Chapter 6 – Wrath of the Wild
Keith scarcely believed what he had heard. He couldn't understand how Alexa could be so submissive so soon. But his lack of understanding of what Alexa had said kept him from being at a loss for words.
"Wait...let him go?" he queried.
"It means I'd release him into the wild." Alexa hesitated as she answered the query, dreading the thought.
"But why? Can't one of your parents take him? Or any other family member?" Keith asked, almost out of desperation. Even Reese and Robbie were astounded at the prospect.
"I doubt he'd listen to anyone else. It's a miracle he still listens to me at all," she sighed as she lowered her head in shame.
"I don't believe you'd be so willing to give up on him."
"I'm not, releasing him is just the worst case scenario," Alexa explained, keeping herself as calm as possible. "If he refuses to connect with me, it's better I release him. I don't want to keep him against his will." She felt a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry, babe," Keith whispered. She fell backwards onto her bed, narrowly avoiding Keith, and sighed shakily. Keith faced her and stroked her hair.
"It's not your fault. I guess I should've kept a better eye on Lydia that day. If I had, he wouldn't hate me as he does now."
"He doesn't hate you, Alexa. If he did, he wouldn't have listened to you in battle, right? That's got to mean something," Keith said, feigning optimism.
"Because I'm his trainer; he feels as though he has to listen to me in battle," Alexa said. "His attitude hasn't improved after he evolved either. If anything, he's grown colder."
"Then it's time to warm him up. Eh?" Keith smiled. "If anyone can get through to him, it's his trainer."
"I hope so."
"Hey. Stop being such a grump," Keith smirked. "That's not who you are. Is it?" Alexa giggled; she felt a tickling sensation on her hips, courtesy of Keith quickly running his fingers on her hips. "Eh? Is it?"
"Keith..!" Alexa tried to contain the uncontrollable laughter, but she couldn't endure Keith tickling her for very long, if at all. Reese and Robbie were amused by Keith's antics. Alexa's legs flailed as she laughed hysterically while Keith kept tickling her. He soon stopped and allowed Alexa to catch her breath. She laughed so hard she had tears in her eyes. But the wide smile on her face was more than enough to prove her change of mood. She was happy again. She was laughing slightly as she breathed.
"That's better," Keith teased. Alexa was focused on regaining her composure, and not laughing at every breath, she hardly had the energy to say anything until she was finally calm.
They heard the sound of the front door opening and closing, followed by the faint sounds of people talking from downstairs.
"That must be my parents," Alexa assumed.
"I didn't think they'd be back so soon," Keith stated.
"Goldenrod isn't that far from Violet City if you know which way to go," Alexa explained. "Though sometimes a Sudowoodo blocks the short cut."
"The same one?" Keith questioned.
"No, it's a different one every time. Fortunately, Goldenrod City houses the 3rd gym in the region, so trainers often resolve that problem. Either that or they get scared off by veteran trainers like my Dad."
"Ah. You should go and see them," Keith smiled. Alexa sat up and looked down at him with a mutual warm smile.
"You should get some rest anyway," she agreed.
"Rest? I've been getting it all morning!" Keith said playfully, poking Alexa in her back. Alexa playfully poked him back.
"And you will for a week, unless your cold goes away beforehand," she laughed. She hopped out of the bed and left her room.
Walking down the stairs, she indeed finds her parents and her brother around the kitchen table and the sofa, all of which have gold coloured plastic carrier bags placed on them. Noticing her daughter immediately, Lily pulls out a green parka jacket from one of the bags and holds it out in front of her.
"Ta-da! What do you think, love?" she asked. Alexa looked at the jacket from afar; she liked it, but had a smirk on her face.
"Doesn't look your size," she joked. Lily laughed.
"Oh, you..! Try it on, I want to know if I've got the right size." Alexa approached her mother and proceeded to run her arms through the sleeves.
"I just think you want to see how she looks in it," Hayden chuckled. "You couldn't wait for her to try it on."
"That, too," Lily laughed. Alexa smiled to herself; she loved seeing her family in such a sunny mood. She put the jacket on properly and pulled the zip up to her neck. Lily examined the coat and related its size to Alexa's figure; the jacket hadn't revealed her figure, her sleeves went slightly over her wrists and the jacket's length was enough to cover her backside, much like her tunic. For the heck of it, Alexa pulled the fluff-lined hood over her head; she could still see with it over her head. Lily nodded.
"Hm. How does it feel?" Alexa around herself, trying to look at how long the coat is compared to her.
"Not bad," she replied. "Probably a bit big, though," she added, looking at her sleeves, and at how her hands almost disappeared into the coat. "But fine."
"I kind of thought size 16 was a stretch," Lily mused, examining the coat once more.
"Nah. You'll grow into it, won't you, Lexie?" Hayden smiled.
"Yeah, no worries," Alexa smiled. "If I don't, no biggie," she added.
"Oh, hey, check these out!" Keenan handed Alexa a pair of black gloves. Alexa looked at them and felt how thin they were.
"Gloves?"
"They're thin, but they'll keep your hands warm," Hayden explained. "I know how much you don't like thick gloves." Alexa nodded.
"Thanks, Mum, thanks, Dad."
"When Keith's better, I'd like to take him to the Department Store for a jacket of his own," Lily requested. "I don't know his size."
"I'll let him know," Alexa said kindly. Keenan handed Alexa a pair of grey gloves.
"Here, take these to him as well; we got him a pair too," he explained.
"Aw, he'll appreciate that! Thanks!" Hayden had a sneaky idea, noticing Alexa was about to take the coat off.
"Hey. Show him your jacket as well," he suggested. "See what he thinks." He winked. Alexa laughed.
"Dad..!" Lily carefully pulled the price tag from under the jacket's collar and cut it off with a pair of scissors, satisfied at Alexa's verdict on it. She removed the tag from her gloves before Alexa returned up the stairs. Keenan began searching through the shopping bags on the sofa.
The Pokémon remained silent. Lupin sat in the corner, ignoring what went on behind him, while Ryder and Xavier just sat on the separate armrests, Ryder glaring at Lupin. Skywing was nowhere to be seen.
Alexa entered her bedroom and approached Keith's side of the bed, allowing him to get a closer look at her new coat.
"Looking good, girl," Keith complimented.
"Thanks. Oh, here," Alexa handed the grey pair of gloves to him. "Keenan said these are for you."
"Thanks," Keith smiled as he accepted the gift. "I take it it's only going to get colder in Johto, huh?"
"Kanto's not going to be any better either, no," Alexa stated. "Which reminds me, Mum wants to take you to get a new jacket. I think she understands that your uniform jacket isn't going to be insulating enough."
"At the Department Store?" Keith queried.
"Yeah, they have a really good clothes shop where my coat came from," Alexa smiled. Keith put on a playful pout.
"Aw, and I thought we were supposed to have a date there!" Alexa laughed, seeing through his act instantly.
"We still can! We'll just be going to the clothes shop when you're better, but on that date," Alexa began as she moved closer to Keith's face. "We'll be there .long," she concluded softly.
"Looking forward to it," Keith said in a low whisper. Their noses touched brifly before she kissed his forehead as she stood up. "Gonna test out your coat?"
"Why not?" Alexa said cheerfully. "There's still some frost left outside."
"Don't catch a cold," Keith teased. Alexa, though smiling, raised an eyebrow.
"Don't make fun of yourself," she said. Keith laughed as Alexa walked out of the room.
"Oh, shoot!" Keenan groaned in frustration. Alexa arrived downstairs and, having heard her brother's moaning, approached him.
"What's up?" she asked.
"I must've left my Poké Gear at the department store!" he complained.
"You have," Hayden said as he removed his mobile from his ear. "James from security's just called me; he found it."
"That's nice of him," Lily smiled. Hayden nodded in agreement.
"He said it's in the security office, and that's where it'll stay until you collect it," he said to Keenan. The boy nodded.
"I'm gonna go get it," he said instantly.
"What, now?" Lily asked in bewilderment.
"I'll go with him," Alexa said, setting her mother's mind at ease. Except Lily was more puzzled than concerned.
"Okay, just be careful," Hayden cautioned.
"We will," Alexa and Keenan said together. Alexa placed her gloves over her hands and followed her brother out of the house.
"Hello, Alexa!" Skywing called as he flew down towards her. Alexa smiled at her Chatot and held her hands out. Skywing flew over her hands and lay on his back in her palms, having a compressed Poké Ball in each of his talons.
"Hey, Skywing, where've you been?" Alexa asked.
"I've had a call from my Poké Gear while you were upstairs, my dear; Clarice and Jonah wanted to get away from the island for a little while," he explained, pointing to his talons with his wing.
"Thanks, Skywing. Almost went out without a Pokémon anyway," Alexa laughed as she carefully took the Poké Balls from Skywing.
"It wouldn't have mattered," Keenan said as he released his small Vaporeon from her Poké Ball. She rubbed her head against Keenan's legs as soon as she regained her composure.
"True. Skywing, why don't you go inside? I think you've flown enough for today."
"Agreed. Thank you, my dear, and take heart." Skywing flew into the house through the front door, which Alexa closed behind him. Pocketing the Poké Balls, she, Keenan and Iara walked away and out of town.
The rural path was quiet, almost to an ominous degree. Traces of frost remained in the shadowed areas of the path, the sky was completely bare and there was not a single gust of wind to be felt. Iara looked around as she walked, believing to have heard small noises all around her. Keenan looked up at his sister.
"Alex? Why's Lupin here?" he asked. Alexa felt awkward.
"I...somehow decided to try connecting with him again," she said shakily.
"He still blames you?" Keenan asked in slight shock.
"Yeah. In a way, he's right to, but her death was an accident; I want him to understand that." Keenan smiled.
"I'm sure he will."
"We'll see," Alexa wasn't as hopeful. "Well...we'll cross that bridge when we come to it; there's still Jordan to deal with." Keenan lost his smile.
"And you're already being discouraged..." Alexa sighed; she could never hide her feeling from him, as much as he couldn't hide his from her.
"Yesterday was a lot to deal with, yeah..."
Iara took a battling stance and began to growl. Alexa and Keith soon realised that wild Pokémon of different species, including Rattatas, Pidgeys, Mareep and even the likes of Stantler and even species that weren't native to Johto, such as Poochyena and Puurloin. The Pokémon surround Keenan and Alexa, abnormally irate and keen to battle. Alexa slowly dug her two Poké Balls out of her pocket while Keenan tried to stay as still as he could. Alexa opened her Poké Balls in her hands.
"Jonah, Clarice, we need you."
Streams of white light burst forth from the Poké Balls, one revealing a large Hydreigon with an exposed fang and toes on his atrophied feet. The other light stream formed into a petite Glaceon, the exact same height as Keenan's Vaporeon, with a pair of gold earrings in her ears. The Hydreigon instantly spotted the wild Pokémon, and began to attack whatever he could with fiery fangs and sheer brute force. Iara combined forces with the Glaceon to attack the Pokémon with narrow beams of ice unleashed from their gaping mouths. Regardless of their efforts, the number of wild Pokémon was seemingly limitless.
"What're we gonna do?" Keenan asked. "Iara's the only Pokémon I have with me, and they can't keep fighting forever!"
"You're right. Jonah!" The Hydreigon glanced back at his trainer expectantly. "Hyper Voice!" Alexa instructed, pointing in front of her. Jonah nodded and inhaled as deeply as he could. Accompanied by a large demonic roar, Jonah released large sound waves in the desired direction, clearing a path ahead of Alexa and Keenan.
"You did it!" Keenan praised to Jonah.
"Come on!" Alexa and Keenan fled from the crowd, closely followed by Jonah, Iara and Clarice. No matter which way they went, wild Pokémon constantly attempted to strike the two humans, forcing the pair to move further away from their intended destination.
Gabby laughed as she observed the wild Pokémon trying to attack the Jeep, only to flee almost instantly after attempting to attack.
"They're scared of vehicles!"
"How convenient," Andy said sarcastically. He couldn't see what the big deal was. Jordan breathed out some cigarette smoke from his lips.
"They're not used to vehicles. I don't suppose there are many in Johto," he assumed.
"What about Kanto?" Andy asked.
"Same," Jordan replied, holding his cigarette closer to his mouth.
"This is why I prefer Hoenn; it has vehicles!" Gabby complained. Jordan took his cigarette out of his mouth and breathed out more smoke.
"These regions don't use vehicles often," he began. "The exceptions are delivery trucks and moving vans, and maybe the emergency service vehicles. And anything that can travel on water, if you want to get pedantic."
"What is it, a no vehicles policy?" Andy groaned.
"No, but the use of motorised vehicles, particularly on the roads, is discouraged. Hence the exceptions," Jordan explained. "The use of vehicles is kept to a minimum." Spontaneously, Gabby looked up. Her eyes widened as she saw a large black silhouette she didn't recognise flying above the region.
"Jordan, look!" Gabby pointed at the strange Pokémon. Jordan glanced up and spotted the bird. He seemed impressed.
"A Braviary, huh..? Andy, follow it."
"You got it, Chief!" Andy smiled, eagerly complying with Jordan's instruction.
The yellow-clawed Braviary flew contentedly in the air, carrying his trainer on his back with ease. The man looked to be no older than 65, and was dressed in a dull yellow shirt, with a small violet pen clipped to his front pocket, and grey trousers with black boots. He also wore a white belt and carried a navy blue shoulder-bag on his back. He almost looked like Hayden, in the way of his sapphire blue eyes and very similar hairstyle, but his hair was of an aged brunette colour. The rider felt the wind blowing through his hair and smiled.
"Aah, I tell you, AJ, flying makes me feel alive," he said to his companion. AJ squinted up at him with a smile.
"BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEH!" AJ screeched in response. AJ's trainer laughed.
"You know what I mean!" He looked down at where he was flying over. He was astonished to see three Pokémon fighting off an army of wild Pokémon. "AJ."
"BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEH!" AJ dove down towards the commotion. The rider was astonished to discover, as AJ flew closer, that Alexa and Keenan were in the middle of it all, but were safe on Jonah's back.
With a large thump, the giant bird descended to the ground and inhaled. AJ let out an ear-piercing screech that scared off all but one wild Pokémon; a lone Rattata dared to confront the eagle Pokémon. AJ lowered his head to face the Rattata head on. He stared at the little purple rat with his enormous grey eyes. Intimidated by the almost evil glare, the Rattata fled like the others before it. AJ raised his head and nodded with satisfaction.
"Nice work, AJ," the older man said, petting the Braviary.
"Thanks, Grandpa!" Keenan said gratifyingly. He faced his grandchildren with a smile.
"You okay, kids?" he asked.
"Yeah, but I thought they'd never stop," Alexa sighed. "How did you know we were here, anyway?"
"Ian Thorndyke knows all," Ian joked. "But, seriously, I saw some commotion from the air. I didn't know it involved you two until we got close enough."
"It wasn't our fault, Grandpa, they attacked us on their own free will!" Keenan exclaimed. "We weren't even doing anything to them!"
"Except fight them off for self-defence," Alexa added. She quietly thanked Jonah, Iara and Clarice immediately afterwards.
"Huh. What caused that, I wonder," Ian mused. Alexa saw a vehicle approaching. Recognising it straight away, she became cross.
"Speak of the devil," she said nastily.
"Huh?"
Andy drove into the clearing and stopped in front of Alexa, Keenan and Ian. Jordan stood up from the back of the Jeep.
"Well, look at what we have here! Twice in one day, Alexa? We need to stop with these random encounters," Jordan said mockingly.
"Hello, Jordan," Alexa said soullessly. Ian, puzzled, looked between the stranger and his granddaughter.
"You know each other?"
"We're on a first name basis, gramps," Andy stated, leaning against the steering wheel. "Might as well if she's gonna be a thorn in our stride."
"That must mean you had something to do with the Pokémon disappearing, am I right?" Ian asked with suspicion.
"We had, yes. I'm not worried; three kids aren't going to stop us," Jordan said calmly. Ian raised an eyebrow.
"Three?"
"Alexa, Keenan and the sickie, Keith," Gabby clarified in her usual arrogant tone. Ian folded his arms.
"Right. Well, I suggest you move along. Now," he said firmly. Andy scoffed.
"What makes you think we'll listen to you, gramps?"
"I can handle this-"
"It's okay, Lexie; I've got it," Ian smiled. Jordan looked at the Braviary glaring at him. AJ carried a glare that could pierce someone's soul.
"That's your Braviary, isn't it?" he asked.
"Yes, he is," Ian said proudly. "And unless you want to risk your Pokémon's health by battling him, I suggest the three of you be on your way."
"What—no! We're supposed to be catching these guys!" Alexa cried.
"Even if you do, and I'm not saying you will, it's too soon for that," Jordan said coldly. "But we will be leaving now. Alexa, Keenan...the next time we meet, you won't be so lucky. Andy, get us out of here." Andy smirked at Alexa and Keenan as he started the engine again.
"Later, kiddies!" he cackled as he drove the Jeep away.
"I could've handled them," Alexa sighed with disappointment. "It's why I'm back in Johto to begin with..." Ian faced her solemnly.
"I know. Your father explained everything to me the other day." He smiled at Keenan. "And I hear you're helping too."
"Yeah. We're not really getting anywhere, though," Keenan replied glumly. Ian patted him on the shoulder.
"Don't lose hope. Karma will catch up to him – and his lackeys – sooner or later," he said confidently.
"I hope so; we're barely a week into the case and they've already done a lot of damage," Alexa said unenthusiastically. "They pretty much almost killed Keith yesterday, and now he's sick in bed!"
"I see. Keith, huh? Looking forward to meeting him," Ian smiled.
"Did Dad tell you about him?" Keenan asked.
"He did, yes. So, what're you two doing out here then, huh?"
"Oh, I left my Poké Gear at the Department Store and we were going to pick it up," Keenan explained.
"Ah. I might as well accompany you; I was on my way to the house, but seeing as we're here, it'd be silly for me to go to the house now," Ian offered. "Besides, I don't want those three to come after you two if I'm not here."
"I doubt that, I already saw them once today," Alexa said plainly as she recalled her tired Hydreigon back into his Poké Ball. Ian returned AJ to his Poké Ball and escorted Alexa and Keenan to Goldenrod City, with their Vaporeon and Glaceon following.
Jordan lay in the back of the Jeep, with his arms under his head, as Andy drove the Jeep further down the rural path. Gabby watched Jordan with intrigue.
"So, Jordan..."
"No, Andy, I do not think that old man is going to get in our way," Jordan sighed. "Probably just one of those good citizens or something."
"What Pokémon are we gonna go after next, Jordie?" Gabby asked, almost seductively.
"I know exactly what our next target will be," he stated casually.
"Oh yeah?" Andy was interested.
"Is it a good one?" Gabby asked wishfully.
"One of the rarest species out there," Jordan replied.
"Sweet! Which?" Andy asked.
"...Lapras."
Ian left the Goldenrod Department Store with Alexa and Keenan following. Keenan was happy to have his Poké Gear back with him. The three, plus the two evolved Eevees, proceeded out of town and took the short route back to Violet City. Along the way, Iara and Clarice looked around suspiciously, believing to be hearing faint noises from the bushes around them. Ian looked at Alexa.
"So, Lexie...this Keith fellow's your fella, huh?" Alexa felt awkward again, and blushed.
"Y-yeah, why?" she asked.
"Who made the first move?" he asked jokingly. Alexa's blushing intensified.
"Grandpa! Not in front of Keenan!"
"He's all right, he's not a child," Ian said casually.
"I'm 12," Keenan sighed.
"See? He'll be getting that talk soon."
"Oh..!" Alexa buried her face in her knuckles out of disgust. By now she was blushing so hard her face was almost pink. "Must you refer to that..?!"
"Why so squeamish?" Ian laughed. "You had that talk when you were 12, and now you're in a relationship, so-"
"PLEASE! Don't finish that sentence!" Alexa cried abruptly. Ian laughed a little harder than before.
"I'm just messin' with you, Lexie!" Keenan stopped in his tracks.
"Oh, no..!"
Ian and Alexa soon spotted more wild Pokémon circling around them, intent on attacking them. Iara and Clarice prepared to battle, but Ian pulled out a pink Poké Ball with a lighter pink heart pattern on top.
"Alexa, Keenan, put your Pokémon into their Poké Balls," he said quietly. They returned their Eeveelutions to their Poké Balls, regardless of their lack of understanding of the instruction. Ian opened the Poké Ball and released the sublime Froslass from inside. She had a neat green velvet ribbon tied beautifully around her neck.
"Krystelle, I need a lullaby," Ian requested. Krystelle seemed to squeal with joy a little at the request.
She took a deep breath and began to hum a sweet melody that was easy on the ears. She sang magnificently; her notes were perfectly sung. The wild Pokémon, while hearing the song, began to feel drowsy. But it failed to stop Krystelle from singing her number. She sang and sang heavenly until each and every Pokémon succumbed to the effect of her lullaby, which was achieved by the time the Froslass concluded her song. The three humans looked around at the wild Pokémon, who were all peacefully sleeping, some snoring quietly as they slept.
"Wow. Nice vocals," Alexa said quietly.
"They're more agitated than I thought... Seems singing them to sleep's the best way to help them out," Ian assumed. "Thanks, Krystelle,"
"Froslass," Krystelle bowed modestly as Ian recalled her to her Love Ball.
"Skywing can sing. Maybe he can do more than carry Poké Balls from point A to point B," Alexa mused.
"But what about those who can't fall asleep?" Keenan asked.
"They won't fall asleep, per se, but the soothing music of a lullaby should still calm them down," Ian guessed. "These things can happen."
"They'll be okay once they wake up?" Alexa questioned. She was concerned, but cheered up once she saw the adorable sight of two Rattatas sleeping together; one was lying on the grass, the other slept with its head on its friend.
"Nothing like a good sleep to make you feel better," Ian smiled.
They eventually arrived home, where Ian started to talk to Lily and Hayden, Keenan quickly returned to his bedroom and Alexa began to have a word with her Chatot. By now, Ryder and Xavier were engaged in a rough battle on a video game played on a black rectangular games console. Ryder used his telekinetic powers to use his silver grey controller while Xavier used his claws to use his black controller normally. Ryder appeared to be losing the battle. Lupin remained in the corner, again, completely ignoring everything around him.
"Was everything okay in getting here, Dad?" Hayden asked.
"Fine. Had a spot of bother with some people who seemed to know the kids, though," Ian explained. "Never seen them before..."
"Ah, they must be those poachers Alexa and Keith are after," Lily assumed.
"They did say they knew Keith, yes," Ian nodded.
"It's got to be them then. They're the ones who stole the evolution stones from the Celadon Department Store," Hayden said.
"Oh, really?"
"Lullabies? I can see why they'd work, but I'm not sure if the ones I know are good enough," Skywing replied.
"What about Cassie? Maybe she can teach you some of hers?" Alexa suggested. Skywing put his wing to his beak in thought.
"Hmmm...Lapras do have such wonderful lullabies. I'd have to talk to her about it and see if she'd be willing to teach me one or two. I'm sure she will, though, she's a gentle soul."
"I think she will too. Thanks, Skywing," Alexa smiled.
"But of course. I love helping you in any way I can," Skywing said happily. "I just wish some Pokémon would realise that," he said spitefully as he glared at the angsty Alakazam.
"Say, Lexie?" Ian approached Alexa. "Mind if I introduce myself to Keith?"
"He's still sick from a cold, so I dunno...hmm..." Alexa had to think of an answer.
"It's better now than when he's better," Skywing whispered. "Your grandfather's going to be around for quite some time, and it'll be awkward to make the introduction a week later."
"Good point," Alexa agreed silently. She eventually nodded. "Yeah, no problem. I want to see how he is anyway."
"I don't need an escort, Lexie," Ian laughed. He followed Alexa up the stairs.
"Come on, Ryder, you suck at this game!" Xavier chortled.
"It's this controller, I know it is!" Ryder growled. Skywing flew down and landed on Ryder's head.
"Ryder, my boy, using your psychic powers isn't exactly the best way to use the controller, is it? And it's brand new, I'll have you know," he sighed.
Alexa and Ian arrived in her bedroom, where Reese and Robbie were startled by Ian's appearance, but soon calmed down when they realised he was friendly.
"Hi, Keith. There's someone to see you."
"Huh?" Keith looked towards Ian. Despite being ill, Ian looked glad to meet the boy. Alexa smiled at them both.
"Keith, this is my grandpa, Ian. Grandpa, this is Keith."
"So, this is the famous Keith my son told me about, huh?" Ian pondered.
"Y-your...Hayden's your son?" Keith asked.
"My second born, yessir. Ian Thorndyke, happy to meet you," Ian said, holding out a hand. Keith was confused at first, but gave the senior Thorndyke the handshake regardless.
"Keith. W-what did you hear about me?" he asked curiously.
"Aside from you being my granddaughter's lover? I've heard you stopped a killer of a Trainer from spilling Regigigas blood," Ian replied. Keith looked uneasy.
"Oh. That."
"Yep. Hayden used a crutch for a week and a half after that," Ian grumbled.
"Sorry..."
"No, it's not your fault," Ian said reassuringly. "I'm just glad he and Lexie got out of it safely," he smiled.
"Yeah," Keith agreed half-heartedly.
"Don't you worry about a thing, Keith, I don't bite," Ian chuckled.
"Sorry. I just thought we'd meet under better circumstances," Keith sighed.
"You'll be fine," Ian said as he turned to leave the room. He stopped by the door and looked at Keith one last time. "I don't expect Lexie's knight in shining armour to submit to a cold for long," he winked. Keith perked up.
"Wait, what?!" Ian laughed as he left the room, closing the door behind him. "W-what did he mean by that?!"
"He knows about Operation Brighton," Alexa explained, almost as half-hearted as Keith. "When you saved me and Ryder."
"Oh, that's..! So he doesn't know about-"
"None of them do, Keith," Alexa said, cutting Keith's sentence short. She soon smiled sweetly at him. "That's neither here nor there. How're you feeling?"
"A little better, actually," Keith said positively. "Hey, I'm supposed to take the pills even if I'm better again, right?"
"Yeah, you're to use them up. Once you have, that'll be it," Alexa replied. "But, hey, I'm just glad you're feeling better."
"Me too. I want to find and stop Jordan really badly." Alexa's smile shrank a little, slightly disappointed.
"Yeah. I know."
To be continued...