Hey guys I finally got around to updating, hurray! I just want to say thanks for being so patcient with me, my life has been so hecktic lately, not to mention I've been on my deviantart page a lot more recently. Anyway, let's get straight to answering the reviews and then the story!

RangerTakara: Oops... you see... I thought you hadn't forgave me, hence why I kept saying sorry. Sometimes I can just be really dense, I have no excuse for that. And I have to agree with you about Summer, it really wasn't right, stubborn or not. But, in a way, it sort of makes her a bit more realistic, as bad aas it may be. A lot of people don't watch what they're saying when they're mad, and they don't realize they could be hurting that person until after they calm down. Like I said, it isn't nice, but it's just the way people are.

Blossomlight907: It's great to hear you've made some stories, and I'm glad you enjoy mine. I'll have to take a look at yours someday when things aren't to buisy for me.

BrokenBlackCat: First off, awsome penname. Secondly, I'm really glad you're enjoying the story so far.

A Random Human: That does not sound fun. I hope everything worked out.

Ranger Belle: No, I'm not dead. I wasn't mulled by a bear... and I probably shouldn't say this... but... I live in a rural area nearby the woods, and I've seen bears in my yard a few times. So me getting mulled by one is actually possible considering where I live. Also, I never really noticed the difference between my writing style and other styles of writing on this site, but I'll take your word for it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, if I did, Max would be less annoying and Ash would be a little less stupid (I love Ash, but he can be so dumb most of the time)

Word Count: 6,694 (extra chapter this time because I didn't want to split it apart into multiple chapters)

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Chapter 13

Memories

When I got outside I quickly called Latias and carefully climbed onto her back. I figured Ben would follow behind soon enough, probably to yell at me for being so brash. Maybe I should say sorry. After all I was pretty harsh. But we lost three days of searching for those shards. If World's End got the three real ones and found the crystal essence thing who knows what could happen. Still… guess that didn't excuse my actions. Looking back on it now… I should have gone in and said sorry and waited 'til morning to search again. At the time though I was just so aggravated that they were treating me as though I couldn't take care of myself and telling me what to do(even though Hastings is my boss and it's his job) I just didn't care. If anything I just wanted to get the whole investigation over with. For some reason it felt like it was hitting to close to home for comfort, if you know what I mean.

About fifth teen minutes later and Ben hadn't come, and I could tell Latias was getting bored. I considered staying and just going in to talk to them, but it only crossed my mind once, and it didn't seem like a good idea. It was still raining slightly, not that I minded, I like the rain. When I was younger I'd stare out my window and dream of the things I could do when I was ten. Day dreaming was sort of one way I escaped the occasional loneliness I'd end up stuck in. Sometimes I'd draw, sometimes I'd write, but nothing worked better than just letting my mind wonder. And no matter what I'd always end up oddly… happy, I guess.

Patting Latias' neck I looked to the sky, the endless black and the rain hit my face. Pichu was on my lap, curled up and his eyes were closed. "Come on, we should get going." I whisper. Gently I pick up Pichu, climb of Latias, and place him on the grass bellow where the red legend hovered, I doubted he would like the fact I left him behind again, but I don't want to lose him. He reminded me of another Pichu I had when I was younger, that Pichu ran away before I went off to Ranger School… I never found him.

Carefully I climbed back onto her back, ignoring the occasional pain that shot through my body if I moved my leg the wrong way. It defiantly wasn't easy, but I managed. Though I still wonder how I got on without Latias having to help me because she was getting impatient. Once I was on though, she took off without a single word having to be said. She did seem a little upset though… maybe it was because I wasn't acting like myself… I'd never know. Sixteen words left my mouth and were left to float in the ever quickening airflow around me "Sorry, Ben, I shouldn't have said what I did, but this needs to get this done…." I just wanted to get this job done… for some reason it felt like it was hitting to close to home. Maybe it was because they were also operating in Kanto and I still felt connected to my old home. I don't know, I just knew that this mission had to be finished.

If only I hadn't left on my own, then maybe I wouldn't be in the mess I'm in now.

Latias was doing flips and rolls while the full moon reflected on the ocean bellow, I think she was trying to cheer me up, and, while it did give me a slight headache, she did manage to get me to smile. Riding Latias was the closest thing I'd ever get to flying, and, to me, flying was the closest thing I'd ever get to freedom. The way the wind blew across my skin; the way it whipped my hair into my goggles; the way it made my scarf billow out behind me and the way it seemed to move around me… I loved it. It made any concern I ever had just drift away and fall to earth. All in all… it made me feel… it made me feel like the little girl who would laugh and play with her brother, a little girl who didn't have a care in the world. The girl I used to be. I shook my head, that girl died a long time ago. That girl doesn't exist anymore.

Laughter filled the air light, loud, wonderful laughter. I didn't even realize for a second that it was coming from me. For a second it seemed like the idea that Ben wasn't there with me seemed… I don't know how to describe it… relieving, I guess. I don't know… something was telling me that something would happen, and that it was a good thing that he wasn't here because he might get hurt. It's that feeling you get when you leave on your own to find something and then you get caught up in something crazy and you're just so glad that no one you know has the chance of getting hurt by it. But it was also like a part of my brain was saying "Hey, something bad is going to happen, but you know what? We should go anyway!" I could almost hear Ben saying that I should reconsider my options. He was worried about me, I get that. And… deep down inside, I really appreciate it, but he needs to understand that I'm not a little girl. I don't need someone looking over my shoulder; I haven't since Teran left…

I felt something roll down my check. Was I… crying? Sure I miss him… but it's been at least four years ago that he left to become a trainer… about four years after dad died. A sigh came out of my parted lips, and I raised my right arm to wipe my face. Teran never was the same after we found out what happened to dad… then again… I wasn't either… and mom defiantly wasn't the same after that night…

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It had been just like any other day, Teran and I were running around the outskirts of Pallet Town; not really caring that the wild pokémon roamed in the grassier areas and occasionally walked out to show themselves to the world. We were laughing, the sky was a clear baby blueand the sun warmed the air to just the right temperature –not to hot, not to cold, not to humid, not to windy- something that was rare for a mid-summer day. I can still hear my brother's taunting voice saying "You can't catch me, Sum!"

"Oh yes I can!" I yelled back, refusing to let him get the better of me. He would always either call me Sis or Sum back then; sometimes he'd call me Summer, but it was rare. It took a while, but I did catch up with him, and I tackled him to the ground. Both of us were laughing, rolling around on the soft green grass until I got on top of him and we were facing face to face. I placed my head down on his chest and he wrapped his arms around me. We stayed like that for a while, minutes felt like seconds and hours felt like minutes. To me, it was perfect. Teran was there, I was there with him and the pokémon ran around us happily, that was all I ever needed.

But we both knew it would never last, the only difference was that I chose to ignore it. I focused on the fact that I was lying on top of my brother and listening to the sound of the pokémon running and enjoying themselves. Their laughter was like music to me. Even back then I knew I would want to protect them and their happiness, seeing them happy made me happy. "Sum," My brother voice was calm, peaceful, loving. I nuzzled my face into his chest and I felt him run his hand through my hair and I heard him chuckle. "Come on, Sum, we probably should go home. It's getting late, about six o'clock pm if I'm guessing right. Mom'll be home in about an hour, and you know how she gets if we aren't there when she gets back."

The thought made me chuckle. Mom was always a worry wart, mostly when it comes to the things that 'I' drag Teran into. I always knew she cared about my brother a little more than me, I never cared. To me, it didn't matter. Memories of all the things that 'I' dragged Teran into ran through my brain. The time I was swimming in the river while he was watching and I pulled him in insisting it'll be more fun. The time I managed to convince him to take me to Viridian City so I can get a feeling of what would be in store for me if I turned into a pokémon trainer. The time we snuck away from mom to so we could see the ocean, the blue green waves foaming and crashing against the sand that got into our shoes and in between our toes. The time he managed to make wooden swords and we play fought in the backyard (I lost, but he never held it against me), laughing as the sound of wood hitting wood banged through the otherwise still air. At one point we'd even managed to hold a tournament were the other kids in the town could join us (it was a huge success, no real injuries other than a few bruises) a kid named Red had just barely beat my brother, the look on Red's face was priceless when all he got out of it was bragging rights (which he never used) and a chocolate bar. And when mom found us after each and every one of the things we'd try, she'd ask if we were okay and when we got home she'd send me to my room and talk to Teran for about an hour. I never knew what they'd talk about, and Teran would never tell me. All I'd know is that when I'd see him again he'd have this sad look on this face for the next few days and we wouldn't talk to me as much.

"Alright." I whispered disappointment evident in my almost inaudible voice. Slowly I rolled off him and quickly rose to my feat. Looking behind me I saw Teran getting up and dusting himself off. I hadn't noticed before, but the sky had turned deep green, a summer's twilight sky. He walked over to me and I grabbed his bare arm. He'd been wearing a dark brown t-shirt, greenish gray shorts with almost black brown sneakers; his hair was dark brown and went to the bottom of his neck before spiking out into different angles. His eyes were chocolate brown and shone with gentleness, love and peace… things I wouldn't see in his eyes ever again and he smelled like the trees in Viridian Forest, a mixture of oak and birch.

We walked home together, to our tiny house only two houses away from the Pokémon Lab, the professor there had always been a good friend to Teran and I, but we… I was hardly ever allowed to see him. I didn't have a problem with that though. The house itself was only two stories, was a creamy white with a mahogany brown roof, a small garden was off to the side and the river was just west of us.

The river, that was my favorite part of living where we did. Watching the sunrise reflect off the water was mesmerizing and seeing the water flow around the rocks was mystifying. Maybe I was just weird, but I knew I wasn't alone in thinking that. One of my friends, I think he was Red's younger brother, Ash, that was what is name was… I think, he liked to sit with me and watch the water as well. Then again, we both weren't the most popular kids. For Ash, his older brother always over shadowed him, he even told me once he'd never be able to step out of his brother's shadow, so he would try acting silly to try and separate himself from his brother. For me, mom generally didn't like it when I talked to the other kids, but she didn't mind that Ash was my friend.

The house was empty when we walked in, my hand still on Teran's arm, only to let go the moment I stepped into the hallway. He turned to the right, towards his bedroom, while I headed to the kitchen to start making dinner. It was something I grew up doing once mom got her job at the Pokémon Center in Viridian City to try and help dad pay the bills. Teran didn't complain, he said I was better than him, and after having him cook one night I agreed with him whole heartedly. Mom couldn't do it because as soon as she got home she just wanted to go to sleep. As for dad, he usually didn't come home until ten at night because he worked with Officer Jenny.

As soon as I got to the kitchen I looked at the clock six thirty, mom usually got home around seven, so I might have enough time to make pasta or something simple. In the end, I went to the cabinet and grabbed a box of pasta and then went to grab a pot. The sound of water hitting metal filled the air for a few seconds before I put the pot onto the stove to get it to boil. That's when I heard Teran play his guitar. I could just barely make out the tune, it was a song called Rainbow Connection. Mom and dad showed us a movie and the intro was that song, that night Teran had tried to figure out how to play it, with little to no success. Now, a month later, he could play it perfectly.

Humming the lyrics as they slowly came into my mind I was taken out of my world when the hissing and bubbling of steaming water fell onto my ears. With a sigh I grabbed the pasta and poured it into the water, then fetched a wooden spoon and began to stir the mixture, wishing I could go back into my imagination but being unable to. About ten minutes later I fished out one of the pieces of pasta and ate it to see if it was still stale. The plain taste in my mouth was normal, and it didn't crunch when I bit down on it. Deciding it was done cooking I turned off the burner and pushed the pot off to the side to take out a strainer and another pot and placed them into the sink.

Taking the full pot of pasta I poured it into the strainer; looking at the clock, seven o'clock, mom still wasn't home. Maybe I had enough time to make a sauce or something so the meal wasn't so bland. At least, that's what I hoped when I took the now empty pasta pot and placed it back onto the stove. Going into the fridge I grabbed what I would need and quickly threw together a sauce. By the time I was all done, Teran had played about five different songs and it was seven twenty. Ambling to where the dishes were held I grabbed two, not expecting mom to be hungry as soon as she got back.

After serving the portions and putting them on the table I called Teran out of his room. Dinner was silent, as usual and went by quickly. That's when the sound of the door opening and closing reached our ears. We looked at each other and he smiled at me before we both stood up and walked to the door.

What I saw wasn't something I wanted to see again.

It was mom, like I thought it would be, but… she looked different. I walked up to her and looked at her quizzically. Her eyes, normally a bright gold, were a dark amber and slightly red. Her black hair, which was usually in a tight bun, was down and disheveled, falling into her eyes. I thought that maybe she had just had a bad day at work, it was always possible since she didn't really love going there like Nurse Joy did. She walked up to me and gently pushed me out of the way as she went to sit on the couch that was facing the TV before burying her face in her hands. A sob filled the air, and that's when I knew it wasn't just another bad day at work.

Something had happened, and I wanted to know what. "Mom…" I muttered; I wasn't given any response "Mom." I said again, a little louder than before, causing her to look at me. Not once in my life had I ever seen her look this way before. She looked so… broken. Her face was wet and her eyeliner was running slightly making her checks look grey. "Is everything okay?" She didn't give me any response. Carefully I moved over to mom and hugged her, only to have her push me away and holler at me to go to my room.

I looked to Teran, and he just nodded mouthing "Just do it, Sum. I'll figure out what's going on." With a nod, I left. Most kids would have argued or fought insisting on staying, not me. I just went. Down the tan colored halls and up the carpeted stairs, only to stop at a plain oak door that was in between to paintings.

"Pichu?" The small voice coming through the door made me smile.

"So that's where you've been, Sparkle." I sighed opening the door and the small pichu ran up and jumped into my open arms. Hugging him I walked into the room and sat on the bed. Laying on my side I curled up around the yellow pokémon and she looked at me as though wanting to ask me what was wrong. "Something's wrong with mom, Sparkle. I'm scared…" The last part came out as a low whisper. She nuzzled into to me, trying to make me feel a little better, only slightly succeeding.

My room was fairly simple. A twin bed with dark blue covers, and off white pillow, an oak nightstand that was painted gray stood to the left of the bed. It had one small drawer and a single picture that was of mom, dad, Teran, Sparkle and I in front of the house smiling. The walls were navy blue and had drawings of pokémon covering them, the carpet was gray. A small desk was off to the side, in front of a small window held a cluster of blank paper, books, pencils and colored pencils and a book self was packed with fantasy and science fiction novels was just to the right of it. Sparkle's basket was a simple white pillow with a black blanket was at the foot of my bed.

Closing my eyes I tried to forget what mom looked like and hoped that Teran would tell me what had happened in the morning. Within minutes I had fallen into a peaceful oblivion that I would wake up from when the sun rose the next day with its warm rays hitting my face.

When I woke up, Sparkles was still against my chest and I was still curled around him. The only difference was that someone had taken a sand colored blanket from downstairs and placed it over me. I got up slowly, not wanting to wake the small creator from its sleep. Maybe Teran had come up to tell me what happened, but saw I was a sleep so he went back downstairs to get a blanket for me. Ya… that sounded like something he would do.

Walking down the stairs I could hear people talking in the kitchen, something that was rare considering mom and dad were usually away by now and Teran generally doesn't wake up until noon. Slowly I walked up to the entry way, and mom was standing at the stove and Teran was at the table. "I still don't believe you, mom." Teran stated, though it sounded like he was doubting himself.

"It's true though." Mom countered, her voice was low, filled with regret and despair. "He's gone, and he won't be coming back. Just accept it, sweetie. Don't make it harder on yourself than it already is." That's when I got confused. I understood what she was implying when she said 'he won't be coming back,' that was easy, but that didn't mean I could hope my mind was just taking it the wrong way. Death. Someone had died last night. Deep inside I hoped that it wasn't someone from Pallet, that it wasn't someone I knew. And yet, something was telling me to stop being ridiculous, that it would be someone I knew because that's just how bad my luck is.

I didn't speak up. I had a feeling that if I did they would change the subject. They hadn't noticed me yet, so I stepped to the side so I was behind the wall. "He's not gone, mom, he can't be." Teran sounded angry this time. "He's alive, mom! He has to be…" The last part was quieter, as if he were trying to convince himself of it more than anyone else.

There was a sigh "Teran, he's gone. You're not the only one who didn't want to find out he's dead. Do you think I wanted him gone?" Mom didn't give him any time to answer "No, I didn't. But we have to accept it."

My brother growled "Fine. But at least tell Summer." Summer, he used my full name. Sure,mom always hated it when he called me Sum, but that doesn't mean he didn't. In fact, when I thought about it, he only ever used my full name when he had something important to tell me. "She has as much right to know what happened as I did."

That's when me and my infinite wisdom (and by infinite wisdom, I mean stupidity) decided it sounded like a good time to step in. "Tell me what?" It was a simple question, and one I hoped to get an answer from. Mom looked at me, and shock her head before walking past me.

"If you want her to know so much," She said "Then you can tell her." And with that,mom walked down the hall and into her and dad's bedroom.

I asked the question again. "Tell me what?" Teran looked at me and sighed, shaking his head. "Teran, what's going on?" He muttered something under his breath. "Look, I heard what you and mom were saying, someone died last night. Who was it?"

Surprise flashed across his brown eyes at that statement before he exclaimed "Gosh dang it, Summer!" Shaking his head, he tried to calm himself down. "Sorry, I'm just really stressed right now. Alright." I nodded. "Well, come one, Summer. You're going to want to sit down next to me for this." Another nod. Anxiously I walked up to him and scooted over so I could sit with him.

"So." I stated. With a sigh he muttered something under his breath. "Um… would it be bad for me to ask if you could repeat that?" Teran shock his head.

"Dad's dead, Summer." I looked at him, and all I saw was a numbing pain in his eyes. I couldn't believe it. Dad couldn't be dead.

"Wha… how…?"

"Look, I don't know all the details. But apparently dad was going against some Team Rocket goons and one of the goons pokémon attacked him instead of his growthe." I still didn't believe it. My dad died; because of Team Rocket… no… he died because of an accident. That had to be it. The goons couldn't have meant to hit him, right? Right? My mind was reeling, what was going to happen now?

"But… he…" I felt myself be pulled into my brother's shoulder. But… I didn't feel like I had to cry… if anything… I just felt… numb. Shouldn't I be bawling my eyes out? My dad, one of two people in my family who actually support me, was dead. My dad, who was willing to let me become a ranger if it was my dream and would have cheered me on the whole way through, was dead. My dad, who would talk to me about the world and all the things he'd seen, was dead. He was dead. Gone. Going to go six feet under the ground. I'd never hear his laugh, I'd never see him smile, I'd never feel his hand grip my shoulder or have him hug me if I was still awake when he got home.

For the next few days, I didn't talk. Sparkle tried cheering me up, and Ash kept asking me what's wrong so he could try and make me feel better. I wouldn't smile or say a single; I'd just look at them with sad eyes. But not once did I cry, no… I just felt… empty, like something was missing from my life. I could only imagine how mom and Teran felt.

Teran had stayed in his room more often than not, strumming his guitar and humming to himself. He had talked to Red about what happened two nights after he found out about dad. After that, he seemed more… at peace… I guess. I can't really describe it. Whenever he looked at me, he'd give me this almost pitying look. I didn't like it. Sure I was the youngest, but I didn't want… I didn't need his pity. Besides… I was more worried about him. I never knew how close he and dad were, but that didn't matter. He was my older brother, and even though it isn't in the younger siblings job description to be worried about the older, I was. I loved him. He was a part of my family, just like mom and just like dad… was….

Mom probably took it the worst; she stopped working for a while. Using the vacation days she had saved up over the years. She wouldn't look at my brother and I. And if she did look at me, what I saw hurt. Her broken amber eyes were full of anguish and another emotion that I couldn't understand, hate. What was there to hate? The Team Rocket goons? The goons pokémon? Dad for joining the police? The pokémon for killing dad accidentally? It just didn't make sense to me.

A week after I found out, the funeral was held. The priest said the prayers, and my family and work members spoke about dad. How he was always kind. How he would never let a crime go unpunished. How he loved to make jokes to lighten the atmosphere and nobody could do it quite like him. How he was a brilliant strategist and knew how to keep a level head in combat. How he was the type of guy who you could always go to with a problem and he'd help you out.

Not once did I cry. It was almost like I couldn't. Even when I saw his body in the casket. He was wearing his uniform which was cleanly pressed and the badges he had earned adorned the area around the pocket. His milk chocolate brown hair combed back neatly, his bark brown eyes closed and his hands folded onto his chest. This wasn't my dad. My dad never kept his hair so well groomed, it was always sticking out and disheveled. My dad never wore the badges he earned, saying that his pokémon had earned them, not him. And even when my dad was asleep, he was never so still. No, this wasn't the dad I remember. This was someone else.

I wouldn't say anything though. Instead, I opted for staring at the photographs and flowers that had been placed around him. The funeral itself was outside, dad would like that. He always loved being outside and would smile whenever the wind blew though his hair. It was his way of calming down. As the wind blew, I could feel my black dress sway and my straightened hair flow away from my back. Everything from the outside world seemed to fade as I focused in on one picture.

It was a picture of the family. We were by the river, on one of the docks. I was sitting down, my legs dangling over the edge and Sparkles was on my lap, a large goofy smile was on my face. Teran was to the right of me, standing up with his hand on my shoulder, he was smiling to, his wasn't as goofy as mine, his was genuine, as though he loved being there. Mom and dad were behind us. Dad had his arm wrapped around mom and he had this serine look on his face, as though he was just enjoying the breeze the was causing the water to crashing into the legs of the dock. Mom was smiling, though hers seemed slightly forced; it wasn't too noticeable, though. Mom was always happiest whenever dad was with her. In the background was the town, the sky was clear and you could just barely make out the spearow flying in the sky far off in the distance.

A hand on my should took my focus off the picture, it was mom. She had a look on her face that told me to move away, so, I did. I nodded and moved away. About an hour later, the coffin was being put into the ground. We'd never see dad again, and that's when it finally hit me full force. I cried, but my tears were silent, nobody noticed them. When the burial was over most people left. I just stood there, though, reading the tombstone over and over again.

Here lies John Minami

1970- 2012

A good officer, a loving husband, a supportive father

"Justice will come if you give it enough time"

May he rest in peace

When I went home that night, I didn't expect how much my life would change after that funeral.

Mom had started going back to work, and Teran still hung out in his room more often than not. As for me, I was still quiet, refusing to talk to anyone. However, I had started to smile more.

But it was at night when I noticed the largest change.

Mom stopped coming home around seven at night and instead came back around ten o'clock. I would hear the door open and I could hear what sounded like crashing. Everything I heard something fall to the floor I'd wince. That would continue for a few minutes until the house grew silent, and I always assumed it was because mom had gotten to bed. That the crashing was because it was dark and she was tired. That she came back later because she had to work a bit more.

It was about two months after the funeral that I found out just how wrong I was.

I had stayed up a little late that night. Something in me was saying that I missed seeing my mom every day, and, when I thought about it, I sort of did. I hardly ever saw my mom and Teran had distanced himself from me. Sure, Sparkles and Ash were always there to hang out with me, but I wanted to be with my family. Don't get me wrong, Sparkles is a part of my family, but I wanted human contact from my family. As weird as it sounds, I wanted to talk to a human from my family.

I stared at the floor as I sat on the couch waiting for mom to come back. As soon as the door opened my head rocketed up, and there was mom. Her face was sunken, amber eyes tired, her skin was slightly pale, it seemed as though her head was too heavy for her neck to hold up (as soon as she walked three steps her head fell to her chest) and it looked as though she had a hard time standing still because she swayed from side to side. Hesitantly I stood up from where I sat and asked "Mom… are you okay?" No response, the only sound came from our breathing. "Mom…?"

She raised her up, but it was almost like it was in slow motion. Her mouth moved, but I couldn't hear any noise come out. At least, that was until her voice started to work. "What're you doin' up, Summer?" It was slurred, as though she had just woken up from a deep sleep or had too much wine. That was when I smelt it though; it was the scent of strong alcohol, stale and it burned as it went through my nostrils. My mom was drunk.

And that actually scared me.

My mom was the person who would tell dad that drinking wouldn't stop his problems if he had a bad day. My mom was the one who always refused to drink any form of alcohol claiming it was because she would get aggressive. Yet here she was, drunk… and I was awake… things were piecing together in my mind… what if her claims about becoming aggressive when she's drunk were true? What if… what if she hurts me? She took a step towards me, and I saw her eyes, they were a burning gold, I couldn't tell what emotion was running through them though.

When took another step forward, I stepped back. One more step forward from her, I took one more back, forgetting about the couch behind me and falling on top of it. Mom took the opportunity and walked up to me, grabbing my arm just as I was about to get off the couch. She pulled me back down and I looked into her eyes again. This time I remember seeing anger and resentment in them.

After that, the rest of the night was a blur of noise and pain. I didn't even know what was happening. The first thing I can remember after the blur was laying on my bed, the sun shining in my face and Sparkles was lying on the pillow next to my head. Everything hurt, but the main focal points were my arms and head. I eased myself into a sitting position, hissing as my head swum and my right arm burned in pain. Apparently the shift in weight caused Sparkles to wake up, she raised her tiny head, brown eyes filled with worry. "Pichu, chu pi pichu pi pi chu." She might have been asking if I was okay, I wasn't really paying attention enough to hear the anxiety in her high pithed voice.

Taking a deep breath I looked into Sparkles eyes and tried to smile, but it came out as more of a wince. I had learned my lesson, never stay up waiting for mom again.

It would be only two years later that I learned not to tell mom about wanting to be a ranger.

By that time, mom had stopped drinking, but she still tended to be a little more aggressive than she used to. Teran had started his journey a year ago without telling me good-bye. I didn't hate him for that, I actually grew used to the fact that he hadn't talked to me the way we had before dad's death. We haven't done anything together since then, if I was totally honest. And… I missed it, but I didn't complain. I couldn't find it in me to complain.

I had walked up to my mom and started "I know what I want to do with my life…"

"Oh, and what's that?" She had asked in return.

"I want to be a Pokémon Ranger." The look on her face when I said that… I couldn't describe it. Next thing I know she was ranting, but I wasn't really paying any attention. Every now and then I'd pick up thing like dishonorable, unneeded, useless, not a good profession, blah, blah, blah. After five or six minutes I felt something hit my face. Once again, the rest is a haze. All I know is that by the end of it, I knew for certain mom hated the idea of me being a ranger, and that I was curled up in front of my father's grave.

How I got there, I'd never be completely sure. But it didn't matter to me. I mumbled something, but I couldn't remember what. What I do remember, is falling asleep at my dad's grave promising that I'd follow my dream, no matter what mom says about it.

XoXoXoXoX

A drop of rain it my face, taking me out of the memories. Shaking my head told myself to just leave all that behind me. The past is the past; I can't keep worrying about it. It's like Teran told me once "The past is like the knocking of an arrow, it is required, it's guided. What really matters is the aiming and firing of the arrow." Knocking an arrow is like the past, it's needed and you can't mess it up. Aiming is the present, and firing is the future. I was never one for archery, but I understood what he was telling me.

Latias called out to me and I looked at her, before smiling. "I guess we should land soon, huh, Latias."

The red legendary responded with a calm, yet still happy "La." With a chuckle I turned my head from left to right, trying to see what was closest to us. Sure enough, Latias' home in Oblivia was the closest place, Tilikule Island. It was small, but it'll do. After all, it's not like I'd be staying for too long.

"Maybe I should contact the others so they don't start worrying about me…" I whispered to the air before shaking my head "No. I'll be fine…" With a sigh I looked at the ocean as Latias began her descent "Still… maybe I should just say sorry… I could do it later… I doubt they'd want to talk to me right now considering I blew up at them the way I did."

My mind wondered as the air continued to blow my hair upward as Latias was going in for a landing, not even paying attention to what was going on top of the small landmass bellow.

XoXoXoXoX

Sorry that this was all just backstory, but it was neccessary. You have to understand Summer's relationship with her brother, it will be important for later, trust me. Also, I'm sorry that her background is sounds so cliche. This is probably one of my worst chapters yet. I'm sorry I made you guys wait for months and have to get this. I might go back after the story is finished and edit this chapter some more. Oh... and... I may or may not be thinking about rewatching all of the episodes of the pokemon anime... so that'll eat up at least a month of my life. XD Anyway, that's all for now guys, I'll seen you soon.

Later,

Ember