Finally! A chapter after three months!
Chapter 50, too. Sweet! Who knows if Part One will hit 100 chapters.

But anyhow, I've been busy, most definitely because of school and life and the rest I need in between. My updating will probably stick to being erratic.

Chapter 50
A Little Reassurance

"Really! So you've met up with Marina?" Jackson was saying that morning, his voice clearly sounding from Kenta's PokéGear.

"Yeah... She's right here," Kenta answered. He cast a glance at the sleeping blue-haired girl, who snuggled deeply in her layers of sheets and blankets.

By the time he had roused from his slumber, it was morning and power had been restored to the building. When Nurse Joy came by, she informed him on what had happened the night before. Though he wanted to wake Marina, the strict nurse would still have nothing of that. Begrudgingly, he obeyed her orders. He took to watching after her as he had done before, occasionally checking her temperature to make sure she was fine. He spent some caring for his Pokémon and looking out the frosty window before he decided to give his good friend a call.

"You're quiet today, aren't you?"

"Huh?"

"Hey, I'm talking to Marina, not you!" Jackson exclaimed.

Kenta quietly laughed and shook his head at his friend's typical behavior. "Jackson, she's sleeping right now."

"Argh…! You could've told me that earlier!"

"Sure, sure."

"Whatever. Man, she used to wake up so early. Nowadays her sleeping schedule's been way off. She even sleeps in 'till noon sometimes. Noon!"

"But she's sick," Kenta reasoned.

"It was before that, though. Around the beginning of November, I think. That's when I first noticed."

"...I see."

Early November, huh… And she's also having nightmares.

The previous evening, he did notice that Marina seemed uncomfortable at times—a side effect of both her cold and her bad dreams. He speculated whether or not it had any correlation to what had happened on Halloween over a month ago. Currently, however, her face was serene and not the least bit disturbed. Her condition had greatly improved in the past twenty-four hours; she no longer had a fever.

"Huh... You haven't talked to her, have you?"

"No, not yet," replied Kenta. "I haven't seen her awake."

"Then that's good...Ahh! Yet bad! I haven't asked her what she wants for Christmas yet!"

"Christmas?"

"Yeah, it's coming around the corner, you know," Jackson said, matter-of-factly. "The gift I have in mind will take a while to put together, so it's best to start early and make sure she doesn't want anything else first!"

"But December 9th isn't as early as you usually start talking about it." Which was true; Kenta knew from experience that his friend would always come up with long-term plans for the most ridiculous gift. Most times they fell apart, much to Kenta's amusement and Jackson's chagrin.

"At least I don't wait at the last second, unlike a certain rival of mine!"

"I'mnotyourrival."

"What was that?"

"Nothing." Kenta sighed, almost in a groan.

"…This is gonna be the first Christmas since the three of us became Trainers, isn't it?"

"I suppose so."

"You know what that means? We won't be able to go to Marina's house for the usual Christmas party! Oh, I'm going to miss Mrs. Shimizu's special Christmas cookies," Jackson said in disappointment and nostalgic yearning.

"Yeah, you're right. Do you think we should plan a get together for the three of us?" Kenta took another quick glance at Marina.

"Hm, maybe. We should ask Marina about it when she wakes up. Hey, remember the time we tried to get some mistletoe by ourselves?" asked his friend with slight excitement.

"I definitely remember. ...I can't believe Marina could jump off a tree and land so perfectly like that."

"Hehehe, neither can I. Marina's the most elegant girl I know, I'll tell you that!

So, what are you going to do for Marina's Christmas gift...?"

Marina's drowsy eyes opened. The modest light fluttered through the window of her room, the luminosity nearly blinding her at first. Yawning, she burrowed further into the covers, savoring the warmth they provided. She smiled as she rested this way; her sleepy mind nearly lulling her back to sleep.

...Wait a minute...

Her eyes snapped back open as she sat up, almost throwing the blankets off her.

"Kenta?!"

She desperately turned to her left, searching the room. A collapsible chair lay unused in the corner, and her belongings rested on the night stand beside her undisturbed. Most importantly, she was alone. Marina's jittery heart pounded despite the anticipation she had conjured. The girl sighed, gently covering her chest with her hands.

Last night...did that really happen? Or was that just a dream too? Her thoughts wandered as she glanced around once more. The very idea deepened the frown on her face, and she ran her fingers through her pigtails before reaching for her PokéGear.

Tuesday... She stared at the device, tilting her head in thought. I guess...wouldn't that mean...December 9th?

Marina slipped out of her covers and jumped to the floor. Though she froze at the paralyzing cold of the tile floor, she reached into her backpack and changed out of her PJ's into her usual outfit—choosing her warmer blue shirt and jacket to wear. She took a deep breath when she was done, relieved to be able to do so without any soreness or congestion.

"I stayed here for way too long," she said while she fixed the bed. She snatched her bandana and tied it on her head before properly putting on the rest of her things. As always, she looked down at her belt, counting all six of her Poké Balls.

Just as Marina turned to leave, she paused at the door. She looked over her shoulder at the little medical room, at the white bed, at the unused chair. Almost regrettably, she stepped into the hallway.

The girl then walked at an even pace, passing by people that chatted beside the rooms. She blinked with curiosity as she accidentally eavesdropped on some of the conversations.

"I swear a blackout better not happen again."

"Not to worry, the storm's passed now. We should be fine."

"But I heard some Pokémon cut the wires."

"A Pokémon? Maybe a Rattata or Raticate?"

"No idea..."

So the power really did go out last night? Marina thought, slowing her gait. The soft glow of a candle flickered in her memories, but she continued onward.

Once she reached the main lobby, she found it was more packed since the last time she was there. A dense, talkative crowd lined the walls and the front desk. It took her a few seconds to figure out where the front door was, scanning the individual faces of the people there as she reached the exit. When the automatic doors opened, a terribly freezing breath of air nipped at her ears and face. Marina instantly shivered, but nonetheless advanced outside.

"Brr!" She hid her hands in her jacket sleeves as she made haste through the crunching frozen sand. "No wonder everyone's inside."

The ocean waters were soon before her, and she gazed at the pure white sky that eventually darkened into the horizon. Marina sighed; watching traces of her breath vanish into the wind. She stood her ground for the next minute, braving the breeze that now tempted her fading illness.

Nodding in self-encouragement, she grasped Kenya's Poké Ball and released the large bird Pokémon in front of her.

Kenya shivered at the wintry atmosphere the moment he appeared. He turned to her with a serious look that hinted a sliver of uncertainty. The girl, however, checked her PokéGear and let go of it before returning her attention to him.

"I know it's cold out, but we need to get to Olivine City," Marina told him. She moved to stroke his head a few times. "Think you can fly me there?"

Spreading his wings at once, the Fearow cawed, shifted a little, and bowed low. With a smile, the blue-haired Trainer carefully climbed onto his back. Looking at the Pokémon's brown feathers, Marina lightly gripped them.

"Um, are you okay?"

"Oni," Kenya cooed readily.

"Alright. If you get too tired before we get there, I'll send out Lapras and surf the rest of the way. So..."

She paused, frowned, and glanced over her shoulder. The seaside city was ghostly quiet, with only a few people walking in the distance. Creating a determined smile, she looked ahead at the white sky.

"Let's go, Kenya! It's time to save that Ampharos!"

The Fearow's broad wings extended and raised ever further, enveloping Marina for but a moment before Kenya threw his wings down. After a few labored beats, he and his Trainer took to the sky, much to the girl's surprise. She moved to lock one of her arms around his neck, the other grasping her bandana, and she barely had the time to catch her breath as the wind zipped past her.

Her eyes that now burned from the chilling breeze, Marina squinted and looked back one last time. Cianwood City soon trailed far behind, the choppy waters and the occasional Whirl Island following suit as she and Kenya soared over sea Route 41.

The rain seemed to echo on the bay windows of Glitter Lighthouse's cozy top floor. Its resonance had a soothing effect; Jasmine came to realize this once she found herself nodding off. Yet she had little time to relax before rapid footsteps reached her ears.

"Jasmine!"

She watched as a sailor appeared from the stairs on the other side of the room, and fixed her posture. Fighting her sleepiness, she managed to ask, "W-What is it?"

"Great news!" exclaimed the bulky seaman, "The Trainer you sent off to get medicine has arrived!"

"What...?" Jasmine jolted with a start, glancing at her PokéGear on the bed. "Really? Where is she?"

"She's waiting to see if you were here."

"Th-Then, please, tell her to come up..."

"Will do!" The man then turned on a dime and disappeared down the stairs. The brown-haired lady waited, giving a tense and hopeful glance at her ill Ampharos, which eyed her weakly.

Another round of steps sounded, and instantly Jasmine stood and turned back to the staircase. She gasped when the figure of the young Pokémon Trainer came into view. The girl, though smiling at the sight of the Gym Leader, looked as if someone had dumped a bucket of water over her head; needless to say, she was soaked through.

"Hi, Jasmine!" greeted Marina. Taking her backpack off, she rummaged through the one of the small pockets of her bag and approached. She then put down the slightly sodden bag and then held a small brown pouch out the Gym Leader.

Jasmine, taken aback, stared at her rather than the item offered. "You're...You're soaking wet... Did you just get here?"

Marina nodded, still smiling, yet she didn't speak; she was panting from her scaling the lighthouse. This made the young woman frown a little, worried even as the girl caught her breath again and replied a simple, "I did."

"I haven't gotten a call from you in days, so..." Jasmine's green eyes descended a little, and she made a little smile. "I'm glad to see that you won against the Cianwood Gym Leader after all..."

"Huh?" Marina blinked, looking down at her jacket once Jasmine turned to fetch the girl a towel. There were certainly four badges on one side of Marina's collar, as there should have been, but on her left side was a new little pin in the shape of a fist. Her expression went blank upon seeing this new Gym Badge.

Where'd this come from?

But before she could ponder it further, a fuzzy white towel came into her view. Marina snapped to attention and thankfully accepted it, while Jasmine received the brown bag in exchange.

"I know you were sick...B-But why did you come in this storm?" The Gym Leader questioned, hinting her concern mixed with slight confusion.

"I didn't really think it through; the weather was fine in Cianwood, so I never expected it to be pouring here," Marina laughed, gently holding a bit of her bandana between her lips as she was careful to dry her hair and bangs.

"But..."

One of Marina's eyes peeked out from the towel the covered her, and she lightly grabbed the bandana in her free hand.

"Well, a cold is a cold, so I can get over it," she said. "But your Pokémon has something more serious; I'd rather get sick again and help it than stay across the sea, knowing that it's suffering."

Jasmine, taking note of the response, turned to the Ampharos resting uneasily in its bed. Then, realizing she was holding the pouch Marina had given her, she returned her gaze to the blue-haired Trainer. "Is this the medicine that will cure Amphy?"

Smiling, Marina nodded and fixed her hair as usual. "It certainly is. The guy in the Cianwood Pharmacy gave it to me. He said it's strong, but it should work."

Oh, that's right. She nearly twitched at the sudden realization. I said I'd go back to the Pharmacy before I left Cianwood. And now that I apparently have the Cianwood Gym Badge, then I don't need to go back to Cianwood City anymore… Oops. Guess I won't be able to see that cool guy again.

She sighed thoughtfully. Oh well. I had more important things on my mind, anyway. Still, how on earth did I get this new badge? Did I win it and just forgot because I was so sick? I don't know. Then there's Maya, the girl from the dreams I've been having…

Meanwhile, a spark of hope rekindled in Jasmine's eyes and she headed for Amphy's side. Marina belatedly followed with the towel in hand. Jasmine untied the string and took one of the large orange pills; she cast an uncertain sideways glance at her.

"...Um, please don't be offended...Amphy will not take anything from anyone but me..."

Surprised, Marina tilted her head and raised her eyebrows. "That's fine, I don't mind. Why would I?"

For a few seconds, Jasmine froze. She made a meek shrug. "I don't know...I felt I had to say it, just in case...?"

She awkwardly turned her attention to Amphy. With utmost care, Jasmine lifted its head and slipped the medicine into its mouth. She then set Amphy down, placing the pouch beside it. It munched and swallowed the pill with its tired eyes watching the two girls. A static pause passed, but the Pokémon's condition seemed to remain the same.

"I guess it won't work instantly," Marina said.

Giving her a solemn, yet still hopeful, nod, Jasmine turned to her. "I'll call you if Amphy gets better."

The girl Trainer stared back with a frown. Her eyes, however, suddenly went wide in surprise, and she pointed toward the bed. "Wait...!"

Jasmine immediately whirled back to her sick Ampharos in alarm, but too gasped in shock. Amphy trembled and breathed deeply as it rose to its hind legs, clumsily sitting as it did so. Open-mouthed, Jasmine scooted closer to her Pokémon with her hands hovering over it.

"Amphy, how are you feeling? Don't force yourself..."

Amphy, turning its head in a sluggish manner, managed a weak grin. As the ruby jewel on its head flickered brightly, it chirped in a positive tone. Energy seemed to flow back into it as the seconds passed, and it nuzzled the woman affectionately.

"Oh, I'm so relieved," Jasmine sighed. Hugging her Pokémon in a light embrace, she turned her head toward Marina, who smiled at them both. "Thank you so very, very much!"

"You're welcome," replied Marina cheerfully. "Amphy's already looking better; I'm glad too!"

"Yes..." Then, pulling away from Amphy, Jasmine announced, "I will return to the Gym soon."

"Okay! I'm looking forward to it. I've got to go now; there are a few things I have to do right now." The blue-haired girl put down the towel on the chair next to her and grasped her pink backpack. She glanced down at her jacket for a moment, but quickly returned the Gym Leader's gaze. "Like go to the Pokémon Center and get dried off."

Jasmine nodded warmly in response. "Have a safe trip, then...Thank you again."

As soon as Marina had settled into a room in the Olivine City Pokémon Center, she swept through the lobby that had been adorned with a new evergreen Christmas tree. She sent a quick smile at the decoration before sitting at one of the vacant video-phones. Picking up the receiver, the girl paused and turned to the nurse at the main desk.

"Um, Nurse Joy?" she called.

The young woman was at her side moments later, clipboard held in her arm. "Yes, what is it?"

"How do you call the Pokémon Center in Cianwood City?"

"Cianwood City?" Nurse Joy looked at her with a rather curious expression. "Did you leave something there?"

"Well..." Marina giggled. "I guess you can put it that way."

"That's fine; here, I'll do it for you," she kindly offered, typing in the numbers on the keypad.

Upon hearing the ringing tone on the receiver, the girl smiled and nodded. "Thank you!"

"Not a problem!" At that soft reply, the pink-haired nurse strolled back to her desk.

She's really nice, Marina thought with a harmless amusement, The Nurse Joy at Cianwood is a little bossy.

Her eyes gazed around at the fancy garland and other such vivid decorations of the lobby, keeping the ringing receiver held to her ear. She then looked down at her jacket—at the Cianwood Badge clipped to the collar. She grew somber as she stared in the sudden silence that followed.

I swear I don't remember ever getting this badge, she inwardly claimed, as she had repeated for the past fifteen minutes whenever her mind wandered to the mysterious Gym Badge. I trained at the Gym, that's all... I know I didn't battle the Leader. I'm sure of it.

"It's you!"

"Ah!" Yanked out of her thoughts, Marina jumped at the exclamation that hollered in her ear. Gripping the receiver tightly, she stared back at the screen. The familiar face of Nurse Joy glowered at her like a mother would to a misbehaving child.

"Where have you been, young lady?"

Marina glanced through the lobby at Olivine's Nurse Joy, who appeared quite angelic in the brightly lit room. Smiling in spite of herself, she turned back to the video-phone.

"Sorry I left without telling you," she apologized, "I couldn't afford to wait so I went back to Olivine City. But I made it safe and sound!"

This didn't deter the upset nurse, who chided, "Safe and sound? Your hair is soaked through! A child like you can't go running around in the winter rain. You could catch pneumonia!"

"I know, I know, but I couldn't wait, Nurse Joy! I had to deliver the medicine to the sick Pokémon in the Olivine Lighthouse! Its condition was so horrible when I left, so..."

Nurse Joy's anger seemed to deflate, and she sighed loudly. She looked the girl straight in the eye. "Did you at least give the sick Pokémon the medicine yet?"

"Definitely!" Marina nodded. "First thing I did, and it works. The Pokémon should be fine now, I hope."

"Huh, that's a relief at least...But..."

"But?" Marina tilted her head.

"You not only left without telling me, but without telling that poor boy."

Her heart nearly skipped a beat. "Who?"

Nurse Joy's brow furrowed as she asked, "You don't remember? Your friend came to visit you yesterday. Though I suppose the only time you saw him was in the middle of the night when you woke up at that time..."

Marina stared at her lap for a few moments, but looked back up. Inquiries slipped out of her mouth before she could stop herself. "Where did he go? Do you have any idea where he went? Did he leave before I did? Is he—?"

"Shush, I can't answer so many questions at once!" Joy sighed again, fixing her slightly frayed bangs. "He left in the morning sometime before you, saying he'll be back in a while. I think he went to the Cianwood Gym...said something about going there again, maybe for training?

"And another boy came by too last night, the one from the phar..."

The lady's words toned out of the girl's head as her eyes slowly shifted downward. Her free hand tenderly touched the soft, lustrous surface of the badge.

"...Thanks."

"What was that?"

"Tell Kenta," Marina made a small smile as she looked back up, "That I say thank you, that I'm sorry I left...and Merry Christmas if we don't see each other by then."

"A...Alright. I'll tell him that," said Nurse Joy with a soft nod. A voice called her name in the background, and she turned her head. "Just a moment!"

"I guess you're still busy. Want to hang up now?"

"Yes. Thank you for calling."

"Mm-hm!" But Marina mentally prepared herself as she noticed Joy's face again made another one of those "scolding mother" impressions.

"Don't be so reckless next time, young lady. That nice boy was worried about you, and lord forbid what happens if you do catch pneumonia."

"Uh, y-yeah. Don't worry, I'll try not to!"

"Better not," the nurse then managed a smile, "Goodbye, Marina."

"Bye, Nurse Joy!"

Marina hung up the phone receiver. She listened to the footsteps and the light conversations of people, the soft holiday music, and the sound of the water fountain. When she relaxed her shoulders, the girl hung her head and looked down once again. Her left hand gently clenched her jacket's collar.

So it was you who gave me the badge, Kenta.

An honest smile formed on her face. That smile grew even as a few relieved tears dripped onto her lap. She giggled a little.

"Thank goodness..."

Squee~. It's almost sappy.

Oh. And...

Marina's Pokémon:
King the Quilava
Prince the Espeon
Kenya the Fearow
Amber the Plusle
Muu-chan the Misdreavus
Lapras

In PC/Prof. Elm's Lab:
Phany the Donphan

Never did get that Manaphy, by the way. I should've looked more into it, but it was too late when I heard some of your warnings in the reviews. 'XD

Until we meet again, dear readers, where a hidden train whistle blares in the night...