"Do you feel like a man, when you push her around? When your lies crumble down, a new life she has found. Face down in the dirt, she says 'this doesn't hurt', she says, she's finally had enough" - Red Jumpsuit Apparatus "Face Down" (acoustic cuz it's so much sadder)

15 Recuperate

May and Drew stared in horror at the sight before them. The ground was sparkled with blood like a sick version of glitter. The girl with the bruised face flicked her eyes up to meet their terrified ones with an evil look. May was reminded repulsively of herself, when she was much, much younger. The girl's innocent lips curled into a demonic smile. She raised her thumb to her mouth and sucked the blood off it, sapphire eyes and brunette hair giving May the feeling that she was looking at an old photograph of herself.

Drew and May clutched each other a little tighter, wincing as the girl raised the rock to cut herself again. The blood splattered onto May's red dress, and she fought the urge to be sick.

The younger May winked. "It's pretty, isn't it?"

********************************************************So, wassup, everyone?*********************************************************

We were far away from the castle, and decided it was safe to collapse on all fours and pant for air like we'd been under water our whole lives. Misty began coughing erratically, causing Dawn to clap her on the back.

Max rolled onto his back and stared up at the clouds, his chest rising and falling with every breath he took. "Where's… May?" he panted.

I shook my head, and avoided his eyes. The pain on his face was more than I could bear. His sister was everything to him. Not being with her probably killed him.

"No need to worry," Dawn assured him with a smile. "She's around here somewhere."

Brock and I nodded, but soon Misty had taken my attention.

She was sprawled on the ground, still coughing. Dawn reached over and wiped the mud off the redhead's cheek, something I wish I'd have noticed so I could have done it myself.

"We have to go back and get May," Max insisted. He had regained his breath, stood up, and dusted himself off. "Before something terrible happens to her."

Paul shook his head. "No way am I going in there again," he snapped bitterly. "That place was freaking awful."

"He's right," I agreed, somewhat hesitantly. "It's dangerous in that castle. We should just wait to see if May and Drew come out on their own."

Reluctantly, Max sank to the ground, staring lividly in the direction of the castle. "For five minutes," he complied. "After that, I'm going in after them."

**********************************************I'm having a pretty good day. Made dulce de leche bars******************************************

Drew stepped protectively in front of May as the demon child licked a stream of blood off her forearm. He felt horribly queasy; he could take the sight of blood, but the sight of someone eating it was a different matter entirely.

"What's the matter?" called a new voice. "Don't you think it's pretty?"

Horrified, Drew and May turned to see the newcomer emerge from the shadows. He was shorter than the girl, with a short crop of green hair on his head. His eyes glittered, emerald and mischievous. Drew swallowed as he recognized a twisted version of himself, years younger.

The young Drew smirked, his skin pale and ghostly in the moonlight. "It reminds me of roses," he said bluntly. Teasingly, he took the rock from the younger May and licked her blood off it.

"Ooh, I love roses," breathed the young May. Her eyes gazed down at the younger Drew innocently. "Please show me roses. I love roses so much."

Evil Drew met the girl's sapphire eyes. "Of course," he smiled, and he slashed his wrist open.

Oh, there were roses alright. They splattered onto the ground like something out of a horror film, and Drew's stomach lurched. He felt a sharp pain on his wrist, like he was remembering an old scar.

May fainted beside him, suddenly a dead weight hanging on his arm rather than a source of comfort. Drew was about to surrender to the sickening sight, wishing to fall asleep and never wake up again, when he glanced skyward.

Bright red eyes glistened out of the darkness, like a creature crouched and waiting in the mountain. The vicious eyes met his, and they seemed to… panic?

Drew blinked, confused and wondering momentarily if he had been hallucinating. He turned back to the awfulness of their past selves slicing themselves into pieces.

The young Trainer had to blink again. Where had the kids gone? Had the eyes scared them off?

Well, whatever the reason, Drew and May were free from their hypnotizing satanic ritual. He scooped up his unconscious friend bridal style, pushing all thoughts from his mind except for getting away. (Yes, he didn't even think about Truth or Dare.)

As he ran as best he could while carrying May, Drew sent a silent thanks to the red eyes. Whether they were good or bad, they had helped, and he was eternally grateful.

*****************************************************I'm going to go eat them as soon as they cool******************************************

"Great Arceus, Absol, did they see you?" Tenebri snapped.

Absol looked away shamefully. "I think the green one did."

The Umbreon rolled her eyes and made a most exasperated sound.

"They were behaving peculiarly," Absol said, trying to defend himself. "The two of them were staring at air, looking like they had eaten rotten berries. And then the female fainted." He glanced at Tenebri. "There were no battle moves. Perhaps Yacaeli is messing with their minds."

Tenebri snorted. "What interest would the great Yacaeli have in such pathetic humans? You saw them; they're young, incompetent, and they only have fur on their heads. Does that sound like a threat?"

"She has been threatened by humans before," argued Absol.

"And she won," continued the Umbreon. She sidled up to Absol persuasively. "These humans, if they get far enough up this mountain, will be in danger, like the others before them. Remember, it's our job to protect all humans.

"It is our job," Absol said shortly, "to take back Yacaeli's powers and then guard her until Father arrives."

"Your father loves humans very much," Tenebri said gently, though inside she was bristling. "If he didn't, he wouldn't have made so many. Do you think he'll be happy if we let these ones die?" When Absol didn't answer, she continued. "These humans are special, I can feel it. We must use any means possible to protect them. Even if that means… killing Yacaeli." She said the last two words as if she didn't dare repeat it.

Absol was quiet for a while. "I'm sure it won't come to that," he murmured.

Tenebri flicked her ears and batted her lovely eyes. She nuzzled Absol affectionately. "Good. I trust you, Absie."

The disaster Pokemon went as red as the stone around his neck at the nickname and didn't reply. Tenebri let him rush ahead, smirking victoriously. He may not have completely agreed, but he hadn't completely disagreed either. Absol was hers to sway.

*************************************************They have to cool for two hours, so it'll be a while********************************************

"It's been five minutes," Max announced.

"Be patient, kid," we all snapped, though worry was starting to creep into our minds, completely uninvited. I was starting to squirm with anticipation, almost tricking myself into believing I saw the two of them walking casually around the bend.

I blinked. There they were! My fantasy of their entrance was extremely far off, considering the fact that Drew was sprinting pell-mell towards us and appeared to be carrying May in his arms.

Max was on his feet and racing out to meet the green haired Coordinator. "What happened?" he cried. "What did you do to her?"

Drew stumbled to his knees and managed to let May down gently before completely loosing his balance. He wheezed and panted, sucking the air like he'd never had the stuff before. "She passed out," he exhaled.

I stared at him worriedly. He wasn't looking too good himself. Dawn and I rushed to the unconscious May, gently shaking her. She moaned softly, but that was it.

I sighed in relief. She was alive.

"What made her faint?" Dawn asked with concern.

He shook his head, a sign that it was too horrific to describe. "Let's just get moving, okay? I want off of this mountain."

**************************************I'm gonna make a cake tomorrow for my engineering class to enjoy*****************************************

The sight was not one to be treasured. Ripped pieces of rubber littered the ground, cut as if by claws. Parts of what used to be a balloon were blackened and burned. The basket was on its side, the wicker still smoking.

Two bodies were lying unconscious in the smoldering remains of their air vehicle. Their faces were burned slightly from the explosion when the balloon had crashed into the mountain. Bright red scratches adorned their faces. One small cat shook his head and looked around at the destruction surrounding him.

"Oh no," he murmured. He looked at his claws. A piece of rubber was still lodged in them. "Jessie, James, wha'd I do?"

*AN: So, why did Meowth destroy the balloon? Hopefully you all can figure it our yourselves, cuz a few chapters back I think I made it pretty obvious. Remember, reviews make everything better. Anyone who reviews shall receive a piece of the dulce de leche bars I made. Hopefully they're good and worth reviewing for.

I just wanna give a shout out to pokemaster101 for all the amazing reviews she's given me. You guys are all amazing and fantastic and I don't know what'd I do without you. Au revior, till next time!*