Hello :P It is Wednesday and I am back with a new chapter. This was one of the stories that I wrote at the beginning of the year. I always intended to go much more into the character of Jaxon Morgan, Jessie and James' youngest son together. The same with JJ. But Eli ended up coming to fruition and that story longs to be told as well! Even though Jaxon is one of my lesser written about characters, he's also quite developed in my mind. This chapter takes place during Justin's known struggles following the break up with his ex-girlfriend. And it goes into something quite nasty that happens to him. But this focuses more on Jazmyn and Jaxon - and the latter in particular. Although he's one of the more brash characters/Morgan children, his heart is in the right place. And you can see that here. I hope you enjoy :3
Jazmyn: 18
Jaxon: 14
Disclaimer: I own the story and the OCs mentioned!
(Also a bit of a heads up. Although Justin isn't actually in this chapter, his struggles being discussed in the chapter are to do with his sexuality/being outed. So if that's upsetting for you then perhaps give this a miss!)
All I had done was pay a visit to the Morgan Mansion to pick up one of the Ketchum children's toys that had been left there but I ended up getting rather caught in the middle of something. As I trotted back along the hallway with Rey's little woodland creature between my teeth and a bit of an absent-minded skip in my step, I spotted something that piqued my curiosity almost as soon as I clapped my eyes on it.
The deep purple haired teenage girl was obviously trying to get her youngest brother to drop the thing that he was insisting on but to no avail. But still, she tried. Jazmyn shook her head and let out an exhalation of breath, turning and trying to go back into her bedroom but she was stopped all over. She was stopped all over by her youngest brother. Jaxon outstretched his arm and put his hand flat out on the wooden of her door so she could not get through.
He continued staring at her. He continued fixing his insistent gaze on her, trying to get through to her. He tilted his head on one side, a stubborn sort of pout taking over his lips to contrast his intense look.
"C'mon Jaz, I know you really want to tell me." He tried all over again and it was obvious from the way that the older teenager tilted her own head that she could feel the magenta haired boy's eyes fixed right on her and she was trying to avoid his stare. She shook her head, not saying anything as she intended to halt until Jaxon relented. Instead he paused before adding. "What's happened?"
I listened from lingering in the hallway. Despite the fact that Jaxon was obviously not dropping the subject that Jazmyn wholeheartedly wanted dropped, his tone did soften with the words that escaped his lips. And even from just observing and at that point not having a single clue as to what was going on, I gathered that it was this relaxation in tone of voice that caused the deep purple haired teenage girl to be the one to relent.
Jazmyn lightly nudged her wrist against where Jaxon's arm was barring her from her own room to make a point before she sighed loudly, turning seriously towards her youngest brother. It was obvious that she didn't want to tell him. It was obvious that she really didn't want to tell him at all. But it was also obvious that something had happened – though she had tried to tell him that he was imagining things moments before I had arrived to the scene.
The deep purple haired teenage girl looked down at Jaxon with an expression that contained her reluctance to tell her youngest brother as well as protectiveness and hope that he was going to be mature about it. She tried to convey all of this by reaching out and touching him on one of the shoulders too. I got the impression that the fourteen year old boy wasn't going to be that evolved to understand all of that in the wordless message.
"I'm not going to tell you what exactly has happened because I know that he definitely doesn't want all the more people to know. And I'm only telling you because I trust that you won't get involved." The deep purple haired female began and immediately, the magenta haired teenage boy rolled his eyes. In addition to this, he shrugged her hand off his shoulder even though he was beginning to get what he wanted. It was Jazmyn's turn to pause. In the split second she didn't say or do anything, she contemplated whether she was making the right decision or not. But before she could take another second to consider it, she blurted out in a level-headed way. "Someone has done something not very kind to Justin. And understandably he's very upset about it. But he doesn't want to talk to me about it any longer. So he definitely wouldn't like to find out that you now know as well."
Jazmyn explained and concluded and with that, as Jaxon's arm had finally slipped away from barricading across her own bedroom door, with a very silent sigh, she tried to head back to her space once and for all. Ignoring the lump of worry that engulfed my throat and then slipped to my stomach at the same second while trying to keep Rey's woodland creature in between my teeth, I tried not to get too consumed by all the possibilities of the things that had happened to Justin. I tried not to be encouraged into a frenzy of worry of who had hurt Justin.
Following dodging all of those thoughts and in the middle of observing Jaxon's frown and expressions as he absorbed this information also, I couldn't help but ponder a little harder on Jazmyn's words of all things. She trusted her little brother not to get involved. She trusted her little brother not to get involved because he usually was so indifferent to his eldest brothers happenings.
But that time was different. Just from observing the way that he absorbed this information – and seeing how his pupils dilated and he tried very hard in not letting his chin jut out as he processed it all – I knew that even Jaxon had sensed something too. It wasn't like the usual times when Justin retreated to his room with a soft slam and a hollow silence followed those already quiet actions and his even quieter demeanour. The magenta haired male almost wondered if there was more of a secret chaos behind his eldest brother's shut door.
So because of this – he found himself persisting all over again – in spite of the fact that Jazmyn had been honest with him so he'd leave it alone.
"What kind of thing? What kind of thing have they done?" Jaxon questioned and he followed the deep purple haired teenager into her bedroom. I was impressed at the way that Jazmyn managed to withhold her groan. Although she was beginning to wonder if she had the patience to deal with her youngest brother on top of the stomach churning concern for her twin brother, she knew that she couldn't hurt one of them to protect the other. The magenta haired teenage boy lingered on the line between her room and the hall as he muttered. "What kind of thing would hurt Justin?"
Creeping nearer to all of the bedrooms while still having half an incentive to mind my own business, I saw the way, or rather, I heard the way that Jaxon's insistent and stubborn tones evened out all over again. I titled my head. I wondered if Jazmyn observed the same thing.
It seemed to me that even though the magenta haired teenage boy's was one of the most likely to give the deep purple haired teenager a hard time, he also thought that he was pretty sturdy. He believed it would take a lot to wound Justin.
He expressed something like this, finally stepping over the line and properly into the youngest Morgan daughter's room.
"Did they tell him that his music is crap? Did they tell him that he should ditch his hat?" Jaxon asked Jazmyn and once again, that time it was the eldest of the two's turn to roll her eyes. The deep purple haired teenage girl rolled her eyes in an attempt to divert Jaxon's attention at the same time that she sat down in the chair that was opposite her desk. The magenta haired teenage boy rolled his eyes in return at receiving that gesture from his sister but his was almost in a nearing trying-to-be-more humorous sort of way. He ran a hand through his hair. "He needs to get thicker skin if that's the case. He hears that sort of thing from me daily."
"It's not that sort of thing, Jaxon." Jazmyn at last retorted to her younger brother's articulations with words and even though those were the ones that were blood related, I actually was the one to catch on to his tactics. I shook my head, trying not to lose Rey's little woodland toy in the process. The youngest Morgan son clenched his muscles in his face, making sure to keep his expression straight so the intelligent Jazmyn wouldn't catch onto his new tactic; humour and mock-indifference to get to the bottom of what was going on once and for all. The deep purple haired teenage girl sunk further back in her chair, clearly not catching on. "Do you really think that something that trivial would make him react the way that he did?"
In that moment, I had to watch the youngest of the Morgan daughter's expression as it changed as she realised that she had let something slip. She quickly looked away, pretending to copy her youngest brother by running a hand through her own hair. In between it all, I found it interesting how going against fact that – once again, he was beginning to get what he wanted – like one of his elder siblings, he concealed his expressions also.
Tightening the muscles on his face all over and preventing his chin from jutting out, Jaxon wordlessly thought back to everything that he believed he had heard. To tell you the truth, it was a little hazy for him because he had promptly broached the subject with Jazmyn instantly as soon as she left her twin brothers room and she had insisted that he hadn't heard those sorts of noises at all. But he had.
The magenta haired fourteen year old boy had heard hushed tones and groans at first which had soon changed to higher raising vocals as well as the thumps of some furniture being rattled around in frustration. Jaxon had been in his own room at the time throughout all of that and for the beginning part as well which was Justin returning home from school and heading to his room in a hurried yet motionless sort of way, for once slamming the door with quite a bang.
Jaxon thought about all of this and I started to understand the situation a little better from taking note of the look in his eyes. And when I glanced over at Jazmyn, pushing my nose further into the room, I saw she had very much the contrasting expression on her face. Yet at the same time, it told me everything that I needed to know.
Moving her hands away from running through her hair, her fingers switched to massage the front part of her forehead. She swallowed also. She tried not to let her shoulders slumping be too obvious but it was. And it was clear that what she had seen and what she had heard and what she knew when it came to Justin was a heavy burden on her shoulders. Not because she didn't wish to know or be there, no. But just because it hurt to have the closest person to her be so torn up during days before that one and then knocked down on that particular one.
I glanced back at the magenta haired teenage boy. It was true that like a lot of adolescents and especially Morgan ones, Jaxon was a unmoving and relentless boy who often saw situations and took from them what benefited him, even if it wasn't in a malicious sort of way. But that day and that moment and especially when he saw Jazmyn like himself reflecting wordlessly back, he knew that it wasn't about him winning. It wasn't about him winning and getting answers out of her about Justin. It was about being a team player in their little gang of siblings. Even if that meant losing out on information.
"Look…" Jaxon began in a surprisingly serious tone yet it still took Jazmyn a couple of moments to actually hear her brother and for it to register. And no wonder! It was rare at that point for the magenta haired teenage boy to be both head-strong yet heartfelt at the same exact time. Even so, the youngest of the pure Morgan clan continued before Jazmyn had a chance to even properly look up. "Do I think that Justin has been an ass recently and am I fed up with him sulking all over the place? Of course I am."
Jazmyn's eyes went to the stop of their sockets as Jaxon continued but she knew not to doubt him so. She knew she had to wait and be patient towards his impatient self and see where his words were actually heading to so she did exactly this.
After leaning against the doorway and stuffing his hands into his pockets and letting out a nonchalant sigh, Jaxon uttered more words. And he concluded.
"But if someone has genuinely hurt him then I think I deserve to know. I know him better than he thinks. I know him better than you think. I think I deserve to be clued in." the teenage boy tried to make a case from himself and as he got further into it, he could see Jazmyn beginning to wanly smile. And he began to hate it. He thought he knew what kind of smile that was. He tried to prevent his cheeks from flushing as deeply as his hair but he failed. He muttered far more insistently than ever before. "I'm a lot smarter than you guys think as well."
"Oh, Jaxon." Jazmyn uttered herself before she could stop herself and these words came tumbling out of her before she had any idea where she was going to go after addressing her youngest brother by his name. But instead of overthinking it, she managed to go with her instinct. She stopped sitting in her desk chair and came to kneel in front of Jaxon, looking up at him and trying to do so in a caring way rather than a patronising one. A small sigh escaped her lips as she shook her head. "We know that you're smart. No one is smart like you. You are my brother, after all."
Jazmyn tried to reassure the teenage boy in an inclusive and genuine way but at first, the magenta haired teenage boy just wrinkled his nose, still feeling all parts of his skin around his face burning. The deep purple haired teenage girl could see her youngest brother's burning cheeks and she went down on her knees even further, even reaching out to grab his wrist. She spoke to him all over, less inclusiveness being an ingredient in her words and more sincerity came to the forefront instead.
"You and I are actually on the same page a lot, don't you think? We're quite the same. You are protective and I am too." The deep purple haired teenage tried again and once again, Jaxon's nose scrunched up. Though that time, it was out of not understanding where she was going straight away and trying not to get bored with their interaction. It was lucky he gave her the benefit of the doubt as well and stayed a part of that conversation. Jazzy stood up to her full height, letting go of Jaxon's wrist and reaching out to brush his forehead as she explained to him. "I'm protective of Justin in the same way that you are, and that's why you hounded me for answers, isn't it? And in the same way, I'm protective of you. Truthfully, I do want you to be clued in. I think you'd have some really smart insight. But I know you like I know my twin brother. And I want to protect you from all the rage and recklessness you will feel if I tell you what has happened to Justin."
I watched as the magenta haired teenage boy took a step away from Jazmyn upon hearing her words and paired with her fingers stroking across his forehead too. But from that split-second observation, I knew that it was out of him needing more space to process all that he had heard rather than the horror of the insinuation that he cared for his biggest brother!
As his brain ticked and properly listened, his head moving in between tilting to the side and standing up straight. He swallowed a couple of times too. He resisted whistling at the intensity of all that he had heard. Then following that, Jaxon quietened down as everything started to sink in, Jazmyn taking another moment to be patient.
I nodded my head along with the magenta haired teenage boy as he thought about everything that he had heard. What Jazmyn had said wasn't exactly reassuring. In fact, it lead to quite a lot of anxiety inducing possibilities and scenarios in our minds as we imagined the deep purple haired teenage boy being ganged up on. But it was the truth. It was the truth and Jaxon had finally heard it.
After trying to get his own way for so long he had finally gotten it. He had finally got an honest answer. And then and there it was time for him to react based on receiving what he wanted. He expressed breathlessly.
"All… Alright I won't keep banging on about it. If you think you're such a natural protector then I guess I won't deny you of that opportunity to look out for me." Jaxon blurted out and like a lot of reactions when it came to her youngest brother, Jazmyn did her best in concealing her amused yet exasperated eye roll at him! This was lucky though because as Jaxon continued leaning further up against her bedroom wall, he shot her a bit of a grin. And then again, almost as soon as he managed to flash a bit of charm towards the female that was a twin, all of that seemed to falter and he added rather seriously, his eyes rounding as well. "His ex-girlfriend hasn't done something, has she? If she has…"
For a rare occasion, Jaxon trailed off. My mind briefly wandered to the way that the fourteen year old boy spoke the word "girlfriend". He didn't just utter it like it was simply a silly idea for Justin to have had such a thing. I wondered if that was down to the way that that past intimate relationship of Justin's had caused him such turbulence as of late.
But instead of focusing on that, I saw the way that Jazmyn had to quickly wipe those sorts of thoughts out of her little brother's mind. She had promised to herself that she wouldn't let too much of Justin's situation to slip out because it could have resulted in the ultimate truth being revealed. But she couldn't stand the idea of the wrong person coming up against an accusing finger.
Jazzy promptly shook her head and though Jaxon sighed at this response and then just dully nodded his head, he soon couldn't help but deny to himself that asking one more question and it being answered put a little bit of electricity inside his belly. He knew that he was being protected by not being told and that it would be beneficial to both he and Justin and perhaps the rest of the Morgan clan. But even so, there was still a part of him that longed to dig deeper.
When it came to his deep purple haired twin brother and his moods and his break up and his unusual quietness and his rigid body language that intensified over the course of the last year, Jaxon had all kinds of theories. Even though he knew that it was wrong to dig, he couldn't help but feel that this incident was no coincidence at all.
Out of pure intrigue rather than malice, he just had to get some more answers. Every time he got a few more, he just needed more and more! Of course, he knew that he had to go about it in a casual way rather than desperate.
Letting out a sigh and a nod of the head in response to Jazmyn giving him one more answer, Jaxon took a couple of moments to gather himself while the deep purple haired sibling seated herself back in her bedroom desk seat and let out a quiet sort of noise. And then following this, the magenta haired teenage boy put forth once more, his hands going back into his pockets.
"Surely… Surely you can tell me who has done this though, can't you?" Jaxon started so slowly and so seriously that at that point, I couldn't tell if he was being intentional or not. I couldn't tell if that was a new tactic to get one final answer or if it was out of surprise that he himself wanted to know so badly. Jazmyn looked up straight away that time. Jaxon's hands bedded further into his pockets with a shrug. "I don't think I'll go out of my mind with emotion if I simply know who has done my brother wrong."
A peculiar silence took over the room and as I continued peeping into it, in between that observation I was surprised that I'd managed to keep Rey's tiny toy in my teeth that entire time! That silence was eerie. That silence was noticeable. But it was not uncomfortable. It was just pointing towards a turning point. It was just pointing towards a turning point where Jazmyn was going to go against one of her instincts.
She was still protective, yes, over both of her brothers. All of them, in fact. But she couldn't help but deny to herself that Jaxon had been awfully mature about the entire thing. Sure, he let a few comments slide and during some points she worried that his questions – particularly about Justin – were in attempts to one up him in the future. But despite all of this and despite usual habit, she went against her instinct.
Jazmyn went up against her instead and thought she bit her lip; she soon proceeded in saying some words that would lead Jaxon to having yet another answer. Her eyes nodded to inform the magenta haired teenage boy that he was getting what he wished for all over. She started.
"Do… Do you know a boy named Cassetti at school?" the deep purple haired teenager began and I was prompted out of my simple onlooker role and I found myself blinking. That was an unusual name to be sure. And no doubt did Jazmyn utter this one first to evoke the most noticeable reaction in Jaxon also. The way that she shook her head and sighed pointed to this as well. "He's very unusual looking. Unusual name. Older than you. Younger than Justin and I. He-"
"He looks like he couldn't make it onto any of the school sports teams." Jaxon interrupted with this sentence as it was the most important thing in the world. For once, Jazmyn's forehead creased into a frown. But to prove it was all relevant, Jaxon's chin absentmindedly jutted forward. And then he tilted his head and nodded it. He responded with more seemingly appropriate words. "I know him. But I know his younger brother most. Rory. Now he can make it onto the sports teams and I'm always competing against him. He-"
Jazmyn took a turn to interrupt. You see, I believe that hearing the magenta haired teenage boy state unnecessary things about these (to me) strangers, prompted a different sort of reaction in her. And I understood it rather clearly. She knew these people to be those who did her twin brother wrong. And getting a better image of them painted prompted her into an emotional response. Her pupils dilated.
"He has a sister too. They both have a sister. Bonnie. Now, she's in our year yet she keeps to herself mostly. I don't know much about her. But I know one thing." Jazmyn paused and I believed that it was Jaxon's initial response to gather that her halt in conversation was an intention of effect. However, almost as soon as that thought entered his mind, he let all of that go. He suspected the deep purple haired teenage girl to be too involved then to make any sort of drama about it. The youngest of the Morgan sister's leaned forward in her chair and the way that she let out these words made it obvious surrounding all the emotions that they were laced with. Her breath hitched before letting them be heard. "They've… They've been blackmailing Justin. For a while now, I think. And now they've spread about something about him that he is not ready to be known. And he is devastated."
Devastated. Devastated. Out of all the words that the magenta haired teenage boy could have ruminated on that day – it was that one there and then that had the most effect on him. Devastated. Justin was devastated. And he was experiencing that sort of feeling and that sort of agony and that sort of twisting wrenching through his gut because of a particular group of people.
Despite the intense emotions that did indeed engulf Jaxon after he had heard these words, he managed to keep cool and stick around for a few more titbits from Jazmyn. He found out that no; it wasn't photos that he was being threatened with, no. And it wasn't rumours either. Those three things hadn't leaked. It was the truth. It was the truth that was out there. Jaxon didn't exactly know what the truth and he sensed that he shouldn't pry on that either. Or perhaps he didn't feel the need to. But that would have been unlike him.
Either way, he managed to keep his cool. Impressing me more than almost anything that he had done, he had managed to swallow all of his emotions. In fact, he had even managed to engage in small talk with his deep purple haired sister following their heavy talk and he had too left her bedroom following an embrace when she made it be known that she needed to crack on with her school work.
And contrary to how I usually would have usually reacted, I didn't show off a demeanour of being unfazed and sturdily blinking when Jaxon almost bumped into me in the hall, and I hid behind a nearby houseplant in a pot instead. And to top it all off, the magenta haired teenage boy was showing off actions that went against his usual mechanism also.
Though after their heavy conversation he called to Jazmyn "good luck" with her homework and he had shut the door in as an easy-going fashion as he could muster behind him, as soon as he was alone with himself – or he assumed that he was alone to himself – his real intentions washed over him. It was like a wave came crashing down on him. It was like someone had flicked a switch.
Jaxon stood up straight. Jaxon let out a grunting noise. Jaxon balled his fists together. And then he turned on his heel. When he turned on his heel I knew exactly where he was going. And I knew that I could no longer be just the observer.
Jazmyn had made it plain and obvious over her own intentions that she wanted to protect Jaxon from the particular rage he was feeling. Evidently, it was too late for that! But she hadn't wanted him to act out recklessly either. And she knew that his reckless behaviour would mean him confronting someone. She knew that his reckless behaviour would mean him finding someone. Or some people. A group of them in fact.
And so because of all of that, I could no longer be just the observer. I worried how Jazmyn was going to feel. I was concerned over how Justin would feel, far more than getting to the whole truth myself. And I was particularly agonising over how Jaxon was going to feel. He was only fourteen years old. His elder sister's protective inclinations came from a place of her own truth. And I didn't think that Jaxon taking matters into his own hands were going to lead to a well turned out path whatsoever.
So I finally dropped Rey's little toy from my mouth. I decided that I would have to collect it another day. And for the time being, I would have to follow Jaxon. And I would have to try and stop him. I only made my intentions clear when after he had put on his school shoes to match the school uniform that he was still wearing and marched out of his house and along the drive. But I still didn't make my intentions be known for a little while longer. All in good time.
The magenta haired teenage boy stomped down the road with his fists remaining clenched, not bothering to inform his parents verbally or with a note either. I noted in my own head that that's how he knew that he was doing something against them all. But then I soon let that theory go also. Jaxon was never the type to withhold courtesy at the best of times!
The youngest of the Morgan son's made it to the end of the road with his school shoes thumping against the pavement. It was then and there that I made my presence known. I surprised myself by snarling at the teenage boy, using my teeth and trying to grab hold of his school trousers in my mouth!
At first he merely gasped and tried to shake me off. But then he showed off his own manner of not being surprised by my company. Like other things that he had secretly sensed, he wasn't taken aback by the fact that I was there.
But despite this, of course that didn't stop him from trying to deter me. At first he merely just kicked and shook his legs as he marched, trying to stop me from latching hold of him. That didn't work. I was proud how quite I was in that kind of battle. I just hoped that I didn't have to use some of the skills that I often used in my other battles – my thunderbolt attack.
I met Jaxon's eye as I thought this particular thought and perhaps because of that, that possibility ran through his mind also. I grinned. It filled me with a strange sort of pride to know that he was concerned about my thunderbolt attack also. But I should have known better. I should have known that Jaxon was always ready to one up someone and not just his eldest brother!
Without hesitation at all, he showed off another shrug and he reached into his pocket as if he had planned for that kind of circumstance all over. I tried not to let my yellow face and red cheeks go pale when I saw what was in his hand. I tried not to let all of the colour drain from my body when he summoned something – or someone – that was known for their skills in battle just like I was.
With an unfaltering smirk, Jaxon called upon his Pigeot out of his Poké Ball and he climbed onto his back, making it obvious that that was how he was going to make his way to where that gang of people lived. I gasped so loud that I rendered myself breathless. Jaxon merely laughed and encouraged Pigeot to flap his mighty wings. And then surprising me, that cackle that the teenage boy let out encouraged something within me as well. I suddenly found myself smirking back. I just had to be prepared to stop him in another sort of way.
As Pigeot and Jaxon swooped up into the air together, I leapt a few inches below them and managed to hold onto the bird Pokémon's plush feathers. They weren't going to get rid of me that easily! And I knew that they didn't want to. Deep down, I got the impression that the magenta haired teenage boy knew that I cared about the situation and all of the people involved even if I went about it in a completely different way to him.
And even if I tried to stop that second confrontation from happening at all. Jaxon knew that like he too, my motives were well-intended. We just wanted everyone to benefit from a situation that should have been avoided.
So he let me tag along. And I almost forgot my façade of stopping him completely until we arrived at our destination. When Pigeot flapped down and came to a halt and Jaxon hopped off the large flying type Pokémon and showed his gratitude to him before sending him back to his Poké Ball for a well-earnest rest, the air was knocked out of my lungs all over. I stared on ahead and looked towards the building and it was then and there that as quick as I was known to unleash a thunderbolt attack, realisation flooded my mind.
It was true that I only knew the people that were Bonnie, Cassetti and Rory by name, when we were outside of the building – when we were outside of the Team Rocket building – I understood that their malicious actions could have been the result of thorough training and moulding rather than natural.
And like their parents that were also still loyal to that organisation, they were being shaped to make their way to the top. Though I had no idea how three offspring of Team Rocket members had ended up at the Morgan children's school, I had to let that dizzying sensation pass through me. I would have to wait until the time was right for me to learn some things as well.
It was then and there that something else flipped inside of me. I felt as though had been through so many perspectives and roles and judgements that day. Then when I was standing outside of the Team Rocket building with Jaxon and then when I was following him towards it, I knew that I wanted everything that he wanted. I wanted a confrontation. I wanted it to be known what the three of the teenagers had done. And I wanted them to regret every part in it that they had played.
Though I had experienced that building and tales of that building time and time again, there was secretly not a lot of confidence in my limbs as I followed Jaxon into it. It didn't help that we broke into it as well. My limbs and my toes and my entire body was quaking from the very minute that the magenta haired teenage boy hid in waiting until someone had access into the large doors and followed quickly behind them, to when we blagged our way into the elevator that took us to one of the seemingly highest rooms in all of the building.
The magenta haired teenage boy had his hands in his pockets the entire time that he strode but I had a feeling that he wasn't holding onto the Poké Ball of one of his closest Pokémon friends. His hands were simply in there because they had taken root and simply didn't dare to leave. It was at that point that I decided to hop onto his shoulder. Jaxon turned to me without much breath in his lungs at all, though he didn't address any of these things. And that was perhaps one of the first times in my life that I read the youngest Morgan son's clearer than ever.
He was small and slight and one of the most energetic people that I had ever met. It was perhaps because of his stature that he always seemed to be looking out for himself. But there and then I got the feeling that he was a lot more selfless than I realised. Heck, he was probably a lot more selfless than he realised. And he was a lot braver too.
I could feel the unrevealed anxiety ridden lump in his throat even if he was exhaling past it as if it didn't exist. He remained in the elevator and waiting. I couldn't believe that he had blagged his way into the Team Rocket building. I couldn't believe that he had blagged his way into a soon to be confrontation. I could and I couldn't. His parents had always surprised me and continued to surprise me. No doubt was their youngest son together a chip off the old block.
And like his two parents also, he showed a lot of their traits there and then. He felt hidden apprehension but he pummelled through it. He acted brash and self-centred at times but there was a real softness to him. He was stubborn. God, he was stubborn! But he stood up for those who needed it. And after thinking that to myself, I lightly touched my head against the back of his own one so he knew that if anything happened to him, I would stand up for him as well.
Jaxon didn't have time to return this gesture though I had the feeling in my belly that he'd have liked to. It was time for him to stand tall. It was time for him to put into practice all the traits and genes that he had been passed along to by his parents. It was time for him to stand up to someone. It was time.
The elevator pinged open. There was only one door along that wide and white and barely decorated hallway so Jaxon knew that he had no choice other than to march straight up to that one. At least there was no stalling over decision making!
In fact, there was barely any stalling at all. The magenta haired teenage boy showed off the fact that he potentially had more traits from his mother than his father from the way that he trooped up to those giant and equally white as the hall doors and stood outside of them. He observed them for just a second. I did too. We didn't meet each other's eyes. We only looked together. And then our eyes darted together.
We saw the intercom outside and no stranger to the joy of pushing buttons, Jaxon's finger darted out and he pushed the one to get the attention and to speak to the people that he hoped were inside. I couldn't stop my brain from imagining and pondering whether Jessie or James' gloved hands had pressed that particular button at any point all those years ago.
But then as we both listened for any response on the other side of the room or from the intercom, all my thoughts of the past and the future vanished into thin air. There was only the here and now. There was only the here and now and the here and now was with Jaxon. Jaxon who had been so brave and reckless yet loyal and faultless that it didn't enter my mind until now that he had never before even stepped into the Team Rocket building at all.
It was evidently a part of him, even if he hadn't been told much about that near enough heritage at all. I was a part of him as well. I was egging him on. I was no longer trying to change the path. Like many of his own siblings, he seemed to know which one was best for him. He knew that speaking up when it was time to speak up was always the best thing to do.
And it was then time for him to speak. Someone from the other side of the room and speaking to the telecom was dressing him. A few simple words were uttered by a female sounding voice.
"Who is it?" a woman's voice questioned from the other side and it was a voice that I knew another magenta haired person often described as "unbearable". I wondered if Jaxon thought similarly. Though my nails dug into his shoulder, I didn't have time to wonder any further.
A second voice joined the former one. That time, it was a man's voice.
"What is it that you want?" the man's voice asked from the other side of the door also through the intercom and tones were gruff. His tones were so gruff. I didn't know if a certain lavender haired male described his voice as "unbearable" too. I just knew that that old Team Rocket trio used to purposely mess up his name!
I glanced over to the magenta haired person who was the product of those two Team Rocket members and I saw that for the first time, he was faltering. As he heard the voices of the people who were unfamiliar to him yet familiar all in one, Jaxon was frozen. He was not the stable kind of frozen.
For a rare occasion, his eyes were widened and his mouth was opening and closing like a goldfish. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know what to do at all. He wanted to run! That was his instinct. Secretly like how his eldest brother was feeling also, he wanted to run.
I wondered if he thought about his eldest brother there and then. I wondered if he thought of Justin. Either way, a reaction was prompted within him. A reaction was prompted within Jaxon. He blurted out the first words that came into his mind.
"I want to talk to you about your three children!" he let loose with a sudden passion yet an unapologetic kind of passion. He exhaled out his lips after he did this and I clenched my paws further against his shoulder to encourage him to keep going.
Unlike the magenta haired teenage boy on my side of the door, the two faceless adults he was talking to were prompt in their response. They both uttered the same words at the same time. They both uttered the same words at the same time and in a tone that insinuated it was an outrage that their three children were in question.
"This is Butch and Cassidy, you do know?" They uttered and once again, I flickered back to being the observer. Though I was closer to Jaxon than ever and being on his shoulder and so much more than that, I was part of the situation, I watched what he did next also.
I watched him continue without hesitation. And I witnessed him beginning to take charge of the situation when his deep purple haired brother felt as though he couldn't do that.
"I don't care." Jaxon retorted through a clenched jaw and his hand slammed further onto the intercom button and he leaned closer to it, changing his words. I for one imagined Jessie and James' past rivals raising their eyebrows in response and glancing at once and other. I knew that Jaxon didn't have a clue who they were at all. The magenta haired teenage boy did indeed stand his ground. "I want to tell you about my brother."
The words "my brother" were uttered in such a frustrated way that was also filled with resolution that it filled me with a huge sensation of warmth. But I only had the time to focus on listening. I only had the time to listen and absorb the words as Jaxon continued once more. He told the two on the other side as if it was undeniable fact. He believed the parents needed to be set straight first and then the children. His finger pressed on the button all the more so.
"If there's anything that I know about my brother then it's that nobody takes anything away from Justin. Nobody takes anything away from him at all. He decides when he is ready to do something. He decides when he is ready to tell people something. He decides to take his path when he decides it's time for him to go along that path. Nobody takes a single thing away from him. Got it? Especially when he has way more things to share with people than anybody else who dares have the nerve to take opportunities away from others."
And with that, way more than focusing on any of the things that Jaxon said about his brother that day, I found myself lingering on the way that he said "my brother". "My brother". Yes, that's exactly what Justin was. He was a brother. He was a son. He was a friend. He was a wonderful person. But almost surpassing all of those things - he was a big brother to Jaxon. And Jaxon was a little brother to him.
I wished that Justin would know that there were people ready to stand up for him, whether they knew the whole truth or just part of the truth. I wished that Justin knew that like his twin sister and like he often tried to do himself, he was protected also. He was protected by someone who went out of their way to do the right thing without telling anyone at all.
And those are the best kind of heroes, aren't they? Those are the best kind of protectors. I knew that Jaxon would have been added to Justin's list of heroes if he found out what he did for him that day. But he never did. Justin just looked up to him in return for a whole other load of reasons. Yet in an equally secret way.
The End.
There you go! Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed :3 This chapter among other things, also introduces the children of Butch and Cassidy. They are certainly centric to this time of Justin's life! Maybe one day I'll go further into their characters. I like how in this one it's shown that even though it's the time in their lives when Justin and Jaxon probably clash the most, Jaxon shows how loyal he is to him and how willing he is to stand up for him when someone wrongs him. As well as this, you can see that Jazmyn and Jaxon are pretty different also. But they too are united in their care for their other brother. Even though one truly knows why and the other merely is suspecting. But in actual fact, I think Jaxon knows as well. Even if he hasn't been told :3 Thanks again for reading and I will be back next Wednesday so see you then!
AmyBieberKetchum signing out :)