Chapter 9

Ghetsis looks at his reflection in the mirror again inside a fairly old house in the rainy city Mistralton. They were fortunate enough to find a home empty, and Team Plasma is going to use this time wisely. Only Ghetsis is a bit more concerned about his face then the real deal, and he frowns quite worriedly and asks his son again, "N, I am not old, am I?"

N keeps his gaze down onto the scrolls he's translating, writing with a black pen faultlessly onto another sheet of paper, converting the old language easily. He's silent and he rolls his eyes, a bit of his tea green hair resting over his high shoulder. He's leaning down towards the table, trying to truly concentrate and focus on his work. But really, he's irritated at how his father constantly asks the same question over and over, and has been questioning for the past thirty minutes. He opens his mouth to give the same answer, "no", but then he thinks again and closes it, not bothering to waste his voice anymore on such a useless inquiry.

Ghetsis paws at his slight prune like face and asks again, in a more austere tone, "Boy, I asked you something. I expect an answer."

N roughly stops his pen, and exhales sharply. He's had enough of this. The pen's tip drives into the table, making a slight dent, and N says with a bit of an unpleasant tone, "No, father. You are not old, for the last time."

"I am still handsome?"

N puts his hand over his mouth, dangerously on the edge of bursting out in laughter. He controls himself quickly and he answers, "Yes sir, very handsome."

Ghetsis gives one last look at the body length mirror, pats his hair, adjusts his red eye patch, and nods at the mirror image. N looks up without moving his head, straining his emerald eyes a bit. He sees his father's ridiculous actions and wants to smirk right in front of his faintly decaying face, but instead thinks the better of it. As he translates, he asks with a bored tone, "I thought you were practically invincible to Haruka's words."

Ghetsis looks over N's shoulder, a strong, blood-like smell now dominating N's scent. He scrunches up his nose and has the urge to put his hand over his nose, but he's used to it, so he doesn't bother. His strange father asks with a touch of a harsh quality, "What do you mean?" Ghetsis tries to hide it, but he knows he can't. He knows his son is intelligent, and he's been finding it a bit more troubling trying to hide things from the now matured teen. He doesn't want to give in too quickly, so he tries to act naive. A doing he doesn't have a liking to. He grips the back of N's chair tightly, turning the color of his knuckles white.

"You know, you didn't seem to have a care in the world while talking to her. Why the worry all of a sudden?" N rests his elbow on the table and pauses a bit to think about a tough translation. His sharp mind quickly thinks of a solution, and he immediately writes it down onto his paper, writing elegantly with neat, precise handwriting. He then notices that his father is staring intently at N's work, and he starts to feel uneasy. He speaks up, wanting to get rid of the meddling feeling, "Father, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't look over my shoulder. It distracts me."

Ghetsis lets go of the chair, not bothering to retort. The loosening allows his knuckles to color back to their original shade, and he doesn't know what to say. He pulls up a cushioned chair and sits himself across the table from his focusing son, careful not to disrupt him. After all, the scrolls are important.

Leaning on an elbow and watching his son, bored, he wants to fall asleep. He closes his eye and begins to drift off until N asks again, "Father, are you going to answer or what?"

Ghetsis snaps his dreary eye open and frowns, "Answer what?"

N resists the urge to shake his head. He says, "It seems as if Haruka's words are starting to affect you."

Ghetsis growls in disgust at her name and says, "Don't even say that name. Makes me want to retch."

N, showing no expression, continues, "Why, did she hurt your feelings?" Then he can't help but smile at his own little taunt, allowing his handsome face to gain an even more fetching look. His jade eyes glint in amusement and his smile allows some of his white teeth to show, popping out against his lightly tanned face. He allows himself a small chuckle, and almost messes up on his clear lettering.

Ghetsis looks up and glares at his son, and spits defensively, "Of course not! I'm just aware of my aging. The sages don't want an ugly principal, you know."

N replies, "Mm-hm." Why would they care? They keep their eyes closed half the time they're with you, he thinks, keeping his gaze down. Eventually, he can't take it anymore and wants to look at the fuming, older man's reaction. He raises his head, his long hair falling back down his back, and carefully looks at his angry father.

"You accuse me of lying, you impolite boy?" Ghetsis questions with a venomous tone, turning his resting hand into a fist. He steadies his glare straight into N's eyes, hoping to scare the boy. Instead, his son stares back calmly and places his pen down with a small clatter. He leans his sturdy back onto the wooden chair, and rubs his eyes, sighing a bit. He answers his awaiting father, "What if I am?"

Ghetsis, shocked at the reply, slams his clenched fist on the arm rest and shouts, "Don't you dare speak to me that way! You're to-"

N lowers his hands, making his golden triangular bracelets jingle. He interrupts Ghetsis mid-sentence, "Respect. I know. Take a joke, Father."

Ghetsis, slightly flushing from ire and embarrassment, relaxes his body and hand and exhales, trying to relief the crossness. After a few seconds, he says with a bit of a low voice, "Tell me, what is this thing you have with this annoying brat?"

N replies, "What thing? There's nothing going on between us." He says this a bit too quickly, instantly letting Ghetsis know that something's going on. The man in the ugly robe raises his somewhat thinning eyebrows and rests his chin on his right hand. He says, "No use hiding it. I can see right through you like a window. Damn transparent."

N scowls at the cruel man and says a bit coldly, "When I say nothing, I mean it. I just happen to know her from somewhere." He looks down at his white, slightly open button up shirt. He feels really hot for some reason, and simply concludes it's his long sleeved shirt underneath. He looks up at his father again and finds the man looking at him, almost accusingly.

Ghetsis decides to push it a bit more, and pulls a strand of dull green hair, and inspecting it. He then asks, "Where?"

They fine boy fiddles with his planet necklace, "Accumula."

The hard-hearted father carries on, "Hm… And how did this happen? Let me guess," He smirks, "The girl came running up to you, didn't she?"

N, feeling somewhat defensive, answers back, "No, actually. I went to her."

Ghetsis rolls his eyes and remarks, "I thought you didn't chase girls."

"I don't. Haruka's a different story." N mutters softly, looking away with a solemn look on his face. He pulls his cap tighter down onto his head and says nothing else, giving Ghetsis a cue to keep talking. The father obeys the imaginary script and does so. He, almost entertained, says, "See? There is something. You just said that she's a unique one. I've never heard you talk about a girl this way. It's obvious, so might as well come out with it."

Ghetsis finishes and waits for his son to answer. Instead, he gets silence in return. The boy is simply looking at something, clearly trying to avoid his father's pushing. Annoyed, the man purses his lips and says sternly, "I'm waiting. I'm not letting you off so easy."

Finally giving in, irritated, N snaps his bright eyes back to his urging father and says harshly, "I heard her pokemon. They were strangely happy to be with her, and I got curious. So I went up to her, turned on my flirting act, and decided to get to know her."

A not satisfied Ghetsis decides to break it out to him, "Well, that doesn't explain that Ferris wheel date."

"What? How the hell do you know about that?!" N snaps, automatically knowing what his father had done. His insides start to squirm, and he starts to get somewhat nervous, slowly turning his resting hand into a fist.

His father simply answers coolly, not fazed at the yell or language, "Oh, you know, something called spies. I wanted to know what you were up to, and I didn't want to go look like a fool snooping on my son, so I sent the Shadow Triad."

"And let me tell you, I'm not at all happy about that date," Ghetsis goes on, glaring at his son, "You were supposed to be focusing on our goal. Not some flimsy little slut who goes around trying to pick up guys."

N's face gets stony and dangerous, and his balled up fists seem so rigid that they might be able to break a brick. Did he just hear his father right? Fury building inside him, he calmly says, slightly austere, "Haruka is not a slut."

Ghetsis gives him an amused look and imitates N, "Aw, did she hurt your feelings?"

"Shut up!" N shouts, finally fed up. He stands and glowers at his slightly stunned father and continues his rage, "No! You don't get it! You were never loving…" He decides to leave out the mom part, knowing that it's quite a sensitive subject to bring up. Instead, he goes down a different trail and says a bit more quietly this time, "Okay, maybe I was slacking off a bit. I won't anymore. And invading a person's privacy like that is vulgar, for your information, Dad," He emphasizes the word a bit, knowing that it annoys Ghetsis. He continues, sitting back down, "And I am the king of this team, and people will go by my rules. So from now on, the Shadow Triad is under my instruction, got it?"

N doesn't bother with the respect part, not caring. The two keep the glaring contest going until Ghetsis finally blinks and sneers, "Alright, boy, I expect more dedication to this project. After all, you're the base of this. And the Shadow Triad will still be under me."

"No, I told you, I want them."

Ghetsis answers, starting to lose his cool, "No."

"I want the Shadow Triad following me, and that is an order, Sage Ghetsis." N replies, picking up the pen again, "I don't need any more of this 'spying'."

"Fine." Ghetsis growls, giving up. He leans against the cushiony chair, and rubs his temples. He says, "Remember, you have to pursue that stone of Zekrom. The one that the prince had control over."

N nods, not looking up, "I know. I'm well aware of that. The Dark Stone. Got it."

"You must be the hero, N. If you don't get the stone, then we're done for." Ghetsis reminds his son, wanting to pound it into his head so that it will stay there eternally.

"Okay." N says sternly, exasperated. He sighs and grips his pen tighter.

Then he stops writing, and inhales quickly. His mouth opens slightly and Ghetsis looks back down at his son, wondering why the sudden stop. He lowers his hands and asks gruffly, "Why did you stop? You've got five more pages. We need to get this done."

N, raising one green eyebrow, leans back against his chair and away from the paper. He scratches his hair, looking confused. He bends down, squinting his eyes, and reads the old language again, making sure he understood it right. Inhaling slowly, he says, "Father, I don't think you're gonna like this..."

Ghetsis groans. More problems? That brat is enough! He exhales through his clenched teeth and asks roughly, "What is it? I swear, I've about had it with this!"

N, ignoring his father, underlines the old language as he reads carefully, "It says here that a hero will be encountered by another hero, and their decisions will determine fate…" He curls his finger, not really sure what to think of the passage. He looks at his father, and kind of regrets doing so. Ghetsis' face is a mixture of pure white with tints of purple, and he looks like he wants to throw up. But as he thinks about it, he really doesn't see much of an issue. Nothing too shocking. So what could his father possibly be so raged about?

"What… Read it again." Ghetsis demands, leaning forward in his seat, making sure to hear every word correctly.

N sighs, and picks up the old scroll, wary not to damage the old scripture and paper. He stops it close in front of his eyes, and reads slowly, "The hero will be encountered by another hero," he pauses, making his eyes look up at Ghetsis. He continues reading, "And their decisions shall determine fate."

He puts the scroll back down on the table, and purses his lips a bit, leaning his elbows on his thighs and folding his hands together. Whatever that means, it clearly isn't good. That is, according to Ghetsis' face. It's red now, and he hisses, "This is not good. No, damn it!"

Ghetsis stands up and paces the floor, on the Oriental rug imported from Kanto. He doesn't care if his shoes make marks. All he is thinking about is that one simple line his son had just read. He knows exactly what it means, and he despises the definition. N clears his throat, which gets the cruel man's attention. He stops in his tracks and looks a bit worriedly and angrily at the handsome boy. N raises an eyebrow again, and crosses his arms, "Why isn't that good? I don't see why you're so pissed."

Ghetsis almost screams in frustration. How can this boy be so gifted yet so… So senseless? He answers the question icily, adjusting the collar of his robe, where Haruka had gripped him, "You really don't know why? Read it again, you unwise boy."

N, used to the insults, rolls his eyes and reads the line again, quickly. He continues scanning it, but sees no problem. What could his father possibly be angry about? He asks, annoyed, "I still don't see it. What the hell is the problem?"

"Another hero, that's what!" Ghetsis barks, spinning his wide body fully towards N, "You are the supposedly one hero, and you must encounter another imp, then our plan might fail! Get it now?" He hisses at the boy, "You don't want that to happen to our precious scheme, do you?"

N seems unfazed, and shrugs, "If I do retrieve the Dark Stone, and I do meet the other hero, then all I have to do is make the right choice, and everything will be fine." He looks up at his father and says flatly, "There's nothing to be mad about. And unless you interrupt my doings, then I will accomplish this. Sheesh, calm down."

"Calm down?!" Ghetsis screeches, his red eye sparked with fury, "What if you make the wrong decision? What if-"

N glares at his father and says coldly, "So you have no faith in me?"

"Some faith. Can't lie to my own son." Ghetsis spits back, going back to his previous statements, "What if you end up doing something completely stupid? Then we'll be off to prison and our lives will be terrible from then on…" He inhales sharply and covers his eyes with his rough hands. He uncovers them, and turns to his son, who is currently staring intently at a fake plant. Ghetsis looks at him with some distaste, a bit embarrassed at the overreaction. But he knows it's something to be truly worried about, considering the current state N is in. He mutters something under his breath, cursing the stupid little brat for tweaking N's mind, and causing him to not focus on the goal as much. He breathes out and calmly says, "Look, boy, if you truly want this plan to work, I need more devotion from you. Right now, it's not strong. In fact, I'm a bit worried."

"Huh. You worried? That's a first." N scoffs, turning his head from the fake plant and looking at the greedy man. He darts his eyes quickly away and towards the ground, staring at the ostentatious designs on the rug.

N knows that recently his piety towards his life dream has not been resilient. And he knows exactly who to blame it on. He flushes a bit and covers his mouth, turning his head to the left, now staring at the old walls, the paint starting to peel off. Dammit Haruka, he thinks, clenching his chiseled jaw, why did you do this to me?

He despises the girl for this reason, but does not hate her. No, he cannot hate the pretty girl, he simply can't. He wants to, he really does, but there's another side to it. Something like admiration, but not admiration. Wait, how does that make sense? N huffs and shakes his head. He leans towards the table, rolls up the ancient scroll, and decides to leave the pen on the table. He stands a bit unsteadily, cracking his back and rolling his stiff neck. He walks to his father and hands him the scroll, the man taking it with a bit of an unsure and hesitant feeling. He tentatively grabs it and stuffs it deep inside his robe, along with the translated papers. He tilts his head back, his short, drab green hair moving some. He looks down upon his sort of ashamed son, and says abruptly, "Do you know what really a first is? You and a girl. You've always hated girls, not liking the way they always stare at you. But look at you now," He accentuates the last part, sneering and taking a step forwards towards the bored looking boy, "Tripping on your own feet because of a weak little horror. You ought to be ashamed."

He expects the boy to hang his head, green eyes to the ground, and mumble and apology. But instead, he smiles. He actually smiles at the offense! Ghetsis gains a muddled look on his slightly wrinkled face and cringes a bit. What the hell is this boy thinking? Has he mentally gone ill? This is no time to be smiling, but a time to be regretful! The disordered man thinks.

N, still smiling a brilliant beam, says, "Why ashamed? I think I should be happy. After all, you have no right to judge my feelings."

Ghetsis, angered at this insult, attempts to slap his son, being the abusive man he is. N, already have known what was coming, grabs the bony wrist and hisses icily, something inside him seeming to have snapped like the string on a violin, "You've kept me locked up in that damn castle for practically my whole life until two years ago, when Mom convinced you. And you know what? I greatly thank her for that."

Ghetsis is speechless and a bit hurt at the mention of his wife, and looks down, his wrist still in N's iron grip. He attempts to struggle it free, but the boy is now stronger, and simply grips it tighter, harming his bone. Ghetsis does not express the pain on his pale face. After all, he's already a master at that.

"But then somebody decided to go crazy and killed her!" N shouts with fury and flings the man's wrist down, now shouting, "You got sick of her, so you murdered her! Who should be the ashamed one?"

"Shut up!" Ghetsis growls, warning his son to shut his mouth with a freezing glare. He turns away and looks at the opposite wall. On the outside, the man is angered and red with fury. But that is merely a shell, because truly he is quivering in humiliation, anger, anxiety, and yes, shame.

Ignoring the portent, N continues shouting, "You've never told me why, and really, I don't want to know why," He whispers the last part, his heart pounding with hurt and rage. Then he raises his voice once more, "But he point is, I am not your puppet! I will feel what I want to feel and that's that."

He bravely brushes past his father and exits the house, leaving Ghetsis staring at the wall, and for the first time in many years, wounded.

He stays there for thirty minutes, his head throbbing. How dare the boy bring up his mother, how dare he! He breathes in shakily and his hands shake at the memory. He screams in anger and slams a tabletop, knocking a lamp on the floor, shattering the light bulb. A plasma grunt comes in and is not shaken up by the sudden outburst, already used to Ghetsis' moody behavior. Instead, he raises his gray eyes and bluntly says, "Sir, we are ready to retrieve the next scroll. Would you like to move on?"

"N-no. No." He says, moving towards the door, "I want to stay."

"Um, mind telling me the reason, Sage Ghetsis?"

"I do," Ghetsis snaps, and waves a hand tersely for him to go, "I simply don't feel like moving on. Report that to the rest of the team. Got it?"

"Yes sir." The grunt replies, slightly bowing to the sage. He closes the door, knowing that Ghetsis enjoys his private time. Once the door closes, and Ghetsis knows that grunt is gone a good ways, he slowly sits himself on the sofa, and begins to rage.

"That damned girl!" He shouts, shrieking in fury, staring wildly at his shaking hands, "It's her! She's the one who made N start to think like this! She's the one who made N unfocused. She is the problem! Dammit!"

He inhales and exhales slowly, taking deep breaths, and eventually says, his voice hoarse, "She's the one who made him think of his mother. That damned woman who annoyed the hell out of me!"

He continues his angry rant, and a grunt and N are listening outside the door, the grunt a bit uneasy and N expressionless.

"Lord N, are you sure this is okay? Listening to him like this…" The nervous grunt asks, wringing his small hands.

N places a hand on the door, and stays silent. Then he says with a hard voice, "It's fine. It's about time he put down that ridiculous 'tough man' act."

He walks away from the door and towards the rest of the team and the sages. He decides to leave his father alone, and says, "Ghetsis is not feeling well. Allow him to rest there for tonight. We'll find a place to stay."

As he leads the group towards somewhere, the memories start to kick in.

"N, don't you want to go outside a play, my dear?"

"But Mommy, Daddy says it's bad out there. Lots and lots of people hurt pokemon."

The mother shakes her head, "No. He just wants to keep you in here so you can become just like him."

Little N, tilts his head, his green eyes twinkling, "But Daddy is a good guy… Right?"

His mother smiles softly at him, and whispers, "I… I'm not so sure about that."

N continues to walk, put his head starts to throb. He puts a hand to his forehead and says almost inaudibly, "I'm not sure about that either, Mom, I'm not sure."

"Lord N," an elderly sage interrupts his thoughts, "Will you be able to inform us about the old writing?"

"Ah, right," N says, snapping his head back and towards the sage, trying to ignore his sore head, "Um, yeah. And uh…" Dammit, stop hurting! He tugs at the roots of his hair and pulls back his bangs, his cap currently dangling on the loop of his pants, his face turns a bit white, not his usual tanned color, "Um… It said that one hero will, ah…" He stumbles back a bit, and some grunts catch him, "Lord N! Are you okay? What's wrong?"

He stands up correctly and declines the offer of holding onto a male grunts shoulder. He clutches his head, "No, I'm fine. Just a headache."

He takes a deep breath and looks at the confused sage with reassuring eyes, "One hero will meet another and their decision will decide the future's fate." He finishes this quickly, finding it hard to talk and breathe.

The sage speaks in a somewhat high pitched voice, unlike Ghetsis' gruff one and N's deep, silky one, "Oh my, I'll bet that isn't in Sage Ghetsis' favor."

N lets out a weak laugh, "Nope, not at all. Went all out in there. Ugh…" He leans against the brick wall of a home, and tilts his head to the ground, the pain in his head throbbing with greater intensity. He turns red from embarrassment, and the sage bends down and asks, concerned, "My king, I don't believe your fine. You seem to be in great pain."

You think? N ruminates to himself, still clutching his head. The agony is so great that he slides down the wall and sits, still clutching his head. Arceus, what the heck is going on? It feels like my head is going to fucking explode.

He groans and the sage barks out and order, "Grunts! Come here! We must get him help! Hurry, come help me carry him!"

"No…" N grumbles, his forehead starting to bead with sweat, "No, I don't wanna…"

"I don't want to… No…" His eyes snap open, the emerald color brighter than usual with a desolate and wild looks. He slams his fist back to the brick wall, and the side of his hand begins to bleed, dark, red blood dripping. He begins to stands but then falls back down, growling at the grunts and sages, "Leave me alone. I want nobody here but my princess!"

"N!" The sages shout, two of them merely standing there stunned and a bit freaked out, and the rest of the three hurriedly bed down the restrain him from kicking a helpless female grunt, "What's wrong? What's going on?" They ask themselves, obviously clueless about what to do.

"You stop this act right now!" A booming voice shouts above the yammering, and all noises stop.

Ghetsis, his eye redder than usual walks up to his son, bends down onto his knees, and gives him a proper and harsh slap to the face. N winces slightly, but then he glowers and gives the cruel man a dirty look.

"You dare hit me? I'll show you a right hit you-" He growls dangerously, starting at the old father with a fist. The sages and a grunt hold him down and Ghetsis seems unfazed, but is secretly freaked out. What the hell is wrong with his son? Whatever this act is, he better stop it. He shouts harshly and in a poisonous tone, "N, I AM SICK AND TIRED OF YOUR CHILDISH BEHAVIOR. STOP THIS, NOW!"

The terrible, loud scream seems to startle N, who's still struggling to get out of the grip of the sages and grunt. All of a sudden, he face seems to contort back to normal, and he furrows his brows, confused. He stops trying to break free, and he asks, "Why am I held in a grasp?"

"What?!" The high-pitched voiced sage squeaks, "What do you mean? You were just trying to attack us and you were mumbling unknown things! Don't you even remember?"

"… What?" N asks, yanking away from the muddled sages and grunt, and feels a stinging on the side of his right hand. He glances at it, and finds blood covering the side. There's also a dull pain on his jaw, and he grips it. Weird. He opens his mouth, wordless, and looks up slowly at his fuming father. What is he so pissed about now?

Ghetsis asks cheerlessly, "What, do you not recall what just happened? Are you mental?!"

"…" N doesn't say anything, because he knows. He knows very well what had just happened, and will have to find a way to explain it to them. He sighs and stands, holding his bloodied hand.

"Look, it's really hard to explain…" N begins, unsure of what really to say.

"I'll wait all day if it takes for you to explain this insane behavior." Ghetsis replies coldly, crossing his arms. The ugly robe seems even more hideous for some reason, and the two eyes on it seem even bigger and more gruesome.

N purses his lips and stares directly in the evil man's eyes, and says, "I can't. I just… I just can't."

"What?!" Ghetsis snaps, "What do you mean?"

N shrugs, looking down, "I guess you can say that it has something to with Haruka."

Ugh! That girl! Ghetsis rolls his eyes, clenching his fists, something to do with her again?!

That damned girl.