tail (metaphorically).
"Don't worry, Crawford~ Doctor Elaine will make everything allllllllright~ Just to make sure you're not poisoned~ This will hurt you waaaaaay more than it would hurt me~" I heard Elaine say before I heard Crawford scream in pain as the Antidote was sprayed on his thorn injuries in his... butt. Good thing Keith and I were far enough from the base by the time Crawford screamed or else we would have a major headache by now.
Keith's Pov
"I can't wait to get to the school. Ranger School was the best. The delicious meals Janice makes, the fun we had and the pranks we pulled on Kincaid. OH! We should set up a prank for old Stink-Head just like old times! What do you say, Kate?" I rambled on as we were walking on the road leading to the Ranger School. Kate laughed and beamed at me.
"That does sound fun but don't forget that we're supposed to set a good example for the students. We don't want to hear a lecture from Barlow or Ms. April. You know how scary Ms. April is when she's mad," Kate reminded me.
I paled at the memory at the scary red-haired teacher we both had in our Ranger School days. Ms. April was a demon when she got mad, which happened almost every day because of my love of pranks.
"HA HA HA! Spin 'round and 'round!" What the heck? Kate and I stopped to see what was happening in the middle of the bridge: Two Dim Sun Grunts controlling a poor Croagunk with a Miniremo. Kate and I exchanged a glance before we walked up behind the two grunts giving the Croagunk stupid commands.
Suddenly the Croagunk jumped over the grunts and stared at us. The grunts turned around and paled when they saw Kate and me.
"GAAAAAH! RANGERS!" one of them screamed. His buddy hit him on the head and he held a frown on his face before it turned into a smirk.
"I got it! Let's demonstrate how great the new Miniremo is to these Rangers. That'll teach them not to mess with us," the smirking grunt said before he typed something in the Miniremo. Then the machine made a strange sound and the Croagunk sat down.
"NONONO! I hit the wrong keys! Cancel! Where's the cancel button!" The grunts panicked.
"...Dumb..." "You got that right, Jet old buddy," Fro said, agreeing with the Buizel of very few words and I second that. The grunts rambled something about "muscling their way" before they pushed the Croagunk towards us. Kate sighed and easily captured the Croagunk with her styler. The Croagunk blinked before it ran off somewhere.
"What do we do now?! We don't have a Pokémon. The Ranger School is one way and the Rangers are the other way! We're trapped!" moaned one of the grunts as they looked around.
"Plan B! ... DIVE MAN, DIVE!" replied the other grunt just before they both jumped off the bridge and into the river. Well that happened. Kate and I continued on our way to the school now that the grunts were gone. When we got to the gates we saw a woman opening them.
"Kate Icecia and Keith Adams, long-time no see!" exclaimed a familiar red-haired woman with a smile on her face.
"Ms. April!" Kate and I exclaimed as we jogged to embrace our old teacher with our Partner Pokémon catching up to us.
"You two haven't changed a bit. I see that you two are still as thick as thieves," Ms. April said as she led us to the school.
"It's a real honour for us to be this year's Outdoor Class teach- UWAAA!" Kate said before she and I were tackled to the ground by a giant brown blob.
"It's you guys! It's really you guys! Oooooohh! I missed you two like crazy!" sobbed the brown blob as it was squeezing the both of us to death. Kate and I fortunately got out of the squeeze to see who the blob was. It was a female Bibarel with a goofy grin on her face. This Bibarel seems really familiar to me, this pokémon reminds me of- Hold it!
"Bailey?!" Both of us yelled in surprise to see the little Bidoof we befriended evolved into a Bibarel. Bailey giggled and gave the two of us another round of hugs.
"Yep, it's me! I'd continued to train after you guys graduated and now I'm a Bibarel! I'm super helpful around the school now and no one picks on me anymore," Bailey told us and Kate rubbed her on the head. Just then I saw something zoom over our heads and saw... MEWMANS?!
"I forgot to tell you two about the special program that the Union created. Now that we know about the existence of Mewmans, the Ranger Union wanted both humans and Mewmans to help each other. The new program is that Mewmans can be themselves in all Ranger facilities and we teach both groups how to work together but we're having some... difficulties. Principal Lamont will explain the situation better. This way," Ms. April explained as she led our little group to the Staff Room to see our old School Principal.
"Kate and Keith, it's been so long. You two must be Barlow and Crawford's replacements. Well, I couldn't have thought of a better duo myself for this year's Outdoor Class," Principal Lamont greeted us.
"It's nice to see you again too, Principal Lamont," Kate greeted while Fro waved at the Principal and Jet nodded his head in respect. Even though this is a happy occasion, Kate and I being this year's teachers, there are two things that are bothering me.
"Hey Principal Lamont, I was wondering where Sir Stink-I mean Mr. Kincaid is and what is this about wanting a Mewman/human Ranger partnership this year?" I questioned. Principal Lamont and Ms. April gave us a look of surprise, like I suddenly grew two heads or something.
"Didn't you hear? After your school year graduated, Mr. Kincaid took a leave of absence for some reason and disappeared. We hired a new teacher for the Mewman class this year," Ms. April explained. The Mewman class? This is all news to me.
"As for the reason we asked for a human/Mewman duo this year, well, we wanted the students to see that Mewmans and humans can work together. Ever since the school year began and we started the new fusion, Mewman/human program, things... haven't gone according to plan. The Mewman students are very uncooperative and hate being around the other students. They keep pulling pranks, fighting and continued glares at each other when they're in the same room. It has got so bad that we have to separate them: one class for just humans and the other for Mewmans. We even had to get a teacher that is a Mewman because the Mewman students refuse to listen to Ms. April," Principal Lamont explained to us with a sad and tired look on his face.
"I'm not surprised that the Mewman students act like that towards humans." We all turned our head to look at Kate. She held a sad and painful look on her face as she looked at the Principal.
"You see, every day our kind is hunted down by Hunters to be sold or killed for money. We used to be half of the human population in the beginning but now we are only one-fifth of it because of the Hunters. To most Mewmans a Hunter is the only human they will ever meet if they live in the secret villages, for our kind, for their entire lives. Some Mewmans may be friends with a Hunter that is in disguise, without them knowing, that would one day kill or sell them out. Most Mewmans, practically 85%, grew up without their parents because of the Hunters. Kellyn and Rosie are in that majority. These are the reasons that most Mewmans, especially your students, hate humans because they don't know if they would stab our kind in the back for money," Kate informed us.
Everybody went silent after that. I never knew that all Mewmans went through that suffering every day of their lives. I saw Kate trembling and I instinctively reached out and gently squeezed her hand in comfort. Kate looked over at me in confusion.
"Not all humans are bad. I mean you have me, Rhythmi, Isaac, Mace and everyone at the Vientown Ranger Base. Kellyn and Rosie also have humans to support them. Plus I'm your partner, I'll do the best I can to help you and I'll always have your back. We just have to teach the Mewman kids that there are humans that aren't bad and will support them. I promise that this class will show them that," I comforted Kate and she nodded. I couldn't help but smile as I gazed at my best friend radiating with happiness. Ms. April and Principal Lamont observed this with empathy and understanding, like they had a lightbulb moment.
"Ahem! I hate to interrupt your little moment but Outdoor Class is starting now and you both need to be at Ascension Square. Let's go, go, go!" Ms. April ushered us out of the Staff Room and Jet climbed up to my shoulders as we headed to Ascension Square.
Kate, Fro, Jet and I stood in front of the old Pledge Stone in Ascension Square as we waited for the students to arrive. Both Mewman and human students arrived with excitement showing on their faces. What bothered me was that the human students were sitting on the left and the Mewman students were on the right. I even saw some of the students glaring at each other! Arceus above, I hope Kate and I can get the two groups to get along at least a little bit.
"Okay class, for this year's Outdoor Class I am happy to introduce two students who graduated a couple of months back. This year we have a special surprise for all of you. Let this year's Outdoor Class begin," Ms. April introduced the both of us. Kate and I did our Ranger pose, which left the students staring at us in awe.
"Hey guys, I'm Keith Adams and this is my Partner Pokémon, Jet. As you guys can tell, I'm a human."
"Hi, I'm Kate Icecia and this Froslass is my Partner Pokémon, Fro. I'm an Ice Mewman," Kate said as she let her white Mewman ears and tail with the pale blue streaks on them show. She circled her right hand around and a small 'Power Snow' attack circled around her hand for a moment before it combined together to create a miniature Bailey the Bibarel in the palm of Kate's hand. The students were in laughing in delight from the little show as Kate gave Bailey the mini snow-Bibarel.
"Now class, even though Keith is a human and Kate is a Mewman, they both are Ranger Partners. They both have each other's backs when they are on a mission and trust each other. I hope that one day that you would all have a partner you can trust or depend on whether he or she is a human or a Mewman," Principal Lamont explained to the class but the Mewman and human students just glared at each other and looked away. Okay, that didn't work...
"Alright class, it's time for the Outdoor Class's main event... The Question-&-Answer Session of Terror! Let the questioning begin!" Oh good Arceus. Did Ms. April have to announce it?! I'm not ready!
"Did you get good grades at school?"
"Define 'good grades'?" Fro asked the student, good thing he was a human and didn't have a Blessed mark. I held Fro back so she wouldn't tell the class about my... real grades. The truth is that I got good grades in the capture and gym classes because I'm a Ranger Prodigy. Stuff like the history of Rangers and all that lessons involving books... not so much. At least I passed all of them! ...Barely.
"We both did okay in school. Both Keith and I were great in the styler classes and gym," Kate answered, sensing my distress. "Thank you, Kate!"
"Is your job busy?"
"Lately, it is but no matter what the Rangers can handle anything!" I answered in confidence.
"Have you guys ever seen a real Gigaremo?"
"Seen it? Kid, we were the first people to discover it, destroy it and got information for Prof. Hastings!" I exclaimed and all the kids were looking at us like we're celebrities.
"Mr Keith and Miss Kate, are you two in love with someone?" I felt my face heat up so much; I thought my face was on fire. When the girl asked that question I saw Kate flash into my mind. Huh, why am I thinking of Kate? I noticed that Kate's face was red with her Mewman ears and tail popped up.
"Next question!" Kate and I both shouted in unison, everyone laughed at us and whispering to each other on 'how cute' both of us were or that Kate and I am 'a great couple'. Principal Lamont muttering something about 'to being young again', Fro was fan-girling and Jet gave me the thumbs/paw up while saying "good" to me. "OF ALL THE TIMES YOU SAY SOMETHING, IT HAS TO BE YOU AGREEING WITH THE STUDENTS?! JET, YOU TRAITOR!"
"Have you both captured more than 100 Pokémon?"
"We haven't been keeping track on the number of Pokémon we both captured. We have no idea," Kate replied to one of the student's question.
"Is something bad taking place in the Almia region now?" Kate and I turned towards the person who asked. It was a girl with pink Mewman ears and a tail: a Physic type. Kate and I looked towards each other and both nodded our heads, agreeing to tell her the truth. She'll know the answer either way verbally or reading our minds.
"Yes, there is but we won't let it happen. No matter what the odds against us are, the Ranger Union will protect the people, Mewmans and Pokémon in Almia and the world. We'll keep you all safe and that's a promise," Kate said with determination. I saw that her hand was shaking. I don't know whether it's by being nervous from the Q&A Session of Terror or anger with the thought of Dim Sun harming Almia. Whatever it is, I still wanted to comfort Kate. I held her hand, making sure that no-one sees it, and gave the Ice Mewman a reassuring squeeze. Seconds later she gently squeezed my hand back. For a moment, I felt like a 'Thunderbolt' attack shooting up the arm that was holding Kate's hand.
"Is it true that Rangers can't go home very often?"
"It depends on where your family is and where you're stationed in the future. It's not a big issue. It might be a bit hard at first but I'm sure everything would work out for you guys." Who was I to talk? My parents are both famous Rangers and I barely saw them during my childhood. I was lucky enough to spend a week with them before both my parents went on a mission that might last up to months!
"Mr Keith and Miss Kate, can I touch your stylers?" Kate and I smiled as we held out our stylers for the excited girl to touch. Unfortunately she was too shy to go up and touch our stylers.
"Miss Kate, do you sleep in your pajamas at night or do you sleep-" "NONE OF THAT! / DON'T EVEN FINISH THAT, KID!" Ms. April and I cut in before the male student finishes his question. I couldn't help but glare at the guy for asking such a personal question. The nerve of him!
"Are we all out of questions? Nobody has another question? Are we all done?" Ms. April asked the students and no one raised their hands.
"Yoohoo! Teacher lady! I have a question for the two Rangers!" we all turned towards the source of the sound. It was the two grunts from earlier and they didn't look happy. At least they're dry, probably got new uniforms or something.
"Dear Rangers, why did you have to mess with us earlier?" one of them asked. Jet suddenly glared at the two and growled. Strange, Jet didn't act this way with the Dim Sun grunts earlier, something's wrong.
"Who are you people? I absolutely forbid you to lay a finger on my students!" Ms. April stood in front of the students protectively with a glare that could freeze hell. The Mewman students changed into their Mewman forms, preparing to attack. The grunts guffawed at the scene and smirked at us. That's never a good sign.
"Oh, we heard from one of our people that this school has Mewmans so that's why we came prepared. It's payback time!" announced one of the grunts before taking out their new Miniremo and typing into the machine. Two Carnivine floated above all of us with buckets in their arms. They spilled the buckets' contents on the students and us. We were all soaked in some sort of juice judging by the smell. Unexpectedly all the Mewman students turned back into their normal forms, confused as to what happened.
"HA! You can't use your powers anymore! That was a mixture of all the berries that make Mewmans unable to use their powers. Now all that's left is to capture you all and we'll be rich!" the grunts cheered as they typed in another command, then the Carnivine charged at the students. Some of the Mewman students were in shock since they couldn't use their powers but the human students pushed all of them out of the way in time.
Kate and I nodded at each other, taking out our stylers and aimed it at the Carnivine. "CAPTURE ON!" The capture discs were released and we both spun the discs around our two Carnivine with the help of Fro and Jet's attacks. We both captured the two Pokémon at the same time. The Miniremo exploded and the two Grass types were free.
One of the grunts glared at us and ran to one of the students. Before he could even touch the student, Baliey the Bibarel sent him flying into his buddy with a powerful 'Water Gun' attack.
"W-W-WE WON'T FORGET THIS!" screamed the soaked grunts as they ran away, again.
"DON'T YOU DARE COME BACK! YOU HEAR ME!" threatened Bailey before she relaxed. The students were in awe and cheered for Kate, myself and the Pokémon for handling the Dim Sun grunts.
"Thank you for protecting the students. I don't know what we would have done if you two weren't here. I think that this has been a day none of the students will ever forget. Also, I believe that some new friendships were born today," Ms. April praised us as she glanced at the students. Both Mewman and human students were smiling and talking to each other. From the corner of my eye I saw Kate smile at the sight with pure personal happiness.
"Mr Keith, Miss Kate, we all would like to ask you two just one last question," said a student.
"Is it fun being a Pokémon Ranger?" all the students asked in sync. Kate and I beamed at the students before replying, "Wouldn't change it for the world!" All the students left telling us to 'take care', 'good luck', 'come back soon' and all that. Principal Lamont asked us if Chairperson Erma was in good health and we said yes before exiting the school grounds. Looks like a Mission Clear to me!
"That was an interesting Outdoor Class. I say we were the best one yet! Right, Jet?" Fro asked Jet, the Buizel nodded and muttered "good".
"Come on guys! Its lunch time and Rhythmi is on cooking duty. Last one to the base is a rotten egg!" Fro declared before she floated ahead of us with Jet on her tail. He'll probably beat the pale Froslass since she literally trips over nothing. Kate suddenly stopped in the middle of the bridge and held the back of my shirt. I turned around to see Kate giving me a grateful expression.
"Keith... Thank you for keeping your promise about helping the students getting along better. You don't know how much that meant to me."
"Hey, it was no problem. It's the least I could do. You know I always keep my promises." We were now leaning against the railing of the bridge.
"Yeah. I really wanted Mewmans, Pokémon, humans and even Bleaks to all get along. It was me and my twin brother's dream to live in a world where all species live in harmony ever since I could remember," Kate confessed as she looked at the river under us.
"Kate... I know this might be a sensitive topic but, what happened that made Luke disappear?" I asked nervously. Kate rarely mentioned Luke, her twin, and I always wondered why I have never seen him.
"...I don't know. He was always kind, gentle and sensitive. He wouldn't hurt anything but people bullied him because he didn't have any Mewman powers. One day he changed, for the worst. He did something horrible and he blamed me for him being born a Bleak. He's not wrong though..." Kate told me. Kate must have noticed the confused look on my face because she took a deep breath in and exhaled.
"The truth is that Luke would have been born an Ice type Mewman like me but... his body couldn't handle the powers. My mum said Luke would have died before he was born because his powers froze his insides. There was nothing anyone could do to stop it from happening but then suddenly my mother sensed his powers transferring to me. So to make a long story short, Luke survived because I took his powers. My family said that it was a miracle but I still feel like a no-good thief for taking Luke's powers before he was born. I had no right. No wonder he hated me," Kate concluded her story as she stared at the water Pokémon under the bridge.
My heart broke from hearing Kate's story. She blames herself! Before I knew it I hugged Kate and pressed my forehead against her forehead. I saw that her face turned cherry red and I felt her stiffen. I didn't care, I just gazed into her icy blue eyes so closely that I could see the tiny black specs that people never notice until they look hard enough.
"It's not your fault. You saved your brother's life. Without you, Luke would have died when you were babies. Plus you protected and helped him when you were kids, he should be grateful for having someone like you by his side, much less related. I would have been the luckiest guy in the world if I had a sister like you. Don't blame yourself for that," I whispered so only Kate can hear. I felt Kate relaxed in my arms and she hugged me back.
We just stayed like that for a while, just holding each other and gazing into each other's eyes. Slowly we tilted our heads and our lips were centimetres away from each other. Our lips moved closer together and-
"WHAT'S TAKING YOU GUYS SO LONG?! Everyone started eating already!" bellowed a familiar voice. Kate and I froze and stared at each other. We jumped away from each other and I felt my face was on fire. I turned to see who the voice belonged to and I saw it was a blushing Luana gazing at us with her Buneary, Cream, was hiding her face in her wool.
"D-D-D-Did you guys just- t-t-t-then you two are...a-and I-I-I-… Sorry to interrupt your moment. I'll l-l-leave you two alone. B-B-Bye!" stuttered Luana before she dashed back to the base with Cream. Knowing her she'll tell Rhythmi, Elaine and worst *Gulp* Crawford. ARCEUS, WHY DO YOU HATE MEEEEEE?!
IMN: AAAAAAAAAAAAnd DONE! That's it for this chapter folks! Hope you like this long chapter!
Keith: WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!
IMN: Why did I do what?
Keith: *Blushing a billion shades of red* YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN!
IMN: No I don't- Ooooooooooh! You mean that almost kiss with you and-
Keith: *Covers IMN's mouth with Duct Tape* Don't say it out loud! Oh man, Crawford is going to kill me!
IMN: *Grabs a pen and sketch pad from a desk nearby and writes in it* 'That's why I ended the chapter early! Crawford murdering you will not be suitable for the readers. Heh heh heh!'
Keith: *Glares at IMN* WHY YOU LITTLE- GRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrr! Fine, then where is MK?
IMN: *Writing down and showing Keith her sketch pad* 'You'll have to find out in the next chapter!'
Keith: WHAT?!
IMN: *Turns to the audience, showing them her sketch book* 'Okay everyone; the next chapter will be the last part of the Vientown Arc! I'm really looking forward to post the next chapter so just wait and see! BYE!' *Has a doodle of a chibi IMN waving*