Hello, nice to have you back here. Apparently this story isn´t all too horrible if you are still here.

I'm sorry it took such a long time to update, but I am in my senior year of high school and damn! I want to graduate!

Anyway, I don´t feel like babbling too much, so let´s get this story running!

I still don´t own Pokémon, but I would like! Copyright belongs to Satoshi Tajiri, and the producers...who were those anyway?

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Chapter 7: Won't break, won't fall!

Weeks passed and even months crossed . It slowly started to become late autumn and the leaves from the trees were falling, more on the ground then on the trees.

But May watched it from her chambers. She hadn't been allowed to go outside. From messengers she had heard that the war had been suspended and that the army would be coming home soon. But when May asked about the fate of the young soldier, all messenger would bow and went away.

It didn't take too long for the army was back, reaching the castle village, and people were celebrating. With a faint smile on her face, May watched wives hug their husbands and fathers swinging his family around, families being reunited.

Not that pleased, she saw Commander Gar on his horse, "He's the army's hero, you know,"Misty told her when she saw her friend's scowl.

May looked at her disgusted, "What did he exactly do?" she asked.

Misty rolled her eyes, "Kept the men safe and such," she said. Misty had been more gone then not lately. Ash had been recovering steadily, and now he was getting used to sitting on horse-backs again. Pikachu had been found just outside the battlefield, only slightly harmed at his back-legs. It appeared it had been kicking enemies to the next life.

When May had asked Misty why he wasn't punished, she answered that because hadn't been a part of the army officially, he had not deserted. But he probably would be part soon enough as a part of the cavalry.

May sighed, she wondered where Drew had gone to. She hadn't seen him coming in to the castle, not even as a prisoner, in the deep of the night.

"May?" Max asked as he entered her room. May turned around at her brother.

"Yeah, what is it?" she asked.

"Father has required your presence, in the meeting hall," he said. His voice was filled with a sound of sorrow, but May couldn't exactly decipher what it meant, so she didn't ask further. She would find out soon enough she figured.

The walk down the stairs felt to May as if she was going to her funeral, and Max just didn't want to say anything.

"Ah, May, my daughter, enter," Norman said as May opened the door after knocking for entrance.

May frowned slightly, her father had been pissed at her for the last few months, so this was a very strange welcome. "What is it, father?" she asked.

Norman smiled, "I have decided your husband," he said.

May paled, even though she knew she should have, she didn't see it coming. "Alright, father," she said stiffly, as belongs to a princess.

Norman cocked a brow, "Don't you want to know who it is?" he asked.

No, May thought, I really don't want to know. But it was only delay of the moment of execution. She made a curtsy, "If it pleases you," she said. She was unhappy, but her fate had been sealed now.

Norman made a gesture to the person behind May, she hadn't noticed was there, "Your husband will be the phenomonal hero, Commander Gar," he said.

May's world seemed to crumble beneath her feet, and she froze as she hear the name. This couldn't be happening. May wanted to ask what kind of cruel joke this was, knowing she couldn't do anything against it.

"He has requested your hand, and because of the recent bravery's, of course I couldn't refuse," Norman said proudly. He seemed blind to the distress his daughter was in.

"This...can't be right," May choked out. But right then, Gar grabbed her hand,

"I would propose to you," he said, and for a moment he looked as if he actually wanted to sink down to one knee. "But there really is no need for that, I already have you," he said with a smirk on his face as he straightened his digusting posture. It wasn't the smirk May was used to see on Drew's face, far from that. This smirk was lecherous, and it made shivers crawl over May's back. What May wouldn't give to see Drew's smirk, a sign everything would somehow come together.

She couldn't imagine being the wife of this sickening man. He was big, and even though he was in the army, it was clear he ate and sat more than he exercised. The fastenings of his chestplate almost seemed to snap of the strain on them. The ages didn't do him good, and he must be over 50 years. He had permanent sweat on his forehead and under thick brows, small beady eyes peaked at her.

He was the kind of man, May never wanted to meet in her life.

May clenched her teeth and bit back her tears. She wouldn't give him the pleasure of seeing her cry already. This must be a nightmare.

She had no doubt that she would shed many tears in the rest of her life.

This was no nightmare sadly.

"Your wedding will be in a week, May. Aren't you happy?" King Norman asked.

May wondered how he could do this to his daughter, and still ask her if she was happy. But, as much as she wanted to say how horrified she was, she knew her place. She swallowed her pride and made a curtsy to both men, "If it pleases you, father," she said.

Then she stood up, "I ask permission to leave," she said, with a small voice. She feared she couldn't hold back her tears any longer.

Norman nodded, "You go, there are some things I want to discuss with Gar here," he said.

May quickly turned on the heel of her foot, and exited the room. She ran past Max, crying. The boy had his face scrunched up in worry for his sister. There weren't many things that would make her cry like this.

Back in her room, May screamed in agony and as she fell down on her bed, scrunched in on herself, she noticed her tears just wouldn't stop.

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The next days everybody in the castle was busy preparing for the upcoming wedding. The spirits were high, and people smiled, hoping for better tidings now.

Except in the room May was fitting her wedding dress. The pressure was high, and the depressing aura coming from the bride-to-be was suffocating.

Misty was silently doing the bottom of the wedding-dress, making sure it would hang correctly. "May, you look beautiful," she said as she looked up to May in mirror.

"I guess I do," May replied dully, looking in the mirror as well. She was beautiful. The white dress hugged her like a second skin, and the skirt flowed down from her hips, slightly dragging over the floor. It showed the young woman she was.

But the sad face didn't complete the picture. No bride should have a face as empty and worn-out as hers.

Misty sighed, "Oh May, if there only was a way, I would have stopped this wedding, I..."

"There is no if, Misty," May snapped softly. "I guess this is my fate, and I have just to rely in that. There wasn't a greater plan for me," she said.

Misty shook her head, "I never have seen a bride as sad as you before."

May looked up at her face, I haven't either, she thought.

But a loud noise from outside disturbed the pressing silence in the room. It came from the court.

"Get that traitor over here!"

That was Gar's voice that sounded over the terrain. When May and Misty looked outside the window, they saw why.

An awful thin green-haired boy was being dragged over the ground, big metal rings around his ankles, with his legs in odd shapes. His pale skin was specked with red spots. His head was turned downwards. He seemed to have no energy to resist the harsh treatment.

"This isn't right," May muttered as she recognized the young man, her own grieve forgotten. Before Misty could stop her, if she had wanted to, the princess had disappeared through the door of the room.

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Drew blinked in the bright light. Honestly he had forgotten how long he had been locked up, but judging from the cold air and the almost leaf-less trees he'd say he hadn't been outside for two seasons.

When he had been taken away, the men had locked him up, and he had been dragged behind the part of the army heading for the castle. He knew the princess had been in that same line, but he hadn't been able to catch a glimpse of her.

Why would he been given that opportunity. He'd even been separated from the normal soldiers, being held by the personal guard of Gar, people as low scum as he was.

In reaching the castle, he had immediately been locked up in the dark prison deep below in the dungeons of the fortress. Nobody, no prisoner had been kept there, but rats, and Drew doubted if these prisons were still used. If that was the name you'd give them. It was more like a torture hole. The rats had been starved, and it took all Drew had in him not to be eaten by those rats. He only partly succeeded, as was obvious from the bite-marks all over his body.

He had used the time to try to heal his legs, and they were more or less. However, Drew hadn't been able to try to stand as the cell had been so small, so he had no way of telling his legs had been healed alright.

There hadn't been much to eat as well, he had called himself lucky if he had gotten anything in two days. He had given most of it to the rats, to make sure he wouldn't been eaten too badly.

Why he had been brought outside was a mystery to him, it would have been easy to let him rot away deep down there. So he didn't know, yet.

"Ah, you don't look that well, you scum," the hated voice of commander Gar said. And kicked Drew in the stomach.

Drew keeled over, but kept his eyes on Gar, now he had a point to focus on.

"I see, you still haven't learned anything," Gare said and gave a blow in Drew's face. Drew turned slightly from the force of the blow but kept looking back.

Gar crouched down, "I utterly despise men like you, no obedience at all," he said. Then he went closer to Drew, "You aren't a hero, Hayden. That would be me. And I will be marrying the princess before the week comes to an end." He let out an gniffle, "I will tame her, like I tame a wild horse'," he said.

Drew clenched his teeth, "I bet she didn't have any saying in that?" he said, his voice hoarse from not using it for far too long. Words sounded strange on his lips.

Gar laughed, "That's the best part of it." He stood up. "I can't give you the death-penalty, because of the act of war, although I would have loved to see you hang to your death," he said with a loud voice.

"But I will make you suffer so badly nobody will every think of disobeying me again. 120 lashes with the ropes!" Gar called out.

Drew felt how he was tied to two wooden pillars with his hands, in a way he hung between them. His feet too were tied, fastened to metal rings onto the ground. He couldn't move in any way, sitting on his knees.

He felt his shirt being torn off too, revealing his bare back. Also his back was marked with the small bloody rats bites. Drew complied with it, without a sound. It would happen anyway.

120 Rope-lashes were a lot, everybody knew that. Out most somebody would stand 100 lashes without fainting. Gar was known to be ruthless with the rope, even from his younger days.

"NOOO!" was suddenly heard over the place. A steady murmur went up from the watching crowd as May stood before Drew, her arms wide, defending him.

Drew looked up, over his shoulder, to see May in her white wedding gown. He swore she had never looked more like an angel then now. He shook his head, the dungeons must have made him delusional.

"I won't let you harm him!" she called out.

Gar's face twitched, "My soon-to-be-wife won't be disobedient to me, move out of the way!" he called out, the ropes in his hand.

May shook her head, "No, this man has saved this army, you all, and even though you had ordered him not to, he risked his own life. He risked his life being a decoy so you all could defeat the army, being outnumbered. And now you are going to punish him for that?" she called out.

"Princess...May, don't," Drew softly said, his head down, back still faced to her.

"What?" May said as she went to him, so she could see him in the eye. "What did they do to you?" she muttered as she saw his marked body.

"May...don't," he said once more.

"Don't you call your lady that way! It's Milady or Your Highness to you!" Gar yelled.

May turned to him angrily, she was already fed up with his presumptuous behaviour. "You only care about your own status. You are afraid of your own title if he calls me by name. I ordered him to call me by my name. And you are going to comply in that, whether you like it or not. For now I am still higher in rank than you are," May snapped.

Drew smirked, "You haven't...lost...any of your...fire," he said, the punch now breaking up to him as blood ran from his mouth.

"Drew, I can get you out of here..." May started, but Drew shook his head.

"No, you...can't. I did desert...after all. I will bear my...punishment for that." He said.

May shook her head, "But you know that isn't fair. He's giving you 120 lashes, just because he hates you," she argued.

Drew smirked, mockingly, but tired. "I know he hates...me, but it's...fair. He's...higher than me...in rank, after all. And I deserve the...punishment. A good...man died because of me," he said as he let his head hang. His speech was still ragged, and uneven, but his words were clear.

"But more people would have..."

"May...let me bear this...as the warrior...I used to be. I wouldn't be...able to look at myself, if I didn't." He said. May wanted to protest but Drew shook his head, "He hates me because I already have what he can't get, your heart," he said.

May glared at him slightly, but her jaw dropped when Drew shrugged her away. He took a deep breath, "Start my punishment already," he ordered.

The people on the court had tears in their eyes after they had heard Drew speaking to May but not Gar.

Drew got a piece of leather between his teeth, as to make sure he wouldn't bite them broken.

To everyone's shock he walked to his position and roared.

"ONE!"

A the rope came down with no mercy on Drew's back, the loud sound was clearly heard over the dead-silent court. But Drew gave no sign it hurt, even though May saw his eyes widen as she stood the closest by him.

"TWO!"Gar yelled.

Apparently the first hit wasn't satisfying enough when Drew didn't budge because the second hit came down even harder.

The fire-red mark went across Drew's back but Drew hadn't given any sound.

"THREE!" was the next roar, and with this hit the rope cut Drew's back with dead-on accuracy and some blood dripped from the wound.

Drew clenched his teeth, he didn't want to shout. He didn't want to give Gar that pleasure. He didn't want May, who he heard sobbing, to suffer anymore.

"FOUR!" Gar shouted and the next wave of cruciating pain shot through Drew's body. He now knew why this was called the final punishment. And he still had a hundred-and-sixteen more lashes to go.

Drew gave no notice he felt the 5th and the 6th hit. Even untill the fifteenth hit Drew didn't show anything but the squeezing of his eyes.

"SIXTEEN!" Gar yelled, frustrated Drew hadn't made any sound. This hit slashed some skin away from Drew's back and the young soldier let out a small groan.

Not satisfied enough Gar kept lashing, but untill the thirtieth hit, Drew could keep silent but small groans.

"THIRTY-ONE!" Gar yelled and gave another merciless lash.

Drew had reached his silent endurance limit and shouted out it pain. People on the court turned away, not wanting to see the boy suffer anymore. But there was no end to it.

With a small satisfied smile on his face Gar kept lashing. Count after count lasted, and the screams were going through bone and marrow. May kept sobbing, but knew not to stop him.

When he reached eighty, Drew hung in the ropes, numb all over but the searing pain on his back.

"EIGHTY-ONE!" Gar yelled but was stopped by a hand.

"That's enough,"

Gar turned around, "What are...!" but his growl met face with the calm face of King Norman. "But sir, this boy has still forty more lashes to go," he protested.

But Norman shook his head, "This is enough," he said.

A strong but weakened voice sounded over the court, "I-it's true sir, s-still fo-forty more lashes," Drew said. He had been gripping his ropes around his wrists, and had been holding himself up. His hands too were bloodied, this because of the ropes that had been cutting in his hand-palms.

The image of a young man, bloodied over his arms, and cut open on his back was the one that was telling the king his punishment hadn't been finished yet.

Nobody said a word, amazed by the sheer strength the young man portrayed. The only thing heard for that moment was his hard breathing.

Then King Norman smiled, "My boy, this will do just fine," he said, and nodded to May, "Go take care of him, you are allowed," he said softly.

May smiled gratefully and hurried to Drew. She unfastened the ropes around his wrists. Drew fell forward as the only thing holding him up had been those very same ropes. May caught him, not caring if her white dress was now red of the blood. She waited untill his feet too, were untied. Then she ordered some guards to bring Drew inside. As they did this, she watched carefully they weren't rough with him.

King Norman watched his only daughter quietly care for the so-called traitor. Then he turned to Gar, "What order did he ignore to receive such a hard punishment," he asked. He was expecting to hear something like no interaction with the enemy or abandoning his guardposition, endangering the rest of the men.

Gar hesitated, "Er...well, he ignored my order to stay put and let the enemy come close," he said.

Norman raised a brow, "You wanted to give him a grand total of 120 lashes for that?" he asked, astonished. This boy could've died of that!

Gar fiddled for a while, "But, but a brave man died because of that!" he defended himself.

"And he saved over 150 men with it, including myself. Do you know the name of this very single man?" he asked, slowly beginning to lose patience. The silence Gar provided gave the answer.

"But he has endangered everyone, my plan was infallible!" Gar threw in.

Norman rubbed his sleep, "There never is certainty of that, this boy apperently knew that from instinct and did what him seemed best. In war anything is possible. And his plan was, though reckless, a good way to win."

"But he had to be punished!" Gar whined like a spoiled child.

"Commander Gar, for now, the wedding is post-poned," Norman said sternly. He was more and more annoyed by this man.

"But!" Gar argued.

"And that is my final judgement," Norman said and he turned around for his chambers.

Commander Gar stood scandalized on the court, and not even glaring at the people could help the gniffling around him. His whip had fallen from his hand.

People used to whisper long after that his look om his face was one of a man who had just lost his treasured price.

I am happy I wrote more than last time...people! I ask for reviews, and on the very first day I get 6 new favorites, and just 2 reviews...mind telling me what's going on?