Six Sorrows

The doctor took a deep breath as he gathered the Martin family into the room. He hated giving awful news to people especially when it had to do with children, but he knew it was part of his job. His eyes shifted back and forth from the comatose boy lying in the bed beside him to his family who were anxiously awaiting any kind of news. The doctor sighed once more as he prepared to deliver the information.

"According to our files, Logan was in a coma last year and this is his second one. It's not normal for a boy his age to even be put in a coma, let alone two so close together. We managed to get the drug out of his system, but…suicide attempts are a serious issue. If he wakes up, he will be required by law to visit a mental ward for psychiatric evaluation."

"He's been under an extreme amount of pressure," Iris Martin told the doctor, trying her hardest to remain calm. "A close friend of his recently lost her life, but-"

"Wait a minute," Owen interrupted his wife. "I heard if he wakes up. What are you saying?"

The doctor glanced at the floor before looking back up. "The drug is out of his system, but there is something that is keeping your son in a comatose state. We're trying our hardest to figure it out, but we don't have any answers yet. The only thing we know is that this state is extremely severe due to his medical history. It's possible that he may wake up tomorrow or he may not wake up until next week or next month or even next year. I'm afraid that it's not looking good and…" He paused for a moment. "There's a very strong chance that your son may never wake up…"

The news of Logan Martin's condition hit the students of Louhearst like an earthquake. It would be a week before the expedition resumed, but the spirit of the school had faded away. With the death of Emma and the possibility that Logan would never reawake from his comatose state, there was a very bleak outlook from the students. A dark cloud hovered over them and it seemed as if they were stuck in a state of despair. Shane Clarke entered his enormous room in Clarke Mansion and stretched out on his king-sized bed.

"I put him in that first coma…" he thought to himself as he stared at the ceiling.

His mind wandered back to the fight at Mt. Moon that the two boys had a year earlier. Shane remembered how he bashed a rock into Logan's head and sent him to the ground. The thought of that first injuring being the primary cause of the situation that Logan was in now made Shane sick to his stomach. The entire rivalry between the two had been based on pride and pride alone. Logan had insulted Shane's pride by refusing to stay down. He remembered his humiliating defeat at the hands of the Cherry Boys and how Logan had defeated Luther Kross. Shane had trained vigorously since then and wished he could have a rematch with him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the dragon coin that he had received from the Elder Sage at the Sprout Tower. The old man's words echoed in his head.

"Two sides of one coin. One side represents the right path and the other side represents the easy path. It is up to you to figure out which side is which and which path you will go down. Good luck…"

Shane came to the conclusion that the 'right' path was worlds apart from the 'easy' path. He could definitely see that life had been somewhat easier for him before his change. However, he knew that things had been going well for him and his friends, but everyone else had been suffering. Part of him wanted to go back to being cold and uncaring. He had allowed his heart to harden over the years to prevent things like murder and suicide affect him or his Pokémon. However, there was a part of him that appreciated his new empathetic side. He had been hailed a 'hero' for calling the paramedics after Emma had been stabbed and again for alerting them after Logan's suicide attempt. A year ago, he would have never guessed that Emma Jacobs would be dead, Logan Martin would become suicidal, and that he would actually care about both of their terrible fates. The thought of it was unreal…

Ethan had always liked his house to be lit up. He didn't know why, but there was something about the darkness that he found depressing. However, today was different. There wasn't a single light on in his house. His Pokémon were all scattered around the living room, but he just sat on the couch in total darkness. His parents had spent most of their time at the Jacobs House trying to console the grieving family, but Ethan couldn't bring himself to even look down the street. Whenever he wanted to go somewhere, he knew he would have to pass Emma's house, but she wouldn't be in her front yard playing with her Ninetales or watering her plants. He would pass by there thinking he would meet up with Emma, only to remember that she was gone forever.

"Why did this have to happen…?"

Those six words continuously filled Ethan's thoughts. When he had heard the news about Logan, he didn't break down. He couldn't feel anything and it shocked him. The knock on the door interrupted Ethan's thoughts, but he ignored it, hoping whoever was there would take the hint and leave. However, they kept knocking and he finally decided to open the door. As he stared at his visitor, Ethan's expression became indifferent.

"What is it, Lyra?" he asked simply.

"Um, can I come in?"

Ethan shook his head. "I don't really think that's the best idea right now. I'm busy, so can you tell me what you want."

"I just wanted to see how you were…" She paused for a moment. "Losing Emma has made me realize how important you are to me. I mean, seeing you having fun with Ronnie for the past few months has helped me see what a good friend you are."

"I'm important to you?" Ethan shot back, his anger rising. "No, I'm important to you now. That's only because now because you don't have anyone left. I wasn't important to you last year when I was getting my ass kicked for you or how about the dance, huh? If it weren't for Jett and Z.K., I would've been in my dorm alone while you were having fun with some other guy and you wouldn't have even cared. I'm just a toy to you. You play with me when you're bored and then put me back in the box when you're done. Ever since I actually started taking everyone's advice and distancing myself from you, I've joined an awesome band, made more friends, and met a totally cool girl. She may have a baby, but at least I'm not depressed when I'm around her."

"I've been your best friend since we were kids. Are you really choosing her over me?"

Ethan shook his head once more. "It's not about that. Emma is dead and she wasn't even in some type of accident. She was murdered by a drunken psycho and now Logan has tried to kill himself and from the looks of it, he pretty much succeeded. Our friends are losing their lives and I'm going to follow Emma's footsteps and live life to the fullest, even if I have to cut you out to do that."

"I'm sorry…" was all Lyra could utter.

"Yeah," Ethan said as he closed the door behind him. "Me too…"

Zoey Kross was used to being alone. For Z.K., loneliness had become a part of her life. It wasn't until her first year at Louhearst that she realized that she wasn't alone. Her entire family had abandoned her, but she didn't care about her parents or Luther. She had her Pokémon and as far as she was concerned, she had a new family. The Martins had taken her in when she had revealed to Iris that she would be homeless after the expedition ended in Kanto. She would often do as much work as possible to make up for being an extra mouth to feed. They had made her feel welcomed. However, she never realized how big the house was until she was left alone. The Martins were at Viridian Hospital all day and night, but Z.K. could never make herself stay for more than a few hours.

"What were you thinking, Logan?" she said to herself as she entered his room.

Whenever she visited him at the hospital, she had to fight back tears. She had been taught by her brother that crying was a sign of weakness and it had been ingrained in her ever since she was a small child. When the doctor had told them of Emma's death, she had allowed her emotions to show, but it was one of the rare occurrences where she had actually cried. She and her Pokémon had a reputation for being tough and she was intent on keeping it.

"I know it has to be in here somewhere…"

Z.K. began rummaging through his belongings until she heard a knock on the door. She wondered who it could be at this time of the night. She rushed down the stairs and opened the door to see Becca standing outside. Z.K. gestured her visitor in and closed the door behind her.

"Did you buy me a gift?" Becca asked as Z.K. signaled her Gliscor to come up from the basement.

"What are you talking about?"

Becca reached into her pocket and pulled out an expensive silver necklace with a name pendant. Z.K. nodded her head as she lit up a cigarette. "How did you know?"

"Know what?" Z.K. questioned. "That your birthday was the same day as Logan's? Because I'm smarter than you give me credit for. Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"Does it matter? No one's ever bought me a gift anyway and if I would've told everyone, what would have happened? Emma still would've been stabbed outside the party and Logan still would've overdosed. Look, I appreciate you being nice enough to do something for me, but-"

"Look!" Z.K. interrupted as her face twisted in anger. She put out her cigarette in the ashtray and stepped up to Becca. "I didn't steal the necklace or anything. I had the pendant custom made and trust me, it was expensive! If you don't want it, I'll go get my money back, but don't come here all high and mighty! No one's ever bought me a gift before last year, but instead of whining, I thanked them for going through the trouble of getting me a gift in the first place. All you ever do is whine about your life and when someone finally does something nice for you, you still whine. Yes you've hard life, but you're not the only one and you're better off than a lot of other people. Let me ask you something. Are you six feet under like Emma? Are you lying in a coma in a hospital bed with the possibility that you'll never wake up like Logan? You know what Becca, you've just royally pissed me off! Give me three reasons why I shouldn't just bash your face in with this ashtray!"

She shoved Becca with enough strength to send her to the floor and she simply looked at Z.K. in shock. The girl ran her hand over her face and was surprised to see it stained with red fluid. She had hit her nose on the ledge and was now bleeding tremendously. Gliscor immediately flew in between the two girls to prevent any further injuries.

"Gliiiiscor!"

He frowned at Z.K. as he stood guard over Becca. "I'm sorry," she said as tears welled up in her eyes. She sat on the couch and buried her face in her hands. "I'm so sorry! Everything that happened was my fault and I was taking it out on you. I wanted the party in the first place. I-I couldn't keep it under control and Emma ended up dead. Now Logan is pretty much gone too and I can't handle it…"

Becca managed to get to her feet as she reached for the tissue box. The bleeding had stopped after a few more seconds and she went to the restroom to clean herself off. After she was done, Becca sat down on the couch next to Z.K. and held her tightly.

"Listen, what happened to Emma was not your fault. One guy killed Emma and he's in jail for it. I wish Logan would have realized that, but he didn't." She paused for a moment as Z.K. sat up to face her. "I want you to know that I do love the necklace. I guess I was just surprised that anyone would remember my birthday, much less get me a gift. All the foster families I've lived with have never even acknowledged it and to me, it just seemed like a regular day."

"There are people who care about you now," Z.K. told her. "I started hanging out with you because we're so much alike. When my brother and his gang left, I felt like an outsider at Louhearst. I had friends, but I still didn't feel like I belonged. With you around, I didn't have to feel that way anymore. There was finally someone with similar issues. I know I don't show it often, but I do care about you." She sighed. "I'm sorry for almost kicking your ass…"

Becca smiled and handed her the necklace. "Like you would've won if we actually fought. Now, would you do the honor?" Z.K. grinned as she stood up and placed the necklace on her friend before sitting back down. "I've tried it on once, but I want another person's opinion. How do I look?"

"Beautiful…"

The two girls smiled at one another with the realization that they cared about each other more than anyone else in the world. They found themselves gazing into each other's eyes. Becca felt the comforting warmness of Z.K.'s chocolate brown eyes while the relaxing coolness of Becca's sapphire blue eyes soothed Z.K. The two girls hesitated as they slowly moved closer to one another, not losing eye contact for a single second. Their eyes closed simultaneously as their lips met. The kiss lasted six seconds, but it felt like six hours. They pulled away from each other and simply sat with a wide-eyed expression on their faces. Becca jumped up from the couch and headed towards the door.

"I-I think I should go…"

Z.K. simply nodded her head without even glancing at her friend. "I-I think that's a good idea…"

"What's up? You've apparently tried to contact the Jett. Sorry I couldn't get to the phone, but I'm a busy man. Leave me a message and I'll hit you back…"

Rietta simply hung up the phone and shook her head. It was the fifth time she had tried to contact Jett, but he hadn't answered or even attempted to call her back. She looked around her fancy Mahogany Town hotel room. She had left her Pokémon in her sister's room and made sure that she was alone. She didn't want or need the company. Rietta hadn't been home since the stabbing, but she didn't want to go back. She remembered walking in her destroyed garden along with the other students to see Emma being carried off by an ambulance, she remembered seeing the shock on everyone's faces when Shane rushed in the house to tell them what had happened, but there was one thing that really haunted her. It was the blood. The west gate was stained red with Emma's blood and Rietta literally had to keep herself from fainting. It was the most horrific thing she had ever seen. Things got even worse afterwards. Wherever they went, she and her family were constantly harassed by reporters. The questions never escaped her thoughts.

"Henrietta Mackenzie, is it true that the out of control party was held at your home?"

"Henrietta Mackenzie, is it true that your negligence was the primary cause for the death of Emma Jacobs?"

"Henrietta Mackenzie, do you believe that you are responsible for the party that led to Emma Jacobs's death and subsequently, Logan Martin's suicide attempt?"

Rietta knew that it wasn't fair for her to have to endure everything that was happening, but as she forced herself to think, she came to the realization that she had never really been nice to Emma in the first place. Emma, on the other hand, had always been extremely pleasant to her and remembering how rude she had been to her made Rietta sick to her stomach. She thought about Logan constantly. He had been on her mind since his first confrontation with Sadie Yanes. Rietta had been worried about his mental health, but she hadn't done anything to help him. If anything, she felt like she made it worse.

"All of this could have been avoided…" she thought to herself. "It's all my fault…"

She thought about calling Jett once more, but she knew he wouldn't pick up. She didn't know if he was still in shock or if he just didn't want to talk to her. Rietta knew that is was a strong possibility that the latter was true. She wouldn't blame him for deserting her. She approached the phone once more and took a deep breath before dialing Jett's number once more. Rietta waited and waited for an answer, but it never came.

"What's up? You've apparently tried to contact the Jett. Sorry I couldn't get to the phone, but I'm a busy man. Leave me a message and I'll hit you back…"

Rietta's face twisted in anger as she hurled the phone against the hard wall, breaking it in the process. Tears streamed from her face as she reached under the bed. She retrieved a black bag and placed it on the bed before running to make sure the door was locked. Rietta took a deep breath as she took a seat on the bed and opened the bag to see the transparent bottle that she had stolen. The words of
Shane Clarke ran through her head as she stared at the bottle.

"Anyway, just have a few sips. It'll help you lighten up and enjoy the party…"

She knew that alcohol was the reason for everything bad that happened in the first place, but she also knew how much it made all the pain go away. She remembered how much fun she had at the party and realized that it was the most fun she had ever had before it turned into one of the worst nights of her life. Rietta glanced at her broken cell phone and shifted her vision to the closed door before she removed the top to the bottle. She took a few sips as the tears continued flowing. The sips gave way to swallows as Henrietta Mackenzie continued drowning her sorrows…

Jett turned on his phone as he entered his room. He was completely alone and the only emotion he could feel was rage. For the lively and energetic boy, this emotion was extremely rare. He was equally furious with everyone without much justification towards certain people. Magmar and Manectric wanted to console their trainer, but they were afraid that he may turn his rage onto them. They simply stood in the corner of the room as Jett plopped down on the bed. He grabbed his phone and was shocked to see how many missed calls he had.

"Damn," he said to himself. "Who the hell has been calling me so damn much?"

There were several names on the list. Sonia, Roux, Mike, Rolen, and a bunch of other people were on the list. However, he noticed that Rietta's name had appeared no less than six times. He had turned his phone off in order to get some peace and quiet, but he realized that it was a mistake. However, his anger wouldn't subside and he simply placed the phone on the shelf before grabbing his guitar. Everything had been going good for him, but it wasn't the same for his friends and he knew it.

"It's not fair…" he thought to himself. "An evil person like Zaria Vella gets to roam around killing innocent people and getting rewarded for it while a sweet girl like Emma is dead before her sixteenth birthday…"

He didn't even want to think about Logan. He and Shane were the first two people who knew why Emma left the party in the first place, but once everyone found out what happened between Logan and Emma, things got worse. Jett couldn't help but to feel sorry for Logan. Whenever he himself did something bad, there were never any consequences. Jett knew he had been deceitful towards girls in the past, but the penalties were nowhere near harsh. However, when Logan attempted to do the same thing, someone got killed. Logan and Rietta were two of the biggest pessimists he knew, but he felt that in Logan's case, it was mostly justified. When they had started Louhearst, Logan was as big an optimist as Jett was, but after dealing with the explosion at Mt. Moon, the invasion of the Cherry Boys, and the rise of the Soul Destroyers, it was reasonably expected that Logan would eventually go insane.

"I'm not crazy!"

Logan would often shout those words to anyone who even suggested that he was slightly 'off' as several students would often whisper behind his back. Cruel names like 'Bad Luck Logan' and 'Lunatic Logan' had emerged amongst the students of Louhearst after the party and even more names came up after news of his suicide attempt reached the other students and the media. Jett had sent out a message to the students of Louhearst and the incoming students from Seathroul stating that if he heard any of the names from anyone, he would personally beat them within an inch of their life. His thoughts were interrupted as a purple aura surrounded the doorknob.

"Go away, Cynda!" he shouted.

The lock on the door turned by itself and Jett glared at his psychic cousin as she entered the room. "You have to talk to someone sometime," she stated as she took a seat next to him.

"No, I don't…"

"I can just read your mind anyway," Cynda reminded him. "Speaking of which, I'm reading it right now and those are some very harsh thoughts about your big cousin. I'm only trying to help you. Now, what did the doctors say about Logan?"

Jett sighed. "You can read my mind anyway, so I might as well tell you. They said that they got the drug out of his system, but there's something keeping him in a coma. They said that there's a possibility that he'll never wake up…"

"Wait…" Cynda said urgently. "So he's just lying helpless at the hospital?" Jett simply nodded as Cynda's eyes widened. She jumped up from the bed as a purple aura surrounded her. Jett looked on the floor to see an Odd Keystone hopping into the room. Cynda's Spiritomb emerged from the stone with its eyes widened.

"What's going on?" he asked worriedly.

Cynda scribbled something down on a piece of paper and handed it to Jett. "Listen to me, I don't think Logan's suicide attempt was solely his decision. I think that someone may have influenced his thoughts. You said that they got the drug out of his system, so he should be awake by now."

"Wait, are you saying the Soul Destroyers had something to do with all of this?"

"If you're referring to Emma's death, the answer is no. However, Logan's suicide attempt was no accident if he's still in a comatose state. His entire existence is in danger. I have to get to Viridian City immediately. That piece of paper has Xavier's contact information. Call him as soon as possible. Spiritomb, let's go!"

"Spiiiiiriiitooom!"

Before Jett could even blink, they were gone. He picked up his phone and quickly dialed Rietta's number only to get a dial tone…

Floressa Roux had never really been accepted in her hometown of Vermillion City and she knew that her bubbly and enthusiastic demeanor was nothing more than a cheap façade or at least it was to her. Everyone else at Louhearst had constantly failed to see through it. It was well known to the citizens of Vermillion City that her parents were former Team Rocket admins. She had been ostracized as a young child by the paranoid citizens of Vermillion and she resented her parents for it.

"Floressa Roux…" she thought to herself.

She didn't really hate her first name, but she found it very strange especially considering the fact that her parents, Damien and Quinn, had normal names. Over time, she started going by 'Roux' and her upbeat façade had formed. 'Floressa' was the outcast in her hometown who had ran away from home at the age of ten, while 'Roux' was an ultra-cool rockstar with a variety of friends. Her arrogance had risen as a result of it, but she didn't really care. She couldn't even remember when she had start going by her last name. All she knew was that 'Floressa' was gone and 'Roux' had taken her place. 'Floressa' cried at night because she didn't have any friends and everyone hated her, but 'Roux' played the guitar and was constantly surrounded by friends.

"I wonder if it's still here?" said to herself as she opened the closet to her room.

Her Plusle had been playing inside of it earlier, making it a bit messy. She shuffled through the piles of clothes and pulled out an old Team Rocket uniform. It had belonged to her mother and she would often try it on. However, the sight of it just made her frown. It represented everything bad that she had ever had to endure. Part of her wanted to call in her Charizard to burn the outfit, but part of her wanted to keep it as a reminder of her struggles. When she had arrived at Louhearst, she had planned on keeping her parents past misdeeds a secret, but she didn't count on Shane Clarke having information on her.

"Logan, what happened to you…?"

Logan was the first person Roux had told her secret to. They had a mutual dislike for Shane Clarke in the beginning, but there was something more to their relationship and it surprised her that it took her this long to figure it out. She remembered how jealous she was of Nina Richardson when Logan had his eyes on her, but she didn't feel that way with Emma as much. Roux knew that she and Emma didn't really get to know each other well until the month before her death, but she was able to figure out early on that Emma was a good person without putting up a façade to hide anything. To her, Emma was better.

"Why do you even care so much? He was going to do the same thing to you the next day…"

Roux knew she wanted to be mad at Logan, but she couldn't find it in herself to do so. She was worried about him constantly and was the first one to breakdown after she had heard about his suicide attempt. The fact that there was a possibility that he would never wake up only furthered her worries. She knew why she felt the way she did and she was ready to admit it to herself.

"Because I love him…"

A/N: So apparently the Soul Destroyers had a hand in this? This chapter was mostly for character development for the six other main characters, but its definitely needed for the plot and we got to see Shane, Ethan, ZK, Rietta, Jett, and Roux go to their separate emotions and how they felt about the current situation. Anyway, we're shifting back to the main plot with the Soul Destroyers, but the Seathroul conflict isn't over yet, so that'll still be a major subplot in this story.

Other News: Submit OCs for Eastluroh/Throuleas Academy at the forums. Both stories are part of the Louhearst-canon. Also, check out 'Sebastian's Corner' if you want to read some funny commentary on the story from my brother.

Take care everyone!

Later!