Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ The Way Home ❯ Chapter 6

My parents are one factor I cannot control. Therefore, if they keep me off the computer I can't update, hai?

Notes: <> for telepathy, ** for thoughts, italics if a pokemon talks

DISCLAIMER: Pokemon belongs to Nintendo and Shogakukan Comics. This non-profit, non-copyright infringing fanfic belongs to me.

Red is from the other dimension, Ash is the one from the real dimension, but they were both named Ash…

Chapter 6

 

He was watching the stars.

All right, that was stretching the truth a bit. He wasn't really watching the stars. He was watching the sky, except he couldn't see it, so Ash had yet to figure out why.

Despite everything, he had gone down to dinner.

“You're not hungry, Lance.”

Lance shook his head. He liked quiet. Quiet was good. Quiet could let you just fade away, almost…

“Lance!”
Ash dashed back to the room, expecting blood. All he saw was Lance staring at the moon still.

Maybe he was getting paranoid… but considering what Lance had already pulled on him, maybe not.

“Lance, you didn't poison yourself, did you? Oh, I hope not!”

Lance cursed inwardly, was Ash going to mind-read him now. He didn't have to poison himself, since poisons didn't affect him, being… well, that was a Lugia's child benefit deal.

Ash left the meatloaf and mashed potatoes and exited. Lance waited until he was gone, before contemplating the food. Back in the other world, he had gotten by, but having to use silverware now… oh joy.

The mashed potatoes were no problem, just spooning around, he had to figure out the circular shape of the plate first, and then… well, he ate them all, and a little bit of the meatloaf, fed the rest to Aerodactyl who liked it.

Nobody would notice the difference, right?

 

He slept.

Ash came back sometime in the middle of the night and slept also. The next morning was another day on the cruise.

 

“Prepare for Trouble!”

“And make it Double!”

“To protect the world from devastation!”

“To unite all peoples within our nation!”

“To denounce the evils of truth and love!”

“To extend our reach to the stars above!”

“Jessie!”

“James!”

“Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!”

“Surrender now or prepare to fight!”

“Meowth, that's right!”

 

“The black wind assassins!” Ash gasped, almost dropping his bowl of cereal.

“Red,” Lance commented wryly, a glass of orange juice still in his hand. “Remember what I said about duplicates?”

“But aren't they dangerous?”

“We can observe quietly. You be the eyes.” Ash watched as the rockets pulled out suction machines that began to snatch away every single poke ball in sight.

“Gyarados, go! Hyper Beam!”

Jessie and James went flying, but the other rocket agents were still there.

 

“Everyone, use your pokemon to fight back!” A boy said. It was a black-haired boy, wearing blue jeans and a red-and-white special looking cap.

He looked oddly familiar.

“That's…”

“You.” Lance said, putting an arm on Red's. “Do you see now?”

The trainers regained their wits and sure enough, all the pokemon they managed to release took care of the team rocket agents. Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Charmander, Pikachu, and Butterfree… you name it.

Those pokemon banded together and drove the rockets away.

Unfortunately, the ship now began to toss and turn, almost daring the sea to swallow it up. Murky black clouds gathered overhead as rain began to fall in torrents. A relentless storm had somehow brewed up. How? Was it wild dragon pokemon? Weather phenomena? Dumb luck? In any case…

Due to several holes in the roof thanks to Team Rocket and other attacks, people began getting soaked, and wet, and… well, soaked.

“We're going to sink!” The selfish captain cried, and ran for the lifeboats. So did many of the other trainers. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts, the S.S. Anne did not carry enough lifesaving devices for all.

Lance released Aerodactyl, Red his Gyarados, and they escaped, taking with them three passengers. Well, four counting the Pikachu…

 

Misty stared at the boy who had rescued her. He looked kind of hot, with long black hair and golden eyes.

“Hi, my name's Ash Ketchum.” Ash introduced himself.

The other boy looked startled for a second, but nodded. “I'm Red.”

“So, nice to meet you.”
“Listen, I don't have time to talk now.” Red said. Looking at the Aerodactyl overhead, he risked a call. “Lance, you all right?”

“I'm fine.” The return came.

“Where are we going?”

“To find shelter.”

Brock nodded. “That would work… see any islands?”

“No, it's too dark.” Red explained. “I can't see anything from here.”

“What about your friend?”

“… He's blind.”

 

After some more surfing, they were all thoroughly drenched, but soon shelter and an island were spotted. So, that was good. The rain had stopped, but a bitingly chill wind was blowing in from the sea.

At this rate pneumonia was becoming a concern.

“Aerodactyl, Return.” Lance recalled his flying type, feeling the exhaustion radiating from his fossil pokemon. “Well, it looks like we're stranded here on the island here.” He blinked at the darkness in his eyes, but nothing would pierce it.

Ash looked worried. “My poke balls! Two of them are missing!”

“But we can't find them now, it's pitch black! Don't worry. Right now, we need to be more concerned about finding shelter.” Brock tried to reassure him.

Red nodded. After about ten minutes' walking inland, they spotted a cave that looked dry enough and entered.

Ash's Charmander started a fire, and soon they were dry enough.

 

Lance sat slightly apart from the others, wrapped in his black cloak and not saying a word. Ash frowned, and was about to walk over, when Red shook his head.

It hurt…

He had broken Lance's trust, and now… did his teacher hate him? Please, Mew, no… I can't live with that…

Lance coughed, and he looked worried again.

“Lance? Are you sick?”

“No, it is just the wind. Do not worry, tomorrow the storm shall have passed and then we can find real shelter.”

Brock nodded.

 

End Chapter

Completed 9/5/04