*Welcome back! (or just welcome if you've just found this) :D Ready for a new chapter? :3 (I'm in a suddenly good mood... I have no idea why. XD) I know I am! Don't feel like writing a long AN, so let's just get on with the story, shall we?*

Chapter 4

How Ruby used to be... Ruby never, ever talked about his past, never speaking more than few words on the subject if directly asked, which Sapphire had done quite a few times in attempts of making him admit he did remember the incident on Mirage Island.

She hadn't really gotten to know him too well in the few days' span she'd played with him as kids, but she knew he definitely was not the same. That little boy had had dreams of conquering the Pokemon League, proudly showing her his Pokemon's power as he challenged every wild Pokemon they had encountered in the leafy green forest.

"Look at my Nana's Hyper Beam! Coco's Iron Tail!" he had boasted, demonstrating the moves on a nearby boulder covered in moss since all the wild Pokemon had fled, quickly reducing it to a pile of rubble and dust. "My dad taught them how to do it! One day, I wanna teach Nana and Coco even stronger moves!"

"Wah!" exclaimed Sapphire, eyes glittering like the rhinestones on her frilly blue dress. "I wish I had Pokemon that strong. Hey, did ya know a kid from Kanto won the Pokemon League at just eleven years old! We gotta get strong quick so we can beat his record."

"I'm definitely going to." His Pokemon huddled in close, and he wrapped his arms around them, crimson eyes determined, his Pokemon holding the same dreams in their minds. "And then I'll beat him! Because I'm going to be number one!"

A rustle emanated from the bushes beside them and Ruby's red irises sparked with excitement, his Pokemon lining up in an offensive position in front of him, and Sapphire remembered how much he resembled those old recordings of Pokemon League matches that she and her father would watch together. Ruby was literally jumping with excitement until the rustles turned into loud stomps, and a loud roar filled the air, a shrill, shrieking cry, fierce and strong, quickly coming closer.

"What's happening?" Sapphire had clutched his shoulder in fear as he started turning to run, a dark shadow appearing over them, the flapping of wings swirling the leaves around them. She looked up slowly, stuck in her terror, looking up at the blue and red dragon with a menacing snarl on its face, baring its fangs and quickly diving down, straight towards he-

The Salamence had slashed out, and Sapphire screamed, ducking, closing her eyes, expecting the sharp claws to hit her, tear her skin into shreds, but at the sound of ripping cloth and a drop of blood landing on her cheek, she took a second look, shrieking with horror at the fresh, bloody cuts upon Ruby's face, though relatively shallow, where bleeding hard.

"I-I-" she started, trying to apologize for the wound that was obviously her fault, staring at him and then the Salamence, quailing under its glare. Its bloodthirsty gaze scared her like nothing had before, and she turned and ran, escaped the scene, leaving Ruby behind in her desperate bid for safety.

Behind her she could hear the sound of fighting, a yell of "Hyper Beam!" and "Iron Tail!" and "Confusion!" the commands loud and clear even though she knew Ruby was probably in severe pain. She wanted to run back and help, but her only Pokemon, Rono, a newly caught Aron her father had given her, would be no use, and she was too frightened, too weak, to aid him. Tears welled up in her eyes as she sprinted through the forest back to where she knew her father was waiting.

That was where her resolution to become stronger had come from, her guilt for not only being able to fight alongside the young Ruby, but for running away when he was in terrible danger. Her admiration for the headstrong friend she had made, confident in his power and battling skills, the strong Pokemon he possessed. Her desire to win at the Pokemon League, sparked by Ruby's promise of beating the record. All three had formed her promise. All three were because of Ruby. The Ruby she had hardly known, yet owed so much to.

"I remember him," said Sapphire, flexing her nails against the cloth of her chair. "He saved me from a Salamence. B-but I ran away and left him there."

"You were there when he fought that Salamence?" asked Ruby's mom, surprised. "All he would tell me is that he met a Salamence in the forest and battled it. I had a heart attack when he came home with those claw marks. I used to have to make him wear that hat everyday but he never had to be told after that."

"It was extremely rash of him," said Norman sternly, "to take on such a powerful Pokemon by himself. But we have to think of what to do right now. My son is hurt and doesn't remember anything. We need a starting place."

Sapphire thought for a moment- showing him his precious, beautiful Pokemon, not even Mimi, hadn't done a thing, and neither had the ribbons on Zuzu's tail, which displayed the awards of the last ten contests it had won. Of course, they had yet to let him see Nana, Coco, and Ruru out of their Pokeballs, and that was maybe a possible solution. But if his other Pokemon hadn't made an impression, then she couldn't depend on them.

She thought ahead to the festival, the contests, and the tournament, which would be held like the Battle Dome tournaments in the Battle Frontier, and remembered the participants. In the contest, Wallace would be there, and perhaps seeing his performance would help Ruby remember his passion for beauty. For a second, she considered making him enter, but then she realized that if Ruby did regain his memories, he would kill her for entering a contest that would most likely shame his reputation as a contest master. Not to mention the concussion.

"Can he walk around with da concussion?" asked Sapphire, not knowing too much about medical stuff. Perhaps the technology had advanced within the past ten years (most likely, but Sapphire could care less most of the time) and the pain of a concussion could be cured.

"They'll be able to speed up the healing process and give him medicine so he can't feel the pain," answered Norman, taking out a pamphlet on head injuries. "The doctors gave this to us last night when we arrived."

"How did ya get here so fast?"

"My Flygon. I rarely use it for gym battles because it hates battling in confined spaces, but it's a great Pokemon for travelling. We were called last night by a doctor, and since I was leaving for the tournament soon anyway, we were able to bring all our stuff over."

"Would Ruby be well enough ta come ta da festival with me? Maybe there'll be some familiar stuff there..." Or maybe after spending some time with me, something will come back...

"Not today," Norman replied quickly. "Tomorrow, maybe. I'm not a doctor, so I can't tell you."

"Sapphires, if you'd like to go to the festival, go right ahead. We'll tell you immediately if anything happens," offered Ruby's mom.

"No," said Sapphire, shaking her head. "I'll stay here for tonight again. I don't- I don't want ta leave Ruby right now."

"He's very lucky to have you, you know," chuckled Ruby's mom, eyes filling with sad nostalgia. "He's always talking about you at home and it's obvious you two are best friends. More than that."

Sapphire sat awkwardly with her mouth open, feeling red flush her face, unable to think of a reply.

"We're finished with the examination," announced the doctor, walking back into the room with Ruby behind him. "He's completely unharmed except for a bit of bruising and scratching, and that nasty concussion. But we'll have a Chansey help make the healing quicker, and give him more pain-killers so it won't hurt as much. He'll be tired for the next few days, and it's likely he'll sleep for most of the day."

As if to exaggerate the doctor's point, Ruby let out a massive yawn, stumbling a bit as he stepped towards the bed. "I'm sleepy," he mumbled.

"Then you better get some rest, sweetheart," his mother cooed, pulling a blanket over Ruby, who had crawled into the bed, and was already asleep. "Thank you," she said to the doctor.

"Don't mention it." The doctor let a Chansey out of its Pokeball, and the pink Pokemon charged to Ruby's bedside, dutifully starting to heal him. "Call me if you need anything. Just tell Chansey."

Ruby's mom sat up, looking gently at her sleeping son's face, which was sweet and innocent like a child's, and wrapped her arms around her husband, facing Sapphire. "Sapphire, my husband and I have to quickly check into a hotel room before all of them are taken. We'll make sure there's a bed for you and an extra one in case Ruby can leave the hospital soon. Can you watch over him?"

Sapphire nodded, light brown hair bobbing up and down. The two adults left the room, leaving her and Ruby nearly alone, save the Chansey, but it had moved to the head of the bed, allowing Sapphire to sit right by Ruby's side, staring at him, his relaxed pose, his long eyelashes, soft black hair, and the slight smile that played on his lips, like he was having a good dream.

What are you dreaming about, Ruby? thought Sapphire, unconsciously grabbing Ruby's hand and grasping it semi-loosely. Do you remember anything in your dreams?

His smile grew wider, and he let out a murmur, one that sounded a lot like the word, "Beautiful," which made Sapphire's heart skip a beat. There was plenty of hope left, right? If the unconscious Ruby sounded so much like his normal self?

"You guys are beautiful... As always..." he continued murmuring, hands reaching out as if to stroke the Pokemon he was dreaming about.

What would happen, wondered Sapphire, if I woke Ruby up right now? Would he remember everything? Or would it just disrupt his rest?

Suddenly, Ruby shivered, a small spasm running like an electric shock through his body, causing him to breathe fast and hard, like he was running. He sounded like he was in pain, little gasps coming out of his mouth.

His sleeping face was filled with terror, and Sapphire immediately panicked, no longer worried about something as unimportant as disrupting his rest- Ruby was having a nightmare, and she wasn't about to continue watching him writhe in agony.

"Ruby! Ruby! Wake up!" she commanded loudly, causing the Chansey to jump a little bit. "Wake up!"

"Whe- Where did all the water go?" he asked, panting, little drops of sweat breaking on his forehead. "I was drowning- but-"

"You were having a bad dream," she explained, staring pitifully into his frightened, confused eyes, which she had always known to be filled with confidence (and arrogance). "But it's okay now. I saved you. You're awake."

Acting on a mix of impulse and some kind of instinct Sapphire didn't know she possessed, she hugged Ruby's head in the crevice of her shoulder, her hands on the back of his neck, lightly touching the silky tendrils of hair, cool compared to the warmth of his head. It felt so solemn, so weird, foreign, for Sapphire to be holding Ruby so close, when he was so far away.

She knew what he'd say, Ruby's usual insulting (but not serious) rants on how dirty her hands must be and how it would take forever for him to get the filth of his pristine white hat and so on so forth. But he just remained silent, not saying a word, the two of them sitting there in their embrace, not awkward, just... there.

"I'm sorry... That was sudden," said Sapphire after a few long, yet short minutes, letting go of Ruby and staring into his mystifyingly enigmatic crimson eyes. "That was uncalled for."

He merely looked at her as if in a daze, not really reacting whatsoever. Sapphire quickly snapped her fingers in front of his face to test if he was even awake- she remembered a few nights in the Secret Base where Ruby had slept with his eyes open without her knowledge- and he jerked up, misty ruby orbs quickly clearing up.

"Your name is… Sapphire, right?" he asked, looking at her with mild interest, some admiration, like a little kid.

"Yeah, do you remember it, or do you just remember from hearing it earlier?" Sapphire hoped it would be the former, but chances were that it wasn't.

"I'm not sure," he answered truthfully, sleep marring his voice a little. "Maybe both? I don't know. I don't really know anything. I remembered something in my dream though. But I forget what it was now. Except the water. All the water."

"You can forget about da water, Ruby," said Sapphire, said Sapphire, feeling the urge to hug him again when he looked so... vulnerable, like he needed to be protected. By her. "I'm not going to let you drown again. Why don't you go back to sleep? I can take out your Ruru and she'll make sure you don't have bad dreams."

"Who's Ruru?" In response, Sapphire held up the Pokeball containing the Kirlia, feeling the now familiar sadness fill her heart yet again. It was do depressing to see Ruby in this kind of state. "This Kirlia? What moves does it know?"

"Confusion. Growl. I'm not sure about the others," admitted Sapphire. Ruby rarely used Ruru after all. "Why do you want to know the moves?"

"Those moves aren't very strong," he commented critically. "Why would I teach it such weak moves?"

"Because ya hate battling, Ruby. Ya love Pokemon Contests, not fighting. Can't ya remember at least that?" The moment the words left Sapphire's mouth, she was worried she sounded harsh and judgmental, but Ruby didn't really seem to notice. He took the Pokeball out and released the psychic-type, which smiled at him and let out a cute growl that made his mouth turn up a bit at the corner.

"Hello... Ruru," he said, the name sounding foreign on his tongue. The words hung awkwardly on the air.

"Ruru," said Sapphire. "Help Ruby get back ta sleep. He needs his rest. And make sure he doesn't have any bad dreams."

The Kirlia nodded, raising its arms, the red horns on its head glowing, causing Ruby's eyelids to droop and his body to sway, Sapphire catching him so his head wouldn't hit the hospital bed hard and gently laying him into the pillow.

Softly, she laid her fingers on his scar, his hair, which he'd never let her see, the marred skin rough beneath her finger tips, no hair growing where the Salamence's sharp claws had sliced the skin. She'd imagined a scene like this before in small fantasies, like in manga and movies, where the hero and his lover would be together, one asleep, the other gently stroking their face, completely relaxed and content in each other's presence. Except she'd imagined it while they lay together on the dirt floor (Sapphire had made Ruby remove some of the ridiculous carpeting from the entrance of the base, the closest he would come to a compromise) staring through the cavern opening to a night full of stars, the warm lull of a nearby flame easing them into slumber, the summer breeze blowing gently through their hair.

Ruby would smile gently before he slowly drifted off, his head settling in her lap, perfectly comfortable in her closeness. He would still wear his smile as her hand moved down to take off his hat (not sleeping material in her opinion), her blue eyes gazing at him with endearment, slowly closing as she too fell into the grasp of slumber.

But even if they were in a hospital, which smelled of disgusting medicines instead of the scent of flowers and water carried on the wind, which sounded of whirring machines instead of howls of Mightyena, the flapping wings of Beautifly, the skittering steps of Zigzagzoon, it still made her happy, because he was smiling in the safe dreams Ruru was creating, and her euphoria in seeing him look somewhat like himself. At least while he was dreaming, she couldn't see a difference in before and now.

*I wrote this chapter, like, two months ago... XD Long, long time ago... During Winter Break. So I don't really know what's going on in the earlier chapters anymore. Oh well- time for Review Replies! :D

ruby-loverr: Thanks! :D :D :D I hope I know their personalities well... I must have read the R/S arc at least fifty times in a row before writing this. XD (I love that arc so, so, so much...)

FighterGirl14: Looks like you've found my weakness... I'm not too good at writing long (probably because I tend to not put in a lot of dialogue), but I'll try my best in later chapters. ;) Promise. Thanks for the review!

A.R. 0w0v: I do that with some fanart and fanfiction too. XD It's hard to explain... XD Thanks for the review!

Join me again next week for chapter 5! (why am I so cheerful? I have no idea. I feel... hyper. Which is probably bad. Why? Because it's nearly time to go to bed. :P)