Midsummer Nights

by Trish

The third instalment to the Midsummer Series. Chapter Thirty Nine now up.

17. Chapter Sixteen: Save Me From The Dark

Midsummer Nights

By Trish

Disclaimer: Pokémon does not belong to me. Nor does the song 'Bring Me To Life' by Evanescence.

A/N: Thanks to Pikajenn for all her help!

Chapter Sixteen: Save Me From the Dark.

Wake me up inside

Wake me up inside

Call my name and save me from the dark

Bid my blood to run before I come undone

Save me from the nothing I've become

Bring Me To Life – Evanesecence

OoO

"What do you mean he's chosen his next victim?" Mia breathed out, clutching Puck's hand tightly.

Trish picked at her hospital blanket with her free hand, "When I was in a coma, I had a premonition of what was going to happen next."

Jenn felt a cold shiver run down her spine as those dark eyes rested on her. "You were the victim this time."

"What's…he got planned?" she asked nervously. She hoped desperately that it didn't involve spiders. Though if it's Spiderman, I don't think I'd mind, Jenn grinned, then sobered up when she saw Trish giving her a solemn look. As it was, she missed seeing a look of irritation pass over Puck's face. Callie shook her head at her brother.

Mortals, Puck thought, Always thinking with their…

'Puck!' Callie chastised, 'Just listen to Trish. This is more important!'

"That's the thing," Trish continued, sighing in frustration. "I don't really know what he has planned. I only saw a little bit and what little I did see, didn't really make sense."

"And what was that?" Callie prompted gently. "The more we know, the better prepared we can be to counter Lu."

Drake gave Trish's hand a gentle squeeze of encouragement. A slight frown creased her forehead as she tried to recall. "It was in some grand ballroom, with lots of dancing couples in elegant evening wear…"

"Oh then that's not likely to ever be more than a bad dream," Jenn snorted, feeling relieved. "Since when have I ever gone dancing? And successfully at that."

"Then suddenly, there was a huge cracking sound, and the room was tilting with people and furniture going everywhere. The screaming was so loud…so frightened." Trish shook her head. "I think it was some sort of earthquake."

"But we don't get earthquakes here," Ben spoke up.

"Not as if Lu would let a little technicality like that stop him," Puck said dryly. "He'd move heaven and earth to get what he wants."

"But what's that got to do with me?" Jenn asked.

Trish looked at her pointedly, "Must I remind you just who escaped from that insane Fae?"

"Right," Jenn said, gulping. "Well…if you have to put it that way."

"I think Trish is right," Drake said. "How do you think we should deal with this?"

"Send me to Bora Bora?" Jenn ventured. "I hear it's a lovely…I mean, remote place."

"For now," Trish laid back on the bed. "I think I need to get a little more rest."

"We'll work something out," Puck promised, standing up with the others.

"You got that right," Mia said, gripping on to Puck's hand like a lifeline.

OoO

Forty eight, Jenn mentally counted as she continued her crunches. Forty nine…

The door to the villa's gym opened and closed and Jenn paused momentarily until she saw Danny walking towards her. Panic surged for a second, then Jenn resumed her crunches, saying, "Ninety nine, one hundred." She stood up, taking time to stretch and then grabbed her water bottle for a sip.

"Jenn," Danny said, coming up behind her.

She turned around, "Yeah?"

"About Lu…" He paused then, as if unsure of what to say.

"Well?" she asked, arching one eyebrow.

"It's just…" He frowned and sighed. "You're going to be careful, right?"

The blonde tried to hide her surprise, since when had Danny ever shown concern for her wellbeing before? "Of course I'll be careful," she reassured him. "After what happened to Trish, I'd be crazy not to."

"Good, good," Danny nodded then turned to leave. "I'll see you later then."

Jenn watched the tall gym leader leave then sighed. What an odd encounter, she'd make a note to speak to her best friend tomorrow when she visited. Maybe T would know why Danny was acting rather strangely.

OoO

The next morning, Drake drove Jenn to the hospital to visit Trish. The blonde gazed out the window before breaking the silence. "Do you think Trish is going to fully recover?"

"The doctors say that all tests show that there is no permanent damage done, so she should be fine."

"That's great, but it's not what I meant," she shook her head. "I meant do you think she'll recover from the psychological trauma."

The Orange Crew Leader sighed. "I don't know. She seems to be coping okay at the moment but we don't really know what Lu did to her. Until she's ready to talk, we can't force her."

Jenn hoped that Trish was willing to talk. She wanted to know as much about the premonition as possible, and if Lu had told her friend anything while she was in Dartmoor.

The dark-haired girl was dozing when they entered the room, but woke up when Jenn pulled a chair over to the bed.

"Morning Sleepyhead," the blonde grinned.

"If you were in my place, you would be a sleepyhead too," Trish grumbled good-naturedly as Drake held her hand.

"So how are you feeling?" the Orange Crew Leader asked.

"Still feeling like I've been hit by a truck. Who would have thought that being in a coma would be so exhausting?"

"You have been through quite an ordeal," Jenn said.

"Tell me about it." Trish stared out the window for a few minutes before continuing. "I really thought I was going to die that night. Lu told me all these things, that I just knew he wasn't going to let me live." She paused.

Drake and Jenn were silent, hoping that she would continue her story. The hospital psychiatrist had advised them that the more Trish talked about her ordeal, the quicker she would recover mentally. But they weren't about to force her if she wasn't ready.

With a distant look in her eyes, the Australian continued. "He wanted to teach everyone a lesson, especially Jenn for escaping his clutches and telling all. He told me that he had nothing against me personally, that I was just a means to an end. By hurting me, he hurts Mia, therefore Puck gets hurt. And that is all that matters to him – that Puck gets destroyed by any means possible."

Jenn shifted in her seat as she felt waves of anger begin to rise inside. How dare that Fae target her friends!! And once again, she felt incredibly guilty for not being able to stop Trish from being hurt.

"So after kneeing him in his privates, I stormed out of the house…"

"Excuse me??" Jenn interrupted her best friend with a laugh. "Did I hear correctly? You kneed him in the balls?"

"Yeah."

"What for? Not that I'm complaining…in fact I'm jealous! I should have done that to him!"

"He offered not to kill me if I became his mistress," Trish snorted. "As if, and besides, he's such a gay Fae." She resumed her narrative. "As I was saying, I left the house and had no idea where I was at first. The whole place was barren, desolate and a blanket of fog lay over the ground. A few minutes after I started walking, that's when I heard it."

"The Hound of the Baskervilles," Drake said softly.

"Yeah," her voice was barely above a whisper. "I knew then where I was and I remembered the line from the book 'Avoid the moor in the hours of darkness when the power of evil is exalted.' Then I ran until I just could not run anymore."

Jenn awkwardly patted her friend on the arm. She couldn't even begin to imagine what Trish was feeling at the moment. "You don't have to go on if you don't want to."

"I've never been so terrified in my life," the girl was shaking even as she said it. "The Hound was the most frightening creature I've ever seen. As if it really had come from the fiery depths of Hell itself. I had nowhere to run, and I could not afford to stop running even though I was having an asthma attack."

Drake sat on the edge of the bed and wrapped his arms around her in a gentle embrace. He made a mental note to have a good workout when he returned home, so he could release the immense rage he was feeling inside. Trish had undergone such a horrific ordeal, and he had been unable to protect her from it. Nor was he one hundred percent certain that she would fully recover from the psychological trauma. She was strong but would she be strong enough?

OoO

When Jenn returned to the villa, she gathered all the girls' Pokémon together in the living room. Four pairs of brown puppy eyes gave her their rapt attention. "Okay, gals and boys, listen up. As you know, an evil Fae tried to kill Trish a few weeks ago. When she eventually comes home from the hospital, I want you to stand guard over her when she goes outside or out to the shops. Trish is not allowed to go anywhere by herself without either myself, Drake, Shannon or one of you pups. Lu may try to strike again, we can't take any chances."

OoO

Trish became aware of another presence as she walked along the street. Turning around she spied a largish dog-like creature stalking towards her. Her heart hammered in her ears at the terrifying thought that the Hound had come back for her.

As it drew nearer though, she began to relax just a little. It was about the size of a Great Dane but with a shaggy white mane like a lion and short white fur. Red eyes peered out of a coal black face and a strange sickle-like appendage stuck straight up on the left side of its head. Trish recognised it as being an Absol, a Dark Pokémon said to only appear before a great disaster or tragedy was to occur. The Pokémon fixed its red eyes on her and growled low, sending a chill down her spine. 'Absooooooool.'

The dark-haired girl woke up with a start, breathing a sigh of relief as she realised she was still in her hospital room. Placing her free hand over her heart, she took a few deep breaths in order to calm herself down. The doctors had told her that any severe stress or overexcitement could set her recovery back quite a bit. When her breathing had returned to normal she lay back down on her pillows, cuddling her stuffy puppy tight for comfort. She had seen the Disaster Pokémon in her dreams…what did it mean? Did this mean trouble for her or for someone else?

OoO

Someone else was having trouble sleeping that night. Ash Ketchum slid quietly out of bed, taking care not to disturb a slumbering Misty. Pulling a robe over his pyjamas, he went downstairs and out into the backyard. Gazing up at the night sky, he wished he could get rid of this feeling of impending trouble. Of course Misty would say that I'm always trouble, the dark-haired Grand Master smiled to himself.

'Pikapi?'

He looked down at his feet to see his first and favourite Pokémon tugging on his pant leg. He scooped Pikachu into his arms and scratched her behind her ears as she liked best. "What are you doing up? I'm sorry if I woke you."

'I heard you getting up so I thought I'd follow you if you needed to talk.'

"I'm just having trouble sleeping," Ash said. "There's this feeling that I can't seem to shake…"

'Like something big is brewing?'

"Yeah, and I don't know what it is."

A small blue bubble materialised before them before bursting to reveal a familiar blue Mew. 'There's trouble afoot, Chosen One,'

"I know that!" Ash put Pikachu back down on the ground before straightening up. "What I would like to know is what it is!"

'The Evil One, Lucius, is displeased that Trish still lives.'

"I think that 'displeased' would be the understatement of the year," the dark-haired man said with a wry smile. "Who will bear the brunt of his wrath next?"

'What should we do?'

Ash blinked. "We? There's nothing I can do to stop him. I'm just a mere mortal, you on the other hand, have powers beyond belief. What can I do?"

'You are the Chosen One,' blue eyes bored into his. 'It is your destiny to protect both your world and ours from evil.'

The Grand Master sighed as he ran a hand through his dark locks. "Why must it always be me? Why can't I be the Overlooked One for once in my life? I can't take the chance of being killed this time…I have a wife and unborn baby to think of."

'It is your destiny,' Flower Mew said softly. 'You have never baulked before.'

"But I've never had so much to live for. I was single back then, now I have a family of my own. Misty would never forgive me if I left her all alone."

'True,' the Pokémon conceded. 'But if Lu succeeds in killing one of your friends, would you be able to forgive yourself?'

Ash sighed inwardly, then shook his head. The sneaky little Pokémon knew where his soft spot was. Ash's problem was that he was unable to stand by and watch someone or something get hurt. Never could and never would. Ashura the Mew knew that too. "No, you know I wouldn't. You know that I can't stand by and see people or Pokémon hurt."

'So you will help us fight this Evil One?'

"Sure, if I can do anything," the Grand Master shrugged. "But as I said, I'm a mere mortal. I don't have any powers."

'Your power comes from the heart, Pikapi' Pikachu patted his leg with a tiny paw. 'We Pokémon gain strength from you, from your love and faith in what we can do. Together we are almost invincible.'

Ash smiled fondly down at his first Pokémon. "That's true, and we've proved that time and again, haven't we, Pik."

'We have.'

"The only thing needed for evil to succeed is for good people to do nothing," the dark-haired trainer quoted softly. "We can't let that happen."

OoO

The next day…

Mia frowned at Trish as the girl sat up in bed, listlessly stabbing a fork at her lunch tray. "Aren't you going to eat anything?"

"It's hospital food, Mia," Jenn laughed. "'Nuff said."

"But she's gotta eat something!" the brunette protested. "The nurse said that Trish didn't eat any of her breakfast this morning."

Jenn raised an eyebrow at her best friend who gave a meek smile. "Oh?"

"I just don't have any appetite, that's all," Trish said. "I don't feel that good at the moment."

The blonde peered closer with a slight frown. "You don't look too well. Did you sleep well last night?"

"No," the Australian admitted. "I had a nightmare last night and Absol was in it."

Jenn raised an eyebrow. Trish was afraid of an Absol?? But they were sooo cute! Of course after what her best friend went through, she might have issues with large dog-like creatures. "You serious?"

"Of course I'm serious," the dark-haired girl frowned. "Absol is rumoured only to appear before a great disaster and it appeared in my dream and looked straight at me."

"So something else that's bad is gonna happen to you?" the blonde quipped only to see Trish and the rest blanch. "Er…just kidding," she smiled feebly.

"Next time, keep your kidding to yourself," Mia said dryly. Jenn pouted.

"Maybe, it's a belated appearance," Shannon ventured. "You know, maybe your bad thing has already happened."

"The Hound was bad enough," Trish shuddered. "I don't know if I could survive another ordeal like that!"

"I don't think we could either," Jenn agreed, remembering all the sleepless nights, the constant worrying, the tears and the fears. It wasn't something that she wanted to experience again anytime in the near future. She only hoped that Lu wasn't stupid or deluded enough to try again. He'd be ripped to shreds if he tried.

"How about we change the subject to something nicer?" Mia suggested. Jenn nodded.

"Good idea. Like whether Trish has any totally hot male doctors or interns looking after her?"

Puck rolled his eyes. "Why am I not surprised that you said that?"

"Surely you know the answer to that yourself, Jenn," Trish smirked. "I was in a coma for how many weeks, and you were almost a permanent fixture here. You can't tell me you didn't notice any cute doctors the whole time?"

"Hey, I was too busy worrying about a certain person to notice!" Jenn defended herself. "I'm not a heartless flirt you know."

Her friend just grinned. "I know."

"So…are there any cuties?"

"Well, my psychiatrist is a nice piece of man candy," Trish said slyly. "And his bedside manner is first rate." At Drake's raised eyebrow, she chuckled. "Not like that! He's only gets inside my head, not my bed – so get your mind outta the gutter." Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Chris looking rather interested so she turned on him with a "And you too, mister!"

A few minutes later, everyone had gone down to the cafeteria except for Jenn. She wanted to take the opportunity to ask Trish about something that had been puzzling her for a while. Fiddling with the hem of her shirt, Jenn broke the silence. "Say, T?"

"Yeah?" her friend's voice had a slight drowsiness to it and the blonde knew that Trish was almost ready for a short nap.

"Danny came by the other day to tell me to be careful with Lu on the loose."

"That's nice of him."

"Yeah, but…thing is, he's never paid me much attention before. Has he said anything to you about me?"

"Nothing much, except that he's worried about you."

"See, that doesn't make sense. Why would he worry about me when he doesn't even act like I exist?" Jenn threw up her hands in frustration.

Trish grinned sleepily. "Sounds to me like a certain someone is jealous…"

Jenn sent her friend a withering glare, "Sounds to me like someone's reading too much between the lines."

Trish wasn't put off by her friend's reaction, "Just keep telling yourself that."

Jenn's mouth gaped, "Are you saying you think I actually like Danny?!"

"No," Trish yawned, "I'm saying I think you actually really like Danny."

Jenn rolled her eyes, "Puh-leze, I wouldn't rebound from Gary with Danny."

Trish only arched one eyebrow.

"I wouldn't!" Jenn protested, then looked to the side where a bouquet of flowers sat. "I mean...I don't think I would. Would I?"

"Why not? Danny's a much better choice than that wanker Gary."

"He wasn't a wanker," Jenn defended her ex. "He was just...independent."

Trish glared at the blonde, "He was a wanker and you know it. Why, he was horrible towards you till the end. Dating girls behind your back, not sending you gifts on your birthday..."

"Dating other girls..." Jenn's eye twitched. "And I didn't know this because..."

"Because you were blinded by love," Trish said gently, taking the sting from her words. "Face it, Sis, he was just too high maintenance for you and he'd never be held down by one girl."

"But...but I'm a Goddess!" Jenn sighed. "How dare he."

"He's Gary Oak, class A wanker," Trish said. "He dares much."

Jenn opened her mouth to say something, shut it, then said, "You're right." The blonde stood up. "You get some rest. I have some stuff to do."

"You're not going to go hunt him down are you?"

"And do what? Get myself arrested for beating the tar out of him because everyone but me knew he was dissing me?" Jenn shook her head, "Naw...tempting as it is, I have to get some chow for the little critters we all have. I am the zookeeper!"

As Jenn walked out of the room, Trish surmised that her friend was being falsely cheerful. 'I really hope she doesn't do anything irrational,' Trish thought with a heavy sigh, 'But I thought she knew Gary was going behind her back.'

With one last sleepy sigh, Trish fell asleep. For once, it was a peaceful sigh that escaped her lips.

Later that night, Jenn sat down on the garden bench in the backyard of the girls' villa and sighed. The earlier conversation with Trish had been replaying itself in her mind over and over again.

"He was a wanker and you know it. Why, he was horrible towards you till the end. Dating girls behind your back, not sending you gifts on your birthday..."

The part about dating girls behind her back was what really hurt most. How could Gary do such a thing to her? She was supposed to be his steady girlfriend, which in her books, in fact most people's books, meant that he wasn't supposed to love anyone else. How could she have not noticed?? How come everyone else but her seemed to know?

"Hey, there," a male voice interrupted her thoughts. She turned to see Drake standing there with a lopsided smile.

"Hey."

"You've been pretty quiet all afternoon," the dark-haired man sat down beside her. "Something bothering you?"

"Yeah…"

"Want to talk about it?"

Jenn was about to say no, but then hesitated. It might be good to get another point of view on the whole Gary debacle. While she knew that Trish was right about him, the Australian also was a little biased, being Jenn's best friend. Drake, on the other hand, dealt with him more on a purely professional basis as fellow Gym Leaders. "Yeah, T & I had a little talk after you guys had left."

"It wasn't a Sag Frank talk was it?" the Orange Crew Leader raised an eyebrow.

"Yah, it was. Anywayz T said that Gary Oak was a Class A Wanker and that he'd been seeing girls behind my back the whole two years." She winced. "Is…was…that true?"

Drake was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded. "It was. Sorry about that"

The blonde slumped dejectedly. "And here I was hoping that T was just being melodramatic."

"Gary had a bad habit of boasting about his latest conquests at the League meetings. Still does. He used to say that he was a love god."

"So everyone knew but me?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't someone tell me??"

"I seem to remember that Trish did try to tell you but you wouldn't listen," Drake stated softly. "Love is blind as they say. Plus you probably thought that you would be the one girl who could change him."

"Well I am a Goddess," Jenn grumbled. "And everyone bows down to the Goddess. Besides I don't want to change him."

"Oh?

"Just gonna rearrange his face, that's all."

"Jenn!" Drake's eyes widened. "You can't do that!"

"And why not? Gary's a putz and an unfaithful bastard!" the blonde retorted. "He deserves to rot in hell! Plus I know that you wouldn't stop me because you think the same."

"That's where you're wrong, Jenn," the Orange Crew Leader said firmly. "I would stop you. Oak may be a wanker but he's also the Viridian Gym Leader and very high in the Pokémon League."

"So? Just because he's a Gym Leader doesn't mean he should be allowed to get away with everything!"

"No, but it does mean that hurting Gary will come with certain repercussions."

"Like what?"

"Bad publicity, and even criminal charges if Gary calls the police."

"If it's bad publicity for Gary, then I'm all for it," Jenn declared. "Public humiliation is the ultimate revenge! As for getting caught, that's never gonna happen."

"Oh really?" Drake raised one eyebrow.

"Yes, really," the blonde stretched lazily. "After all, Gary wouldn't want the world to know that he got beaten to a pulp by a woman now, would he?"

"That is true," the Orange Crew Leader admitted. "But could you promise me one thing. That you'll at least think carefully about it before you go and do anything rash? The last thing Trish needs at the moment is to hear that her best friend is in jail for assault. It could set back her recovery, you know how she worries about you."

Jenn sighed. "Okay, I promise that I won't do anything that would send her back into the safety of her coma."

"That's not funny," Drake fixed his dark gaze on her. "Promise me that you will look before you leap."

Jenn sighed and rolled her eyes, "Fine I promise to look before I leap."

Drake gave her another look.

The blonde spread her hands in surrender. "I promise to not do anything to Gary that would send Trish rushing back to the safety of her coma."

Nodding his head in satisfaction, the Orange Crew Leader turned and walked back towards the villa. Jenn watched the door close behind him before sitting back against the low wall. She narrowed her blue-grey eyes and let a smirk play across her face.

"Of course, what Trish doesn't know won't hurt her," Jenn said softly. "Though it may hurt Gary."

Unbeknownst to her, a small Psychic Pokémon was stretched out among the bushes in the garden. Espeon silently yawned and waved her long spiky tail about, she had overheard the whole conversation between her mistress's best friend and mate. 'I wonder if I should go and tell Trish straight away that Jenn is up to no good.' She wrinkled her tiny black nose. 'Nah, Trish is probably asleep and I don't want to disturb her. I'll just quietly follow Jenn and if she gets into any bother, then I can step in with my powers.' Espeon nodded to herself then teleported back inside to sleep.

OoO

The next morning, Jenn made a discreet enquiry through the Orange League Headquarters receptionist of the whereabouts of one Gary Oak. The young woman informed her that he had gone for some training on Hamlin Island, to the north of Kumquat. Jenn thanked her and then went to see Drake for a special request. As she left the building, she failed to see a small rose bush shiver once before a small lilac head peeped out. Espeon blinked once and vanished.

The blonde found the Orange Crew Leader at his usual place, at Trish's hospital bedside. She walked in just as the dark-haired Australian was complaining about the hospital food. "Hey T Byrd, hey Drayake!"

Drake raised one eyebrow. "Someone's awfully chirpy this morning."

Trish nodded. "I agree. Jenn, what did I tell you about having too much Pepsi again?"

The American flopped on the nearest chair and pouted. "You chu are so mean! For your information I am not on a Pepsi high this morning. I just had a bootylicious dream last night."

"Oh?"

"Uh-huh," Jenn nodded. "Anywayz, I came to ask a favour of Mr Crew Leader here."

"What do you want?" the man in question replied, just a little suspiciously.

"I wanted to know if I could borrow one of your lower level Dragonairs for the day. I've heard there's been sightings of Satanic Chickens on Kumquat Island, and someone from the ITEO totally needs to take care of it. Like me."

"Satanic Chickens? Togetics?" a frown creased Trish's forehead. "Do you want some back up? If so, I could call..."

"Of course not!" Jenn interrupted quickly, waving off her friend's concern. "I'm the Co Vice President of the organization and one of the senior slayers. Not only am I totally one of the best there is, but I need to blow off some steam."

"True," Trish conceded. "But I'd feel safer if someone went with you."

"I'm not ten, T, I'll be fine," Jenn hugged her gently. "I absolutely promise to come back safe and sound."

But the Australian was still frowning. "How come I haven't heard about the Togetic sightings? I'm supposed to be in the know, I'm the senior Vice President!"

"And just who has been in the hospital for centuries?" the blonde soothed her. "No need to get the blood pressure all up. Remember you've been in the hospital for some time now."

"Apparently for centuries," was the dry remark. Trish sighed and lay back on the pillow. "As long as you're not sneaking off and doing something illegal."

"Me?" Jenn blinked innocently. "Would I ever do something like that?"

Drake chuckled. "Do you really want me to answer that? Yeah, I guess you can take one of my Dragonair. Go to my head foreman, Sam, and ask him to give you Merlin."

The blonde jumped to her feet and gave the man a quick hug. "Thanks, Drake. You're the best!"

"Like totally?" Drake didn't even bother to hide the smirk.

Jenn stuck her tongue out and sauntered toward the door.

"And get back here when you're done!" Trish called after her friend.

The blonde didn't turn around and only raised a hand and waved. As she left the room, a small lilac Pokémon hiding behind the door teleported away.

Trish gaped as the door closed. "Did you see that?"

"See what?"

"What she did!"

Drake's brows furrowed in confusion, "Sorry, I seemed to have missed the neon lit signs pointing out what she did."

"She did the Gary Wave! That's not a good sign!"

"Are you sure you're just not reading too much into this?" Drake asked gently, "Sure she just found out that Gary saw other women behind her back in addition to being dumped, but I doubt she'd go out and do something stupid."

Trish gave him a look.

"She just doesn't seem to be the type to go and do..something..." Drake sighed. "Yeah she does seem the type to do something stupid."

"She might say, irrational," Trish sighed, "but she did the Gary Wave and that in combination with hurt feelings. That's never a good thing."

"Yes, that sounds like a combination attack to bring down even the biggest of egos." Drake grinned. "Jennimon attacks Garymon with a one hit K.O. attack and the crowd goes wild!"

Trish raised an eyebrow. "That's not funny."

"Yea, mon!" Drake coughed, then said in a serious tone, "You want me to follow her?"

Trish narrowed her eyes, "No, I don't want it obvious that we suspect her of something."

OoO

Twenty minutes later, Jenn arrived at Pummelo Stadium, only to be greeted by Ben Thayer. "Ben, what are you doing here?"

"I do work here as Drake's third in command at the Gym," Ben grinned. "Drake rang a few minutes ago about your request. Sam is just finishing up with Merlin's preparations. I'm to take you there."

"I just bet you will," Jenn winked as Ben rolled his eyes and smiled good-naturedly.

She was led by Ben to the 'small' complex behind Pummelo Stadium where Drake and his gym subordinates kept and raised their Pokémon. The blonde's eyes widened as she walked down the long rows of concrete sheds, it was the size of an airport hangar! These Orange Islanders and their definition of small, she thought with a wry grin. I'll never understand that.

"The sheds are all air-conditioned and set to the optimum temperature for each special type of Pokémon," the younger brother informed her. "The barns to the left house Fire, Electric, Water, Grass, Ground, Normal, Psychic and Ghost Pokémon. The barns to the right are purely for our specialty here. Dragon Pokémon."

"You mean all those sheds are full of Dragon Types?" Jenn almost squeaked in disbelief.

"Sure, after all, Pummelo is known for its Dragonites. They are the guardians of this island. There are a number of nursery sheds for newly hatched Dratini, a number of sheds for Dragonairs, and of course the rest are for Dragonite."

"All dragon types? Not just Dragonite and its evolutions?"

"We have a few of the other dragon types," Ben nodded. "It's Drake's belief that dragon types raised by hand from birth are not only easier to train and handle, but more loyal."

Jenn tried not to gape at what surrounded her, but failed. She had never seen so many Pokémon in the one place. "So what does Drake do with all of these?"

"Oh, he keeps some for himself of course, the rest are sold to Gym Leaders like Claire from the Blackthorn Gym, Pokémon breeders, or select members of the public...it's sort of like a Pokémon stud."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Ben grinned. "How else do you think most Gym Leaders make their extra money? You wouldn't believe how many people would pay good money to have the progeny of a Gym Leader's champion Pokémon."

"Like Pikachu?"

"Yeah, like Pikachu. Many people would pay top dollar for one of her offspring."

"I never knew...It never would have occurred to me that there would be places for stuff like this." She shook her head, "But I guess it makes sense. Do any other Gym Leaders do this?"

Ben led the way to one of the Dragonair sheds. "Erika from Celadon breeds Grass Pokémon as well as sells perfume, Surge breeds Electric type, Sabrina breeds Psychic types. Most of the Gym Leaders run studs...except for Rudy. He gives dance lessons."

Jenn pulled a face. "Is anyone desperate enough to take him up on those?"

"Some are," the younger man pushed open the door and the two stepped in to feel a blast of balmy air. A dark-haired man in his early thirties was coming towards them, leading a large Dragonair by a halter lead. "Jenn, this is Sam, and that is Merlin."

The long lithe Pokémon blinked in a slow motion and pulled restlessly at its lead.

Jenn gulped and thought, Oh goodie. They always give me the feisty ones. "Uh, are you sure there isn't any other Dragonair I can use?"

"Well, sure there are, but there's no need to worry, not only is he faster than the others, Merlin's really tame." Ben stepped forward and stroked the Dragonair on its delicately tapered snout. The Pokémon cooed and licked him on the cheek. "See what I mean?"

"Yeah," Jenn shifted the straps of the large backpack she was wearing. It contained her ITEO weapon, cell phone, and a traveller's medical kit for those just in case times. After all she had to stick to her cover story. What she didn't know was that she was also carrying one small furry stowaway. The diminutive Pokémon used telekinesis to make sure her weight, light as it was, was kept from adding to the backpack. Espeon peered out through the open gap of the zipper before sinking down into the depths and making herself comfortable for the trip.

Soon Jenn was aboard Merlin and airborne, with the turquoise blue of the tropical ocean skimming below her. Twenty minutes later she had arrived on Hamlin Island and recalled Merlin into the Pokéball she was given. "And so the hunt begins."

OoO

Jenn made her way along the dirt path through the tropical rainforest. An elderly inhabitant of the small village a mile back had informed her that recently a 'young whippersnapper' had made his way towards the Pied Piper Lake area with an Umbreon at his heels. The blonde had thanked him and started along the worn trail he had shown her.

Fingers of sunlight streamed down through the leafy canopy, and the sounds of native birds echoed in the silence. Now and then, Jenn would stop to admire a beautiful red hibiscus growing on the side; or watch a small butterfly dart and weave among the trees.

Jenn felt as if she had entered some forgotten piece of paradise, untouched and untainted by mankind. She remembered what Drake had told her and Trish, upon their first visit to the archipelago.

Orange Islanders believe that nature and mankind should co-exist in harmony. We rely upon nature to provide us with water, food, and materials to survive, therefore we should treat our surroundings with respect and learn not to abuse it.

As such, vast tracts of land on each island were placed under national park listing, to preserve them for future generations.

The blonde heartily agreed with his sentiment and was enjoying her walk, despite her inner turmoil. The dense foliage of the rainforest gave the whole place a decidedly primeval feeling.

She could easily imagine a velociraptor stalking through the undergrowth, taking care not to be heard as it stalked its unsuspecting prey. Or a stegosaurus munching on some tasty shrub. She shook her head and muttered. "Jenn, you've been watching JurassicPark too many times."

The faint sounds of a Pokémon battle reached her ears and she quickened her pace. "He must be close." A few moments later, she emerged from the forest into a vast clearing. A sheer volcanic wall in the shape of a half-moon rose before her in the distance. Green trees and grass dotted the lower slopes before ending in a large lake of crystal clear water. Jenn guessed that this was the remnants of an ancient volcano crater which had collapsed millions of years ago. "It's so beautiful…" she breathed.

Gary Oak stood a few metres away, issuing commands to both his Umbreon and Rhydon, who were battling each other. Jenn's heart skipped a beat at the mere sight of him. He looks so good… she thought to herself, before her friend's words floated back to haunt her. 'Dating other girls behind your back...'

Fresh waves of anger and disgust swept over her and she clenched her fists. Gary was going down…but not before she got a good explanation from him first.

The blonde unclipped Merlin's pokéball from her belt and held it in her right hand. Sure she knew that it was illegal to use a Pokémon against humans, but it was nice to know that she had one high-level kick ass Pokémon to use against anything Gary threw at her. Should things come to exchanging blows, she'd be ready. Or so long as Merlin would help her.

Silent as a ghost, she approached the man from behind until she was a mere metre away. "Gary."

The Viridian Gym Leader spun around at the sound of her voice and his eyes widened. "You!"

"Excuse you," Jenn spat out. "We dated for two years and you don't even have the decency to call me by my name?" This was not off to a good start.

Stay relaxed, Jenn, and remember to get an explanation from him before you thrash him. Silently, Jenn agreed with the calm voice in her mind, then frowned. Her mental voice didn't usually talk with a slight English accent. Maybe it's a LaraCroft voice. Huh.

Gary quickly recovered his composure and ran a hand through his chestnut spikes. "Jenn. What brings you here? Thought you would be too busy at the bedside of your weakling friend."

"We need to talk."

"Yeah, well, make it snappy." He checked his watch. "I've got a date with Chantelle in about half an hour."

"Your latest conquest?" Jenn gritted her teeth. "How much of her is real and how much of her is silicon? Does she float well when thrown in water or does she melt?"

"Come now, Jenn. Don't be spiteful." The famous Oak smirk.

"Spiteful? I totally have every damn right to be spiteful since I found out you had been dating other girls behind my back the entire two years we were dating. I was your girlfriend, dammit! That means you're not supposed to even look at anyone else! What part of that didn't you understand?!"

"You mean you only just found out?" Gary was incredulous. He shook his head. "Then again, you always were a few tacos short of a combo meal."

"You asshole!" Jenn clenched her fists. "Didn't our relationship mean anything to you? Didn't I mean anything to you? I want to know why you cheated."

Another jilted woman, Gary sighed with the patience of a saint. "Sure you meant a lot to me at first, but then I guess I got bored with our 'relationship,'" he made air quotes. "Being with the same person all the time, things get a little stale after a while. Being the star trainer that I am, why – there were plenty of other women willing to do anything for a date with the great Gary Oak."

Jenn tilted her head to the side, "I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you over the sound of your ego. Did you say something?"

From behind their Trainer, Gary's Rhydon and Umbreon exchanged amused looks. They knew all too well about their Trainer's ego. Umbreon trotted over to Gary and bumped the man's leg with his head. 'Breon!' the dark creature barked out.

He ignored his Pokémon and cocked his head to look at his ex. "You're persistent. You never were this fixed on getting an answer when we dated."

"I never had questions," Jenn smiled thinly. "I never questioned the strength of our relationship. Apparently it was as strong as your fidelity."

"Aren't you calling the kettle black," Gary shot back. "You were no better than me."

"I may have looked, or even touched, but nothing went any further than teasing or flirting."

"Just why are you here?" Gary arched an eyebrow, "I do have things to do."

Jenn stared at him for a moment, "Forget about it. You're not worth wasting my time."

"Babe, I'm always worth the time," he smirked. "You wanna…kiss and make up?"

The blonde's eyes widened, "What are you smoking?! If I remember correctly, and of course I do, you were banging some girl in a nightclub because you said I was too frigid. Why would I want you now?"

"Face it, Jenn," Gary smirked. "You know I was the best you've had and you want me back."

Jenn smirked right back, "I've had better."

Gary floundered, "Like who?! You haven't even been with anyone!"

Jenn nodded, "It's true you were my first boyfriend and, goddess that I am, I thought I'd want you for my one and only – and I'm talking marriage type of one and only, but I need someone more mature. Someone who's able to see beyond their ego. You are not that type of person."

"Whoa! You are not one to talk!" Gary laughed harshly. "Your ego is nearly as big as mine."

"I guess it takes one to know one," Jenn shrugged and turned to walk away.

Gary grabbed her backpack to make her stop. With a twist of her body, Jenn pulled out of the pack, leaving it dangling in Gary's hands. "You're such an ass," the blonde snarled. "Give me back my pack."

"Make me."

"That is so childish!" Jenn shook her head, "Just give me my stuff back!"

"Not until you admit that I'm better than you," Gary said.

"I really can't get over how big your ego is."

"That's what all the girls say," Gary smirked.

Jenn just rolled her eyes, one hand out in silent demand for her property. Gary didn't give it back.

"There's only one way to settle this," Gary narrowed his eyes. "A battle, right here, right now. One on one, winner takes all."

"And winner takes what?" Jenn tossed her hair back.

Gary said, "Bragging rights, which of course, will be mine since I'll run you down."

"Just before you make roadkill of me," Jenn reached for her pack, snagging it off of Gary. She took out a red and white sphere, zipped up the bag, and tossed it at a tree. It settled at the base with a heavy thwap. "I really should warn you that you'll lose."

Gary spread his hands, "Have you not seen my arsenal lately? They're not weak like your little puppies are."

Jenn maximized the sphere, "I left the puppies at home. They tend to get nauseous when they see you."

"Get on with it," Gary stepped off the trail and back into the wide meadow. "After I beat you, I'm going to have a lot of fun with Chantelle."

"Is that what you're calling it now," Jenn said in a blasé tone, "Fun? And is she the same girl from the nightclub?"

"Why do you want to know," Gary said, walking to the center of the meadow, recalling his Rhydon as he walked. The blonde followed him and the two were standing face to face. "Not had enough of knowing what a loser you really are?"

"Isn't that what you always called Ash? A loser?" She tilted her head to the side and tapped at her chin. "And now he's what? Grand Master? Boy if that's what being a loser is like, sign me up."

"Umbreon!" Gary barked out. The ebony canine leapt in front of its Trainer, red eyes blazing in preparation for the fight. "Well, what are you going to send out? That pathetic Houndour? You sure have a thing for canine Pokémon."

"I liked you, didn't I?" Jenn tossed the sphere, "Come on out, Merlin!" A white light appeared and the sphere minimized and flew back to Jenn's waiting hand. "Let's show little Gary how to play with the big girls."

The white light faded, revealing the long, sinuous Pokémon. Its blue scales shimmered in the sunlight, making the Dragonair appear to glow. It looked at Gary with its black eyes and made a low sound. It wasn't friendly sounding.

Gary gaped at the sight. "Wh…when did you get that?"

"Scared much?" Jenn grinned. "He's a…special pokémon, isn't he? If you spent more time with me, maybe you'd know where I got him."

"You're not…you don't even have enough badges to handle a pokémon of that caliber!" Gary stuttered out.

"Like I said," Jenn shrugged, "He was a gift."

"What did you do to get a gift like that?" Gary sneered. "Sleep with…" His eyes widened. "Drake's the only one who has pokémon like that at his disposal. Trish won't like that you got a 'gift' like that from her boyfriend."

"Merlin, get him!" Jenn snapped. "I mean, his Umbreon."

The sapphire Pokémon hovered, but didn't move.

Gary burst out howling. "Oh that's rich! You don't even know what moves a Dragonair does!"

Jenn's nostrils flared, "Slam that Umbreon to the ground!"

Gary laughed again, only to gasp as the Dragonair moved so fast that it flashed and left an afterimage. Suddenly his Umbreon was face down on the meadow, completely unconscious.

Jenn blinked, "I guess I said a magic word or something."

"Dragonairs know Body Slam you blonde twit!" Gary recalled his Umbreon, "And if Umbreon wasn't so tired from training, we would have beaten you!"

Jenn recalled Merlin, "I so seriously doubt it, Oak! Merlin is totally at a higher level than your poor, pathetic puppy!"

Gary snorted, "If I weren't such a gentleman, you'd be eating dirt right now!"

"What? You can't hit a woman?" Jenn taunted. "You couldn't lay a finger on me. Like Merlin, I'm too quick for you."

"I do have some morals," Gary actually sounded insulted. "While you seem to have none."

"Oh I have some, just not where you're concerned."

"You bitch!" Gary ran at Jenn and she got into a defensive stance, but just when Gary just about reached her, he froze.

Jenn's eyes widened in surprise. Everytime Gary struggled in his Matrix style mid-air leap and freeze, a green aura flared around him. "The hell…"

"Now, child, is that any way to talk?" A sensuous voice swirled around the two.

Jenn looked around with eyes now widened in fright. "Who's there?"

"Now, now, I think you know who." A man was suddenly standing ten feet away from her. A breeze played with his long red hair, strands twisting around like writhing snakes. He was dressed in black and the colour made his emerald eyes stand out.

"Lucius!" Jenn gasped, backing away. "You…"

"I am here, and so are you," The sharpness in his gaze belied his lazy tone. "And now you will pay for ruining my plans for torturing Puck."

A whimper caught in Jenn's throat and she stumbled back, falling into the grass. Lu walked closer and she crab walked backwards. The Fae passed Gary and the Viridian City Gym Leader could only follow the tall creature with his blue eyes.

Lu held out his hand to Jenn, a mocking gesture as if he would help her to her feet. Only instead of helping her to her feet, his magic caught her and held her aloft five feet above the ground. "You. Will. Pay!" Each word was punctuated by an energy blast. Each blast hit the blonde dead on.

Gary realized that while each blast hit his ex, whatever power held her up also refused to let her scream. Despite his current anger towards Jenn, he knew that what was happening to her was wrong. Let her go! he hollered in his mind.

The red-haired man tossed his head and seemed to calm. He looked at his victim, saw how dazed she was, and he was pleased. "Now for some fun."

From nightmares come truth and truth take form

Your form a nightmare to those you love

Unable to speak the language you know

All those you love will see you as foe"

A white light surrounded the blonde, a twisting light so bright Gary wanted to shut his eyes, but couldn't. Just as suddenly as it happened, it faded and instead of Jenn being held aloft by some strange magic, there was a small white furry lump.

For a second, she hovered there, then not only did the red-haired man vanish, but both Jenn and Gary were released and both fell to the ground. A feeling filled the air, like a thunderstorm about to break. A red and pearl white sphere appeared in Gary's hand and he felt himself standing up.

Instead of being as shaky as he felt, Gary felt himself walking over to where Jenn had fallen. It was as if he wasn't in control of his body. Closer and closer he got to where Jenn had fallen and with every step, a feeling gnawed in his stomach.

Then he was there, standing above her, or so he thought. His arm tensed and the sphere maximized and was suddenly being thrown at the white creature in front of him. Red light engulfed the creature at his feet and then just the sphere was there, rocking once, twice, and then dinging in a mockery of a normal pokéball's capture chime.

The ominous feeling was abruptly gone and it was as if someone had thrown a switch. Sounds of the forest surrounding him came back to life, the gentle breeze came back, and Gary blinked. Had it all been a dream? He looked around and walked forward, kicking something.

Looking down, he blanched. It was a red and pearl white pokéball.

Crouching down, he picked up the ball. He rolled it in his hands and stood up. It looked like a normal pokéball, only the white was a pearly hue. A feeling of dread grew in his stomach and he looked around. Sure enough, he saw Jenn's backpack. He swore softly and walked over to it, picked it up. He frowned and knelt down and opened it.

Lying among an ITEO neutralizer, a pack of gum, and a cell phone was a lilac coloured furball. Gary frowned again. "An Espeon?"

The Pokémon in question looked up at him with an almost sheepish look. "You were in her backpack?"

Espeon nodded, and then saw who it was nodding to and leapt out of the backpack. It looked around almost frantically, then nosed the pokéball on the ground. It looked at Gary almost accusingly.

"Hey, not my fault," Gary said defensively. "I'm not the one that did that. Some tall red haired man did."

Gary would've laughed if the situation wasn't so grave. The Espeon's eyes grew large and looked from Gary to the sphere and back again. It tapped the orb with one tapered paw and stood back as a flash of white light escaped the confines.

Standing on four very shaky legs was an Absol. As tall as a Houndoom, the white fur gleamed in a pearlescent hue that Gary hadn't ever seen on an Absol. When she looked at him, it was with blue eyes, not red. She opened her mouth to say something, but promptly fell over in a faint. Instinctively, he caught her and felt the weight in his hands.

Gary winced. "Trish will kill me if she sees Jenn like this." He shook his head, "but I don't know what to do. What do I do?"

Take her to Puck. A light English accented voice chimed in his mind.

"You?" Gary queried the pokémon. He looked at the now pokémon in his hands. "What's more she will kill me once she recovers."

No she won't, the lilac pokémon shook its head, and Puck can reverse this before Trish even knows what happens. Jenn will be too embarrassed to let her best friend know what happened.

There was a popping sound, and suddenly the Dragonair was hovering above him, ebony eyes taking in the scene. It nosed the Absol and a low rumbling could suddenly be felt. A sharp wind started to blow.

"Oh hell," Gary sighed, "It wasn't me, Dragonair, I didn't do this."

The Espeon glanced at the Dragonair and the wind died down. The large dragon snorted ominously, but settled down.

Gary sighed again, this time in relief. "Now all we need to do is find Puck. I at least remember him. Strange fellow."

"What's so strange about me?" A male voice asked.

Gary whirled around, letting the Absol fall to the ground. "You…"

Puck looked around Gary at what the Espeon and Dragonair were looking at. "Oh my," his eyes widened. "Oh, Trish will not be happy about this."

"Really?" Gary asked dryly.

"Yes, really, especially since this is your entire fault."

The Dragonair snorted menacingly.

"It was not!" Gary huffed. "I most certainly didn't do this."

"No, but you pissed off Jenn enough that she followed you." Puck said nonchalantly. "And as this is the result of her anger, ergo it is your fault."

"Whatever," Gary shook his head. "I'll leave you to take it from here. I have a date." He tossed the red and pearl white sphere to Puck, only to have it spin right back to his palm. "The hell!"

Puck laughed, "Sorry, pal, but it looks like you'll have to cancel your date."

"The great Gary Oak does not cancel his dates!"

OoO

"Sorry, babe, I have to cancel," Gary said into the cell phone in his most apologetic tone, "Gramps is feeling a bit ill."

"I'll see you tomorrow?" Chantelle said in her breathy tone.

"You bet!" Gary said, "Ciao."

He hung up and turned to the Fae. "This had better be good."

At Puck's feet sat Jenn, who was staring at the ground in shock. She seemed stuck to Puck's side and whimpered whenever he tried to leave. She seemed most frightened of Gary.

"She is hurt, you know," Puck said, holding his hands over Jenn's sides. His hands glowed orange, then faded. "I healed her, as they were injuries made by Fae magic, but these other wounds go deep through her emotions."

"Why's she just sitting there like that?" Gary asked disdainfully.

"She's in shock, you ass." Puck said simply. "If you want, I can help you to see what it feels like."

"You couldn't possibly do anything to me," the spikey-haired man sneered. "I'm Gary Oak, Viridian City Gym Leader, whereas you are merely a path…" He never got to finish, for a ghost of a smile had passed across Puck's face, before a flash of light enveloped the man, and died away to reveal a small Pokémon with large green flaps covering its head with two red half-moons on either side, what looked like a white skirt flared out to reveal two very spindly legs.

Espeon gently nudged the Absol, who finally looked up and burst out laughing when she saw what Gary had become. 'What is THAT?'

'Gary's now a Kirlia,' Espeon explained. 'It is known as the Emotion Pokémon.'

Jenn snorted. 'As if Gary's capable of feeling any emotion, except arrogance.'

Puck grinned. "Oh but he soon will be feeling a whole lot of emotions that he's never felt before."

'How so?'

'Kirlia is a Psychic Pokémon,' Espeon smirked. 'And Psychic Pokémon are weak against Dark Pokémon, which is what you now are…'

Jenn broke into a wide smile. 'Awwwyeah, that's right! I can still give him the smackdown.' She hesitated. 'Uh…what moves do I have?'

'You have Bite,' a deep voice boomed from above them. The three looked up to see the Dragonair hovering above them. 'That is a Dark Type move, or you have Faint Attack. That move is guaranteed not to fail.'

The human-turned-Absol wagged her tail at the Dragonair. 'Thanks, Merlin. You're a real peach.'

"Hang on there, Jenn," Puck said warningly. "You can't go ordering yourself around."

'Says who?'

"Think of it as a helping hand," Puck winked, then looked over at Gary and narrowed his eyes, "Jenn, use Faint Attack now!"

The Absol rushed towards the Kirlia that was Gary. She disappeared as if into thin air and the Kirlia blinked.

Gary tried to rack his brains as to Kirlia's moves. He had never really bothered to study it since it seemed such a pathetic pokémon. It was a Psychic Pokémon so…he decided to use Calm Mind. It didn't work.

Suddenly he felt 104 pounds of Absol slam against him, knocking him to the ground. As he lay there seeing tiny staryus, he heard Puck yell out, "Bite Attack, now!" The last thing he was aware was of sharp fangs sinking into his legs, then nothing.

"And Jennimon wins the battle!" Puck announced triumphantly as the Absol stepped back from the fainted Kirlia.

Espeon rolled her eyes. 'You're so witty.'

"I try."

Jenn cheered but then spent a few minutes spitting fur out of her mouth. 'Bleah! He needs a wash or something. He tastes totally disgusting.'

Puck turned Gary back into his human form, before picking up Jenn's backpack and recalling the various Pokémon into their pokéballs. Espeon had to get back into the pack. "He'll be feeling rather lousy when he comes to, but it's more important to get you back to where you're safe."

'Yep, that's right,' Jenn nodded, then got wide eyed when Puck aimed a pokéball at her. 'What are you going to do with that?'

"Well I can't very well carry you back," Puck said gently, "And it'll be not only easier to transport you, but you'll be safer as well. If Lu tried to get to you, he'd have a harder time at it if you were in your…I mean, this pokéball."

'I am so going to be nicer to my pokémon when I get back to normal.' Jenn vowed.

OoO

When Puck walked into Trish's hospital room, just Drake and Shannon were there. "Hey guys," he greeted.

"Hey Puck," the Australian smiled. "What brings you here? We're still waiting for Jenn to get back."

The Fae looked a bit uncomfortable. "Actually there's a slight problem with that," he withdrew a red and pearl white sphere which was then maximised and opened to reveal a shaggy white form.

Jenn shook herself vigorously. 'Hey, give me a bit of warning next time…' she trailed off as she noticed they were in Trish's hospital room. However, the expression on her best friend's face was not what she expected – it was one of pure terror. In fact, Trish scuttled back against the bed so fast that she nearly hit the back of her head on the wall.

"Get…that...thing away from me!" her voice came out in a squeak. Drake snatched Dragonite's Pokéball from its neck cord and looked prepared to call his most trusted companion in a heartbeat.

Jenn froze and her eyes widened. That wasn't a good sign. There was no way she could compete against Dragonite! And besides, Trish had no reason to be terrified of her best friend! I'd sooner chew off my own arm than hurt you, Trish! As a matter of fact, I probably could now, heh heh…

She trotted towards the bed and placed her two front paws on the bed rail. Trish practically leapt out of the bed, and latched onto Drake like a lifeline. 'Hey T, it's just me. Jenn Your bestest bud remember?' Jenn tried to plead.

'She can't understand you now that you're a Pokémon.' Espeon's now familiar light English accent echoed in her head. 'Only Pokémon will be able to understand what you're saying.'

The human-turned-Absol backed away and cocked her head to the side. 'Is there anyone who can understand me?'

'Only those born of Fae, or the Chosen One. For the Chosen One to be able to control all the world's Pokémon, he must be able to understand the language of all Pokémon.'

'Ash…' Jenn breathed. 'I'll know that he'll be able to help me. He, of all people, will understand what I'm going through. There was that time he was a Pikachu.'

"Relax, Trish," Puck tried to soothe the terrified girl, who was still clinging to Drake for dear life. "That's just Jenn."

Drake settled back and reattached Dragonite's pokéball to its place on the cord around his neck.

Her eyes widened. "Jenn?!? What happened…" Trish gave the Fae a glare. "Were you drunk again?"

"Hey now, do I look as if I'm drunk?" Puck protested. "It wasn't me, it was Lu!"

"Lu!"

Puck shrugged, "He must have tracked her down on Hamlin."

"Hamlin?!? What was she doing on Hamlin?" Trish looked confused. "Why wasn't she on Kumquat?"

Jenn winced. She was so thoroughly busted that it gave new meaning to the term, not to mention she'd completely gotten caught in her own lie. No tangled web weaving here, the whole spider was in a proverbial knot.

"So can you turn her back like right now?" Trish was still pale, and Drake wasn't sure if it was due to shock at seeing a nightmare come to life, or the knowledge that the nightmare was a transfigured Jenn.

"Why are you so afraid of Absols?" the Fae wanted to know.

"Because I've been seeing them in my nightmares," Trish finally said. "Always an Absol, and its always stalking me, pinning me down with those red eyes. It's known as the Disaster Pokémon so it can only mean bad things." She paused. "Besides after the Hound, I have issues with any canine that's larger than a mop."

"Much as I don't mind having Trish on my lap," Drake then spoke up. "Maybe it would be better if you could turn Jenn back into human form this instant. This may set Trish's recovery back some."

"Which sounds like something Lu'd enjoy," Trish said, closing her eyes as if willing away the nightmare before her. She opened her eyes and rested against Drake when she saw it was still true.

Well it's not all fun and frolicking in meadows for me either, Jenn thought sourly, resisting the urge to nibble at her foreleg. Something was itching and she'd kill Lu if he gave her fleas to go along with her temporary form. At least, I hope it's temporary. Sigh.

Alas, Puck being the mischievous prankster he was, couldn't let anything go without having a bit of fun. He pretended to study the Absol for a moment before giving a big sigh. "Unfortunately, I can't. I need a certain rare flowering plant that grows in a remote area of the Archipelago. Until then, she has to stay as a Pokémon." He smiled inwardly at the whimper from Jenn.

"Well, even though she is my best friend, she can't stay here, not in that form," Trish sighed. Jenn snorted at that.

Trish forced herself to calm down and managed a genuine smile, albeit a tiny one, "Sorry, Jenn, but I'm sure you understand."

'Not really,' Jenn rolled her eyes in irritation.

"How about Puck and I pay a visit to Ash?" Drake suggested. "He'd be able to keep her safe."

Jenn brightened at that, 'Ooh la la! Time for ye olde Ashe to return the favor!'

"I can only guess she likes that idea," Trish grinned wryly.

Jenn gave her a pointed look that plainly said, "Duh!"

"Go on and get out of here," Trish said gently, trying to take any sting out of her words with another small smile. "Try to not get yourself in any more trouble."

OoO

Ten minutes later, Puck knocked on the door to the Grand Master's villa. Jenn, who was being nursed in Drake's arms, noted that like all the other villas in the Islands, it was 'small'. Ash had bought this place as a retreat from his hectic and very public life on the Plateau. Soon the door opened to reveal the Grand Master, clad in a navy blue t-shirt and black pants. "Hey guys, come on in."

"Where's Misty?" Drake enquired as they entered the large marble foyer. A skittering of claws on the tiles preceded the entrance of three small electric mice. "Heya Pikachu, Poppy, and Poptart."

'Piiiiiiiiika!' Came a chorus of hello's.

"Misty's flown back to Indigo Plateau for her obstetrician appointment," Ash explained as he led the way into the living room. "And so she decided that while she's there, she might as well spend a month with her sisters in Cerulean before the baby comes."

"A month?" Puck asked. "Isn't that a bit long?"

'Not when it comes to Misty,' Jenn said wickedly.

"Jenn?" Ash looked around, confused, then laughed. "For a second, I thought I heard her!"

Drake and Puck exchanged looks, while Jenn adopted a completely innocent look.

"Well, you see, Ash," Drake hesitated, "There's something about Jenn that you should know."

'Yes, I speak the Pokémon language Absol-utely fluently,' Jenn snickered.

"He can understand you, you know," Puck shot back at Jenn, who seemed to flush and pale in the same instant and muttered something low. "That wasn't very nice," Puck admonished.

"No, it really wasn't," Ash winced. The electric mice at his feet seemed to agree and Pikachu leapt nimbly to her best friend's shoulders. The Grand Master walked closer and with each step, Jenn withdrew closer to Drake.

"Uh, Jenn, he won't bite," Drake laughed as she tried to burrow under his arm. "And FYI, you're getting more than a bit heavy with all that squirming."

A low growl was his answer, to which everyone laughed at. "Why don't you set her down?" Ash said, trying to keep a straight face. "Let's see how she's doing."

Drake did and the now fluffy Jenn looked up at the faces around her. She looked away, 'I'm not really used to looking up at people. This just doesn't suit me at all.'

Ash and Puck laughed, and Drake frowned, "What did she say?"

"Oh she's just being a diva," Puck snickered, "I should get looking for that cure. I'll check back in later on." With that he vanished.

Jenn blinked. 'Hey, wait a sec…'

"He'll be back later, Jenn" Drake reassured the Pokémon. "You'll be back to human again before you know it."

'Yeah but how long is he gonna take?' Jenn thought sourly. 'I don't wanna stay a Pokémon for the rest of my life.'

"That time he turned me into a Pikachu, it took about two weeks before I turned back," Ash remembered.

Jenn turned and glared at the Grand Master. 'You are not helping.'

He smiled sheepishly. "So how can I help?"

"Well, we were wondering if you could look after Jenn for a while," Drake explained.

"But why can't Trish look after her?" Ash was mystified. "Aren't they best friends?"

"They are, and normally she would, but at the moment she has a huge phobia of anything that's large and dog-like. And she's been having nightmares about Absols."

Ash frowned, "I don't know. This was supposed to be a vacation of sorts." He almost laughed at the stricken look Jenn gave him. "Don't look so worried, Jenn! After all, you looked after me in my time of need."

'Yeah but I didn't know you were you. There's a difference here! I have no anonymity!'

"You do have a point, Ash," Drake said, "but I have to get back to Trish. You two going to be okay?"

'Yes, Dad,' Jenn flopped onto the floor and looked sullenly at her front paws.

Ash took a breath in, "Ah...we'll be fine. Thanks, Drake."

The door closed behind Drake, leaving the Grand Master alone with one very unhappy Disaster Pokémon.

This is juuuust peachy, Jenn thought. This time she did nibble at that flea.

OoO

Back in the hospital, Trish rubbed at her eyes. This just can't be happening. My best friend looks like...my nightmare come true!

"It won't be forever," Puck said gently, his voice preceding the rest of him. The Fae shimmered into the room and smiled at Trish. "Trust me, she'll be human in no time."

"You have the flower?"

"Trish, there is no flower."

Trish stepped back, stunned, "What!?"

Puck shrugged, "I don't need a flower. It's a simple transformation spell. Those were never Lucius's strong point. Heck, I can cast one of those drunk!"

Trish glared, "You're not helping."

"I know, and I'm sorry," Puck said gently. "But thanks to Lu, you now have Jenn, pardon the pun, under a tight leash. She won't be able to get hurt due to her quick...emotions."

She shook her head, 't you just accidentally turn her into something else?"

"Gentle Trish, were that it to be so simple!" The slender Fae stood near her. "I could very well do that, and easily, but I doubt that dear Jenn would be able to handle it. Her mental stability or her body. It's not an easy thing for you mere mortals to accept."

"So we're that fragile, hmm?"

"I'd answer that carefully, if I were you!" Shannon walked into the room. She was alone.

"Shannon! It's good to see you," Trish said. "We were just trying to figure out Jenn's situation."

"That's a doozy," Shannon nodded, "Did she say why she was on Hamlin and not Kumquat?"

"No, and it makes me more than a little angry that she thought she could handle that on her own. The whole Gary thing," Trish shook her head, "She knows she can trust us to help her and be there for her…" And now she couldn't even understand her best friend! The one person she knew she could confide in, and vice versa, could not be understood.

She caught Puck staring at her, "Something on your mind?"

"I was just thinking that I haven't been completely understanding of this whole thing."

"Trish!" Shannon exclaimed, "Don't expect to be completely understanding. This was a shock to all of us, especially to you. You've been having those nightmares. It's understandable that you would be terrified to see your nightmare put its front paws on the edge of your hospital bed!"

"I'm just torn between being mad at her, and being worried for her, then I'm scared of her," she said, "Does that make any sense?"

"In every way," Shannon said. "If only you could understand what she's saying!"

Trish brightened. "Puck, can't you make it so that I can at least understand what Jenn is saying?"

Puck looked a little surprised, "I hadn't thought of that. I think that can be arranged."

"Just don't accidentally do to me what Lu did to Jenn. That would really piss me off."

"I'll go converse with Callie," Puck shimmered out of the room, vanishing with a, "Farewell."

"He's not one to linger, is he?" Shannon sat on the bed by her friend.

"Nope," Trish frowned. "He sure isn't."

"I wonder how Mia copes with that," the brunette mused. "Imagine having a boyfriend who can appear and disappear in the blink of an eye."

"I'd say it would have its advantages and disadvantages. One good thing is that he could give you anything you wanted, instantly." The Australian pondered some more. "The bad thing would be is that you would never know when he was gonna turn up!" Just then Drake walked into the room. "Speak of the devil!"

"Miss me?" the Orange Crew Leader asked as he sat down next to his girlfriend.

"Not really," Trish teased. "You weren't gone long enough." Drake pouted and she gave him a hug.

"So how did things go with Ash?" Shannon asked.

"Oh, fine. He wasn't as shocked as we thought he'd be at finding out that Jenn was a Pokémon. Anyway, he agreed to look after her until Puck gets the cure, though Jenn wasn't too happy at being left in Absol form. Just as well Misty is away for a month."

"Actually, Puck came by here a few minutes ago," Trish informed him.

"Oh? I thought he was on his way to get the flower…"

"There is no flower," Trish said wryly. "Puck can change her back whenever he wants."

Drake's eyebrows shot up. "So he's just gonna leave her like that?"

"He assures me that the spell isn't permanent," Trish reassured her boyfriend. "And while he is playing around with her, he does have a good point. Jenn as a Pokémon means that she's under tight control and she can't do anything foolish. With that Pokéball, it will be easier to keep an eye on her."

"True. But that means she is going to have to stay with Ash for at least two weeks or more."

"I don't think she's really gonna mind," Trish chuckled. "Spending a fortnight in the Grand Master's house would be a dream of hers come true."

"Somehow, though, I don't think being a Pokémon ever figured into it," Shannon grinned. "I mean, that really puts a damper on the things she could do with him."

"Oh I dunno, remember when Ash changed back from Satochu?" Drake quipped. "He was nekkid, she was in her chemise, things were getting rather heated between them."

"That's right!" Trish's eyes widened. "I wonder if either of them will remember that when she changes back, it's a possibility that she'll have no clothes on?"

"I hope so!"

OoO

At the Ketchum villa

Jenn was still nibbling away at her foreleg. That damn flea was still making her itchy, and she couldn't manage to locate the minute bug. 'Nibbling seems to work for normal dogs and dog Pokémon, so why doesn't it work for me?' she raged away inwardly. She felt a gentle touch to her head and she looked up to see Ash kneeling before her, concern in his dark brown eyes.

"If you've got fleas, the best thing to do is to give you a bath with a special flea shampoo." He laughed when Jenn wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"It doesn't smell horrible, if that's what you're thinking," Ash said patiently. "And it's much better than you trying to gnaw half your leg off trying to get a bug the size of a pinhead."

Jenn sighed. 'You're right.' She then felt something tickle near her left ear. Was it the flea? She sat up and raised her left hind leg to scratch behind her ear, as she had seen her Growlithe and normal dogs do – and promptly lost her balance and fell over. 'This totally sucks,' the lump of white fur growled.

Ash stifled a grin and scooped up the Jenn lump in his arms. "How about I get some of my canine Pokémon to instruct you on how to do things? Until Puck comes back with that cure, I'm afraid you're gonna have to live like a Pokémon."

'How hard can being a Pokémon be?' the human-turned-Absol muttered. 'You managed okay! In fact you had me, had everyone completely fooled until you changed back. How did you do it?'

The Grand Master carried her into a large bathroom to the rear of the villa and placed her on the floor. "Yeah but you forget, I was turned into a Pokémon that I trained and knew very well. Pikachu's a pretty good teacher, and it wasn't the first time I was turned into one either."

Jenn looked around and admired the large marble bathtub and gold fixtures, the marble bench top and large vanity mirror. 'Nice bathroom.'

"Thanks, but I don't get to use it," Ash chuckled. "This is mainly used for the canine Pokémon or any other Pokémon that likes to keep clean."

'Your Pokémon have their own bathroom??' Jenn squeaked. 'Man, do they live in the lap of luxury!'

The dark-haired man opened one of the cupboards and drew out a small bottle and two fluffy white towels. "Yeah, but they deserve it, they work so hard to keep me where I am." He placed the items next to the bath, before putting the plug in, and began filling it with water. "One of the nice things about being Grand Master is that you can reward your Pokémon with the best of care."

Jenn sat on her haunches and watched as Ash filled the tub halfway, periodically checking the temperature wasn't too hot before turning off the taps. She eyed the steaming water, it sure looked inviting. I am so lucky I'm not a fire type cause I do love water.

"Okay, sweetie, in you go," and with that he lifted and placed her gently in the bath. Soaking a small soft washcloth, he proceeded to wet her coat all over until her fur was plastered to her skin.

'Great, I probably look like a drowned rat,' Jenn groaned before giving a little shiver at the cold feel of the shampoo being squirted down her back.

"You're much bigger than a rat," Ash grinned as he began to work the shampoo into the Pokémon's coat. "So, tell me, was this a result of one of Puck's pranks?"

'Unfortunately no. It was Lu.'

The massaging stopped for a moment. "Lu? So he's still determined to take revenge…"

'Yeah, and his timing totally sucked. Just when I was about to beat the living daylights out of Gary'

"Oh?" Jenn couldn't see the man with all the wet fur in front of her eyes but she guessed that one of the dark eyebrows was just raised.

'I wanted to find out why he was cheating on me the whole time we were dating.'

"Did he give a good reason?" As he worked the shampoo into her coat, Ash managed to tickle a nerve which sent her right hind leg thumping up and down involuntarily.

Trying to suppress a smidge of embarrassment at that reaction, Jenn stretched as the tingles went up her spine. Awww, that felt good. Being bathed was sort of like getting an all over body massage. Maybe dogs didn't have it so bad…

'No, he said he got bored with our relationship and decided to sample all the favors his fans could give him.'

"Gary is a first class asshole," Ash agreed as he began to rinse the suds off her.

'You won't hear me arguing that one down,' Jenn jiggled her shoulder blades, 'I had him right where I wanted him and then Lu does this. Talk about a monkey wrench being thrown at your glass house.'

"Uh…yeah," Ash shook his head, trying not to figure out what she was talking about.

'And it's a pickled monkey, too. Lu changed me and then vanished, and then Puck changed Gary and we fought that way,' She cocked her head as Ash gently ran some clean water over her head 'Don't get me wrong, that did feel good. It got some of that pent up anger and resentment out, but Gary got to change back right away. Me, I'm stuck like this for Lugia only knows how long.'

The dirty water drained out, complete – to Jenn's chagrin – with some dead fleas, and then Ash ran more warm clean water over her back. "Not to mention that right now I'm a Pokémon, and not just any Pokémon but the one Pokémon my best friend can't stand to be in the same room with. Not to mention that I had fleas.' She glared at the drain, 'At least, they'd better be gone. This is the exemplification of total suckage.'

"You can't really blame Trish after what she went through. That Hound was Hell itself. And you can look at things this way, some good might come out of this transformation."

'Like what?'

"You could help Trish overcome her phobia of Absols and large dogs. It's something that has to be addressed otherwise she'll never set foot outside the house again. Plus this will give you a better understanding of Pokémon, as you'll know what it's like to be one."

'Yeah, but…this is embarrassing!'

Ash stopped mopping excess water from her coat. "How so?"

Jenn rolled her eyes, 'You are the Grand Master and you're asking me that? At least Gary got to change back right away.'

"Look at it as a learning experience." Ash suggested. "You'll get to experience different cultures and how your pokémon live."

'If I wanted to experience different cultures, I'd hop on a plane to Timbuktu.' Then she narrowed her eyes and to Ash they seemed to glow for a second. 'On second thought, let me stay like this and I'll do to Lu what he wanted the Hound to do to Trish.'

"Atta girl!" Ash cheered, "That's a much better attitude."

'Ash?'

"Yeah?"

'If I stay like this, permanently, due to you cheering like that, and say the Fates hear and agree with you, I'm gonna seriously hurt you.'

Ash laughed, and tossed the damp towel at what Jenn assumed was a laundry chute. It went right in, of course, and Ash stood up. "Let's get you into the blower!"

'The huh?' She baulked, but Ash easily picked her up and walked towards a marble topped grooming table. 'You are so lucky Lu didn't make me a Rapidash. A Rapidash doesn't move if it doesn't want to.'

After ten minutes under a powerful fur dryer, Ash ran a brush through Jenn's silky white fur. The coat gleamed a pearlescent hue. Stepping back to admire his handiwork, Ash tapped his chin. "Missing one thing."

Jenn watched warily as he walked to a cabinet and pulled open a drawer. To her horror, there was a large array of colourful bows and ribbons.

Ash pulled something out and walked towards her. Jenn growled out, 'If you want to keep your hands intact, not to mention to keep on breathing, you will not put any bows or ribbons on me. Ash? Ash! I mean it!'

The Grand Master just ignored her and fastened something around her neck. "Oh, I think you'll like this." He held up a small mirror.

Jenn looked and saw that she was wearing a diamond encrusted velvet and leather collar. 'Ooooh diamonds…'

Ash smiled. "Knew you'd like it. After all, diamonds are a girl's best friend."

'You're a smart man, Ashy Boy,' Jenn admired herself in the mirror. A loud rumbling came from her stomach area.

"Sounds like someone's ready for some dinner," the dark-haired man chuckled. "Follow me."

Jenn padded by the man's side. 'You're not gonna give me Pokéchow are you?'

"Of course not! I do like living after all. Besides, I wouldn't eat the stuff myself when I was a pikachu!"

A few minutes later, Ash placed a dinner plate down on the coffee table filled with cut chicken pieces, potato, beans and gravy. "There you go, tuck in."

The human-turned-Absol looked at the plate then up at the Grand Master. 'Just how am I supposed to eat this? I can't use cutlery with these paws!'

"I cut it all up into bite-sized pieces so it's easier for you to pick up with your mouth," Ash explained.

Jenn sighed. 'This is gonna be so embarrassing…'

Pikachu looked up from her bowl that was next to Jenn's. 'Aww, don't worry about making a mess, Pichapi. It takes time to get used to being a Pokémon.'

Twenty minutes later, the Absol backed away from the table, potato and gravy smeared all over her black face. 'I think I need professional help.'

"You're not wrong there," Ash murmured as he used a damp washcloth to wipe her face.

'Hey, you try eating a meal using only your mouth,' Jenn growled.

"I have." He rose and threw the cloth into a nearby laundry chute. "If you want, you can play around with Pik and the rest for a little while, then we're all going to bed. You've had one heck of a long day."

'Yeah, tell me about it.'

OoO

Back at the hospital, Trish lay awake in the darkness, waiting for sleep to come. Reflecting on the day's events, she wondered on how long it would be before Jenn was back to normal. She felt a little bit guilty for not looking after the now pokémon, after all they were best friends and best friends stood by each other through thick or thin.

If only Jenn wasn't an Absol… The Disaster Pokémon not only haunted her nightmares but it also brought back paralysing memories of the Hound. If Puck was able to cast a spell so she could understand Jenn, things might not be so bad. She had to protect her best friend from sharing the same fate of being Lu's next potential murder victim.

At least I know that she's safe with Ash, the dark-haired Australian thought drowsily. He would never let anything bad happen to her. As she drifted off to sleep, her last thought was of how Fate had a habit of throwing those two together.

OoO

Around one a.m, Jenn managed to work out how to trigger the release mechanism from inside her pokéball and let herself out. What sleep she had, had been erratic and full of nightmares of red-haired Faes. She was terrified that Lu might come back in the middle of the night and finish the job. He tried to do that with Trish, and he had even more reason to do that to her!

Not wanting to spend the night alone, the Absol ran softly up the stairs to the first floor to where Pikachu had told her that Ash and Misty's bedroom was. I really have no right to do this. It's all my fault I'm here in the first place. She looked down at all four black paws and clenched her jaws tight. But I don't feel safe all alone like that.

The door was slightly ajar and she pushed it gently with her forepaw. It swung open silently and Jenn peered into the darkness. If there's one good thing about being a Pokémon, it's the excellent night vision, she thought to herself as she looked around and then spied the king-sized bed and the Grand Master's slumbering form.

A tiny shape came up to her and an inquisitive 'Pichapi?' was heard.

Getting used to the nickname the little mouse used, she said, 'Yeah, it's me, Pikachu.'

'Having nightmares about the Evil One?'

Jenn blinked. 'How did you know? Oh maybe I don't want to know, but, yeah, I don't want to be alone, at least not tonight.'

The mouse patted the Absol's forepaw. 'Pikapi would never let anything happen to you.'

Jenn smiled. 'Yeah, I know. Um, what I don't know is where I can sleep in here, if I'm allowed to.'

'Of course you can! Pikapi wouldn't have known you'd be uncomfortable being alone.' Pikachu gently ran a current of electricity through the Absol, causing the canine to shiver, 'Just follow me.' She trotted over to the foot of the bed and curled up on the plush carpet. Jenn lay down and snuggled beside her, and the scythe-like appendage draped around her neck like a blanket of sorts.

As the human-turned-Absol listened to the peaceful and steady breathing around her, she reflected on the very different approaches to Pokémon as shown by Gary and Ash. Gary trained his Pokémon hard and kept the relationship strictly to a working one.

Even though Ash trained his Pokémon just as hard, he considered them to be his friends as well as family. He treated them more like equals and gave them the respect they deserved. And now, Jenn had experienced first hand, or paw, just how the Grand Master treated his Pokémon. He really is the greatest master of them all, she thought to herself. The way he treats all Pokémon, regardless of type, it's no wonder they all seem to follow him so easily. Gary was wrong about Ash being a loser, Ash is a winner. Gary is the real loser.

Pillowing her head on her stretched out forelegs, Jenn finally fell into a deep sleep.

Hovering in a corner of the room was a softly shimmering ball of blue energy. It giggled quietly and vanished in a flury of glittery sparkles.

OoO

'I FOUND HER!'

Startled out of a deep sleep, Jenn flung her head up at the noise, slammed it off of something , saw stars, and groaned at the pain. She opened her eyes to see a pair of glowing eyes seemingly hovering in front of her.

Letting out a surprised scream, Jenn scuttled backwards. The eyes blinked and a high pitched laugh was followed by a, 'She looks a little scared.'

'Leave her alone!' Jenn recognized that voice as Pikachu's and the momma mouse came to her rescue, shooing away a…

Light filtered in and embarrassment seemed to flood Jenn as she realized she was under someone's bed. Pikachu cocked her head and asked, 'Will you be eating brunch with us?'

'Brunch?'Jenn rubbed at her eyes with a paw, then glared down at it as if forgetting it was there. 'And here I was hoping I'd just been out drinking and had a huge hallucination. Since that's apparently not the case, I think I want to hide here all day if that's alright with you.'

"It's not alright," Ash admonished, peeking under the bed. "Besides, if you refuse to come out, I can always use that pokéball to get to you."

'But I like hiding It's safe here.' Jenn let out a whine and seemed surprised, then annoyed by the noise. 'If my life is going to be ruined by my own stupidity, I'd rather hide here.'

'And what will happen when Pikapi's mate comes back?' Pikachu asked, twitching an ear to listen out for her offspring.

'You've heard of monsters under the bed, right? Well, growl, baby, growl.'

Pikachu looked at her friend, who sighed. "I'll get the pokéball." The bedskirt dropped, and Pikachu turned back to the agitated Absol.

'You're not being rational.'

'Don't want to be that, want to hide. Hiding good.'

Pikachu's ears perked forward, then backwards. She scampered out from under the bed to find Pikapi. She found him in the hallway, talking to a Houndoom and a Ninetales. 'Pikapi, I think she's losing it.'

"You ready guys?" Ash asked, and led the three down the hallway and into the master suite. A Pichu was peering under the bedskirt, tiny tail swinging from side to side as it chirped animatedly.

Pikachu rushed over and pulled away her errant offspring, 'I told you to leave her be. You're grounded.'

'But Mom!' The diminutive mouse was led out of the room by its mother, leaving Ash alone with the three canines.

"You guys want to try to talk her out of there, or should I use the pokéball first?"

The two exchanged looks. 'I don't mind trying to talk with her,' the Ninetales said. 'Do you want to try first, or shall I?'

'She is one of my type,' the Houndoom sighed, 'I guess I should try first.' The lean Pokémon bellied down and stuck his head under the bedskirt. 'Come, child, it's time to face the world.'

'Don't wanna.'

The Houndoom pulled back and looked at Ash, 'Is she trained at all? She seems most disobedient.'

Unsure of how much to say, Ash said, "She's not the usual Pokémon. I should warn you."

The Ninetails snickered beside him. 'Since when do you ever have the usual Pokémon, Chosen One.'

"True," Ash mused. "Take Pikachu for example. She's shockingly powerful for her size and evolution."

'I heard that, Pikapi!' a squeaky voice floated in from the corridor.

'Big ears,' the Houndoom muttered.

'I heard that too!!!'

The Ninetails chuckled before walking over to the bed, lying down and sticking its head under the bedskirt. 'Won't you come out? It's a beautiful day outside, and we Pokémon were going to play a game of Tag. Would you like to join?'

'No, tag is for kids and I wanna stay here and hide.'

The Grand Master sighed and knelt down beside the Ninetails. "Oh no you're not. You're going with me to see Trish whether you like it or not."

'Well I don't like! I can't see Trish!' Jenn sounded aghast. 'She'll kill me! And then she'll find some way to bring me back so she can kill me again once she finds out I went to confront Gary. Either way you look at it, I'm pretty much dead. I'll stay here, thanks anyway for asking.'

Ash aimed the Pokéball at the Absol. "Jenn, Return!"

Jenn managed one final comment before being sucked into the confines of the sphere. 'You suck.'

To be continued…

OoO

Author's Note:

Jenn's going to have an Absol-utely fine time being a Pokémon. Really.

I'm back at work now so writing may slow down, but this year should not be so hectic as 2004.

For current Pokémon fics, I have this one to finish, and Nemesis currently going. I do mean to finish 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother.' I just have to get into the right frame of mind to write it and since it involves a surgical procedure, a little more research.

I also plan to branch out into another genre, Twelve Kingdoms. As soon as I can muster up the courage to finish and post the fic!