EVERYONE: - Complete Magnetism

[DGE]

Magnetism (now with a better beginning!)

1.2.04: I think I was ahead of myself when I first posted this last summer. Or I stumbled upon a really good idea. While I was working on Codename: Flamethrower, I realized that Magnetism has all the qualifications of an EW Special, so now it is. It's Special #2, and it follows chapter 8, which happens to be the last chapter I've posted so far.

I also never liked the way part 1 of this began. So I made a new one.

Be ye warned, there be original characters, angsty strained romances, and lengthy chapters. All that you expect from a Zukinfic, which is why my threads are so empty of reviews. ^_~
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There's a storm outside and the gap between
crack and thunder, crack and thunder is closing in
The rain floods gutters and makes a great sound on concrete
On a flat roof there's a boy leaning against a wall of rain
aerial held high, calling, "come on thunder, come on thunder."

Sometimes when I look deep in your eyes I swear I can see your soul.

-James, "Sometimes"

Magnetism
(part one)​

The rising sun's rays penetrated the spaces in between leaves, and its light was shielded from the forest floor. The whole of Ilex glistened from the previous night's rain; this cool August morning would gradually change into a humid afternoon. Not exactly the perfect weather for clearing out the wreckage.

Volunteers from the city outside had come to the spot once known as the village of Arborville. Now all that remained were the shattered boards of tree-houses, personal belongings such as books and pots scattered among them. A man in his mid-twenties was collecting anything salvagable. "How's your grandmother holding up?" he asked the teenage girl in charge of the cleanup.

"She'll be fine, I think," the girl said. "She's more in shock than in pain. She still thinks the village was attacked... but no one can attack with lightning."

"A lightning pokémon could," the man reminded her.

"We'd know if a pokémon did this... and it was storming last night. Lightning struck a tree, surrounding trees and houses caught fire, end of story." She sighed heavily. It had been her home, too.

Maki watched her turn to direct some of her volunteers. Rumors had already started back in town when the word of Arborville's destruction got out. Some people said they heard the call of Raikou, the lightning pokémon who only existed in legend. Maki would later ask the bedridden village elder about this.

"It's true," Towa whispered. "Raikou was here, and by its side was its trainer."

"Trainer?" Maki questioned. The old woman really was in shock, babbling like this.

"It was her," Towa said under her breath, nodding off. "I knew there was something not right about her... and now she's destroyed... my village..." She dropped off to sleep.

Maki furrowed his brow, trying to decipher her words before he left her to rest.

~ * ~​

In June, it stormed over Ilex. Around Arborville, lightning was an enemy. Maybe they should have thought of that before settling into a tree-house society, but there was nothing to be done while the skies were raging. It was said that the handful of people who lived in the forest hamlet had their reasons for abandoning a conventional lifestyle, so they had to be brave enough to wait out a force of nature that could level their homes.

Even if lightning could strike her tree, Amara Sora would consider it a blessing, or a message. No one in Arborville knew that today, the summer solstice, was her birthday. She received this storm as a gift, watching it from the window with her Pikachu, Kira. A jagged fork of lightning would jump between the steel-grey clouds, glowing and instantaneous. Then thunder followed, the welcome voice of a childhood guardian.

When it subsided, as all beautiful things do, Amara sat on a nearby stool, combing her damp hair. She'd stepped outside briefly, and now her hair was matted from the wind and rain. Waist-long and black, it was her one physical feature of which she was proud. She draped it over one shoulder while she ran a wide-toothed comb through it, then tied it in a singular braid, her usual style. She adjusted it to hang down the middle of her back again, noticing Kira still sitting on the table by the window.

Outside her solitary tree-house, water dripped from high branches to lower ones, making it sound as though it was still raining, despite the storm ending now. "Pikapi?" Kira asked restlessly.

"Are you always thinking about food?" Amara asked with a chuckle, rising from the stool and ruffling her fur with the comb. She picked a handful of berries from a full basket on the high-mounted shelf and held them out. Kira gratefully helped herself. Like so many times in the past, Amara marveled at the cuteness of her soul-sister.

Underneath the hammock-bed, Tenrai the Jolteon's ears twitched. He opened his eyes, noticing Kira help herself to berries. He stretched and shook himself, trotting over to sit at Amara's feet. "You too?" she asked, holding out a handful to him. "I guess we had best be getting ourselves some dinner, huh? Well, come on."

Once her feet were on the ground again, she picked up Tenrai from her shoulder and placed him on the wet grass. She was plucking Kira from the opposite shoulder when Tenrai made an intrigued noise. Amara glanced around the village -- hidden among the giant treetops, all pointing the way to a grand cave that would lead to the wild forest -- and saw that there was nothing more remarkable out here than two individuals: a stranger whose back was to Amara, and Diana, teenage granddaughter of the village elder. They were talking in front of the cave's entrance.

"I'm sorry, but I can't allow you to go into the forest," Diana was saying to the other, a slender figure with short, pale blond hair.

"I have my pokémon with me. I'll be perfectly safe." His voice was young, obviously that of a beginning trainer, and impatient, discontent with Diana's warning.

"That's just it. There are poachers wandering around in there, looking for pokémon that aren't found in the forest. If you want to stay the night here, you can go back to the city in the morning and find another route for your training."

"I'm not some little wannabe trainer! I can take care of myself!" He whisked past Diana, she dashing ahead of him to block the cave's entrance with her arms.

Tenrai raced to the scene. "Tenrai!" Amara hissed after him. "What's the matter with you? Kids try to go through the cave all the time!"

"Amara!" Diana called, noticing her at last. "Amara, help me convince this boy that he needs to turn around! It's dangerous in the forest, especially with night coming!"

She was caught. Amara had made it a point not to interact too much with the villagers. She was very grateful that they let her stay in her own tree-house -- one at the outskirts of Arborville besides -- and she'd helped bring down a poacher or two before, but she wasn't one for basic socializing. What did it matter to her if some headstrong boy got his pokémon stolen, if he wasn't going to listen to caution?

The boy turned to identify Diana's addressee. Amara couldn't see him very well from so far away, but she knew his eyes were met with hers. Then he looked at the Jolteon, now sitting expectantly at his feet, then at Diana once more. "Fine," he said.

Diana breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, good. I'll tell my grandmother to find something for you to eat, okay?"

"No matter. I don't need anything."

Diana scowled. "Well, you're getting something. No pokémon trainer goes hungry in Arborville. Come on, come with me." She whisked away.

He stood for a moment, then began to follow. As he passed Amara, still behind a tree, he said, "Why is your Jolteon staring at me?" He was soft-spoken and sullen, probably disappointed that he wasn't getting to enter the deeper forest.

"Believe me, I don't know," she answered.

He stuck his hands in his jeans pockets, just below a belt with two pokéballs attached. Only two? And he was so confident about entering the forest with them? "This food she's promised me... will it be good?"

"It's passable," Amara said. "Most likely it'll include a loaf of Towa's bread. She's terribly proud of it. But nothing that you'd find in the city."

"Good. I need less of so-called civilization every day." With that, he continued on his way, following Diana to Towa's tree-house.

He wasn't the only one. "Tenrai!" Amara said clearly. Jolteon and newcomer both turned to her, the boy watching as Tenrai left his side, slinking obediently back to Amara.

"What's gotten into you?" she demanded as the boy left.

He snuffled. You know it's that time.

She sighed. "It's been 'that time' since March. You mean to tell me you haven't had your fill yet? And after we've been living in the middle of the forest?" Really she was amused, and wouldn't dare condemn a grown pokémon's natural urges. Tenrai knew she was only teasing.

You're aware there's a difference. Pokémon have the capability to love, too.

Of course she knew this truth. It would always be best for Tenrai to find endless love over a temporary mate. "And you think you've found it on that boy? How is that possible? He didn't let either of his pokémon out."

I realize that, and I don't know how I've come to this knowledge, only that it is real.

Amara didn't like his answer. There were many things that weren't right about this passing boy.

Forgive me, Tenrai said, and ran off in the direction of the village. "Hey, wait!" Surprised at his action, Amara gave chase, catching up in time to see him clamboring up Towa's wood-and-rope ladder. Kira climbed to Amara's shoulders, and human and Pikachu climbed up after Jolteon. Despite her annoyance at being dragged into the Arborville public, she smiled to herself, thinking that this was the first time she'd seen Tenrai act like a typical male.

Amara had been inside Towa's house only a few times, and didn't really feel like intruding on the newcomer's dinner. She was here to retrieve Tenrai and nothing else, so she leaned her elbows on the boarded floor, still standing on the ladder outside, waiting for her Jolteon to realize she was there. The blond boy looked at her curiously.

"Now, I can sleep in Diana's house tonight, so you may stay here," Towa was saying as she darted from one side of hut to the other, gathering an assortment of books, sealed jars, and clothes. "Trainers don't usually come through here this late... in fact, you might be the first. So many people want to spend their afternoons with their pokémon here."

"You shouldn't have the cave open, then," the boy said matter-of-factly.

All eyes turned to him sitting at the crude wooden table, picking at his half-eaten loaf of bread. "If you don't want anyone to enter, you should seal it off."

"That would disrupt the pokémon's passings," replied Towa. "We wouldn't disturb their natural landmarks."

He didn't say anything. But he did see Tenrai by his feet, and gave Amara a raised eyebrow.

"He wants to meet your pokémon," she told him. At the sound of her voice, Tenrai glanced over his shoulder.

"Hmph." The boy smiled and closed his eyes, amused. "I daresay that no one else would want to meet one of them in this tiny house." He unhooked a pokéball from his belt. "But she can wait for outside. I think this is the one he's more interested in, anyway." The ball opened with a flash of red that materialized into a solid form: an Espeon who shook herself and stretched delicately.

"Awww!" Diana clapped her hands together. "How sweet!"

"Behave yourself," Amara said as Tenrai sniffed the air around the Espeon.

What do you take me for, anyway?

"Pikaachu!" Kira piped up from Amara's shoulder.

Hey!

"I don't think she's old enough," said the boy. "Maybe next spring, but not now."

"He'll be good," Amara said. "Right, Tenrai?"

You have lost your sense of romance.

"Is that what you think?" she asked before she realized none of them knew she understood her pokémon's speech and thoughts.

"Do you need some help?" Diana asked the still-packing Towa, bringing the conversation around.

"I won't be a bother," the boy spoke up. "I'll turn around and spend the night in the city, and then go somewhere else. It's not important."

"We're not about to have you go back there at this hour," Towa said. "Now, I think I'm ready to clear out of here, young man... er... what's your name, anyway?"

"Dominik."

Towa nodded. "I hope you're not a late sleeper, because we're awake as soon as the sun's up, and you should be, too." She smiled, awaiting a typical teenage complaint, as city children amused her so.

"I'm not. Sunrise is fine."

"Oh... good." She seemed mildly disappointed.

The excitement of the evening worn off, Amara and her two pokémon went fishing along the river for dinner. With full bellies, Kira and Tenrai went right to sleep when they returned to the tree-house, and Amara lay in her hammock until the singing of bug pokémon lured her to slumber.

She was rather perturbed when she was drawn from her peaceful rest. "Pika! Pikapi!" Kira stood on Amara's stomach, calling to wake her. Tenrai's gone!

"Uhh..." Amara rubbed her eyes, the reality of Kira's message sinking in. "Gone? Where?"

He's following the boy into the forest... he won't give up!

"The forest!?" Amara leapt from her hammock, snagging her pants draped over the stool just as her feet hit the floor. "What part of 'she's not old enough' doesn't he understand?" She pulled on her boots, tying the laces haphazardly, and nearly flew down her ladder. Kira called after her.

"Stay here!" Amara insisted. "If something happens, and I'm not back by daylight..."

No! Don't leave me alone!

Amara paused halfway down the ladder. She didn't know how long it would take her to find Tenrai, and Kira could be of valuable help. She climbed back up and allowed her Pikachu to position herself on her shoulders.

Fortunately, the rest of the hamlet was asleep, so Diana wouldn't be stopping her from passing through the cave. Neither did she stop Dominik, apparantly. Sharp boy, he'd figured that they couldn't watch him all night. Still, it was his choice to enter the deep forest unprotected when he was warned about hunters.

The disadvantage, of course, was that she couldn't call for her Jolteon. She'd be intensely lucky if Kira picked up his scent, too. There was one other way. "Watch out for me," she said to Kira, and pressed her hands together. She was practiced at this, so it took only a moment to shift her consciousness, to send her awareness to a greater plane where Tenrai's soul would know her instantly.

My brother, I know you must hear me. Tell me where you are.

Amara? Though he was not visible, his voice was clear. Forgive me... I mean to bring them back to the village. I don't want her to fall to danger. Or her owner, of course.

And I don't want YOU in danger. Get the boy to stay still, and I shall find you.

It won't be easy... he wants to be here.

It's true.

A third voice, and male. Not Kira, and obviously not the Espeon. Amara was shaken, but she kept her mind clear. You--

I thought I detected some psychic activity. I will wait with Tenrai until you catch up. We're not that far in. You'll find us if you keep going straight from the cave.

Amara lost her concentration. She stumbled backwards in the spot she stood, opening her eyes wide. Dominik was a psychic? Well, that would explain why he was so confident to enter the forest, if he had powerfully-trained psychic pokémon. His Espeon might be young, but what of the other? "I daresay that no one else would want to meet one of them in this tiny house," he'd said.

She was running now, and when she saw her Jolteon's bright yellow and white coat, she was intensely relieved. "Tenrai!" she called, and was answered by him. Kira gave a welcome shout as well.

Dominik was sitting on a fallen log, Espeon by his feet. "I can see he doesn't mean to do anything with Neriah," he said. "Except maybe look after her. So I forgive his following us."

Amara folded her arms across her chest. "So does 'these woods are filled with poachers' mean nothing to you? Towa's only trying to protect you."

"As I understand it, you came here after Tenrai, not me," Dominik replied, his voice still low and unreadable.

"I did! But I'm only saying now, while you're here."

"Do you hear anything?"

Amara paused, listening. An occasional rustle of leaves from a breeze, fleeting noises of Hoothoot and Ledyba.

"Trainers don't usually come here this late," Dominik said, recalling Towa's words. "They sleep at night, and travel by day. If hunters want to nab their pokémon, they'd be around during the day, too."

Amara shook her head. "No. You don't know how big this forest is. It takes days to cover the ground. A smart hunter would take the pokémon while the trainers are asleep."

"And how many ten-year-olds do you suspect are sleeping in this great dark forest right now?"

Amara narrowed her eyes at him.

Dominik sighed and turned his head. "I'm just saying I don't believe her. I'm sure that this is a good target for poachers, but I doubt they're as widespread as Spinarak. Towa's just an uppity environmentalist who thinks she owns the forest, and doesn't want humans defiling it."

Amara smirked, one breath of laughter escaping her nostrils. If there was ever a fitting description of Towa, that was it.

"And I think I know a thing or two about co-existing with pokémon." He pulled something from the shoulder-bag at his side and handed it to Amara. It was a heavy cloth rolled up like a parchment. She opened it curiously, and was taken aback at what it held: eight shining tokens, gym badges. She recognized the Thunder Badge from her hometown's gym. She wasn't about to let her impression show. "Indigo League, huh?" she asked indifferently, as if she was shown badge collections on a daily basis.

"Not the whole League, just the gyms. I didn't really feel like challenging their so-called Elite Four." He shrugged. There wasn't a trace of arrogance in his voice. "I guess after eight gym leaders, the fun was taken out of winning. I donated all my pokémon to research and breeding centers, except for one. My first one. And one breeder insisted I take an Eevee, so I did."

"I see." She handed his badges back. And how long were you in Vermilion City? Did you happen to meet a red-haired young man in a long coat?

Afraid not. Should I have?

This time her shock was visible. "Well, no wonder you beat the gym leaders," she snapped. "Reading their thoughts and coming attack orders."

Dominik closed his eyes. "I never said I enjoy it."

Amara shifted her weight on her feet.

"Well, anyway." Dominik rose, dusting off the back of his jeans. "I've had my fill of wandering from city to city. I came here to be alone with pokémon. And you don't want to be arguing with some moody kid, you'd rather stow away in your tree-house and avoid any more human contact than is necessary. So I'll be on my way."

"How dare you!" Amara spat. But whether she was more upset that his accusation was true, or that he'd pried further into her thoughts to obtain the knowledge, she couldn't decide. It was a two-bladed attack.

"You shouldn't make yourself so well-known, then," was Dominik's response. "Thinking about it all the time, that's a cry for help."

Invaded. Her feelings were her own, and he was invading her. "That's my business, not yours! Go away! If your Espeon grows up to be like you, I wouldn't dream of having Tenrai be with her!"

"If Tenrai is as selfish as you are, I'd sooner have Neriah fixed than mate with him!"

They stared at one another with hardened eyes for a moment. Though Amara was tall for a girl, Dominik was only an inch or two shorter. His bangs were long, falling in places in between and around his eyes, like a parted curtain. His words were haunting her, growing more and more frightfully true with each passing second. "...Avoid any more human contact than is necessary. You shouldn't make yourself so well-known. That's a cry for help."

It's not my fault I'd rather be alone, she thought, trying to absolve herself. Trying to reach out only ends in betrayal and heartbreak. It's better this way.

I know, she heard Dominik's voice within her mind. I know exactly how that is.

It was slowly destroying her resolution. "Stop it," she found herself pleading, her voice a whisper.

"I can't," he answered just as softly, and twice as desperately.

In the shadowed forest where his body was little more than a silhouette, Amara knew what he was really telling her; it was in his tone, the way he held himself, the way he inclined his head. She was no common mind-reader, but she felt him say with perfect clarity, All I want is to be understood.

And she did.

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Ooh, movie 4 characters! Man, everyone wants to venture into that forest, don't they?

Sweet use of little-known canon characters and originals. I love that...

 

[Obscura_Max]

That was interesting, not many stories about psychics.

 

[DGE]

Originally posted by Blackjack Gabbiani
Sweet use of little-known canon characters and originals. I love that...

I can read your mind, you know. o_- And no, no masked psychos will stumble upon our angsty psychics. Perhaps in another story... Amara does spend quite a lot of time there.

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

I wasn't expecting it. Nothing in hell could get him back there *smirk*

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

Very good beginning. Although not much is known about Dominick, we're already starting to get a grip on Amara's character. I like that. I like the length too. Not short enough to make you wonder "what the f***?", not long enough to make you throw the monitor off your computer and swear obscenities at it, as mine most often are. I should take a lesson from you.

Yay to the new characters! May they live long and well! And if not, may they have a worthy death scene, unlike a certain character's in Harry Potter V!


Oh, and Zuke, check ya PMs, girl!


~Rocky *waits expectantly for Chapter Two* Cliffs

 

[DGE]

*edit edit* It's a new year, time to clean up the stupid stuff I've said, when it's in my power to do so.

I don't want to apologize for this chapter, per se, but rather caution that it is the most toned-down one. There's five or six total, and this one's only leading up to major events in the coming installments. Patience.

And, because I know everyone around here hates fanservice, or anything to do at all with sexuality (or is that straight sexuality?), then feel free to ignore the scene including such.(/sarcasm)

Magnetism
(part two)​

The night's escapade over with, Amara lay in her hammock, staring into the darkness. She'd brought Dominik back to Arborville, where he was spending the night in Towa's tree-house by himself.

She had no idea she could hear his thoughts as clearly as he'd picked up on hers. It was a given for him, the admitted psychic. If she was telepathic, it was limited to Kira and Tenrai, her soul-siblings. It shouldn't have worked with a person she'd just met.

At least he apologized. "I'm sorry about... you know," he'd said as they walked back. "I didn't mean to pry into your thoughts, but I can't help it. It's part of the reason I'm on my little journey, to see if I can find anyone who can tell me how to control it. Or to teach myself."

"It's okay," Amara had replied, slightly surprised by his opening up. "I suppose we all have problems that are beyond our control."

"Are you a psychic, too?"

"No. I'm not."

"Then... how do you..."

She couldn't answer him. Her best guess, after thinking it over, was that his psychic powers were so great that he'd opened a two-way link between them... but that just her theory. There were trained psychics out there, many of whom dealt with psychic-type pokémon. Dominik would find his place among them. Amara's place was here with her pokémon in relative solitude, continuing her soul-searching.

She slept deeply until morning, when she was awakened by a clattering sound and Towa's ringing voice. She dragged herself to the window to investigate. At the base of her tree, Dominik was hauling fallen branches, debris from last night's storm, away from the clearing that made up the village floor. Towa stood with Diana off to the side, supervising him. Amara smirked. Towa was putting him to work, having him earn his keep for staying in her house.

"So you like this kind of hard labor, young man?" Towa asked with devious glee. Still trying to antagonize the young, she was. Diana shook her head.

"I don't mind." Amara barely heard Dominik's answer. "I really like it here. I think I want to stay."

"Oh, you can't do that. There's nowhere to put you."

"Two people just left this morning, Gran," Diana said. "They got scared by the storm, I think. But if Dominik's brave, he can have one of those houses."

Towa shot her a glowering look. "This isn't a vacation spot. Truth be told, boy--" she turned back to Dominik-- "there are too many people here now. This place was never intended to be a village, just more of an... outpost. But then trainers started wanting a place to spend the night when it was too late to walk back to town alone. Word got out, and people started coming here as a 'retreat into nature.'"

Dominik slung a large branch off into the brush and dusted his hands on the seat of his jeans, waiting for her to continue.

"I think most of the others are starting to get the hint, however," Towa said. "Except Amara."

Amara drew in her breath, backing away from the window.

"Grandmother!" Diana gasped. "She's right up there!"

Towa scoffed and waved her hand. "She's not a city trainer, and she's not a vacationing businesswoman, I'll give her that," she said. "But she's been hiding here for long enough. Whatever she's run away from, she can't do it here any longer. I won't allow the forest to house more humans than it needs."

"But the pokémon like her!" Diana protested. "Have you ever seen them react to anyone else here like that?"

"Have them lulled into a false trust of humans before hunters get them? That's a horrible thing to do to those pokémon."

"Even common forest pokémon know the difference between a friend and a hunter!"

"The young ones might not. We have to think about future generations of pokémon too."

"You're jealous, aren't you?" Dominik's voice was still soft, but both women stopped arguing instantly and stared at him as if he'd spoken loud and clear.

"What... did you say, young man?" Towa whispered.

"'I won't allow the forest to house more humans than it needs,'" he repeated her words. "Except for you? Do you think Amara is replacing you as the trusted not-quite-village elder?"

"Why, you little..." Towa glared at him. She raised her staff, and Diana grabbed her arm. "You ingrate! Just like the rest of them! Get out of my forest!"

"Grandmother, please!" Diana cried, pulling her arm. "Come on, let's leave. He doesn't mean it."

"Go on, back to town with you!" Towa waved her staff at Dominik and followed Diana, muttering about the forest being profaned.

Amara leaned against the wall next to the window, clutching her chest above her pounding heart. If that was how Towa really felt, why had she offered Amara a tree-house in sanctuary a year ago? How could she have lied?

She gasped as she heard footsteps on the ladder outside, but wasn't too shocked when Dominik's pale blond head peered up at her. She caught her breath, staring at him.

"You heard it all, huh?" he asked.

"Psychic probe?" she ventured.

"No. I saw you in the window."

Amara found herself chuckling, but she glanced away, becoming short of breath and no longer amused.

"I'm so sorry," Dominik said, pulling himself up into the wooden house. "But it does prove my theory about her. Withered old Crobat, who does she think she is?"

"I don't know why she didn't tell me sooner," Amara said. "I guess I'd better pack up."

"Pikapi?" Kira questioned from under the hammock, looking concerned. Tenrai stirred beside her.

"Um..." Dominik turned bright red and whirled around. Amara, in waking so suddenly, had jumped to the window in her tank top and underwear, neglecting to put on her pants. She looked down at her bare legs and held her hands over her midsection, though it didn't do any good when Dominik was facing away from her. She raced to her chair and snatched the pants, pulling them on in a hurry.

"Sorry," they both said at the same time.

Amara stood still, looking around. "It's not like I have many things. Everything can fit in a backpack... I made sure of that when I left. But..." She squeezed her arms. "This is the only place I've felt at home. And now I'm not wanted here."

"Oh..." Dominik whipped around again, directing a glare at the forest floor. "That old..." His breathing became heated for a second, but he calmed down and spoke normally again. "You could come with me. If you want. I'm thinking about going to Goldenrod."

Amara paused, seizing up. "I couldn't."

"Oh. Okay."

"No, it's not you. I... I don't like large cities. Besides, I thought you were trying to get away from them yourself."

"Heh. Well, it'd be a useful stop. This time, I can stock up on food first, then go live in the woods."

"And you call yourself anti-modern society."

Dominik's stomach gave a very loud rumble. "Remind me not to eat half a loaf of bread for dinner," he said.

Amara reached for a basket full of red berries. "Here you go. Save some for the pokémon and me, though."

"Thanks." He shoved a handful into his mouth. Amara started folding her spare clothes tightly.

"What's this?" Dominik made his way to the table, taking a seat. Atop the table was Amara's backpack, and inside the open flap was a small silver bauble.

"What's what?" She headed for the table, saw what he was examining, and nearly dropped her newly-folded clothes. He stared at it intently, in what appeared to be concentration.

"That's a badge of the Jade Road," Amara said. She was allowed to tell him that much.

"I've never heard of it. Is it your only one?"

Amara furrowed her brow and tilted her head. "Why don't you just find out yourself, hmm?"

Dominik glanced at her for a second, averting his eyes again. "I don't want to. You deserve to keep your thoughts private."

Amara was taken aback at this answer. No wonder he'd been concentrating.

He closed his eyes and scooped another handful of berries in his mouth. Amara smiled to herself as she packed her clothes in the backpack and turned to take down her hammock. At least he was considerate enough to leave her innermost thoughts alone. She had to wonder why he cared.

"Should we say anything to them?" Dominik asked as the two of them stood at the base of her tree, all their worldly possessions contained in their packs.

"No, let's just get out of here," Amara said. "I don't want to have to face her."

"And look, the way north is through that forbidden cave again," Dominik said. "Boy, nothing makes sense here... don't pass through on your way to Goldenrod, but don't stay here, either."

"Amara! Dominik!" A breathless voice was catching up with them: Diana. She stopped and bent over with her hands on her knees, gasping for breath. "You heard my grandmother, didn't you?" she asked when she finally stood upright. "I'm so sorry, Amara... please don't take her seriously."

"I doubt I could do that ever again," Amara said flatly. "Since she can't seem to make up her mind."

Diana glanced over her shoulder. "You're right about her, Dominik," she whispered. "She is resentful... not just of Amara, but of all the people who've come and gone. She's gotten worse about it, always muttering things like, 'the world would be better off without people, just pokémon.' She's going a little crazy. Just ignore her."

"Well, while I agree that there are just too many people in the world," Dominik said, "I don't think the judgement of such should be left to little old ladies."

Diana nodded. "Are you headed to Goldenrod? Go on and use the passage. I won't tell her."

"Thank you," Dominik said politely.

Amara took a cue from him. After all, Diana was nice enough to apologize. "I'm sorry I overstayed my welcome. She should have said something to me."

"I know. I hope you do find a peaceful place to live... Goldenrod's quite a change from Arborville."

Amara tensed. "I'll be fine," she said.

Diana held out her hand. "Good luck." Amara shook it and flashed her the best smile she could manage. Then she and Dominik entered the cave.

The deeper forest was definitely friendlier-looking by the light of day. Though summer had barely begun, the shade of the trees made it cool, sunlight only peeking through the thick foliage. Dominik walked with his head craned up, admiring this everyday but beautiful sight. He sighed deeply.

"I can't believe I have to give this up," he said softly.

"I suppose there's nothing to stop you from actually living in the forest like a hermit," Amara said. "You were willing to last night."

"I know. But that was stupid of me. I wouldn't have been able to stay there forever." From a front pocket in his shoulder bag he pulled out a kind of handheld computer, flipping it open. He pressed a button a few times, then held it out to Amara. "See? I'm expected to participate in the Hoenn League."

Amara stopped in her tracks and stared at the device. "What is that?"

"Hoenn League? It's... a branch of the National Pokémon League... in Hoenn..." He raised a blond eyebrow. "Pretty self-explanatory."

"No, the thing in your hand."

Now both eyebrows shot up behind his feathery bangs. "It's a pokédex," he said. "You've never seen one?"

Amara shook her head.

"Aren't you a trainer? I guess not, if you don't know about the pokédex."

"Sorry to be so behind the times." She gave him a grin.

Dominik smiled back. "Anyway, if you're an actual travelling trainer, this thing is a must. It stores information on your pokémon team, maps, your license... and it can give information on every type of pokémon that's been discovered and catalogued. They say out here in Johto, there's a bunch of types no one's known about before. People who discover one go down in researcher history, apparantly."

"Huh. Is that why you're out here? How come you're not in Hoenn now?"

Dominik shrugged and closed his pokédex, returning it to his bag. "I'm not in any hurry. I thought I'd pass through and see the sights while I train Neriah a little more. And maybe see if I can catch any new pokémon to take with me. I'm thinking of building a whole psychic-type team this time." He felt the two pokéballs on his belt. "Besides, it's a shorter trip to Hoenn from the Olivine Harbor than it would be from Vermilion. I much prefer to walk to Olivine first and see the sights than to spend all that time on a boat."

Amara nodded. He mentioned Vermilion, her hometown...

"You know, I don't think I've ever talked this much to someone I just met," Dominik mused, stretching his arms over his head. "It's weird. Sorry I keep babbling. What about you? How old are you?"

Amara hadn't expected the conversation to focus on her so soon. "I turned nineteen yesterday."

"Really? Aw, if I had known it was your birthday..." He trailed off.

"No one knows. I didn't tell Diana or Towa. It's my own special day."

"But didn't you... um. Didn't you miss getting presents?"

She chuckled. "I got a present. It stormed."

Dominik stared at her curiously, unsure of how to respond. He stumbled a little, for Tenrai was right by his feet.

"You should let Neriah out," Amara suggested.

"He really likes her, huh? Alright." Dominik unclipped a pokéball and released his Espeon. She stood still for a second, taking in her surroundings, and sniffed at Tenrai approvingly. Amara noticed the other pokéball on Dominik's belt, still a mystery.

Dominik smiled as he watched Tenrai and Neriah interact. "I'll probably be training away on my birthday in August. I'll be fourteen."

Amara gasped out loud. "Only fourteen?"

"What? What did you think?"

"You... you just seem older. The way you say things... you've got more insight and wisdom than the thirteen-year-olds I've known."

He looked away, embarrassed. "Maybe. No one's ever said anything like that to me before. But you know what? I know I know things that other kids don't. It's just the way I think... how stuff everyone says is beyond our knowledge makes perfect sense to me. But maybe that's just because I'm psychic. My mind is a lot different than the average person's. That's why I really want to talk to someone about this... an experienced psychic."

Amara stared at him intently. Memories of the previous night still reverberated inside her -- how he probed her thoughts and turned them against her, and how she realized why he was doing it. She'd received his silent message, and she knew, beyond words, that he was very much like her.

She knew. She didn't know how, but she did.

"Sorry again," Dominik said, interrupting her musing. "I guess I've been by myself too much, the way I'm blurting out stuff. But it really feels alright."

Amara nodded. "I'm... I'm glad you feel so at ease around me." Saying that much brought a warmth to her cheeks, and she brushed her hand along the skin. Why? Why does it feel strange to say that?

She met his eyes, and knew that he'd heard. They were, she noticed for the first time, a perfect shade of grey.

He smiled and averted his gaze. Amara stuck her hands in her pants pockets, trying to think of anything else...

"Hey, I know," Dominik said. "We should have a battle. Unless you don't... you said you're not a trainer."

She was very glad the subject had turned to pokémon. "No, I don't mind battling. Neither do my pokémon. And you do need to, if you're going to Hoenn."

He grinned. "That's right. So how about right here? It's enough of a clearing, isn't it?" He backtracked, trotting a distance until there were several feet between the two of them. "Look good enough?" he called.

"I think so." Kira and Tenrai, each on either side of her feet, watched Dominik curiously. Tenrai gave Amara an inquisitive look.

He wanted to train Neriah especially, he'd said. Amara couldn't bring herself to have Tenrai battle the object of his affection, so she had Kira step forward. "I'm ready when you are," she said.

Neriah, at Dominik's side, was licking her forepaw without a care in the world. Dominik grinned again, a thoroughly pleased look. He unhooked the other pokéball from his belt. "I can't resist the chance to have you meet my very first pokémon," he said.

Amara hesitated. His first pokémon? The very powerful psychic-type he couldn't release inside Towa's house? Battling against her high-level but still undisciplined Pikachu?

"Come on out, Leilani!" Dominik called, activating the red and white sphere. Its red beam formed a tall, bulky shape, leaving what seemed to be a tree which turned this way and that, a pair of eyes each on three separate heads, looking in different directions.

Amara gasped and took a few steps backward. "That's the strong psychic pokémon you haven't dared let out yet?"

Dominik's proud smile faded somewhat. "First of all, Exeggutor are psychic-types. People seem to forget that because they're so plantlike. Secondly, would you let a six-foot-tall pokémon out in a rickety little tree-house? Although maybe I should have, just for the look on Towa's face..."

"Exeg?" All three heads gave Dominik quizzical looks.

Amara relaxed, the initial shock fading gradually. She'd never seen an Exeggutor so close. A combination grass- and psychic-type? She had type advantage over Kira, then. Dominik was either very lucky for this particular battle, or very skilled.

I... I don't know about this, Kira said to Amara.

Just do your best, Amara answered her. He can't have trained his Exeggutor longer than I've known you. I'm sure you're stronger.

Dominik folded his arms, holding an elbow in each hand. "You go first."

Amara nodded. "Quick attack," she instructed her Pikachu. Kira made a mad dash for her opponent.

"Confusion," Dominik ordered, in the same low tone. The air rippled around the heads of Exeggutor, descending towards Kira. She dodged them and rammed into Exeggutor's trunk, but the damage, if any, was slight.

"Use Flash!" Amara shouted. Kira's whole body lit up, an intense light for her opponent. Dominik's pokémon was temporarily blinded.

"Oh... good move," he said. "Leilani, try another confusion!"

It worked. Leilani the Exeggutor shook her entire top half, long fronds swaying, and aimed another invisible ripple at Kira. The Pikachu paused, bobbing her head slightly -- the confusion had worked.

Amara clenched her hands into fists. Those psychic attacks were unavoidable in the end. Perhaps she could guide Kira's next attack herself...

When she had first begun to speak mentally with Kira, it had taken Amara a great amount of preparation to enter a deep trance, to clear her mind for their bonding. The years spent alone with her two pokémon had given her much practice; now she could do it naturally, like breathing. Still, she pressed her hands together at the palms -- it did make her feel as though she was more ready to channel her thoughts. Try to shake it off, Kira. In the meantime, let me help you.

I don't know if that's really fair. Kira's voice was strained through her inflicted confusion.

Psychic-types are controlled best by psychics. Why can't an electric elemental control her own type?

Despite the ease of the communication, doing it tended to make Amara forget her surroundings. When Kira didn't answer, Amara opened her eyes. Dominik was still standing with his arms folded, but his expression had changed to complete surprise. He had heard.

"You are a psychic," he said. "You told me you weren't."

Amara was puzzled. "Of course I'm not. Didn't you hear what I--"

He shook his head no. "I just know you're doing it. I meant what I said to you earlier today. I don't want to intrude on your private thoughts. Or conversations."

"I don't know what you consider a psychic, exactly," Amara said. "But my telepathic abilities only go as far as Kira and Tenrai. And that's because of this gift I have."

"And me."

"What?"

"Kira and Tenrai. And me. We spoke last night."

"I know... I figured that was your doing."

"Nope, it's just like using a telephone. It takes two psychics to have a two-way conversation."

Amara started to ponder this revelation, but she noticed that Kira no longer seemed disoriented. "Just like it takes two trainers to finish a battle, huh? Kira, another quick attack!"

Dominik smiled as the Pikachu charged. "Perhaps you'll have to enlighten me on this mysterious gift of yours, then. Leilani, leech seed!"

Three tiny seeds shot at Kira, landing on her back. Vines sprouted from them, wrapping around her body and squeezing, sucking out her energy. Amara could only watch, not expecting such a simple attack from a psychic pokémon. Dominik's type advantage was winning him this match swiftly. "Use Thundershock, Kira!" she ordered. Leilani braced herself, wincing at the attack, but still looked unphased.

"It's a noble attempt," Dominik said as the leech seed sapped more of Kira's energy. "But I'm afraid the battle is ours. Psychic attack!"

The simply-named move turned out to be Leilani's most powerful. She sent more rippling waves Kira's way, much stronger than those of her confusion attack. Kira cried out and collasped. I've never... it's like she's... she sent desperately to Amara.

"Oh, Kira..." she whispered.

I like it better when they attack my body. Those were her last words before she fainted. Amara rushed to her side.

"I'm sorry," Dominik said quietly. "I didn't think it would be that quick... I hope you don't resent me or anything."

Amara stood up, holding Kira in her arms. "What are you talking about?" she said with a smile. "I'm the least competitive person you'll ever meet. Your Leilani is really strong, and those psychic attacks of hers could easily make up for any type disadvantages she'd have."

"Except dark-type, of course. Psychic's only weakness."

Amara looked at him sharply. Dark-type was...

"But thank you just the same. I didn't expect to win, honestly. I've only had her for a year. You've obviously known Kira longer."

"Four years," she replied.

Dominik thanked Leilani and returned her to her ball. He approached Amara, laying a hand on Kira's still body. "She'll be okay. Let's hurry, though. The sooner we get to that pokémon center, the better." They took off in a near run.

"Peeeon?" Neriah stopped in her tracks, looking around while her ears twitched. Tenrai stopped beside her.

"What's wrong?" Amara asked.

Dominik lifted his head, squinting his eyes as he stared at the forest behind them. "She senses something. Probably an Ursaring. Let's go, Neriah."

She followed him dutifully, but Amara didn't miss the way the Espeon kept checking over her shoulder, as if she didn't fully believe Dominik's reasoning.

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Actually, at least according to the show (can't remember if it's true in the game or not), Psychic is weak to Ghost.

Very interesting chapter! I didn't think it was dry or anything...

And it's cool to see an Exeggutor in battle. It's one of the most overlooked Pokémon there is...

And yes, Towa is an overbearing thing! I'm surprised she didn't threaten them with her Hoothoot staff! (although seeing her shake that thing at the Marauder *was* one of the funniest parts of movie 4...)

 

[DGE]

This is probably a good time to go get a snack. Part 3 is the longest yet.

Dominik isn't nearly as sulky as I thought he would be. How did I come up with such a well-adjusted boy? Oh wait, he's completely balanced out by Amara and her issues.

Magnetism
(part three)​

His psychic powers never could predict the future. Dominik St. Clair had expected to grow up and live his days genuinely alone. Already at thirteen, he was prepared to turn his back on society and lead a perfectly fine life with pokémon. Leilani and Neriah loved him, and the bond he shared with them was certainly deeper and more meaningful than the average trainer's relationship with pokémon.

His vision had changed somewhat, however, because he'd met Amara.

He'd always allowed himself the privilege of flipping through the thoughts of anyone he'd meet. Every person had ordinary and petty patterns of thought: concerns about their physical appearance, competing with their neighbors and acquaintances, taking whatever advantage they could find to win. Always selfish, always frivolous. At first he was afraid he was a freak of nature for not harboring these same patterns, but he grew to realize that he must be better than the general population.

But there was Amara. He'd skimmed the surface of her mind when she appeared in Towa's house as he was eating his pathetic loaf of bread for dinner -- just enough of a mental touch to gain a sense of what kind of person she was. What he'd learned intrigued him; she was a loner and a nature lover. Avoidant, determined, and a little paranoid, she gave off an air that she knew far more than she let on, a female embodiment of the strong, silent type. She was unlike anyone Dominik had ever met.

And she was possibly a psychic who hadn't realized her potential. Able to detect his presense sorting through her latest memories, able to understand her pokémon's thoughts and speak to them mentally... what other explanation could there be?

After so long, he'd met someone who most likely had the same personality as he. Even better, she would understand the price that came with having an extraordinary ability, the enlightment paired with exile.

It was a true shame about their five-year age difference.

The trees had begun to thin out, creating a path that pointed the way foward. Ahead, the sun shone on a paved clearing; the forest had ended, and the rest of the world lay beyond. The sounds of distant traffic reached their ears.

"There's Goldenrod," said Dominik, coming out of his heavy thoughts. He felt slightly relieved -- after his scant dinner last night and tiny breakfast this morning, he was more than ready to gorge himself for lunch. "I guess I'm just a full-blown liar," he added, grinning. "I don't think I mind cities at all. They exist to remind us why nature is better. Without evil, you'd never know what's good, huh?" He turned to Amara, who had paused behind him.

She looked terrified.

Dominik's smile dropped. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Amara swallowed, opening her mouth for more air. "I can't," she whispered.

"What?" He didn't mean to laugh, but he couldn't believe she'd come all this way only to refuse to enter the city.

"I haven't set foot in a real town for a year," she said. "I don't know how to act or anything."

"Wh-" The syllable stuck in Dominik's throat. It hit him: the strong, independent young woman with whom he'd been travelling had a glaring vulnerability. She was afraid of people. It was written clearly on her face, in her posture. Suddenly she seemed less of a goddess and more... real. Dominik was faced with Amara's true nature, the first bout of sincerity he'd known in a long time.

"It's okay," he said, breaking into a confident smile. "There's no right or wrong way to act anywhere. Just be natural."

Amara squeezed her forearms close to her, gazing aside. "No one will really notice you, especially in a huge place like this," Dominik continued. "Believe me, I've spent enough time in Kanto's big cities to know. Just stay by me, and you'll be okay." He held out his hand, though she was several feet away.

"Am I really that obvious about it?"

"I don't know about that. Remember, I'm the psychic."

She looked at him sharply, but he was smiling, teasing. She broke into a smile of her own, illuminating her face.

"Good, the pokémon center is right here," Dominik said as they entered the city. "That's a smart idea, building it here just by the forest." They were walking against pedestrians now. Amara clung to her fainted Kira, bristling as people passed them on the sidewalk.

"I think it'll be safer for you in here, Neriah." Dominik recalled his Espeon back to her ball and noticed Tenrai slinking behind Amara's feet, his fur bristled. "He's more nervous than you are," Dominik commented. "Doesn't he have a pokéball?"

"He does... they both do. They're for emergencies," said Amara.

"We're almost there, Tenrai," Dominik spoke to the Jolteon. "I bet you'll like the pokémon center."

There was a silence. He felt faint waves of external telepathy, and dutifully distracted his own mind. A teenaged boy walked past; his thoughts practically screamed of the Goldenrod gym leader. He wanted a bit more than a Plain Badge from her.

Dominik sighed and opened the door to the center, allowing Amara and Tenrai to enter first. They had to wait in line.

"Hi there!" Nurse Joy, identical to her distant Kanto relatives, gave them the same greeting she had to the other trainers. "What can I do for you?"

"It's my Pikachu." Amara held out Kira.

"Oh dear! Fainted in battle? I'll have it back to normal in no time." She reached over the counter and plucked Kira from Amara's arms.

"Wh...hey!" Amara protested. "Where are you taking her?"

Nurse Joy had already walked away, but she glanced back over her shoulder at Amara with a raised eyebrow. She was gone into a back room, no answer given.

"She's just going to revive her," Dominik said, startled at Amara's panic. "It would take days for Kira to recover her energy by sleeping. Pokémon centers have special machines that'll speed up the process... if she was in her ball, it would take seconds, but in her physical form like that, it'll be a few hours."

"That's unnatural! I don't want her hooked up to a machine! She's not... some kind of device!"

"It's perfectly natural... this is a pokémon hospital. For emergencies. You just said you have pokéballs for an emergency... don't contradict yourself."

"Don't tell me what to think!" she snapped loudly.

Dominik flinched. The back of his mind throbbed; he was picking up something from her without having to probe her thoughts. Somehow, without trying, he knew that she'd had a similar argument.

"Hey, lighten up, girl," the man behind them in line said. "Maybe you'd better brush up on your trainer manual, too. I don't know if they should be giving pokémon to someone who doesn't understand the basic purpose of a pokémon center."

Amara looked as though she'd been slapped. She bolted from the center without a word. Dominik called after her, stopping himself only after he realized he wasn't finished with his own pokécenter business.

"I'd like to stay the night," he said hurriedly to Nurse Joy upon her return. He handed her his pokédex, already displaying his trainer's license.

"Okay, then," she said brightly, typing at her computer. She handed him a key, adding, "you can check on your Pikachu by this evening, too."

"Thanks." He snatched the key and turned on his heel, realizing a second later to get his dex back from her, too. He dropped the two items into his shoulder bag and ran out the door, noticing for the first time that Tenrai had stayed by his side.

"Amara?" Dominik called, scanning up and down the sidewalk. His eyes rested on the trees nearby, the opening to the deep Ilex Forest.

"Jolt!" Tenrai spoke up, making a run for the woods. Of course he would know her whereabouts. Dominik chased after him, and they found Amara sitting against a tall tree near the outskirts.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, not looking at them. "I told you so. Just leave me here and forget about me."

Dominik sat on his knees by her side. "I'm not going to do that. Besides, you have to go back for Kira."

Her eyes, clear and golden, glinted with tears. What was so hard for her? Why couldn't she just tell him?

"Go on," she said. "I'd never be able to explain it to you in a way that makes sense. Maybe you'll understand me if you just pry in there yourself."

"I already understand you!" he declared, slightly offended. "Even without proof, I know I do."

"You don't have to say that."

"It's true. And as much as I want to know about you and your past for sure, I want to find out by you telling me... whenever you want."

She turned to him, two tears spilling over her cheeks. "You..." she started to say.

Dominik's eyes darted from her to Tenrai to the lush green ground. It wasn't like him to say things like that. It wasn't like him to say much of anything to anyone.

Amara sniffled and wiped her tears with the back of her hand. "Sorry," she whispered.

"It's okay," Dominik said, brushing back his bangs. "You don't have to come back to the center. I can bring Kira to you when she's healed."

"No." Amara rose, dusting off the back of her olive-green pants. "I have to rejoin the real world sometime. Best do it now... while you still want to be around me."

He couldn't hide his smile, nor the resounding questions to himself. He started to trail behind her, watching her thick, waist-long braid swing.

Nurse Joy was thankfully busy when they got back to the center. Dominik matched the room number to the one on his key and unlocked it. "Uh..." Amara started to say when she noticed a set of bunk beds.

It had always been nothing for Dominik to share a room with fellow trainers, sometimes up to three or four. Pokécenter space was limited, so he hadn't given it a second thought when he asked Nurse Joy for one key. Standing in the doorway with his new singular roommate, however, he suddenly felt as though he'd made a huge mistake.

"Wow," Amara whispered, somewhat incredulously. Dominik opened his mouth to apologize profusely. He would offer to get her a room of her own. "This has to be the first indoor bedroom I've seen in a year," she finished, stepping in. "It feels weird."

A subject change, thankfully. "You lived in that tree even all winter?" Dominik asked.

"It's all about adaptability." She stepped closer to the bottom bunk, pushing the mattress.

"I guess you could still hang up your hammock. Even outside, if you wanted."

Amara shrugged. "Are they going to say anything about us sharing a room?"

Her bluntness about everything would always surprise him. "I guess not, or they would have said it already."

"Don't worry. I do have pants to sleep in tonight." She smirked ever so slightly.

Dominik flushed, turning away and flinging off his bag. "Don't remind me," he mumbled.

"Of what?" She sounded genuinely puzzled.

"Of the fact that I saw you that way this morning. Now I must force the depraved image of you out of my head."

When she gave no response, he dared a glance at her out of the corner of his eye. She wore an incredulous expression.

Well, what do you expect? I'm only thirteen, he thought. And doing my best not to turn into some sex-obsessed pervert when I get older.

If she heard that or not, he'd never know. His stomach gave a loud rumble instead. "Oh... you did mention you were hungry, didn't you?" Amara asked.

"I nearly forgot." Dominik held his hand over his middle. "Are you? We can eat all we want at the cafeteria here, you know."

She was waiting at their table long before he'd finished heaping food onto his plate. "See? No bread!" Dominik laughed until he noticed hers. "Is that all you're having?" Compared to his pile of sliced roast and mountain of mashed potatoes and gravy, Amara's bowl of fruit seemed pitiable.

"One of the benefits of living in the forest is that you have a very controlled appetite," she said a little smugly, but a little teasingly also. "Not like some soft-bellied trainers they let out these days."

"Hey, I'm a growing boy." Dominik paused before picking up his fork, then commenced his feasting. Food had never tasted so good.

Amara peeled an orange slowly, taking her first bite as Dominik downed his entire glass of water in one gulp. "Don't forget to breathe," she said wryly.

"Thanks for the tip," he shot back, grinning.

Finally she pulled a sizeable portion of the peel away, silent all the while as though it took great concentration. "I left Vermilion City when I was fifteen," she said at last.

"Mmm?" Dominik paused to swallow, about to ask what brought on this statement when she continued.

"I was... I wasn't doing well in school. And my parents... well, they weren't much of an influence on my decision. Or my entire life. But I did have a... I had two close friends. They were both in my class, and they were both much smarter than I was. I don't think they did it intentionally, but they always found a way to remind me of my place behind them.

"One day something happened," she went on. "And I vowed to go away and not come back until I was strong enough to deal with it. But the more I think about it, as many years that have passed, I realize I was really just running away. I'm sure he's forgotten about me and my lame promise and has moved on."

Dominik was unsure of what to say. Where was this coming from? Because of what he'd said about her telling him details of her past whenever she felt ready? Was she ready now, so soon?

"He?" he blurted out. "I thought you had two friends."

Amara glanced to the side awkwardly. "I did, but I made the more serious promise to one of them. Midori. He was... the closest thing I had to a boyfriend at the time." She returned to picking at her orange. "I know I'm just too scared and reluctant to return. I love it here in Johto -- it feels more natural and purer than urbanized Kanto. I've spent the past four years living at shrines and in trees, and just exploring the wild with Kira and Tenrai. I'm more at peace with myself and what I can do, and I... I'm afraid going back to Vermilion will just make me pick up where I left off at fifteen."

Dominik stopped shoveling food in his mouth for a few moments, staring incredulously at her. She noticed this and blushed lightly. "There, I told you something of my own free will. I have no idea why I did, either."

She looked very sad, and Dominik felt his heart move and pull. Amara's smile was so much more welcome. "I'm sure he hasn't forgotten about you," he said. "He'd be an idiot if he did. And you just got done saying he was intelligent, right?"

"Hmph." Amara closed her eyes and smiled ironically.

"I was really good in school, too," he admitted, stirring the last pieces of meat into his potatoes. "Not to rub it in or anything... I mean, I didn't handle it the best way. School wasn't any kind of challenge for me, so I used to get really bored and act up. I used to want attention all the time."

"You?" She smirked.

"I didn't really have friends. So I tried to compensate by being entertaining." He shrugged. "People got used to me, though. My parents finally did something about it only a couple of years ago... they had me join after-school soccer."

Amara giggled.

"Don't laugh!" He was laughing in spite of himself.

"Did you wear little shorts?"

"As a matter of fact, I did."

"What a great mental image. Did you enjoy it?"

"Wearing tiny shorts? No. Getting some exercise and fresh air after spending eight hours cooped up in a classroom all day? Yes. I thought I was on to something, kind of. It's really sad how most kids just waste away sitting around... school shouldn't be like that."

Amara lifted her head. "That's what I always told Midori and Yama. Their excuse was that mental strength is far superior to physical."

"That's a lie. I think personal harmony is achieved when both are at equal peaks."

"Wow," Amara breathed.

"What?" Dominik asked as she stared at him.

"You're so... deep for thirteen."

"We psychics are touched that way." He felt a moving sensation inside him again -- having this kind of conversation with someone. Not a counsellor, not a backstabbing classmate, but a genuine other who was interested in his words and, best of all, understood his outlook.

And she was smiling again. Every time he uplifted her sadness, Dominik felt like a hero. "So anyway, I enjoyed the game and the exercise," he continued. "But I didn't really get along with my teammates. It was right after I started that I discovered I was psychic. I'd be standing in the field, and I could hear their voices in my head. And I wasn't scared or anything, just... 'oh hey, I know what he's thinking.' I didn't tell anyone. But I used it to my advantage in the game.

"Pretty soon the coach caught on that I was somehow predicting the moves. My teammates really got on my nerves then. Before they had ignored me, but when they guessed I was psychic, they started thinking of things deliberately. Not very pretty. I got really disillusioned then... their little game spread to my classmates, too, and it wasn't long before everyone just thought I was creepy instead of funny. So I shut up and stopped acting up in class. That made my parents and teachers happy, at least."

"Oh..." Amara said softly.

"I was thinking about quitting the team after awhile," Dominik went on. "One day, something cinched it for me. We went out to the field to practice after spring break... this was over a year ago. During the break, an Exeggcute had made its nest right in our field."

"In the middle of the open field?"

He nodded. "I protested that we couldn't play there. It wasn't right to disturb a pokémon, especially a fragile group like an Exeggcute cluster. No one listened to me.

"I don't know why it concerned me so. I'd never had any pokémon, nor any interest in a specific kind. But when I saw the Exeggcute, something clicked. They had no other home, and I wanted to protect them... like it was my calling. I refused to play, and I challenged anyone who would dare trample the pokémon.

"Coach sent me to the principal. I took the Exeggcute with me, even. It was a surprise, but I asked politely, and they let me pick up their nest. Coach told the principal I wasn't being a 'team player,' and that I was cheating somehow. I told her that I didn't want the Exeggcute in any danger."

Amara sucked on an orange wedge, listening.

"Fortunately for me, she was more compassionate than any other faculty member. She excused the coach and called my parents in. And after a small conference, she suggested I take a leave of absense from school to go on a pokémon trainer's journey.

"She'd seen it all before -- a student who just isn't cut out for booklearning, possessed by wanderlust and a connection with pokémon. She hinted that she'd met some psychic students before, too. She also realized that I needed some kind of challenge, since I wasn't getting enough of one with school or soccer. So she put this to me: if I could earn eight of the Indigo League's gym badges in a year and fully train at least six pokémon of varying types, she'd allow me to graduate middle school. I took the challenge gladly. The Exeggcute was my first pokémon."

"Leilani," Amara said.

Dominik smiled. "I didn't name her until after I evolved her... actually, it was after evolution that I just got this feeling she was female. You can't really tell, right? Experienced breeders can, but not a novice trainer... but I knew. It's weird."

Amara tilted her head, a black eyebrow arched curiously.

"So I did it, and I caught five more pokémon and earned eight badges all before my year was up. I returned to my school and showed my principal. She was very pleased, and so were my parents. I was most of all... I found out what was missing in my life. I never really cared that I didn't have close friends or outside hobbies, but I felt really important being a pokémon trainer.

"The principal was so impressed that I'd kept to it that she made a new arrangement for me. She entered me in the League exchange program. I'm going abroad to Hoenn, while a student from Hoenn comes to Kanto. There's all sorts of pokémon over there that no one's heard of here, so I get to start all over again. I can't wait. I love that feeling, starting anew and building up to greatness... that's why I donated five of six of my pokémon to this professor I met. They'll have a good home with her, and I'll see them again. Leilani's staying with me, of course, because she's most special. Not long after I donated all my pokémon did I stop by a breeding center I'd visited before, and they gave me an Eevee. Neriah.

"So I'm en route to Hoenn with Leilani and Neriah, and whatever else I happen to capture. The exchange doesn't start until August, though, a week after my birthday. So I decided to see some of Johto before then, since I'll probably start a third journey here after Hoenn. I'll be a sure-fire pokémon master by then."

Amara smiled. "So when are you going to be a regional champion?"

He grinned and shrugged. "I dunno. I haven't really felt like challenging the Elite Four. The badges are prizes in themselves. I don't have that much of a need to prove myself. I don't need the publicity."

"Aren't you humble?" She grinned back.

He felt the blood rush to his cheeks as he took in a deep breath. "Have I really been babbling all this time? I swear I never talk this much."

"Been holding it in too long, huh?"

"Well, no, I talk to Leilani and Neriah..." He trailed off, realizing what he was about to say next. I just feel so at ease with you, like I can tell you anything.

"Wow," Amara said. "Hoenn in two months? Have anything specific you want to do in Johto before then?"

"There are some places I'd like to visit... stuff I've read about that I want to see before I leave. Ever hear of the Ruins of Alph?"

"Oh yes, I've passed through there. It's very... ruinous."

He perked up. "You want to come with me?"

"Eh?" Amara was obviously taken by surprise.

"Yeah! We can leave soon, if Goldenrod makes you nervous. You're like me too, I think. You could never stay in one place too long."

There was color anew in her cheeks. "Maybe. Though I lived in Arborville for a whole year."

"Yeah, but you didn't stay confined to that tiny village the entire time, did you? You explored the forest and beyond, right?"

"I did... that's why I liked it. I had a tiny piece of home still hidden away. It was beautiful... I really will miss it."

"It's not fair. If I ever find another peaceful forest clearing, I'll build you a village."

Amara lowered her head, brushing aside a forelock. She failed at hiding her shocked but flattered smile.

"Ooh! And Leilani and I can be your bodyguards! I can detect if anyone's going to intrude, and she can ward them off with an attack."

"No, I think you have to live in the village, too," Amara played along.

"Well, of course I live there. I'm just saying, that's how I serve my home."

"And how do I serve it?"

"By being the beautiful and patient not-so-elder. Every opposite of Towa."

Both of them turned crimson then, Amara for the compliment and Dominik for blurting out things again.

Dominik tried to laugh it off. "No, I'm not beautiful," Amara said softly. "You don't have to exaggerate."

"Are you kidding?" His smile faded. "I'm not just talking about how you look... you have the most honest and purest soul in the world, and that's beautiful forever."

"Oh..." she whispered under her breath, very flattered.

"Not that you're not beautiful outside, too... I mean..." Dominik's ears burned. He was going to shut up right now.

She ducked her head down and to the side, resting her chin below her shoulder. Dominik's heart moved, becoming forever changed by this one expression. Despite her behavior, and possibly her best wishes, Amara was delicately fragile, and this touched him in a way he'd never known before. She was beautiful in body and soul, and he wanted to be near her always.

By late that afternoon, Kira had recovered. Relieved that her Pikachu was just as healthy and perky as ever, Amara went off to take a shower. She hadn't used an actual shower since before Arborville, she'd said -- it was always outdoor baths in warm forest springs. She was a little nervous to be doing something "civilized" again.

"That must be some lifestyle change," Dominik remarked to Neriah, who was halfway dozing on the bottom bunk -- Amara's bed -- of their room. He was sorting

through his bag at the desk, thinking aloud. "Here I thought going a pokémon journey was roughing it, but she took it to the extreme. Do you think I could even live off the forest for a year?"

Neriah yawned. "Yeah, probably not. I'm too spoiled by modern convenience," he decided. "That's so awful. Here I go on all the time about what's wrong with everything today, and I still take advantage of it. Amara's a real role model."

"Pikapi?" Kira was at his feet, watching him intently.

"When I go to Hoenn, it'll be different," he said, looking down at her. "I'll live off the land and bathe in rivers. And sleep outside." He nodded with finality. "Well... except if it rains. You know, because I'd get sick."

"Chuu." Kira nodded in agreement.

From his bag, Dominik pulled out a well-worn novel -- one of three, his favorite trilogy. He loved the story because it took place in a completely ficticious universe, one without pokémon whatsoever, and concerned the worldly travels of some unlikely heroes. He'd read all three books twice through since he was ten. They inspired him. He smiled to himself, staring at the cover and thinking about what life would be like in Hoenn... alone with his pokémon...

"What's that you have?" Amara was suddenly behind him, peering over his shoulder. He jumped, nearly falling out of the chair. He hadn't heard her come in.

"It's one of the J.R.R. Torkoal trilogy," he said, showing her the book. She was in spare clothes, a baggy t-shirt and light flannel pajama pants. Most impressive of all was her hair out of its braid. Damp black waves cascaded to her waist.

"Oh," she said. "Midori and Yama always read those. I never got around to it." She shrugged.

"Huh," Dominik mused. "I bet I'm a lot like those guys."

"Maybe that's why you and I get along." Amara sat down on her mattress, patted Neriah's head, and fished a comb out of her backpack.

"Where are they? Still in Vermilion?"

She shrugged again. "Possibly. They both might be in college right now. Who knows?"

Dominik turned around in his chair, sitting backwards with his arms folded on the chair's back. "They've never tried to find you?" he asked.

She shook her head, starting to comb the very ends of her hair. "I told them not to. I consider it an honor that they kept to my request."

"But you're afraid they've forgotten you? Maybe you should go back." He regretted it the second he'd finished speaking. Who was he to suggest things like that to her?

"I don't know. Every time I think about that, I think about how much I like it in Johto. How much I don't want to set foot in filthy Vermilion, or risk running into my parents. So I wind up staying put, despite the fact that more time passes. It's my own torture."

"Could you send them a message? Email or something?"

"I don't have email. I doubt I could even use a computer."

"Computers make you lazy, anyway." Dominik stuck his nose in the air, pretending to be self-righteous. "You start relying on instant mail, and then you forget that it's really important to take real time to contact someone."

Amara stared at him for a second, then giggled. "You really are something else."

"Why does everyone keep saying that?"

"Because you are!"

"I guess I'll take that as a compliment... though mine was better earlier." He grinned when Amara reddened anew. What power was this? Making this beautiful older woman smile and blush? "Alright, I'll leave you alone," he said, standing. "It's time for my shower, anyway."

Well, now what do I do? he thought as he stood underneath the shower's warm spray. How will I sleep, or train, or do anything normal now that I think so highly of Amara? Now that she'll be with me tonight, and onto the Ruins of Alph, and all sorts of places in the coming weeks?

It'll all be better, he answered himself, because I'll have her with me.

But he thought of her story from dinner, of the one called Midori. The "red-haired young man in a long coat," as he'd heard her think when she saw his Thunder Badge and reflected on Vermilion City. He felt a twist in his chest, a sudden pang.

That was fast, he thought, pausing to stare at the shower wall. Is this what they call jealousy? Am I jealous of the man she made a promise to four years ago?

That would be stupid, he continued discussing to himself. Who am I to interfere with her past? What does it matter to me if she lives her life for someone who may have moved on without her?

But that was precisely the issue. Dominik blinked, the realization of truth pouring over him like his running shower. She was lost, trying to build a place for herself in the open field of the world where people, not unlike middle-school soccer players, would trample her in a heartbeat. If only he could save her...

For the first time, he regretted his upcoming trip to Hoenn.

When he got back to the room, he saw that Amara was sitting on her bed, her back against the wall. Kira, Tenrai, and Neriah were all curled up beside her, and she was at the beginning of the first J.R.R. Torkoal book. He was at once moved by this sweet scene, and smiled wide when she looked up and welcomed him back. "I decided I should see what I'm missing," she said, holding up the book. "You don't mind, do you?"

"I was going to suggest it, actually," he said, hanging his towel on the back of the desk chair. "Take your time, I've read them all twice."

She nodded and yawned. "I'm tired already."

"Warm shower plus a comfortable bed and a good book, I imagine." Dominik stretched. "I think I'm tired, too. I woke up early and got to haul branches around, remember?"

"Did you really not mind? Or were you just saying that because Towa wanted to hear you complain?"

"Well, I minded her. But I do like getting up early, yeah. That's when the sun gets up."

"Do you want to have another battle tomorrow, in the woods again?"

She was so straightforward. "I really feel bad about... getting Kira healed," she went on, her voice lowering. "I just didn't know... she assured me she's fine, and even liked it. The fast recovery, that is. So I want to have another battle, a proper one that doesn't end with me freaking out."

"Don't worry about it," Dominik said, sitting on the edge of her bed. "It was just strange to you. Nothing to feel bad over." He reached out and patted Kira's head. "I promise I'll battle with Neriah tomorrow. I'm sorry I was showing off Leilani."

"No, you had good reason. Now I see why you were so confident to enter the forest by yourself last night. You'll do great in Hoenn with her."

Dominik didn't want to think about Hoenn. The only good thing that came to his mind was that his departure was two months away.

Amara yawned again, bookmarking her page and setting the novel on top her backpack, resting against the bedpost. "I guess we'd better get to sleep, huh?"

He echoed her yawn. "Looks like." He climbed to the top bunk as she crossed the room to turn out the light. "Good night," she said.

"Sleep well," he replied, crossing his arms behind his head and staring up at the darkened ceiling.

You don't mind if I stay down here, do you? he heard Neriah's soft question in his mind.

Of course not, he sent back. As long as you're comfortable. He didn't want his young Espeon to endanger herself on his top bunk. She said nothing more, drifting off to sleep, and Dominik listened as Amara's breathing became deep and steady.

~ * ~​

Well-rested and full from another large meal, Dominik led the way out of the pokécenter. He marveled at how peaceful he felt this morning: the sky was clear and blue, the late morning warm without humidity, and he was preparing to battle with Neriah. Amara would be a good training partner, too. Her Pikachu was sharp and fast, and could obey telepathic orders. Tenrai was surely just as powerful, though he probably wouldn't be the one to battle Neriah. Amara was so considerate, taking account of her pokémon's feelings.

His favorite time of year, his favorite pastime, and his new, albeit first, favorite person. Dominik wondered if this was true happiness, something he didn't think he'd feel again. Being a spoiled child on Christmas morning was nothing compared to this.

"Here." He handed Amara a couple of small bottles when they'd found a suitable clearing. "It's super potion. It'll heal a weakened pokémon in battle."

"Oh... thank you," she said quietly, staring at the potions.

"One of many things we trainers pick up," he added, taking a step back. He released both Neriah and Leilani. "So Leilani can have some fresh air," he explained. "It's too nice a day to keep her in a ball."

Amara smiled as the Exeggutor took in her surroundings. Tenrai began to explore too, sniffing around the base of a tree. Amara turned her head as he lifted his leg. "Okay, then," she said. "Shall we get started?"

"Jolt?" Tenrai suddenly spoke up. Finished with his business, he was staring ahead, ears raised alertly. He growled softly.

"Peeeon." Neriah stepped closer to Dominik's side. I knew I didn't like this place, she said silently.

Everyone was still as they heard steady trampling through the woods. Amara shielded her eyes, looking in the same direction as Tenrai. Dominik closed his own, searching...

"There's just someone coming through," he said after a moment.

"Who?" Amara asked. "A trainer?"

"I... I don't know. I didn't really look into it."

At her curious look, he replied, "I meant it when I said I want to stop reading minds so much."

"But how do we know if--"

She was interrupted as a middle-aged man stepped into their clearing. "Well, what have we here?" he asked gruffly, with a satisfied smile. He was disheveled all over, a misshapen pack strapped to his shoulders. His eyes darted from Neriah and Kira at their owners' feet to Tenrai and Leilani off to the sides. "Pretty unusual pokémon for a couple of kids like yourselves," he discerned. He reached around to his back and pulled out a long gun, pointing it at the both of them. "You'd best hand them over to me."

 

[Geodude]

I think this is the first time I've read one of your stories. I can safely say that you're an awesome writer! Your descriptive ability leaves mine in the dust. :-D

 

[Barb]

This is wonderful. I love Amara's agoraphobia, and Dominik's gentleness. This is a great story. I must read your other fics.

*laughs* JRR Torkoal? Funny, I'm seeing "Return of the King" tonight, too. :-D

 

[DGE]

*gets teary-eyed* New readers? I... I love you guys. You have no idea how much it means that you'd review this one out of anything else. Amara and Dominik are... close to my heart. [/melodrama]

Yes, I thought my JRR Torkoal was a stroke of genius. ^_^v

 

[Rocky Cliffs]

JRR Torkoal: more creative than I could ever hope to be.

You suck. You really do. You make me see how horrible my writing is compared to yours. You make me want to vomit. Stop writing so well. I mean it. Stop now.

~Rocky "On the plus side, CROSSOVER will be great!" Cliffs

 

[DGE]

WTF are you doing here!? And reviewing THIS FIC of all things!?

Okay, okay, I'll re-add my dedication on the last chapter. Happy? ^_~