"And though it's been so long, I can't ever seem to forget. All it takes is a song, and I could swear I hear your steps. Down the hall echoes a past that leaves an ache, it's never left, cause I gave you my best" - Vanessa Carlton "My Best"
24 Cause
Paul had run. Dawn saw him leave. He was scared, no doubt. Terrified of what he had done to May; afraid of what Drew would do to him. And of the stampede, too, of course.
Dawn rushed after him. The herd of Pokemon split in three. One group ran after Ash, one after Drew and the others, and one after her and Paul. Dawn chanced a glance behind her, and it made her run faster.
The creatures looked almost rabid. Their jaws were open with their tongues lolling out. Foam frothed at their lips, and their eyes were too wide. They ran, their feet pounding into the mountain as they chased her.
Her and Paul.
They looked ready to kill.
No, she told herself. Not Paul too.
It wasn't going to happen again. She'd let it happen to Lucas and she wasn't going to let it happen to Paul. Not this time.
Not when she had something she so desperately had to tell him. Something she also should have told Lucas, but the time for that was long gone.
A Mightyena broke away from the group and flew over her head. Dawn ducked in fright, causing her to careen to the side and, miraculously, out of harm's way.
The Pokemon rushed past her, stampeding away after Paul. Panic made her heart flutter. If Paul was killed by these beasts, Dawn would… well, Dawn didn't know what she would do.
Over all the noise, she heard a low growl. Whipping around Dawn saw the Mightyena. Its eyes were huge and bloodshot. Saliva dripped from its maw, foaming and white. Its teeth glistened menacingly. Dawn got up slowly so as not to excite it. It was going to kill her for sure.
"N-nice Mightyena," she cooed, shaking. "You wouldn't want to eat me. I'm all tough and stringy. Why don't you go eat a Stantler? I'm sure they're much healthier."
It glared at her, a growl rumbling in its throat. Raven black feet with sharp white claws digging into the ground, and that wasn't even the worst of it. The most terrifying thing was when Dawn looked into its glowing red eyes.
Her legs buckled beneath her, and she fell to the ground. Her fear left her incapacitated. She was going to die, and she couldn't do anything about it.
Suddenly the dog gave a whimpering cry. It was knocked to the side, and Dawn lost eye contact. She blinked and woke up from her trance.
Paul was standing where the Mightyena had been, recovering from the kick he had given to the wretched dog. But the beast didn't stay down for long. In a flash it was on its feet again, its attention now on Paul.
Paul didn't trust his Pokemon to protect him, not after seeing what Pikachu could do to Ash. The rest of the stampede had thundered away, chasing an enemy that wasn't there. He took a deep breath, but his fear didn't show. "Get up and fight, you mangy dog," he challenged.
The Mightyena slunk around Paul, low to the ground. Its eyes never left its prey.
Dawn stood again. Paul couldn't beat this thing alone. It would kill him!
And then Dawn did the stupidest thing she possibly could have done: she called him name.
"Paul!" she exclaimed.
She'd meant it as a warning, though he was probably very aware of the danger. Instead, he looked away from his foe to see what Dawn was yelling about, and the Mightyena took the opportunity in stride.
It sprang forward, hitting Paul with tremendous force. Paul went staggering backwards, his arms trying to protect his face rather than break his fall. He went down hard, with the dog on top of him.
The Mightyena did not hesitate. Its teeth were razor sharp and sinking into Paul's neck. He howled in pain and fury. With a kick the beast was forced to let go, landing over Paul's head. But it did not give up. In a heartbeat it was on top of him again, tearing at his legs. Deep red droplets flew everywhere, accompanying Paul's baying of pain.
Dawn's eyes were wide. Suddenly her brain began working again. She ran forward, crashing into the Mightyena with her head.
The dog was ripped from Paul's legs, drawing another shriek of pain from him. Dawn lunged at the Mightyena, snaking her arms around its neck. She slipped her hand around its head, and she twisted.
With a sickening crack the Mightyena fell to the ground, lifeless. Its eyes had gone glassy, and its mouth hung open uselessly. Paul's blood had turned its teeth pink.
Dawn flew to Paul's side. Her heart was in her throat. Blood was still pumping from his neck, and his legs were a bloodied mangled mess. "Paul?" Dawn choked. The tears started to come. "Paul, can you hear me?"
He panted heavily, his eyes flicking around as if uncertain where to look.
Dawn forced a sad smile. "I'm over here, Paul," she whispered. She was trembling. "I need to tell you something."
Paul still did not look at her. Dawn wondered if he could even see. The only sound he made was his breathing, but that was getting shallower and shallower.
With a sob, Dawn took his hand. It was still raw from the flood. Had that really happened yesterday? It seemed like a million years ago. "It was always you," she told him. "Lucas… Lucas hoped it would be him, and you… you thought it was him, too. But I chose you from the start. I never got a chance to tell Lucas that it was you I picked. So I'm telling you."
Paul didn't seem to hear her. Instead he raised a tentative hand to his neck. He gingerly touched the wound, but he didn't flinch away. "I'm dying," he breathed.
"Can you hear me, Paul?" Dawn snapped. "No, you're not going to die!" She said it more for herself than him. "Come on, Paul, don't think like that! You're going to be FINE! Did you hear me? YOU'RE GOING TO LIVE!"
"Where's Dawn?" he said. "DAWN! DAWN WHERE ARE YOU?"
Dawn squeezed his hand. "I'm right here! Look at me, Paul, I'm right in front of you!" She forced herself in front of his eyes. "I'm RIGHT HERE!"
His eyes were unfocused. Clearly he couldn't see, or even hear. Dawn completely broke down at the cruelty of it. The first time he had ever said her name, and he didn't even know she was there.
***********************************************************I'm taking Health online********************************************************
I found Pikachu dangling over the edge again. He didn't even look scared, just a little disappointed at being in the same scenario as last time. The fire had died away when the Pokemon gave up. Now all that was left was a bit of smoke and a vicious heat.
While I was walking back (well, limping I suppose. My ankle still hurt), I found Max, Brock, and Drew cowering in a crevice. How they all fit was beyond me.
Misty appeared soon after, soaking wet and sputtering. She refused to tell us where she had been hiding, except that she had seen the fire and hid in the water. This left us all thinking what water? but Misty was giving nothing away.
Dawn and Paul were the only ones left.
"I'll bet Paul let Dawn die, too," Drew snarled bitterly.
"Why don't you lay off Paul?" I snapped. "He's not that bad. I mean, Dawn sees something in him."
Misty laughed a little at that. "I think she got dropped on her head as a baby."
This earned a laugh out of all of us, because really, Paul wasn't even a backup choice for most girls. Not because he was ugly, but because he was such a jerk.
We heard the yells then.
"You're going to be FINE! Did you hear me? YOU'RE GOING TO LIVE!"
We all exchanged frightened looks. Dawn was shouting. I broke into a run, hoping against hope that it wasn't Paul she was screaming at.
I came upon a scene marked by devastation. The footprints of a couple hundred Pokemon were embedded into the ground, the dust still settling. A limp Mightyena lay on the trail, its tongue out and its teeth pink with blood. To the right, Dawn was kneeling beside a lifeless form. Her shirt was smeared with blood, still fresh and red. Her face was pink and puffy from tears that still raced down her cheeks.
With my heart pounding, I crept toward Dawn. The lifeless form was Paul, I realized. He was yelling, and Dawn was yelling back, but I didn't bother to listen. I focused on the blood that welled from Paul's neck, that stained the legs of his pants, and that covered his fingers. The only other thing I noticed was Dawn's hand in his.
"I need to see Dawn. DAWN!" Paul was yelling.
I blinked. "Dawn's right there, Paul," I said gently, sinking to my knees. "She's holding your hand."
"He can't hear me," Dawn sobbed. "He… he can't even see me!"
The others were suddenly surrounding us. Misty knelt beside me, clenching my arm so hard that I felt the blood stop flowing. Brock held on to Max. Drew was left alone, and he looked shocked.
Paul was looking right at me, but I don't think he actually saw me. "Where," he said slowly, "is Dawn?"
I took his other hand and guided it to Dawn. "She's right here."
He jumped when I touched his bloody hand to her. "Really?" he whispered, still looking at me.
I nodded solemnly. "Yes, really."
The blood was pooling around Paul. He was losing too much of his vital, precious blood. There was no way to save him here.
Paul's eyes tore away from me. His entire body was shivering. When his eyes fell on Dawn, he seemed to focus, and he went still. "Dawn," he said, and his lips broke into a smile.
I never saw Paul smile so genuinely. And it would be the only thing I ever saw when I thought about him. Because that was how he died: smiling at Dawn.
*AN: It was so sad to write. I made it extremely depressing, partly because it's intense when I reread it, partly because it relieves stress. Yes, I take my anger out on fictional characters. But perhaps Paul isn't really dead, just like May. I mean, it's a slim chance, but he could be trapped in that meadow prison as we speak. Now I'm going to go post stuff about me on that dumb Health course I'm taking. It's required that I tell people about myself. Isn't that stupid? I could fail if I decided to be antisocial.
Till next time, then. Bye.*