A/N : The wonders of what deadlines can do to you is surprising, really. Y'know, I only noticed this today...I'm updating this story on 9/11, and I published this story on 9/11 last year. So basically this fic is now one year old...

I feel so unaccomplished. OTL Ah, well, you may read (and review) now. For those who were waiting patiently for this chapter, sorry for taking so long. School is so annoying sometimes, got me busy and all that. T_T

EDIT: ...why did I use so many semi-colons anyway? When I think back on it now, I can't really tell why. Weird.

Chapter 11 - Intertwined

Mew was known to be one of the most generous, playful, and powerful pokémon in Rota. Everyone knew about it, and Mew knew about them. Its trust with humans never wavered even though it was fully aware of their nature; almost as if it didn't care. But there was once a time where its mistake finally shook the legendary so hard that it refrained from freely interacting with people for a very long time. A long time ago, when it lent too much power to one man...the very same man that caused war after war; yet to him it was simply victory after victory for he was a general, and he was a failure at that. He begged for Mew to help him; to offer him something that can make him happy. The pokémon gladly obliged, and even though it was his own power, the selfish grip of the man was too strong, and Mew could not get it back...

The destruction continued to spread, and whoever tried to face the general ended up severely punished. It was then Mew decided that there was no other option...

It was the first time...it took a life.

"Master, what are you reading?" the familiar voice snapped him back out of his trance-like state. The man closed the book afterward; placing it back on the shelf he took it from while facing where the voice came from. "Just an old legend, nothing to be concerned about." Aaron replied calmly.

The jackal pokémon did not look convinced. "I'm not concerned about the book."

He couldn't help but chuckle. "I'm alright, Lucario. Really."

"You still shouldn't be walking around the castle, master. What if something-"

"You worry too much. How can I be your teacher if I cannot even protect my students?" Lucario fell silent, unsure of how to reply. The Aura Guardian simply grinned and walked towards him. "If you must know, it simply feels horrible to be bedridden even if you want to do something else. I'm sure Aiden feels the same way."

The last sentenced irked the pokémon. If it wasn't for that boy, this would never have happened. Why does master always talk about him so much?

"Anyhow, I think it would be best to check what he's doing now. Hopefully his injuries have already recovered somewhat-" Aaron suddenly stopped; he glanced around as if something was approaching them. Lucario didn't bother asking and tried to sense what he felt, but there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary..."He's here."

"He? Who are you-" surprisingly, the man's serious expression broke in to a smile. "It's Trevor." yet the smile vanished as soon as it came. "...and he has someone else with him." it can't be..."We must head to the gate, quickly." without wasting any time, the Aura Guardian walked briskly out of the room and took the fastest route to the entrance of the castle where two guards were stationed with a huge metal gate. As he approached the opening, he could already see the two figures outside: one bigger, one smaller. The steel/fighting type was close behind him, and he wasn't sure whether to be calm or cautious about their guests. "Lucario." he muttered softly so that only his student could hear.

"Master?"

"Is his aura familiar to you?"

"...yes, it is. Is he-"

"I want to pretend as if you don't know him."

"But, why?"

"Trevor probably has no idea who he is; it would be best to stay unaware for now. Only when he starts to act suspiciously..." he trailed off, hinting to the pokémon that the rest of the message was loud and clear. It was, all right, and the pokémon couldn't help but nod in agreement. "Of course, Master."

"Good." he turned his attention back to his old friend and put on a welcoming aura. "Trevor, what brings you here to Cameran Palace? Does it have to do with your new friend?" the boy subconsciously took a step back; looking a little nervous. "Yep, I found your biggest fan!" the older brunette replied, beaming. He then nudged the younger brown-haired child to go closer to them instead of shying away. "C'mon, I thought you said you wanted to meet Sir Aaron in the flesh?"

"Y-yeah, but, I..."

Said man walked to him with a friendly face. "There's no need to be afraid," he told him. Aaron then leaned towards the boy and whispered to him so softly that the person beside them couldn't hear it. "Eevee."

The boy didn't answer; instead, he was simply staring at the ground and at nothing else. "You're not going to hurt me?"

"I promise you, I won't. In return, you cannot and will not harm Aiden."

"I assure you, that was never my intention from the beginning."

"Hey, what are you guys whispering about? You know each other?" the bluenette then turned to his friend. "No, just trying to coax him, that's all."

"Mm, okay. Anyway, mind if we take a tour of the castle or something? It wouldn't be nice to simply leave us out here after coming all this way to meet you."

"Of course. Right this way." with that, they all headed deeper in to the large structure. The younger brunette was still restless, but more relaxed than a while ago. Lucario, meanwhile, was still as alert as ever. The one thing worse than having a new student (that he was jealous of) was to have the enemy of said student in his own territory. A situation like that can never end well.

-o-

Half an hour felt like an eternity for Ash, just waiting and lying down on the bed...it was torture. Yet even the slightest amount of movement made him cringe in pain and with that he was forced to stay still and do nothing but stare at the dark gray ceiling above him. As he lay on his bed, Ash reflected on his situation (as there wasn't anything else he could do anyway). Him being here, his wish, his friends...did they even know if he was gone? Would he return the exact moment that he has vanished? Or maybe they just hadn't noticed his absence yet?

Looking back, he never expected for all of this to happen. No one would've, of course, yet...

"I can't bring you back until I fulfill the wish you requested before."

"Of all people, why me? And why that time, of all times?" he muttered as he let a small Aura Sphere form in his palm. "It could've been more simple like winning a gym battle or something..." he frowned as the light blue ball dispersed in to the air; quickly disappearing soon after. "Why would he go through all the trouble to do this, anyway? It's not like he's going to gain anything from sending me back in time. Unless, maybe he wanted to save Sir Aaron too..."

Ash closed his eyes and attempted to scan the area around him. There weren't that many people in the castle, as usual. All of them had a small blue aura flare and were constantly moving about. For some reason, he couldn't pinpoint his teacher anywhere as if he wasn't nearby; either that or his range isn't that very far...

Out of the blue, he felt a strong aura coming from the rooftop. He jolted to a sitting position, and even though it hurt doing so, he was more concerned about what he sensed. It definitely wasn't Aaron's, or Lucario's. In fact, he knew who it was as soon as he felt it, and it made him flinch in fear. The teen recognized that the intruder was masking his aura, yet even so, it was easy to identify, and it made him worry. "It can't be..." panicking, he looked around for anything that he could use as a weapon, or anything that could defend him. But there was nothing of the sort, it was just a simple room with a bed and an injured boy; this made him panic even more.

"Remember, Aiden, with Aura Sensing, you cannot only anticipate the beings that are close to you, but also how they are feeling. When one is calm, the aura they give off is dampened, thus it is harder to notice them. When they are angry or frightened, it becomes the opposite and they become easier to spot. When you are in a rough situation, always remember to stay calm."

Ash took a shaky breath and tried to get himself to calm down. Closing his eyes once again, he tried to follow the movement of the person he sensed a few moments ago.

"Sometimes, the best course of action is to do nothing but listen...and wait."

The figured continued to jump from one place to another. The ravenette assumed that he was looking for him, doing the same thing he was doing now. He tried to steady his breathing further, pushing away the fear of him approaching closer and closer to him.

"As soon as you woke up," he pressed his finger right on the trainer's chest. "the aura in your body flickered brightly. It's something that everyone does; but expert aura handlers can lower the aura they emit after letting it out for a few seconds. That way it wouldn't be so noticeable for others to pick up."

Ash growled. "I...I don't need anyone telling me that."

"Oh really? There's no use in acting cocky, boy."

"He's right...I shouldn't be so reckless, especially here." the teen mumbled softly. "I had always placed my life on the line, knowing that I have friends to back me up when I get in trouble. But now, I'm alone..." he stayed silent; the tension in the air felt suffocating, yet he continued to be still. "Pikachu, Dawn, Brock, everyone...they're not here, but they'll be waiting for me to come back. Until then, I can't let them worry about me, no way."

Clasping his arm tightly, he kept on watching, waiting, the intruder drew closer towards him; he could tell. His aura was now flickering brighter than before. Ash could tell that he was starting to get excited.

The door then swung open, and no one else stood there except for his captor the day before. He grinned widely; his golden eyes gleaming. "Come out, come out wherever you are, little brat."