Chapter Fifteen – Ava

"H-Hi there," Keith said nervously to the confused little baby Pokémon. The Pichu stared at him blankly and blinked. "Uh...Reese..? A little help?"

"Bui!" Reese complied as he walked over to the bewildered baby, smiling kindly at the newborn. "Bui-bui," he greeted gently. Pichu's attention was drawn to the Buizel next to Keith.

"Pichu?" Pichu's voice was high in pitch, but soft and feminine at the same time; there was no doubt in Keith's mind his new Pichu was a female.

"Huh; never had a girl Pokémon before," Keith said quietly. Pichu looked up at Keith again, still carrying the same look of confusion on her face. "Heh; for a Pichu, you're pretty cute," he smiled as he very delicately touched Pichu's tiny black nose with his finger.

"Pi?! CHU!" Startled, Pichu quickly and briefly released a small discharge of electricity that was barely strong enough to shock Keith. "Pichu!" Terrified, Pichu slipped out of Keith's hands and raced under the bed. Robbie and Reese looked at Keith nervously as he tried to recover from the sudden shock.

"...didn't see that one coming..."

"Bui-bui," Reese sighed.

"Shut up and make sure she's okay, will you?" Keith asked resentfully. Reese shrugged and jumped off of the bed and followed the whimpering under the bed. Keith tidied his electrified hair quickly as he carefully stood up from the bed.

"PICHU!" Pichu's petrified yelp followed by Reese's pain-filled cry gave Keith cause for alarm. Reese crawled out from under the bed, tail first, carrying the dizzy Pichu in his arms. Keith picked her up and looked at her worriedly. "Pi...chu..."

"I think she needs a Pokémon Centre," Keith said quietly. "Reese, do you need to go?"

"Bui," Reese shook his head.

"I think you should go anyway; Water types are weak to Electric attacks," Keith stated. "I know she's a baby, but it doesn't hurt to be safe, right?"

"Bui-bui," Reese shrugged casually.

"Okay. Robbie, will you be all right here on your own? We don't all need to go." Robbie smiled at Keith.

"Sawsbuck!" he nodded.

"Okay, good. We'll be back as soon as we can," Keith said hurriedly as he left the room hastily, Reese struggling to climb up Keith's leg throughout. Keith soon left the room and locked the door behind him; with Keith gone, Robbie lay on the floor in front of the bed and sighed contentedly as his nap commenced.

Keith ran out of the lift, but soon stopped dead in his tracks when he saw someone familiar to him speaking to another familiar face; Naomi stood in front of the reception desk, a few feet away from a patron checking out of the hotel, talking with Troy. However, Troy almost immediately spotted Keith through the corner of his vision and saw red.

"You?! What are you doing here?!"

"He's a guest at the hotel," Naomi explained. "What's the matter? Do you know each other?" she asked curiously as Keith slowly approached her.

"Kind of..."

"Kind of?! You landed Alexa in hospital!" Troy yelled angrily. Naomi was surprised, but not in a nice way.

"Keith, is that true?!"

"Yes, but it was an accident! I tripped over his Watchog!" Keith exclaimed defensively. "I dunno what Alexa was doing, but I crashed into her afterwards! I-I didn't mean to hurt her! ...i-is she all right?"

"Oh, now you care about her!" Troy groaned sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Where was that when you killed her self-esteem!?"

"Bui..!" Reese suddenly shivered, small traces of static electricity crackling around his body. The static hadn't escaped Keith's notice.

"I gotta go!" he yelled quickly as he raced out of the hotel. Naomi watched in confusion, but Troy immediately raised his left arm, still seething with repressed anger as he searched his Xtransceiver's contact list.

"I think his egg hatched into the Pichu in his arms," Naomi observed.

"I don't care if that egg hatched into a golden Vulpix," Troy grumbled as he began to contact another Xtransceiver.

Alexa's Xtransceiver began to play a calming jazz melody as she, Hayden, Lily and Keenan arrived in Castelia City. Everyone stopped and drew their attention to Alexa's ringing Xtransceiver as she raised her right arm.

"It's Troy!"

"I hope everything's all right," Lily said worriedly as Alexa accepted the incoming call. Troy's face appeared on the screen in place of the call notification and the jazz tune ended abruptly.

"Troy, what's wrong?" Alexa asked, noticing how completely disgruntled he looked.

"Sorry to be the one to tell you this, but we just saw Keith," Troy said grumpily.

"What?!" Alexa practically screamed in horror. Hayden sighed as he slapped his hand over his eyes in disbelief, Keenan instantly folded his arms in disgust and Lily merely grew more concerned.

"I told him to wait..." Hayden grumbled to himself.

"What's he doing here?!" Alexa cried.

"Hell if I know," Troy replied simply. "He bolted out of here before he could say anything about it."

"Where's here, Troy?" Lily asked calmly.

"Driftveil Star Hotel," Troy replied, Naomi's face creeping nervously on the screen just over Troy's shoulder.

"Troy said something about the hospital; are you feeling all right, Alexa?" Naomi asked with concern.

"Physically speaking, I'm feeling better. Thanks for asking," Alexa said nicely. "But I guess Keith got bored of waiting for my return..."

"I wouldn't put it past him."

"Say, Troy, did you see an egg when you saw Keith? A yellow and black one?" Lily asked curiously.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Hayden questioned as he finally lowered his hand from his face.

"It might have hatched by now," Lily replied kindly.

"I ask again; what does that have to do with anything?" Hayden asked in frustration.

"I didn't see an egg; just a giddy Pichu and a paralysed Buizel," Troy replied casually.

"I thought it was a Pichu egg," Lily said optimistically.

"That doesn't matter right now!" Hayden complained. "Troy, do you know where be "bolted off" to?"

"Probably to the city's Pokémon Centre; like I said, his Buizel's paralysed. Probably from startling the Pichu," Troy huffed. "Why, are you worried he'll start stalking you?"

"This isn't funny, Troy!" Alexa exclaimed.

"If he's smart, he'll avoid Dad at the very least," Keenan said nastily. Alexa glanced at her infuriated brother briefly before facing Troy on her Xtransceiver.

"Well, uh...um..." Alexa had no words for the news she'd just heard.

"Thanks for the warning, Troy; I'll keep an eye out while I'm taking Alexa to the hospital tomorrow," Hayden said appreciatively.

"No problem, Uncle Hayden. Have a good day," Troy smiled as he ceased the communication between his Xtransceiver and Alexa's. Alexa hung up the call and sighed, burying her face in both of her hands, worrying Hayden and Lily.

"This is all I need; my relationship problems clashing with familial troubles! Urgh...! Why did Keith have to be here now..?!"

"It's going to be all right, Alexa, we can get around this," Hayden said sweetly as he gently took hold of Alexa's hands. "Try not to worry about it."

"I don't think that's possible anymore," Alexa replied shakily as she felt her arms being softly pulled away from her face.

"Let's just get back to the hotel for now, sweetheart; you can sit down and maybe get some rest before your appointment tomorrow," Lily said lovingly. Alexa heaved a big sigh and nodded compliantly as she walked alongside her parents towards their hotel. Keenan walked next to Lily and looked conflicted; he was utterly resentful after hearing Keith defying Hayden's simple request, yet he didn't feel right bearing such resentment, as he was Keith's friend little over a month ago. He wasn't sure what he should be feeling.

Keith stood in front of the mahogany desk in the Pokémon Centre, where a red-haired nurse was waiting to return Reese and Pichu, both fully healed and energised, to him. The Pokémon Centre lobby was extremely quiet; most of the centre's visitors were either in the nearby indoor Poké Mart or in a different area of the centre, such as the canteen or dormitories. Keith appreciated how quiet the lobby was as he held the now placid Pichu in his arms.

"Newborn Pichus can be a handful," the nurse began with a small giggle. "They can't store much electricity yet and shock themselves when they discharge it."

"Yeah, no kidding," Keith laughed nervously.

"Well, just try to be more careful with her from now on, okay? She's extremely timid," the nurse cautioned. "But if your Buizel gets paralysed again, you can give him a Cheri Berry or a Lum Berry to cure it if you can't get to a Pokémon Centre."

"I'll remember that; thanks, Nurse," Keith said gratefully.

"You're welcome," the nurse smiled sweetly. "You have a nice day now," she added as she headed for an office just behind the front desk. Keith allowed Reese to climb onto his shoulder before he started making his way out of the Pokémon Centre, only to nearly bump into Troy; when he met Keith's anxious gaze, Troy saw red once again.

"I thought you'd have left by now," Troy said, trying to contain his anger. "The Centre, I mean, but I kinda wish you left Unova too." Keith looked at Troy nervously, but he also felt a different emotion as he looked into his adversary's emerald eyes.

"I only just arrived this morning!" Keith said firmly. "Let me explain; I was-"

"I don't care, mate. What I do care about, though, is Alexa," Troy said abruptly. Keith glared at him.

"So why aren't you with her now?" he asked interrogatively.

"I'm not going to go out of my way to be in her presence 24 hours a day! She'll call me when and if she needs me or just wants to hang out," Troy explained, as calmly as he could. "Besides, it's best if she stays with her family for now; y'know, in light of a certain spiky-haired Bouffalant having rammed his afro on her forehead earlier this week."

"That was an accident!" Keith yelled defensively, putting Pichu down on the ground. Pichu immediately hid behind Keith's trouser leg. "I didn't mean to hurt her! That's why I'm here; I want to make things right!"

"Are you sure you're not here to make things worse?" Troy asked rudely. "You were told to wait for her recovery, right? So, why are you here when we don't know if Alexa's recovered or not?"

"Because I'm on leave of absence; I had the opportunity to get a head-start in trying to solve my problems with Alexa! But I can see she's already moved on, so what's even the point?"

"What?" Troy looked at Keith quizzically. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Oh, don't put ketchup on my ice cream and tell me it's strawberry syrup! I'm talking about you!" Keith shouted accusingly.

"You've lost me. What is it you think I've done?"

"I don't know, but you must have done something to win Alexa's heart!" Keith replied, envy written all over his face.

"Eh?"

"You're her new boyfriend, aren't you?!" Keith shouted furiously.

"Wow...that shows how much you trust Alexa," Troy said, laughing nervously.

"Just tell me!" Keith insisted angrily. "Am I right or wrong?!"

"All right, I will; you're completely wrong, pal! I'm Alexa's eldest cousin!" Keith's eyes widened with shock at the revelation.

"Her cousin?!"

"Yeah, my Dad is her Dad's older brother," Troy explained calmly.

"...I didn't know Hayden had a brother," Keith said quietly.

"I don't suppose you asked who the tall guy standing next to him at the hospital was, did you?" Troy asked teasingly.

"That was your Dad?"

"Yep," Troy nodded. Keith sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"I-I'm...I'm sorry...I wasn't thinking..."

"I could tell. What are you doing here prematurely anyway?" Troy asked curiously.

"I didn't know I was premature; I took a Sea Bus from Almia, which took three days to get here," Keith explained. "Like I said, I was given a leave of absence and I took the opportunity to make my way to Unova in hopes of arriving before Alexa left."

"Why didn't you just try calling her? Or wasn't she picking up?" Troy asked.

"I can't get through to her cell and I don't have her email address," Keith sighed. "Look, I'm sorry if my being here isn't making anything better, but I need to sort things out with Alexa."

"I agree; all this bad blood between you is really bugging her," Troy said, starting to pity Keith. "But if you want my opinion, now isn't a good time to talk to her about it, especially since I ratted you out to her." Keith sighed quietly.

"Can't say I blame you; you're just looking out for her."

"Hey, we Thorndykes are a close family; we look out for one another. Besides, I was mad at you when I spilled the beans."

"Still don't blame you. So...do you know where Alexa is right now?"

"I'm not answering that; we've all had a rough day, which has been really hard on my Dad, Hayden and Hailey in particular, so it's a bad idea to waltz in and try making amends this soon."

"Hang on, who's Hailey? I heard that name from Alexa's Grandpa, but..."

"Oh, Hailey is Hayden's little sister," Troy explained. "She was in the Nimbasa Contest this morning and-"

"You mean Hailey Hawkstone?" Keith asked suddenly.

"Oh, you saw that? Good, I don't have to explain it. Look, if you must speak to Alexa, at least wait until tomorrow; everyone will have slept some of their worries away and Hayden will be in a better mood. Probably."

"Probably?" Keith asked cautiously.

"Depending on what the doctor says about Alexa tomorrow," Troy replied quickly.

"...why are you doing this? A few minutes ago, you were ready to squeeze my jugular," Keith said in bemusement.

"Because I've seen how this bad blood is distressing Alexa and I, personally, want to see her happy again. Hayden does as well, but, just to warn you, he's put Alexa above you."

"She's his daughter; of course he would," Keith said timidly. "I-I should get going; I left my Sawsbuck alone in my hotel room."

"Don't worry, my Mum allows Pokémon to be alone in hotel rooms," Troy smiled.

"What?"

"Since she knew your name, I assume you met her? The lady I was talking to? She's my mother," Troy explained.

"Oh, right," Keith smiled nervously. "Geez, I know who your Mom is, but I don't even know your name."

"It's Troy," Troy said politely. The two boys smiled at one another, but Keith soon bent down to pick Pichu up back in his arms.

"Keith," he said quickly as he stood up properly. "Now I really should be going."

"Okay, bye," Troy said quickly.

"See ya," Keith replied promptly. Troy watched Keith exiting the Pokémon Centre before walking over to the front desk and striking a conversation with the same red-haired nurse who helped Keith.

Hayden was the first to enter the hotel room and immediately sat down on the sofa, sighing as he sat. Lily sat next to him while Alexa closed the door behind her and Keenan, who began to wander aimlessly around the room. Iara followed his every step in confusion and worry.

"We've only just crept into the afternoon and it's already been a bad day," Hayden moaned as he ran his hand through his hair.

"We can get through it, like you said," Lily said positively.

"I'm not disputing what I said outside; I was making an observation," Hayden said as he started to watch Keenan's pacing. "If you keep doing that, you'll wear a hole in the floor."

"Sorry, I'm just conflicted," Keenan sighed as he finally stopped pacing. As she wasn't looking where she was going, Iara bumped her head on Keenan's calf.

"About what, sweetie?" Lily asked.

"He doesn't like Keith being here despite what Dad told him, but he can't quite bring himself to resent Keith," Alexa explained. "Ryder had a similar conflict."

"It's just...we were friends not that long ago; I don't know what to feel about any of this, it's so confusing," Keenan moaned.

"I know the feeling; I want to like him, but I really don't like what he's done," Hayden said empathetically. "It's hard to not hate a person when you hate what they've done..." Keenan nodded in agreement.

"It'll be okay in the end," Alexa said with wavering optimism. "You'll figure out how you feel about the whole thing eventually; just let it sink in first, we've only heard about the problem ten minutes ago."

"Yeah, you're right," Keenan sighed. "I just wish he hadn't said whatever it was that really hurt your feelings..." Alexa felt anxious; she wished she had a little more confidence to fully explain what happened between her and Keith that drove a wedge in their relationship.

"So...what's going to happen now, Hayden?" Lily asked with mild apprehension.

"For starters, I'll be taking Alexa to the hospital tomorrow morning," Hayden began, feeling calmer than previously. "I'll need to arrange my meeting with Gulliver, since we're yet to establish a time and place, but helping Hailey cope with what happened today is far more important than that in my opinion."

"I thought your meeting with Gulliver was sometime next week?" Lily questioned.

"It is, but, like I said, we have no time or place yet," Hayden said sheepishly.

"What about Keith?" Keenan asked worriedly.

"That's for me to deal with; he's my problem, after all, and I'm why he's here in Unova," Alexa said firmly. "He's my problem, you don't need to worry about him."

"I concur," Hayden agreed. "But I'll be there if you need anything."

"But you'll be busy with Aunt Hailey," Alexa said shyly. "I can handle Keith after half a dozen servings of hot cocoa."

"Even so, I want you to know that you have my full support," Hayden smiled lovingly. "That's not going to change anytime soon."

"You have my full support as well, honey," Lily said tenderly. "I know this rift between you and Keith is for the two of you to fix, but try not to feel isolated; you're not alone in this."

"You've always had my support, Alex!" Keenan said merrily. Iara nodded in wholehearted corroboration. Alexa smiled happily as she looked around at her supporting family.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it. But...I'm still going to have at least one cocoa before I speak to him," she said with a laugh.

Robbie yawned as he awoke mere seconds before the hotel room door opened quietly as Keith made his way inside with Pichu and Reese. Reese jumped off of Keith's shoulder and approached the sleepy Sawsbuck as Keith closed the door behind him. Robbie looked up at Keith almost expectantly.

"Reese and Pichu are fine," Keith said gladly as he gently set Pichu down on the bed. He watched as Pichu looked curiously and shyly around her surroundings and walked slowly on the bed on all fours, her ears twitching occasionally. Robbie raised his head to watch the baby Pichu on the duvet; Reese watched from atop of Robbie's head, and the Buizel couldn't stop smiling at the Tiny Mouse Pokémon, despite her leaving him paralysed a small while ago. Keith looked between all three of his Pokémon, causing Reese to look in his direction.

"Bui?"

"I think Pichu needs a nickname," Keith said quietly.

"Bui-bui!" Reese said joyfully.

"But what, though...? Alexa helped me with Robbie's and Reese chose his own," Keith muttered to himself. "...she's a girl...so...girl's names, girl's names..." Pichu walked up to Keith and looked up at him in confusion.

"Sawsbuck?" Robbie asked curiously.

"I don't know what to name her," Keith sighed. "Alexa's help would be good right about now..."

"Pi?" Pichu blinked in bewilderment.

"Saws, Sawsbuck?" Keith began to think deeply until he was struck with an idea; he looked slightly sad at the idea, whatever it was.

"There's only one name I can think of," he said joylessly.

"Bui-bui?" Reese asked eagerly.

"...Ava." Pichu's ears twitched as she smiled happily.

"Pi! Pichu, Pichu!" Keith looked down at Pichu in confusion, only to see her smiling with utter delight.

"You like that name?"

"Pichu, Pichu!" Pichu jumped up and down with glee before leaping towards him. Though caught off guard, Keith held the hugging Pichu in his arms. "Pichu!" Keith chuckled shyly.

"I guess that's that then. Glad to have you with us...Ava."

To be continued...