Me: "Hay everybody, thanks for staying with me and tuning in on another chapter of PtH,"
Drew: "I still think they have come on this story on accident,"
Me: "Sure Drew,"
May: "I think, I'm going to be scarred for life by this story,"
Me: "Probably,"
Drew: "Grouchy,"
Me: "No, just not interested,"
May: "Then we should start this story, before the authoress get bored. Riikani doesn't own Pokemon, Me or Drew, or any of the characters for that matter,"
Me: "There, now I have a bad mood,"
Drew: "Start the story!"
Chapter 3: The Horse Likes You
"And thus, I have come to the conclusion, none of you pathetic excuses for men are suitable for my daughter," King Norman said, his voice deadly calm.
They had moved to a smaller room and the six men had been called in. May had told her father how they had followed her and at one point they had even started unfastening the ribbons on the dress.
It had happened after Drew had left and they had cornered her, drunk.
Needless to say, King Norman was furious.
The only reason nothing further had happened was because of Max, who had come looking for her. Although he was young, his ability to handle the sword was commonly known, and all six had realized that when he threatened to chop off their heads, he would be able to do it.
"Now, leave this place and make sure I never see your face around here," Norman growled, he took this as a personal insult. His daughter wasn't an ordinary whore.
In no time the men were gone. Norman sighed and leaned with his head in his hand. "I'm sorry, May. That I couldn't find you a suitable husband yet," he said tiredly.
May kneeled before her father. "It's not that bad, father. It can wait," she said.
"But I wanted you to marry before the war had reached its height," Norman whined. Sometimes he had really childish features.
May sweat dropped, "Father, if the enemy found out, who I would marry to, they would kill him anyway. And if I had started to like this man, it would destroy me too. So believe me father, my marriage can wait," she convinced him.
King Norman sighed, "You are probably right, my daughter," he said. Then he turned to Max, "My thanks is big, son. You have protected your sister greatly," he said.
Then he stood up, "Please go both to your rooms and sleep," he said. May and Max nodded and exited the room. The hallways were empty, deserted, as if the castle itself wanted to hold his secrets to his own.
"Hey Max, thank you again," May said as they walked up the stairs to the personal quarters.
Max shrugged, "I didn't trust them anyway," he muttered. But then he threw a mischievous glance at May, "Or did I protect you for someone else?" he asked.
May looked confused back at him, and Max reached up to the rose, grabbing it. "Can you say with a straight face that you gave this to yourself?" he said chuckling.
May grabbed the rose back, "I suppose you wouldn't believe me if I said that that's the case?" she asked.
Max shook his head, a smirk at the ends of lips, "Nope," he said smugly.
May sighed, "He's just a friend, don't worry about me," she said as she put the rose back in her hair. Max looked as if he was thinking.
"It isn't one of those six men, not some servant, because that I would have noticed," he said striking away possibilities. "So he's a soldier that was here tonight," he said, grinning.
May waved her hands in front of her face to stop Max, but there was no stopping to it anymore. "You definitely aren't charmed of the older soldiers, so he has to be young, not much older than yourself," Max continued.
The he grinned, and May's nightmares came to life, "It's Drew Hayden," he said, looking very proud of himself.
May raised a brow, "How do you know him?" she asked suspicious.
Max pumped a fist in the air, "Yes, I was right!" he shouted, now even more proud of himself. May still looked questionably at him so Max scraped his throat and laughed.
"It's pretty clear you know. He's the youngest of them, handsome, and a proven genius. Of course I knew it had to be him," he said. Then he shrugged, "Besides that, once in a while I practice with him."
May sweat dropped, "And I didn't know that because of....?" she asked.
Max raised a brow, "You haven't been interested in anyone since, well, I don't know, your whole life?!" he said.
May pouted an then sighed, "You don't have to worry anyway. He's gone to war and the only time I'll probably see him back is when he comes back horizontal. If he hasn't died on enemy grounds that is," she said gloomy.
Max eyed her suspicious, "You like him?" he asked.
May huffed, "I don't like him, not in my life," she said.
Max shrugged, "Don't go and say things when the story hasn't been written yet. Who knows what could happen," he said, before he pushed open the door to his own livings.
"Lock your door May, I can't stand for your safety if you don't," Max said.
May smiled, "Be assured, you're not the first to tell me that," she said. Max nodded, and with wishing her good night, he closed the door.
With a raised step May continued her way as silence encircled her. Finally she reached her own quarters. Quickly she closed the door behind her and locked it tightly.
Turning around, she found Misty sitting on the bed with crossed arms. "And where have you been all evening?" she asked sternly.
May scratched the back of her head sheepishly, "Uhm, at the great table, being chased around the castle by the chosen admirers, with Drew, being chased again. In the meeting room..." May summed up.
"Wait! Feedback! With Drew? Who the hell is that?" Misty asked curiously. But then she saw the rose in May's hair, and she chuckled. "Your Lover?" she said, with a voice that almost left nothing for imagination.
May turned red, as the image of Drew as her lover crossed her mind. It was weird to say the least. "No way, just a friend," she said.
Misty laughed, "Boys of our age always think of one thing," she winked as to prove her point.
May clenched her teeth and slapped a hand against her forehead, "Why does everyone remind me of that?" she grunted.
Misty laughed and pinched May's cheek, "Because you are so cute, my dearest," she said. They kept a straight face for a second before bursting out in laughter.
"No., but serious. I'm not kidding," Misty said when they had regained their breath.
May tapped her chin. "It just doesn't sound like Drew. He kept on warning me all the time about the real world," she pondered out loud.
"What is he like?"
This put May to think, "Uhm, well he's a soldier, and I think he has been through much. He's rude and kind at the same moment," May scowled at the memory how he talked to her. "Max says he's a genius and..."
"Whoa, hold on girl, That's not quite what I meant," Misty interfered. May raised a brow. "I meant, how does he look like?" Misty asked. Despite her behavior and looks, she could act like a girl once in a while.
May thought again for a second, "I don't really..." but then she got smacked by Misty on her head.
"You are a girl, by the gods, and yet you're saying you don't know how he looks?" she said almost fuming.
May kept her hands before her face in a defensive way, "Alright, alright," she gave in. "Well. he is taller than the both of us, but that tall as the most soldiers are. He's young but looks almost like an adult, without the stone muscles," May said. 'Though he is really muscular,' she mentally noted as she blushed slightly.
If she thought about it, someone built like Drew as lover, wasn't such a bad idea. Hey! a girl can dream right?
"Go on," Misty continued her. May looked annoyed at Misty, who looked unfazed as ever, so she continued. "He has green hair, and green eyes..."
"What kind of green?" Misty interrupted.
May sighed, it was so detailed, it became even difficult to describe the guy. "I think, his hair had the color of grass, I guess," she said.
"And his eyes?" Misty asked. May looked around, trying to think of a suitable color when her eye fell on one of her jewellery pieces.
"Emerald!" she exclaimed.
"Huh?" Misty replied, confused by the spontaneous exclamation. "Emerald, his eyes," May explained, "his eyes have the color of emeralds."
Misty blinked and then grabbed May's hands, "you're in love with a complete eye-catcher," she exclaimed.
"I do not!" May fumed, angry at the wrong assumption.
Misty waved it away, "Please, if you only heard yourself talk," she said lightly.
May huffed, "and why are you so delighted? You are never this kind of a happy girl," she retorted. When Misty turned red May began to suspect something. Even she wasn't that dense.
"Confess up," she ordered.
Misty threw her an angry look, "There's nothing to confess," she said angrily.
May rolled her eyes and let herself fall on the bed. "Like hell there is nothing," she said, obviously not caring about if Misty wanted to keep a secret or not.
"Alright, then I tell, your Highness," Misty scowled, for which she got glared at. "When you disappeared, I went to find some company myself," she told.
May sat up on the bed, in for a promising story.
"I ended up in the stalls. I was sure nobody would be there and that nobody would mind if I were there with the horses. I was wrong. There was a boy there. About our age, black spiked hair. Chocolate brown eyes. Not that bad to see actually. Well he heard me enter, but he didn't seem surprised I was there".
Misty thought back at the moment.
(Flashback)
"Hey there!" he called.
Misty turned around when the boy had called. She looked around but saw nobody else. "Me?" she asked.
The boy smiled a goofy smile. "Yep. Come over here, so we can talk. It's apparently much easier than yelling," he said.
Misty laughed, If you put it that way, ok," she said as she came standing by the boy. "I'm Ash Ketchum, by the way," he said.
"Misty," Misty said shortly. She disliked her name big time but Ash thought differently.
"Misty? It has a nice sound to it," he stated.
His attention returned to the horse he had been petting. "This is Pikachu, by the way,"
Misty reached out and patted the yellow-golden horse on its nose. Ash looked surprised, "Well, that's a first-timer. Pikachu usually doesn't like people touching him," he said laughing.
Misty eyed the boy. He didn't look like a real lord or something. "What are you?" she asked bluntly but Ash didn't seem fazed by it.
Instead he grinned, "I'm the master of the stables, pleased to meet you," he made huge bow and gave Misty a hand kiss. Misty suppressed a blush, she happened to know that the stable-master was an old bald fat geezer.
"Are you joking with me?" she asked.
Ash pulled a face, "Aw man, I got caught. Why does nobody believe me?" he whined, but then he shrugged, "I'm the stable-boy around these quarters," he said.
He eyed her curiously, "Mind telling me what the female escort of the princess is doing here? I'm curious," he asked.
'He does know who I am after all,' Misty thought and sighed. "Her royal pain in the butt is right now too busy. I was just looking for some company," she admitted.
Mentally she slapped herself, 'why did I tell him that?' she groaned on the inside.
Ash grinned, "I'm sure Pikachu wouldn't mind your company," he said. Misty sweat dropped at the denseness of the boy, the horse was not the kind of company she meant.
"Uhm, ok?" she said at loss of words.
"Hey, Mist, would you mind going on a ride with me and Pikachu?" Ash suddenly asked. Misty's head snapped up.
"What did you say?" she asked.
Ash shrugged, "I asked if you wanted...,"
"No, I meant, how did you call me?" she asked, a sharp edge to her voice.
Ash winced, "Mist. Are you angry with me now? Shouldn't I call you that?" he asked nervously.
Misty pondered this for awhile. "No, it's fine I guess," she said with a small smile.
Ash grinned, "well, do you want to go?" he asked. Misty shrugged, "Why not?"
Before long, Misty was seated behind Ash on Pikachu.
'Hey Ash, why are you such a fan of this horse?" Misty asked. Ash shrugged at that, as he went on a lazy pace to the green fields, shimmering in the dark night.
"I don't really see him as just a horse. before all he's my friend. Besides that, I'm one of the few who can actually ride him," he said.
Misty grew a tad nervous, "Why is that?" she asked as Pikachu stepped in the clear night.
'Because he can be a tad...uncontrollable," he said, a grin on his face. Right at that moment, Pikachu reared. Ash, who was used to it, kept right in place.
Misty however, wasn't and fell right off the horse.
"Mist? Are you alright?" Ash called out as he jumped of the horse, hurriedly.
Misty sat a bit dazed on the ground: "I guess, I am," she muttered. Ash crouched down in front of her and their eyes met. One moment there was silence before they started laughing.
"Ash, you're dumb," Misty snickered.
Ash scratched the back of his head, "You know, I hear that a lot," he said sheepishly as they continued laughing.
End Flashback
Misty remembered how funny it must have looked as she finished the story. She saw May almost falling asleep, but the girl was trying to keep awake for her story.
"It's great for you, Misty," May said sleepily.
Misty grinned herself, "Go to sleep, May," she said before going to her own room. May sighed and wished Misty all the luck she could get before falling asleep.
Damn, I should work more often on this. I hope the story won't bore you, but either way, it's not going to be a super-exiting story. It's a castle-romance so yeah. There still will be blood and tears shed, so don't worry!
A horse called Pikachu, holy .... the world has gone nuts