Italics = dreaming

Chapter 8

Jack found himself falling.

At first he was standing at a cliff. He looked cautiously over the edge, trying to see if there was a bottom. Bella and another Pokemon were behind him, he knew, watching out for Snagem idiots.

Then, something hit his back and bounced off, too quick to really register, and he was free falling into an abyss. The bottom was slowly becoming clearer, lit by tiny torches, made small by distance, but slowly getting closer. He woke just before impact.

Jack sat up with a gasp. Bella, who had been sleeping on his stomach, was forced to roll onto the bed, complaining. "Sorry," he murmured. She grumbled, curled up, and went back to sleep.

He was still in Gateon Port, spending the night in the Pokemon Center before making his way to Agate Village. He looked out the window of his tiny room; the sun was just rising. He hadn't been asleep for long, then.

After Andy took off, he had combed the entire town for traces of Team Snagem, searching late into the night, without results. Finally, he went back to the Pokemon Center.

He briefly considered going back to sleep, but then shuddered. In light of his latest dream, he didn't feel like he could, and had no desire to repeat the experience.

Well, it was about time he checked in, anyway.

A few minutes later, he was packed up and sitting down in one of the Center's phone booths, calling Professor Geranium to report what happened with Andy and Frost.

"You said her name was Frost?" Geranium repeated, surprised. Jack nodded.

"She seemed pretty confident, even after she lost." Jack stroked Bella softly, frowning as he remembered. He hated broken promises, and the ease she broke hers with...well, it made him twitch.

"Well, it's a good thing you gave that Furret to Andy, then. It's killed two Pidgeys with one stone, as it were."

"Really? How so?"

Geranium smiled patronisingly. "Well," she said slowly, "the first is now Andy doesn't have to give up being a Purity Trainer. With no Pokemon, he would have been out of luck. The second is that if Frost is going after you for that Furret, now she won't be able to get it back."

Jack blinked, his mouth silently forming an "oh." How come he didn't think of that on his own?

"And I'm very proud of you," she continued. "Despite your first meeting with him, you still tried to help Andy. I know how important first impressions are t-hey, are you okay?" She stared at him curiously.

Jack stopped mid-yawn. "Yeah, just tired. I've been having a lot of nightmares lately."

"Is that why you called so early?" He nodded. "I'm sorry, I should have warned you. The more a Purity Trainer encounters corrupt Pokemon, the more nightmares they have-and the worse they become. We don't know why, but you can order a Lunar Wing charm to counteract it."

Jack pulled a face. "I thought those were fake?"

Geranium shrugged. "They seem to work. It's worth a shot. So..."

Awhile later, he was hanging up with Geranium and calling home. He sincerely hoped Cora picked up instead of his mother.

No such luck.

"Jack Chase, where the hell are you?!" his mother screeched, her face furious. In the background, he heard Cora's indistinct voice.

"Gateon Port, but-"

"WHY ARE YOU IN GATEON PORT?!"

"Looking for Thorn, but-"

"Leave that to the proper authorities and COME HOME!"

Jack waved his gloved hand. "I can't!"

"And why not?" his mother demanded.

"You know wh-wait, do you?" He peered at her. "Professor Geranium said she would explain what was going on. What did she tell you?"

"That you were going to look for Thorn," she said instantly. "That you felt like you didn't have a choice. But that's ridiculous Jack, it's not your fault!"

"So she didn't tell you about the Purity Gear?" He thought rapidly; if Geranium had kept it a secret, logic said so should he; but this was Cora and his mother, they deserved the truth from him.

"The what?" The woman blanched. "No, she only said you were going after Thorn."

"Um, this may take awhile...where's Cora? I don't want to go through this twice."

"I'm right here." Cora's voice was soft, and she looked...tired. Ill.

"Cora..." Umbreon perked up. "Cora, are you okay?" He reached out to touch the screen. "Oh, Arceus, Cora," Jack whispered.

"Don't worry, Jack, I'm okay." Cora smiled. "How are things going?"

"Oh, um..." Jack looked away. "Not so good," he confessed. "I caught up with the guy who stole Thorn, but then he got away."

His mother coughed. "Didn't you have something to tell us besides that?"

"Well, after you told me what happened, I went to go talk to Professor Geranium..."

A/N: It's filler, but it's okay, I think. Blah. It didn't want to be written. But I gave Jack a chance to talk to his family, so that counts for something, doesn't it? *Puppydog eyes* Anyway, I'm pushing this story forward next chapter no matter what happens.