"Skye…Wake up Skye," I leaned on my elbow groggily and looked at Roy standing next to my bed, "Good morning, it's 8:00 o'clock."

"Good morning. But why'd you wake me up?"

"You were… Um… having a bad dream."

"Was I?" I couldn't remember anything.

"Pretty sure… You were thrashing… and mumbling."

"Weird… well thanks." He sat down in a lime green chair and started playing Diamond. "Did I wake you up?"

"Yeah, s'okay though."

I looked around. Johnny was still asleep in the white chair but Tony was no where to be seen, "Where's Tony?"

"I don't know. Doesn't he always stay until someone's awake before he leaves? That is, when he gets up first…"

"Yeah," I agreed, "I'll go see if his shoes are still here." I went upstairs and they weren't by the front door, so I went to the garage. Sometimes we left them on the steps leading up to the door. They weren't there but the garage door was open and guess what I saw.

"Roy! Roy!" I exclaimed when I'd ran back downstairs.

"What! What!" He playfully imitated.

"It snowed!" And I jumped around.

He moved aside a curtain and found there was two feet piled up against the window, "That's cool."

"We need to have a snowball fight!"

"Sounds fun," He nodded and my brother with his limbs splayed out at odd angles, "But let's wait until Johnny's awake first."

"He's on my team," I got the small game console off of the shelf attached to my bed, "I should probably work on Pokémon pinball some more."

"You'll have to be determined with that one."

"Mmhmm." I walked over to the closet and dug through the pile of clothes to the left corner where I keep the case. "Roy!" I shouted extremely panicked.

"What wrong?"

"It's not here!" Johnny woke up, "The testing case isn't in the closet!"

"What?"

"NO, NO, NO!" I was throwing everything out of the closet: books, clothes, pillows, the drawer that held our socks. When it was empty I looked over, under, and around everything in the room. When I had successfully flung the two mattresses against the wall Roy tried to help me think calmly, though he looked a little panicked too.

"When's the last time you saw it?"

"Yesterday around 7, when I switched to diamond."

"That means anyone from last night could have taken it." Said Johnny in distress.

"No, we were sitting right across from it. I would have noticed." I hope.

"What about when we went upstairs?"

"I remember when you guys left, I don't think anyone went in the closet."

"Then what-!" I stopped mid-sentence, "Brianna." They looked at me, slightly fearful because I was now irrational and malevolent, "She probably found out a long time ago. She must have decided to take it last night while we were sleeping thinking we couldn't do anything about it because she found out about the party." I started toward the stairs.

"Why didn't you tell me th-?"

"And if she thinks that, she has no idea what order my priorities are in." Then I slammed the basement door. I walked through the foyer, up the next flight of stairs and to her room.

When I banged open her door the stupid white ball of fluff that was her cat hissed and jumped off the bed. She was sitting on the bench beneath her window looking out at the forest. She turned around, startled. I walked up to her, yanked her off so she was kneeling in front of me. I grabbed her by the shirt and held her halfway up so that her face was a few inches away and down from mine. My voice was a low growl.

"Where is it."

"It wasn't me!" She said terrified.

She did know about it. "WHAT DID YOU DO WITH IT?"

"T-Tony took it."

"Are you freaking kidding me? WHAT DID-"

"Look at the footprints!" She pointed out the window.

I glanced at the snow below and there were footprints in the snow, starting on the deck and going on to the forest. "What about them?"

"They're Tony's."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah." She said immediately, "I woke up around seven thirty to watch my show and about ten minutes later I heard the back door slam. I looked out the window and Tony was walking toward the forest with your case and a shovel."

"How do you know about the case?" I asked aggressively but I wasn't yelling anymore.

"I found out at the pizza hut. I went there after, and there were policemen. The said someone tried to steal a testing case from some girl. I just knew it was you, so I followed you for a while. And finally at Colonial that one time. I heard everything you said. I was about to tell you that I knew but I decided not to at the last second. I covered up by asking what it was that you didn't want to fail at."

"You knew this whole time?" She nodded. "Who did you tell?"

"No one."

"Why?"

"I don't know. I wasn't going to either."

As much as I wanted to believe she was lying, it sounded like she was telling the truth and it did explain why Tony wasn't there when we woke up. So I gave her the benefit of the doubt. "Let's go check those footprints then."

"Okay."

Roy and Johnny were waiting at the bottom of the steps. I said on our way to the back door, "She says she saw Tony take it," and I guess they didn't know what to say, because they remained silent. I slid on my boots and took a step outside and looked down at the footprints in the snow. It had been snowing since they were made so it was slightly filled but I could tell they were way too big to belong to Brianna.

"She could have just worn dad's boots." Offered Johnny.

"Gross. I wouldn't do that."

They were waiting for me to say something but it took me a minute I was so distressed. And that was because: "The shoes that made these tracks were wheelies." I turned away from their shocked faces and walked back through the house to the garage, grabbed some shovels and went back to where they were waiting. "Brianna said he had my case and a shovel with him. We might need these. You'll help me find it, right?"

"Yes," Said Johnny quietly. He was still in stunned.

"I didn't think you'd need to ask," Said Roy and I managed a smile.

"I want to help," We all looked at Brianna. She didn't say anything else.

"There aren't anymore shovels."

"I'm still coming," She said stubbornly. We weren't trying to stop her, we were just confused.

"Okay," I went down the steps and across the lawn, the others behind me. Halfway to the forest a jagged path started next to the footprints, where he dragged the shovel. When we eventually entered the forest I felt immediately better. There were too many happy memories here for me to be distraught.

We walked on for twenty minutes (It's a big forest) before the tracks became so filled with snow we couldn't see them anymore. And the falling snow was becoming so thick I could no longer see the logs in the snow and was constantly tripping over them. Stupid sprinkles.

I had tripped halfway over another one when Roy caught me by the back of my jacket. "Thanks…. Maybe you guys should go back. It's getting cold and I doubt we'll find anything; he's probably out of the forest by now."

"We're staying with you," said Johnny, "And we'll find the case, even if he is out of the forest." The other two nodded. Brianna was still confusing me to no end.

We managed to walk for another 5 minute before I tripped over another log. I moaned. The happiness caused by being back in the forest was starting to wear off.

"Skye, look!"

I turned around in the snow and found out that it wasn't another log I'd tripped over but a snowy mound of dirt.

"Yes! We've found it! Help me dig."

I had just stood up and was going to start when Tony came out of nowhere and stood on the mound.

"Hey what are you guys doing?"

We all stared at him in disbelief until Johnny said "We're getting Skye's case back."

"Why? What happened to it?"

"You took it!" sad Roy angrily. Which scared Tony quite a bit. Roy'd never been angry at one of us before.

"What! No! It was probably Brianna. Why else would she have come with you but to keep her name clear?"

"You dirty little liar!" I was shouting and pretty sure I was crying too. Tony, for as long as I can remember, was the only person Johnny and I had that seemed to care about us, "Why would you do this?"

He realized he wasn't fooling anyone, "I was behind you in the line," his voice was hushed and indignant, "I would have taken the test when you had. I WOULD HAVE WON!" He shouted. We were stunned. He went on, "That thing wasn't a test, it was a machine designed to beep at random! Nothing could be that advanced. Not even in the Pokémon Region!"

"You're totally deluded," Said Roy in an almost awed voice.

"Even if that were true, It's your own fault Skye went last. You wanted to go second," Said Johnny.

Now in a frenzy, he bellowed and kicked the mound. And he ran off in the direction of main street.

I turned to Johnny and saw that he was crying too. I gave him a hug, "I guess th-this means he's not going to be our f-friend anymore." he sniffled.

"Not if you want him too."

"N-no, Not if he's g- going to be like that. And I don't think he want's t-to be anyway," I let go of him and reached for a shovel, "What about you Roy?"

"I wouldn't want to be friends with anyone who would make a jerk move like that." I smiled glad they were both with me, "Let's start digging."

Tony managed to make a pretty deep hole, so it took us a while. Roy eventually did it on his own though, we were just getting in the way.

"Got it," He said and he reached in and pulled out the white case with the Pokémon pictures and the funny little squares around the bottom. He handed it to me and I hugged it, covered in dirt, to my chest.

"I think I need to find another hiding place for this."

"I don't think he'll try to take it again though."

"Still."

We started walking back to the house. The snow had let up a bit, so after about 20 minutes we were almost home. When we got there Brianna said, "I won't tell Mom and Dad, about the party you threw… And I was going to tell you that Tony took the case, I was just waiting for him to come out of the forest."

I feel like my confusion had reached the maximum, "Why? Don't you want anything from us? You've always-"

"No, I don't." And with that she ran back upstairs to her room.

Later that night after Roy had gone home and Johnny and I were laying on our bunks playing our games (I was only halfway through Pokémon pinball), he asked me something I hadn't considered.

"Do you think Roy will still want to hang out with us?"

"Why would you wonder about something like that?"

"Well, I mean, what if he was only hanging out with us because of Tony. After all we're so much younger than him and Tony's only two years younger," True, he would be turning sixteen in a month.

"You know Roy's not like that, he doesn't mind how old we are. Otherwise he wouldn't be hanging out with us in the first place. And you were the reason he became friends with us at all, not Tony."

"Thanks." Now I was worried about it though. People aren't normally friends with people that are different ages than them, unless they're related or there parents are friends or something. I decided I would ask to Roy about it later.

"I am going to miss Tony."

"Me too. But he's a jerk! Maybe if he comes to his senses."

"I don't think he will."

We mostly played in silence for the next hour or so and then Johnny asked me another question, "Skye, if you made it to the Pokémon Region… Would I still get to see you?"

I sighed. I had been avoiding this, because he probably wouldn't need to know anyway, "In the Other Information section it says if I win I can only visit non-Pokemon countries for a total of one month of the year. And that I'd only be able to call you at Pokémon Centers. But I can mail you stuff from anywhere you would normally mail stuff from."

"Oh… What else does it say in the other information section?"

"Well, it gives a number to call if I have any questions, but I should to read the whole book before I do that. It says when the big final test is, March first, and where it is, in New York, and that when I go, I need to bring the case full of completed games and the console. It also says that three days after everyone takes it, it will be announced who the winners are. And two weeks after the testing day the winners to go to a port in New York and board a ferry that will take them to the Region. It said that only the winners will be told where the port is so no one tries to stop them or try to get on the boat themselves. I can't wait to see New York! You'll come with me right?… Right?" I looked over the edge of my bunk to see my sleeping brother with his game still in his hand. I laughed and got down to save for him.

I went back up and tried to fall asleep but gave up after an hour, and played pinball for three more, which eventually did put me to sleep.

When I woke up it was ten and Johnny was gone. A note on his bed said he was going to another video game club meeting and then to another member's house afterwards. The fact that his sister has a testing case and he can't tell the club must be killing him.

I got up and stood on the white chair to move aside the window curtain, remembering that we were supposed to have had a snowball fight yesterday. We could do that later.

I checked the mini fridge, not feeling like going upstairs. All we had were those fake strips of bologna. Oh well. I rolled some up and ate them as I walked to the closet to check my case in its new hiding place: The sock drawer. It was safe and sound behind a row of argyles.

I looked out the window again. I really wanted to play in the snow but I didn't want to do it alone, so I sat down in the white chair, which was becoming my favorite, and tried to finish pinball. All I had left to do was capture Jirachi.

I played for a minute then got sidetracked and decided to call Roy to see if he would come over today.

It rang a few times, then, "Hello?"

"Hey, Roy, it's Skye. Do you want to make a snow fort or something today?"

"Sorry, I can't. I have an essay due."

I thought for a minute and decided it would be best to just ask him if he was uncomfortable with the age difference, "Roy, I know you're a lot older than us, so it's probably always been a little weird to be friends with us. And now that Tony isn't going to be around anymore… Do you still want to be?"

He was silent for a minute. "Of course I do! You two are like my brother and sister. Yeah, I've got plenty of friends my age, but you two are my family. Maybe it's because I don't have a lot to start with, but you guys are important to me."

I smiled, "We think of you the same way," Which I now realized was true. We may already have older brothers but we hardly knew them. Same with our parents; Roy was our role model.

"I'm glad," He said, "Well, I'll see you later."

"Good-bye."

Happy now, that I knew where Roy stood, I sat down to finish Pinball.

Twenty minutes later I finally got to the point where all I had to do was hit Jirachi with the Poké Ball one more time-.

"Hey Skye." Brianna was on the stairs.

"Quiet!"

Ten seconds left… "Finally! No more Pokémon Pinball" I said out loud and sighed with relief, "So what do you want?"

"… Would you make an igloo with me?"

I thought my confusion had peaked yesterday. Then I thought of something I hadn't before. Maybe… She wanted to be friends with me… But can things just change like that?… It couldn't hurt… May as well try, "Okay."

So we went out to the front yard and made a giant igloo by cutting squares out of the snow plow pile with a shovel. It took three hours but the result was impressive.

"Want to get some hot chocolate and drink it inside it?" I suggested.

"Good idea." She said. So far it had been awkward and we hadn't talked much but we had been getting along well.

We went inside and to get our hot chocolate. But when we came back out half the igloo was destroyed.

"No!" Brianna yelled and ran up to it.

I walked up next to her, holding both the mugs, she looked very upset, "What happened?"

"Look at the footprints." And so I looked. The only footprints that should have been there were the ones surrounding the destroyed igloo and the ones leading to the front door. But there were three sets leading to the next door neighbors' house. Caden, Jaden and Aidan lived there. Caden and Jaden were twins and Aidan was their older brother. They were all Brianna's age.

"Why would they do this?"

"In the past few week they've gotten everyone at school to hate me, because Snuffles bit their stupid dog's tail and now it's all bent. It's why I left the sleepover when you guys were having the party. They only invited me to make me miserable." She was sniveling now.

I felt sorry for her. Believe me she isn't the most pleasant or nicest person, so people can maybe justify being mean to her, but I'm pretty sure the people at the sleepover had been her friends for a while. So she knows how much it sucks to have your friends betray you which is probably why she was going to tell us about Tony before. And now, so do I.

We had been sitting next to our empty mugs inside our reconstructed igloo for the better part of an hour. Not talking, not doing anything. Just sitting.

Finally we heard it. An opening gate, crunching footsteps, and three sniggering boys. Brianna looked at me and smiled broadly.

We crouched, grabbed the handle of the umbrella, and threw it off along with the layer of snow on top of it serving as the fake roof. The idiot boys stared at us, completely dumbfounded.

Not missing a beat, we crouched down, grabbed an armload and started pelting them with icy snowballs. They were all critical hits and they ran away screaming.

We sat on the ground and laughed. There had been a lot of preparation for that moment, but it was well worth it.

When Johnny got home he found Brianna and I in the family room watching 13 Going on 30. He stared at us for a good 3 minutes before going downstairs.

I was the one who suggested we watch it. Though I wasn't one for chick-flicks, I doubt she was one for making igloos.

"So Brianna… You aren't going to tell anyone about the testing case?"

"I can't see any reason why."

"Good."

"Skye," She said, "What does it mean exactly… That you have a testing case?"

"It means that I have a 1 in 928 chance to live in the Pokémon Region," I said, "That is, if I finish the testing case… And I'll have to pass this big test organized in NewYork."

"Cool. But… I'm not so sure Dad would be to thrilled about it if you win."

Oh geeze, what an idiot I am. I had not given one thought about if my parents would let me leave. And no doubt I would need their permission. Yes, the Pokémon Region gave their youths much more freedom and responsibility, but parents could still keep them from going on journeys.

"No, I don't think he will."