Hello, guys! I know that I haven't updated in a month, but I actually think that I'm finally getting back on track with my stories. You might even see me update more regularly! (Just a dream… *.*)

And there will be a major surprise in this chapter! One character comes back, and another joins in, too. XD

Anyway, I should reply to your lovely reviews! ^.^

Iloveikari: He totally does… XD He's nervous, because he's not used to saying thank you. And, if you know Paul, he only says thank you to people he cares about… And I can bet you one hundred bucks that he cares about Dawn! :D Sorry for the wait on this too, I'm just trying to get back to the routine with school.

MissShane12: OMG, SORRY! Just so you know: I usually update once a month, but I should be able to update more, now that I've sorted out some stuff!

Amy47101: I love Questshipping, it's really cute. ;) And, sure, I'll add some in if you want. Don't worry; Marina isn't going to be a bitch to Dawn… At least not for long.

XWhiteChanX: Thankies! :D Yes, Jimmy shall be in this story, and I do hope to add Questshipping (since it's AWESOME =D). Dawn being jealous is almost as funny as Paul or Silver getting jealous. XD Well, I always thought that Bugsy was originally a girl, but then I looked it up on the internet, and I realized that I could use this in my story. Oh, Paul and Dawn thought Metapod was weak, because of how it went against Paul's Pokemon.

pokeninja6600: Yeah, my friend told me what it meant, and I was like: OHHHHHH! *face palm* :B

emma5678: Yeah, it's real cute.

PokStarTardis: Which one? Claire (the receptionist), or the other Clair (the eighth Gym Leader)?

iheartmuusic: OMG, REALLY? OMG, YOU'RE SO NICE! Thankies! You just totally made my day! Your reviews made me laugh. :D Real funny. XD I'm glad you got into this story, girl! SUGAR FTW! And being hyper… ;) I'm not perf, but I try… =)

master1631: Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it.

Misty Ketchum97: Well, in this story, I wanted it to be the beginning of the story… And, there is a particular reason why it's a Turtwig. But I can't tell you, or it would ruin the plot… ;) And I believe that if the Pokemon needs serious surgery, then you would have to pay. I mean, if the Pokemon fell sick, they would do it for free. If they needed general healing, they would do it for free. Just not optional surgery.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.

Chapter 16: Trouble Strikes Back

Dawn's POV

After we had gotten everything for the night ready, I blushed heavily. I remembered that I had to share a tent with Paul… This experience will most likely be traumatizing.

Paul noticed my uneasiness during the food we had, and decided to ask me about it. "What's up with you?" He looked at me, frowning. I remembered that if I lied, my nostrils flared, so I covered them, as if I was scratching them.

"Uhh… Nothing! I-it's nothing! Everything's fine!" I stuttered, waving my hands in front on me.

"Then stop acting weird," he said. I growled at his rudeness.

"I'm not acting weird," I argued, "I'm just…nervous about my next contest." He stared at me, narrowing his eyes. He clearly didn't believe me.

"Whatever." He stood up, zipping open the tent. I watched him as he disappeared inside, probably retiring to bed.

I sighed, and poured a bucket of water from the lake over the campsite fire. I pocketed Buneary in her poke ball, and carried Piplup over to the little bed I got him. It was just a smaller version of my sleeping bag. Piplup insisted that he slept outside, to keep watch if Devlin showed up. I had rolled my eyes at how paranoid both Paul and Piplup were.

I changed into my warmer pyjamas, slipped on my pink slippers, and whispered, "Are you decent?"

"What do you mean 'am I decent'?" Paul growled back.

"I don't want to walk in while you're changing!"

"Fine, then. I'm decent," he said, mimicking me. I glared at the tent. I almost started shouting at him, but I was really tired.

"Alright, I'm coming in," I mumbled, before zipping the tent open.

Paul was in his dark coloured sleeping bag, which was fully assembled. The tent wasn't very big; it only fit about two people. I went to the right side of the tent, crawled into my sleeping bag, and muttered a good night.

I dozed off for a moment, but woke up to see…ME ON PAUL'S CHEST!

He looked satisfied, probably from a good dream. His lips were turned up into a little smile, and his hair was brushed away from his face. I was so tempted to just kiss him while he slept. I reached up with my arm, and touched his cheek, but quickly pulled away so he wouldn't wake up.

It seemed that in the night, I had felt so comfortable next to Paul that I was sleeping on his…toned chest. I blushed a deep shade of red, but didn't move from him. He had his arms around my tummy (we were both laying on our backs). I decided to snuggle further down into Paul, since this is the closest I'm probably going to get to him.

"I love you…Paul," I whispered to myself, before falling asleep again.

"What time is it…?" Paul groaned, awakening me from my peaceful slumber.

I opened one eye, to see that I was burrowed into Paul's chest, and that his right arm was wrapped around my waist. My heart hammered in my chest… He must not have noticed what we were doing…

"Uhhh…Paul?" I tried not to scream in delight (HE FEELS KINDA COMFORTABLE WITH BEING REALLY CLOSE TO ME!).

Suddenly, he sprung back, shouting his apologies. He looked very red (probably from embarrassment) as he stared at my flushed face. He sat up, going to the other side of the tent, away from me.

"I'm sorry!" he spluttered awkwardly, his frown gone.

"I-it's okay…" I forgave. "You had no idea… It was an accident, right?"

"Yeah… I won't do that again. Ever." He turned the other way, brushing his plum coloured hair from his eyes.

Tears threatened to fall from my eyes as he harshly told me that he wouldn't do it (ever…). I looked down on my lap, concentrating on my clenched fist. It's not my fault that I'm in love with my old best friend, the one who hates my guts… He's not the loving type…

I was frustrated that he would never know how I felt. I wanted to punch a wall because he would never feel the same. His cold words clouded my head, and I tried to blot them out. My sight blurred, as a single tear drop fell on my lap. I wiped my eye away quickly, not to let Paul notice.

"Are you okay?" I heard him say.

I faced him, forcing a small smile. "Yeah, I'm fine," I assured him. "But I'm going to change now." I picked up my bag, before coming out the tent.

I quickly put on my outfit I wore yesterday, and grinned at the sun because it was warmer (meaning I wouldn't freeze to death). Paul then stepped out, and walked past me, zipping up his jumper.

We started to pack up the camp, putting the tent back, and folding up sleeping bags. Piplup tried to help, but always tripped over a peg, or face planted on the little mallet. In the end, I released Buneary to keep Piplup company. After we had finished, I returned Buneary and faced Paul.

"Where to, now?"

"I need to collect Murkrow," he answered.

"Let's go, then!" I exclaimed, before skipping ahead (totally forgetting the ordeal earlier on).

"Troublesome…" Paul muttered. I stuck my tongue out at him, before running away from the forest.

Fortunately, Ilex Forest wasn't bad luck for us. No aliens had abducted me, and I currently wasn't dead. I got bitten, though, and a stinging nettle abused my leg, so it wasn't all 'rainbows and unicorns', either.

We arrived at the Pokemon Centre, and picked up Murkrow. Paul's Pokemon seemed happier, and it looked healed. I could see the faint traces of work on the beak, but it didn't show up without looking at it closely.

"Let's have food," I suggested. Paul grunted, and we ordered our breakfast.

"Are we leaving for Goldenrod, then?" I pondered for a moment, while chewing my fried eggs.

"No," I finally answered.

"Why not?" Paul grumbled. "I want to get my new gym badge."

"Because I need to stock up with items at the Poke Mart," I explained. "Also, if anything bad happens to us or our Pokemon, I'll get a first aid kit. That means we will never be in a horrible healing emergency."

"Except if we fall down a cliff," Paul teased. I face planted on the table.

"SHUT UP!" I screamed at him, my teeth bearing. Piplup started shouting at Paul, too. Murkrow just laughed… Paul just chuckled, petting Piplup on the head mockingly. "Jerk," I muttered to myself, shaking my head.

We finished our food, and headed out to the Poke Mart.

The Poke Mart was a small store, with a blue roof. I could see things in bottles, and potions through the store's window. It looked very colourful, but not too busy (at least we won't have to wait for ages…).

I walked through the door, smiling as the automatic doors opened slowly. Paul followed, grumbling that I'll take too long. I gave him a glare, and started to put things in the basket. I bought a few potions, some puffins (all the way from Sinnoh!), antidotes, a first aid kit, plasters and some Pokemon food. Paul seethed the whole way through, telling me to hurry up.

"You think shopping is fast?!" I was angry that he didn't respect me enough to stay quiet.

"To me it is," he challenged.

"Well, I'm a very…thorough shopper," I argued, sticking my tongue out. I ignored his gaze, and heaved my basket onto the counter. "May I buy all these, please?" I said sweetly to the clerk.

"Hurry up with the bagging," Paul ordered the man. I gave him a death glare. He's so rude!

After the man handed me my bag, I stuffed it into my backpack. I was about to stomp out of the store, when I heard a familiar voice, "Dawn! I finally caught up to you!"

I turned to see a very flustered Professor Elm. He was wearing another one of his embarrassing Hawaiian shirts, and he panted a lot. It seemed that he had been running.

Paul gave him a dirty look. "Who's he?" I ignored his disgusted tone.

"This man is Professor Elm. He greeted me in New Bark Town. He's a friend of Professor Rowan," I explained, smiling at the two awkwardly.

"Ah, so he knows Rowan?" Prof. Elm asked, fixing his glasses.

"Yes," was all Paul said.

"Anyway," I cut in, "you said you wanted to see me?"

"Of course! Here you go!" Prof. Elm handed me a poke ball. I looked at it with curiosity. The poke ball looked new, so no one must've used it before, but it was slightly heavy, so there must be a Pokemon inside it.

"What's this?" I eyed the ball closer, trying to figure out what could be inside.

"Open it and see," Prof. Elm told me. I nodded, before clicking it open.

The Pokemon looked like a mix between an echidna, and a shrew. It had fire blaring out on the back of its body. It had blue-ish fur on the top of its body, and a milky colour on its underbelly. It looked adorable, as its eyes were closed shut in glee.

I squealed, "Awwww! This Pokemon is so adorable!"

"It is quite cute," Prof. Elm chirped, "and it's all yours."

"WHAT?!" both Paul and I shouted in disbelief.

"Yes. I wanted to give you a starter ever since you visited my lab, but I kept missing you. Think of this as a belated welcoming present, and a congratulatory prize for winning your first contest ribbon."

"Thank you so much!" I shrieked and picked up my new Pokemon.

"The Pokemon is called Cyndaquil," Prof. Elm told me. I nodded, before tickling my new Pokémon's belly. It laughed, before snuggling into me.

I noticed Paul glaring at Prof. Elm. The professor started to become uneasy and uncomfortable, shifting his gaze a lot. Stubborn, Paul glared at Prof. Elm further.

"OKAY, I'LL GIVE YOU ONE, TOO!" he shouted, before running out the store. I looked in surprise as Paul stared at a poke ball.

"I only wanted him to say what type it was," Paul admitted. I sweat dropped, and face planted on the floor (anime style!).

"Let's see your new Pokemon, then!" I suggested, grinning.

Paul clicked the center of the ball, and out came a yellow Pokemon. The Pokemon was an oval shaped, bipedal (I'm guessing electric type) Pokemon. Black strips appeared on the body and arms.

"An Elekid," Paul breathed out.

"Kid~" the Pokemon sang, happy to have a trainer.

"Yay! We both got awesome new Pokemon!" I pointed out happily.

"I could teach Elekid a fighting type for Whitney…" Paul muttered, thinking up a battle strategy for his third Gym badge.

"Let's go pack up the tent, and get to Goldenrod City before it turns dark, then." I smiled, liking my idea. I could also train my Cyndaquil when we finally go further in Ilex Forest…

Paul nodded, before skulking out of the store. I bounded after him, but was stopped when I bumped into someone.

"Silvy~!" a voice sang, melodic and tuneful.

I looked up, to see Devlin. He frowned, but pulled me up. He was about to walk back to the voice, when he saw… Paul.

"Uh-oh…" I murmured. I knew that they had to keep away from each other.

"Silver!" A girl jumped out of nowhere, standing next to Devlin.

She wore a long sleeved red top, and denim dungarees that were to her mid-thigh. She also wore while stockings, and red sneakers. Atop her head was a white, puffy marshmallow hat.

"Who are they?" she wondered, indicating Paul and I.

"A bastard and a…girl," Devlin answered simply.

"I'm Dawn," I introduced awkwardly. "And this is Paul."

"Is he the guy you got into a fight with?" Lyra checked with Devlin. He nodded. "Well that's awkward, being friends with your enemy's girlfriend!"

"He/She is NOT my boyfriend/girlfriend!" Paul and I shouted at them.

"Awww! They're in denial!" she teased, smiling.

"Who are you?" Paul demanded to the girl.

She bowed before saying, "My name is Lyra Kotone! I am Silver's travelling partner!" She finished off her introduction with a twirl.

"Who's Silver?" I wondered, glancing at Devlin for help.

"Silver's my middle name. I have no idea why she refuses to call me by my first name," Dev-Silver explained.

"It's because your name is too menacing! You have a fluffy heart if you dig deep down!" She punched him on the arm playfully, and I swore that I saw Silver blush.

"That's not as bad as what I call Paul," I piped up, grinning at Paul. "I call him Iron Man because he shows no emotion. Except anger…" Lyra giggled.

"Troublesome."

"And that's what he calls me," I groaned.

"OMG, I JUST WANT TO HUG YOU TWO!" she squealed. "You two are sooo adorable! I think you should get together."

Paul and I both looked away, blushing bright red.

"As much as I want to punch your face," Silver sneered, "I can't. Officer Jenny forbade it. I have a better idea, though."

"What?" Paul asked rudely.

"A battle." Silver's eyes glinted mischievously.

The four of us had moved to Ilex Forest, in a clearing, so that Paul and Silver could battle. Lyra rambled on while we walked, and I chatted with her, happy that we were very talkative. The guys just stayed in silence, but I heard them muttering things about us in agreement.

Maybe they wouldn't hate each other, now they're comparing how annoying we were…?

"How does three Pokemon sound?" Silver challenged, getting his poke ball ready.

"Sounds good." I laughed, knowing that Paul only had three Pokemon, anyway. If Silver had asked for a four-on-four battle, Paul would've been humiliated.

"Ghastly, c'mon out!" Silver shouted, throwing out his poke ball.

His Ghastly stuck out his tongue, and I shivered. Ghastly was a dark purple…ball of…gas? It hovered around, and it's big eyes creeped me out.

"Murkrow," Paul grunted. Murkrow was released, and squawked happily, glad that it would get a chance to battle.

"Ghastly, use Lick!"

"Dodge it, and use Wing Attack!" Paul commanded.

Ghastly bared his tongue, and tried to sweep Murkrow up with his tongue, but Murkrow jumped out the way. Murkrow then swiped Ghastly with his wing, and Ghastly moaned in pain.

"Use Lick again!" Silver decided to make sure every move hit.

Before Paul could even shout a way to evade it, the Ghastly had licked Murkrow. We watched to see if anything would happen, but Murkrow just stood still.

"That's weird…" I heard Paul mutter. "No matter! Murkrow, use Gust!"

Murkrow was about to blow a gust of wind to Ghastly, when Murkrow doubled over in pain, as electric jolts ran through his feathers.

"I don't understand," Lyra admitted.

Silver smirked. "Murkrow is paralyzed. Lick gives the side affect of paralysis. I'm surprised is Murkrow doesn't become wounded soon, as Ghastly and I won't go easy on you." Paul growled after hearing what Silver had to say.

"Murkrow, try and shake it off!" Paul ordered, as Murkrow struggled to move even his head.

"Ghastly, use Mean Look," Silver said.

Ghastly flew towards Murkrow, before glaring at Paul's Pokemon intensely. Murkrow cowered in his fixed position, whimpering as the ghost Pokemon glared on.

"Shit," Paul muttered. "Now Murkrow can't escape…"

Then, Silver's strategy dawned on me (A/N: Pun intended! :P). "Silver's strategy is paralyzing his opponent so they can't move, and then making sure that his opponent can't even substitute in battle! Then, he'll attack the opponent's Pokemon until they faint."

Silver grinned at me, after I had figured out his plan.

"Use Curse!" Silver demanded.

A purple glow surrounded Murkrow, and after it diminished, Murkrow doubled up in pain.

"Murkrow's health will slowly decrease," Lyra said, worried. I nodded, understanding. What would Paul do next…?

"Murkrow, please snap out of… Wait!" He dug through his pocket, before pulling out a Paralyz Heal from his pocket.

"That's the one I bought from the Poke Mart!" I told him, pointing at it. "I TOLD YOU THAT MY SHOPPING WASN'T A WASTE OF TIME!"

Paul winced, before spraying the liquid on his Pokemon. Murkrow then started to move slowly, before jumping around.

"Quick, before your health depletes anymore: Use Wing Attack!"

Murkrow hit Ghastly, and then Ghastly fainted. Since Murkrow had a curse on him, he fainted soon after that.

The guys brought back their Pokemon, before bringing out another poke ball.

"Zubat, come out!"

"Elekid, show me what you're made of!"

Silver's Zubat was a purple bat with no eyes, sharp fangs, and it had the most annoying cry I had ever heard of. As it screeched, Lyra and I covered our ears.

"Shut up!" Silver scolded to his Pokemon.

"Silvy! His voice is annoying, but don't shout at Vampy!" she told him.

"'Vampy'?" I echoed.

"She names my Pokemon…" Silver face palmed after Lyra giggled at him. I sweat dropped, and Paul shook his head.

"Elekid, use… Thundershock!" I wondered why Paul felt so unsure about Elekid's moves, but then I remembered that he had only just got it today, and I cringed.

Elekid ran forward, before tensing, and releasing a shock of electricity on Zubat. Zubat screeched, and flew back. Elekid smiled, and jumped up so he could avoid Zubat's Leech Life attack. Zubat clenched his jaw, and flew to Elekid, biting him in the process. Elekid screamed in pain, before shocking the bat with another Thundershock. After finishing his electric attack, Elekid ran forward and used Quick Attack. Zubat fell down, landing on his wing. In an instant, Zubat had fainted.

"That's great, Paul!" I congratulated, since he had almost won the battle.

"It's not over yet," Silver sneered. "Go, Croconaw!"

Croconaw was a medium-sized, crocodile-like reptilian Pokémon, mostly blue in coloration with accentuations of yellow and black eye markings. Croconaw had three clusters of red spikes on their body, one with three prongs on its head like a crest, one with two prongs on its back, and one diamond-shaped spike on its tail. He had a set of pronounced, yellow-colored jaws. Silver's Croconaw possessed an asymmetrical, yellow-colored pattern on their chests that somewhat resembles a spotted animal skin.

"A water type," I whispered to myself. "This should be an easy battle, Paul's last two Pokemon are super effective against water types."

"Croconaw, use Water Gun!"

Croconaw ran to Elekid, before spurting water from his mouth, onto Elekid. Elekid stood as the water fell on him, staring at his drenched body.

"Why didn't Fang's Water Gun do anything on…Volt?" I sweat dropped, after Lyra made names for both Pokemon in battle.

"Because…Volt is an electric type," I explained, using the nickname. "Electricity and water don't mix, but something might happen…"

Elekid suddenly released a sharp and strong looking electrical shock. Croconaw shrieked in pain, before tumbling down to the ground.

"The winner goes to Iron Man!" I pointed at Paul, keeping a serious face on.

"Noooo! Silvy, you should train more!" Lyra whined, skipping over to him.

I was surprised to see Silver glare at his Croconaw. "You're so weak," he spat. He then turned to Paul. "And you only won with luck."

"Silver!" That was the first time Lyra had ever used his name. "You can't insult your Pokemon like that! It's incredibly rude!" She walked over to Croconaw, helping him up and patting his head. "He did brilliantly. And Paul won because he was stronger than you. There was no luck involved."

With that, she stalked off, waving goodbye to us in the process.

"Whipped," Paul teased.

Silver blushed. "Shut up!" He turned to Lyra, whose figure we could only see partially from the distance she had gone. "Wait! You've got my Croconaw!"

"IT'S FANG!" we heard her shout. I grinned, and tugged Paul's sleeve.

"Let's go to Goldenrod," I suggested.

He sighed in relief. "Thank Arceus," he exhaled. "We've dawdled her long enough."

We then made our way deeper into the forest. I couldn't help think about Lyra and Silver. They seemed to be very nice (even if Paul hated Silver's guts), and I enjoyed the little time we had.

I was sure that we would see them again.

OMG, I FINALLY FINISHED THIS! This took me three days, which annoyed me, because I planned to finish this in a day… -_- Anyway: I've wanted to write this chapter for ages. I love Soulsilvershipping, and I really wanted to add it into the story.

I've also been itching to get Dawn her Cyndaquil, and Paul his Elekid. I'd known their final team from chapter one, and a surge of excitement overtook me as I wrote this chapter. ^.^

So, Paul and Dawn will be on their way to Goldenrod City. I probably won't write Paul's Gym battle for another two chapters, but it shall be coming quite soon. Dawn's Contest will follow soon after and I can assure that the Contest will not take three chapters! I've seriously matured with my writing, so the chapters will be longer and better in…grammatical areas… ;)

A new chapter should be up soon! I might even write one for the end of this month… If I'm lucky, that is, as school is taking over my life.

Please: Review, review and review! :D