Chapter 11

(I dedicate this chapter to Darth_Sylph, who has helped me so much with editing Spite Without Shame and Searching Without Shame. I am also dedicating a new pokemon character to you, and I'm sure you'll know who it is when named. I have been looking forward to this flashback so much that I almost started writing it when starting Chapter 10. Please enjoy this long chapter!)

Thunder rumbled as Archy the Arcanine splashed through puddles, White clutching onto him. After weeks of traveling, she and the rest of her pokemon had traveled halfway across the region. They had faced many challenges that had left them injured and ill. Most of her pokemon were sick or on the verge of unconsciousness, so White had decided to put them in pokeballs. The only pokemon that were still standing were Archy, Pichu, and Thundrus. However, Thundrus hadn't caused any storms in awhile, and the current one was made by none other than nature.

"Watch your head, Whit!" Archy called as White almost hit her head on a low hanging tree branch.

"Can't we rest for awhile?" pleaded Pichu, who was perched on White's shoulder. "This storm is going to be the death of us!"

"We have to keep going! We must find a proper shelter!" the Arcanine huffed as he leapt over a fallen tree.

"Why can't we go on the high walks?" White asked Archy. There were wooden high walks over the tall grass so travelers could avoid contact with wild pokemon.

"They can't support my weight, other wise we would." He replied sadly.

Lightning cracked through the dark night. She was tired and wanted to rest for awhile. But she was scared. Scared of the loud noises, the darkness, and the shadows. The moon wasn't even out. Everything had been engulfed by the storm.

As a lightning bolt cut across the sky, White heard a hissing noise, almost like a wire burning. She then caught a glimpse of a shadow crouched near their location. Its pale yellow eyes glowed eerily in the night. They were fixed on the two pokemon and the human.

"Flamethrower and Flash!" White cried.

Pichu and Archy attacked without question. Archy roared and flames streamed out of his jaws. Pichu squeaked and lit up the area. A Liepard was snarling at them from the shadows , crouched in an attack position.

It shrieked and lunged at them. Archy tried avoiding the Liepard's claws, but they got caught on White's cloak. Pichu squeaked as she was knocked off her trainer's shoulder. She screamed and was dragged off Archy's back. The Arcanine roared in fury as the Liepard pinned her down.

"ARCHY!" White cried, tears trailing down her cheeks as the pokemon clawed at her body.

The Arcanine flung the Liepard away from White and shot fire at it. The rain reduced it's size, so it didn't do much damage. The cat-like pokemon hissed and tackled the canine pokemon.

" Pichu, get White out of here!" Archy roared as he avoided an attack.

"Come on!" Pichu pleaded with White as she started to cry.

The small girl sniffed but scrambled to her feet. Pichu used Flash again before running through the tall grass. White looked back at the battle as she ran after the tiny mouse pokemon.

The shrieks and howls became distant the farther they ran. White continued to sniff and sob as she and Pichu ran through the grass. Her entire body hurt and stung. Her stomach ached with hunger, and her throat felt like a wasteland.

"Everything will be ok, Whit!" Pichu told her encouragingly. "Archy is tough! He defeated all the strong Arcanines in his tribe! We're in good paws!"

White nodded stiffly and wiped her tears away. She just wanted to stop being a wandering orphan. She wanted a home. Someone to take care of her. Someone who loved her for who she was.

She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't register the fallen sapling in her path. White didn't see it until she tripped over it. She yelped as she fell and tumbled down the road. She then stopped when the road became flat again. However, White had landed in a puddle, and was now covered in mud.

"White!" cried Pichu as she slid next to her fallen trainer. "White, are you ok?!"

But White was already crying and hugging herself. She felt Pichu nuzzle against her cheek to comfort her.

"Can you get up?" The small pokemon asked her.

White shook her head and pulled her cape closer to her. She felt all her strength leave her. She didn't even brush away the raindrops splattering on her face.

"I-I don't want t-to do this a-anymore, P-Pichu!" White cried.

"I know, White, I know..." Pichu whispered, curling up next to her. "Everything will be ok soon..."

"I-I want to stop being an outcast! I'm lonely! I love all of you, but I miss N! I miss having a person to be with! I want to talk with a human! Play with one! I want a normal life!"

"I know you do, White. I wish I could give you a normal life. I wish I could bring N back. But we're here. We don't have anyone else. But we have each other. I can't promise that life will change quickly, but we will go through every challenge together, and that's a promise. Ok?"

White sniffled and nodded. She felt Pichu squeeze under her arm and press against her side. Her fur was drenched to the skin, so White pulled her cloak over her as well. They didn't speak after that.

Minutes passed before Pichu got out from under the cape and leapt over to a spot a few feet away. Pichu must have thought White had fallen asleep because the small pokemon began glowing again and began calling for help.

"Archy!" Pichu cried through the wind. "Archway! Please answer! Anyone! We need help!"

A light thudding noise approached them after several minutes. White had closed her eyes because it hurt to keep them open. However, she could tell it was the Arcanine before he even spoke.

"Archy, you look awful!" She heard Pichu gasp.

"That Liepard was a tough one," huffed a weary Archy. "Let's continue on-"

"No! We're not moving! White's exhausted, and you need to rest!"

There was a short pause until Archy said, "Alright. We can stop."

"Maybe we should put you in your pokeball-"

"There could be more wild pokemon, so no!"

"I can handle it. I've grown in strength a lot since I first joined White."

Archy sighed in defeat as White felt Pichu come back over to her. She heard a faint click as the Arcanine's pokeball was disconnected from her belt. There was a bright red light as Archy was sucked inside.

White felt Pichu roll the pokeball back over to her and settle down next to her. The small pokemon continued to glow brightly like a campfire. The rain was beginning to die down, and the thunder was no longer rumbling.

After awhile, Pichu moved away again and continued to call for help. White crawled closer to the pokemon and curled up next to her. She was scared of being in the open by herself.

The night became steadily darker. The clouds were still covering the moon and stars. White was unable to sleep. She was cold and soaked. She half wished that Archy had been left out of his pokeball.

Then after a few hours, a new set of footsteps were approaching. However, White was positive that this was no wild pokemon. The footfalls were lighter than a pokemon's, and the panting was definitely human.

Pichu stopped calling out to listen to the footsteps. The person was coming closer. Somebody yelped as he or she stumbled into their path. The Tiny Mouse pokemon began squeaking loudly to get the person's attention.

White heard a small gasp as the stranger noticed her. She felt the person run over to her, and push her gently off her side and onto her back.

"Miss, are you ok?!" a high pitched, squeaky voice asked frantically. "What happened?! Can you get up?!"

But White merely whimpered and curled up again. She felt the person put their hand on her forehead. She heard he or she give a panicky take of breathe.

"Missy!" The stranger then called out. "Missy, I found someone! She's hurt!"

"Oh good gracious, a girl?" a voice with a bit of an accent cooed from a few feet away. "Not only a girl, but one almost exactly the child's age."

"She needs help, not a proposal!" snapped Pichu.

" Alright, alright, no need to get your tail in a twist, little gal." The pokemon said unconcernedly. White was frightened by the pokemon. She knew it was coming closer to her, but it wasn't making any foot or pawfalls.

"Can you stand up, Miss?" the human asked her, clearly unable to hear or understand the two pokemon speaking.

White tried sitting up straight, but she instantly felt light headed. She let out a small gasp and fell back again. She squinted up at the two pokemon and the human. She barely registered the stranger's face before her vision was clouded.

"I would've settled for a no, it's just as good as fainting..." sighed the human's small voice as White passed out.

*~*~*

A loud squawk and a roar woke White up from her slumber. She recognized Archy's roar and Pichu's squeaking, but the other cries were all unfamiliar to her.

"Get away from us!" Archy bellowed.

"They've trying to help us, you idiot!" Pichu snapped at him.

"You've got a problem with us helping you, puppy dog?" hissed the pokemon that had found them. "If you've got a problem with that, take it up to me! Don't go trying to bite off the boy's head instead!"

As the pokemon said this, White heard a small sniffling noise. It didn't sound like a pokemon at all. It sounded human.

She sat up slowly and began to notice her surroundings. They were in what appeared to be in a forest clearing. However, it was dark, and the trees were very close together. It was almost like a nature made hut.

Archy was out of his pokeball and was crouched in front of White, Pichu perched on his back. He was growling at a mysterious, dark violet pokemon. It was floating above the ground, which explained why she didn't hear footsteps. It looked like a purple ghost with a witch hat.

Behind the Ghost Type were two pokemon and the human boy. One pokemon looked like a parrot with feathers of black, blue, yellow, and green, it's wings spread out to shield the human and the other pokemon. The other pokemon looked like a small humanoid pokemon. It was pink with dark blue, stumpy legs and a hat. It had a round red nose and a red orb on its chest. It was hugging the boy, who was crying into his hands. White couldn't see his face behind his hands and messy black hair, but he looked around the same age as her.

"Archy, what are you doing?" White asked the Arcanine.

Archy jumped and turned around. His tail started to wag back and forth as he went over to her. She giggled a little as he began licking her face. Pichu squeaked happily and jumped on her head. The Ghost Type glared at Archy before gliding over to the crying boy.

"What did you do to him?" White whispered to the canine pokemon, looking over at the boy.

"The kid was taking care of Archy when he woke up," huffed Pichu irritability. "He roared at the poor guy and tried biting him."

Archy scowled at the Pichu and growled, "The kid startled me, ok?!"

White sighed as the two pokemon began bickering with each other. She looked down and noticed that she was covered in a blanket that wasn't her own, and her bag and pokeballs were laying beside her. Someone had cleaned and bandaged her cuts and scrapes. The boy and his pokemon seemed to be trying to nurse her and her pokemon back to health.

She pulled the blanket off and tried standing up. Her knees buckled and White ended up falling back down. She winced and started crawling over to the boy. The parrot-like pokemon who was guarding him fluttered to its trainer's side.

The boy slowly removed his hands from his tear streaked face. White was now able to see more of his appearance. He was wearing a black coat and a white t-shirt underneath it. His jeans were torn and dirty like the rest of his clothes. His black boots looked worn out and weather beaten. He wore filthy navy blue rimmed glasses, but White could still see the boy's bright blue eyes behind them.

"Hi," White said to the boy uncertainly.

The boy sniffed and whispered, "H-Hi..."

"I'm sorry about my Arcanine," she told him apologetically. "He's overprotective of me. Me and the rest of my pokemon haven't had much luck with strangers. People think I'm like a stray animal."

It felt odd talking to another human being after so long. White was unsure if the boy would understand her childhood. She was curious about him as well. Why was he alone? Was he like her, living in the wild with only pokemon for a family?

After a minute or two, the boy asked quietly, "Are you an orphan?"

"I guess you can say that."

"I am too. My parents went to a better place after an accident."

"But don't you have any other family members?"

The boy seemed to hesitate, so White added hurriedly, "I'm sorry I didn't mean to say something wrong!"

"It's not that," he replied, tilting his head to the side. "I've just never talked to another person about this before."

"Neither have I," admitted White. "How long have you been by yourself?"

"My parents died three years ago, but I've been alone for only one year."

"Who did you live with before?"

"My...my sister, Kelly..." The boy sniffed, tears beginning to fall down his face again. "She died in a fire a few months back... Missy and the others have been the ones taking care of me since then."

"What are their names?" White questioned, looking at the boy's pokemon.

"Well that's Missy," he replied pointing at the Ghost Type. "She's a Mismagius, and she's the one who found me. She's like my mommy and teacher."

"How does she teach you? Can you hear her talk?" She blurted out without thinking.

"No, of course not, silly!" Her new friend giggled. "Missy uses her old stick to point out things. Chatter, my Chatot, knows quite a few words, so he also helps me."

"Then who's the pink pokemon?"

"This is Junior, my Mime Jr. And this," he continued, pulling something out of his messy black hair. "This is Jo Jo."

White leaned forward to look at the thing in the boy's cupped hands. A tiny yellow tarantula-like pokemon was scuttling around his palms. It had fuzzy yellow fur, and four blue eyes. It was only a few inches long. Goosebumps rose on her arms as she watched curiously. Though it was kinda cute and fuzzy, it did creep her out.

"Don't worry, she doesn't bite or anything," the boy assured her. "She's actually very friendly. She's a Joltik, which is a Bug and Electric Type, but she doesn't shock anyone unless told to."

At this, the tiny Bug Type squeaked happily and made a noise like a purr. From his corner, Archy growled and crouched in his attack position. Missy the Mismagius hissed furiously and floated in front of the boy and his pokemon, who all moved together in fear of the Arcanine.

"Archy, stop it!" White ordered Archy angrily. "This isn't our home, and they took care of us! Show a bit of gratitude."

Archy stopped growling, but glared at the strangers as he laid down. Pichu, who had curled up next to White's bag, snickered loudly at the Arcanine being scolded. White sighed and looked back at the frightened boy.

"I know it's hard to believe, but Archy is very friendly too," she informed him. "He's had a rough time lately. I have a few other pokemon. I got Pichu, a Ponyta, a Lucario, a Clampearl, and another pokemon as well."

She thought it was unwise to tell the boy about Thundrus, since a lot of people thought he was bad luck. However, the boy seemed to become less and less scared of her the more she told him about herself. White then realized that she still didn't know his name.

"What is your name?" she asked the boy curiously.

"I'm Skyler, Skyler Azul!" the boy piped up. "You can just call me Sky Blue for short, or just Sky! What's your name?"

"I'm Whitney, Whitney Gropius." White replied, flinching a little at the sound of her own name, and then adding hurriedly, "But I prefer my new name, White Copperstone."

The boy, Sky Blue, giggled a little and said, "That's a silly name! It's a cool name, but also a silly one!"

White couldn't help but grin as well. The tension that had filled the air when she had first approached Sky Blue was now dissolving slowly. The Mismagius, Mime Jr, Chatot, and the tiny Joltik were beginning to relax around her as well.

"So what is this place?" she asked Sky, now turning her attention to the hut-like forest clearing.

"Its called a Hidden Grotto, I think," he explained. "They are hidden passageways in the forests, kinda like dens. Travelers have a hard time finding them, so they make great hiding spots. Pokemon sometimes live in them, but Missy and the others have lived here since the last pokemon left."

White nodded but stopped as Missy floated closer to her. She shivered as she looked into the Ghost Type's yellow eyes.

"I haven't sensed a human like this in decades," Missy hissed, unaware that White could hear her.

"She looks normal to me!" piped up the Mime Jr, poking White's arm.

"Don't poke the guests, Junior!" squawked Chatter, flapping his wings slightly.

"Oh, it's what can't be seen that I sense." continued Missy, ignoring Chatter.

Are you ok?" Sky asked her as she stiffened and hugged her knees.

"N-Nothing..." She stuttered, putting her hands over her ears.

"You don't seem ok," he continued, scooting over to her and putting his hand on her forehead. "Is there something I should know about?"

"No."

"Now you're just being stubborn. Come on, what's the matter? I wanna help!"

White hesitated. She had just met Sky Blue. Her own mother abandoned her because of her ability. Sky might kick her out if she told him. But she didn't know if it was possible to keep it a secret.

After a moment of thinking, she then blurted out, "I can hear their voices!"

"What?"

I-I," White stammered, brushing her brown and green hair out of her face. "I can hear the voices of pokemon. I-I understand what they say. T-That's why I'm all alone..."

Silence followed the rest of her sentence. Sky blinked at her before saying slowly, "That actually sounds pretty cool, but that's kinda impossible at the same time."

"You don't believe me?" sniffed White.

"I wanna believe you, but I kinda want proof. Can you show me?"

"I guess I can, but I would need one of your pokemon."

"Why?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I used one of my own."

Sky Blue didn't object as he shakely handed her his Joltik. Jo Jo squeaked happily and crawled up White's arm. She shuddered as she scooped up the pokemon with her cupped hand. She held it close to her mouth and whispered to it in the pokemon language.

Jo Jo blinked her four blue eyes at White then leapt back over to Sky. Electricity buzzed as Jo Jo leapt into his hair and zapped him lightly. Sky Blue yelped and ran his hands through his hair to dislodge the Joltik.

"Ow, that hurt!" Sky Blue whined as Jo Jo gave a screechy giggle and jumped off him.

"Well what else could I have done?" White asked simply.

"Something less painful..." He muttered.

"Do you believe me?"

"Well, yeah, I guess! It's just that I was told humans who could understand pokemon were just legends!"

White didn't reply to this. She had been told the same thing by her mom. When she was much younger, her mom would tell her stories about warriors that had been gifted with the ability to speak to pokemon and heal their wounds. When White or N asked her if the ability was real, she had always told them that it was only a story. Their grandfather, however, told them that legends always had a bit of truth in them.

A minute later, White finally whispered, "I can leave right now if you want..."

"What? A-Aren't you staying?"

"Don't you want me to leave?"

"Of course not!" Sky Blue replied flatly. "I like you! I've never had a human friend before! You're nice and cool! I want you to stay!"

"R-Really?"

"Sure!"

At this, without giving a warning, White flung herself on her new friend and hugged him tightly. She heard Sky gasp for air, but she didn't let go.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" cried White happily, unable to contain her joy.

She suddenly felt light headed. She let go of Sky and clutched her head.

"W-White?" stammered Sky. "W-What's wrong?"

"Head hurts..." White muttered as she became dizzy.

"Yeah, you better rest now, girl," snorted Missy as the Mismagius put a blanket over White's head. "Chatter, Junior, go find more of them berries."

"Can't that wait till it's lighter out?" The Chatot complained.

"Yeah, it's not even dawn!" added Junior.

"I said now!" Missy growled, and the two pokemon didn't object any further. They both shuddered and ran down a passage that must have led back into the route.

Archy approached White and set her on his back. She wrapped her arms around his neck. The Arcanine took her away from Sky Blue and Missy, and set her next to Pichu. White felt Archy's fluffy tail wrap around her. The Arcanine was letting out a low growl. He seemed determined not to let anyone close to her.

She heard Sky Blue sigh sadly from where she left him. White looked up to see him curl up on the cold grass. The blanket she had was probably his.

White grabbed her bag and pulled out her own blanket. She crawled back over to Sky Blue and put his blanket over him. She laid down next to him as she wrapped her blanket around herself. White squeaked as Sky suddenly rolled over and hugged her.

"Kelly..." She heard him murmur sleepily.

White remembered that he had said that Kelly was the name of his dead sister. She hugged him back and whispered, "I'm right here, Sky Blue."

***

"Oi! Give it back!"

"I'm playing with it now!"

"Kick it to me!"

"No, me!"

"Don't trust my fuzzball brother or the potted plant, I want it!"

White was sitting on a bench with Fiona as Hamycus, Arianna, Pepper, Green Ivy, and Lily Rose played with a tin can they had found on the streets of Lumiose City. She and the other trainers have been in Kalos for three days already. Mira and Leia kept visiting the boutiques, and Amos would go on the nearby routes to train.

White had failed to find Sky Blue on routes 4 and 16. Route 14 was blocked because of the power outage, and Route 13 was like Unova's Route 4. It had a sandstorm almost constantly brewing. White had a rare, unnamed disease that made it hard for her to breathe in sand, dust, or smoke, and it grew worse the older she got. She had surgery after the battle with Team Plasma, so now she was able to at least breathe in sand without fatal consequences. She was going to search Route 5 shortly.

She jumped as Fiona tapped her shoulder. White looked at her to see her point at something down the street. She looked around to see a spotted panda-like pokemon being chased by a robin-like pokemon. A Charmander, Squritle, and Sewaddle were running after them.

The baby pokemon that were playing with the tin can stopped to watch the newcomers. White easily recognized the Spinda and Sewaddle as Loopy and Sowny. The starters were most likely Samson and Petunia. However, the Flying Type was not one she recognized.

"Move back, you lot!" White snapped as she pulled the Tepig, Growlithe, Bulbasaur, and Eevees back near the bench with her staff

The Spinda had suddenly tripped on her own feet and tumbled toward them. The pokemon that had chased Loopy gave a chirpy laugh as Loopy became the tan and red blur and rolled into the bench. Fiona squealed and picked the little panda pokemon up. The Spinda giggled as its head flopped to one side.

"Loopy!" cried Samson, running over to them and looking up at his friend.

"I'm ok!" Loopy said unconcernedly, flopping her head to the other side. "Just a little dizzy!"

"That wasn't nice, Fletcher!" Petunia scolded the robin pokemon.

"You're not my human!" retorted the pokemon.

"I am in charge in the human's absence!" Sowny snapped. "Fletch, no more terrorizing the Spinda!"

"Would you rather have me eat you for an afternoon snack?"

"I wouldn't try, bird brain!"

"Ok, you two, break it up!" White growled, nudging the two pokemon apart with her foot. "Sowny, where are you guys' trainers?"

"Oh look, we ditched them!" Sowny replied, looking over his shoulder. "We weren't even trying!"

"Sowny! Petunia! Fletcher!"

White looked around to see Margaret running toward them, followed by Danny. Despite Kalos currently being a bit more warmer than Kanto, they both were still wearing their winter clothes. Margaret was wearing her long red cloak and jacket, while Danny wore his own overcoat, which was light blue, unlike White's teal colored one.

"Oh, I thought I lost you guys!" Margaret gasped as she ran over to the Sewaddle and Squritle and hugged them.

"I'm guessing that new pokemon is yours, right?" White asked while the Flying Type fluttered onto the rookie trainer's shoulder.

"Yes, and it's driving me insane," snorted Danny, who caught up to them and picked up his Charmander.

"Fletcher just needs some training!" Margaret retorted, setting the Flying Type on her arm. "White, this is Fletcher, my Fletchling."

White looked at the pokemon a little more closely. She had seen pokemon like it before. Fletcher had reddish orange, light blueish gray, and dark gray feathers. It was a pretty bird-like pokemon, but White could tell that it had a fiery nature.

"I see you learned how to catch pokemon fairly quickly," White commented. "Did you catch anything, Danny?"

"I haven't found anything to my liking." Danny answered quietly, picking up Loopy and Fiona, who was reaching her arms out to show him that she wanted to be held.

"So you're not even going to tell her about the good news?" Margaret asked him, raising her eyebrows slightly.

"What news?" the older trainer intervened as Danny just shrugged unhelpfully.

Margaret sighed and took hold of the flap of her friend's coat. She pulled it back to reveal a bronze badge that was clipped to the back of it. It was shaped like a beetle. It had light green elements imprinted around it like spots.

"You got a gym badge?" White demanded, who was impressed by this. "So soon?"

"We started in a city with a gym," Margaret explained, frowning at Danny. "He got it on our first day. For some reason, he doesn't want to show it off."

"I don't want to sound like a snob, Margaret." Danny told her irritability.

"Yeah? Well my mother's side of the family is like that, so I got a good idea what a snob really is. Trust me, you're not a snob."

"Look, I'd love to debate with you two, but I was going to check on a nearby route," White interrupted, standing up and leaning against her staff. "I'm pretty much going lunatic hunting. But first I need to find two fashion fans and a shy coordinator, I can't walk around with all these guys."

"I can watch them!" volunteered Margaret, who had knelt down to look at the Tepig, Bulbasaur, Growlithe, and Eevees. "They are so cute!"

"Are you sure you wanna watch them?"

"Yep! I've babysat pokemon before!"

White glanced at the pokemon to see them starting to crowd around Margaret. They were purring, oinking, and barking happily. Seeing that they were in good hands, she nodded and turned to Danny.

"Do you want to go lunatic hunting, babysitting, or exploring?" White asked him.

He shrugged and replied, "Kinda depends on what kind of lunatic we're hunting."

"Don't worry, the dude is half blind. He's not crazy insane, but he's pretty insane at the same time."

"I look forward to it then."

White smirked as she watched him return Loopy and Samson to their pokeballs, and then set down Fiona. The auburn haired girl looked disappointed and clung to Danny's leg instead.

"You know, I think besides White, Fiona has grown more attached to you than anyone else." Margaret commented as Danny tried prying her gently off his leg.

"I like her too, but I'm going to need my legs," Danny said calmly.

"Oh, fine. Hey, Fiona! Come over here by me!"

Fiona glanced at Margaret curiously. She then let go of Danny and went over by the other rookie. White noticed Fiona wave to him as they left.

"So are you two staying at the Hotel Richissime as well?" The older trainer asked Danny as they began walking to the exit of the city that led to Route 5.

"Well it's the only hotel here, isn't it?" Danny answered as he buttoned up his overcoat to hide his Bug Badge. "Me and Margaret are paying for our own rooms. So who exactly are we looking for again?"

"He's an old childhood friend of mine," sighed White. "I've known him for about ten years now. You'll know him when you see him, he hides in the places you least expect an adult to be."

"Wait, the guy is an adult?"

"Isn't eighteen when you become an adult? Well, I guess I never really consider him an adult anyway. He's like a child in a man's body. His behavior really depends on the situation. He has some issues, and his phobia doesn't really help in some cases. I don't know what it's exactly called..."

"What fear?" Her friend asked curiously.

"He has a fear of older women," White answered, scowling a little. "It's kinda difficult to explain."

"At least try, because I feel like I'm getting the wrong impression of this friend of yours."

"Well, you see, three years ago, me and him had a battle against two women that were probably four to six years older than us. He ended up losing an eye from an attack from one woman's Gardevoir. Since then, he's kinda grown a fear of women older than himself. He can connect easily with girls younger, the same age, or even a year or two older than himself, but he will get really nervous when around women who are three or more years older than him."

"I'm glad you clarified that."

Route 5 was a very interesting route to White. She had been on the route once before around seven or eight years previously. She did not remember the skate park being so big and colorful. It still seemed to be a poplar place for skaters.

"Why don't you want to show anyone your gym badge?" White asked Danny abruptly.

"I just don't." He answered, looking away from her.

"Does this have something to do with Red?"

White watched Danny carefully as she said this. He then grunted and nodded.

"Daniel, stop letting Red's fame and your jealousy take over your life." She sighed, using Danny's full name. "It's going to kill you from the inside out."

"Do you have any idea what it feels like to be overshadowed by someone like my brother?" Danny demanded. "Everybody knows and loves him! He's always been popular! Nobody knows I'm even alive! If they do know I'm living and breathing, I will be expected to be just like him, but I'm not!"

"Nobody is going to judge you here," White told him calmly, stoping in her tracks to face him. "I know what you're going through, I really do. Being the younger sibling isn't easy, especially when the older sibling gets more attention. But you have things that Red doesn't, like Margaret for instance. I'm sure he doesn't have a good friend like her right now."

Taking advantage of Danny's silence, White unbuttoned his overcoat an unpinned his gym badge from the inside of it. The bronze beetle glimmered in the sunlight.

"A gym badge, a badge given to a Pokemon trainer who has beaten a Pokemon gym of a town or city," she recited as she pinned the badge on to Danny's scarf. "It is a sign that the challenger successfully defeated the gym leader in battle, and is a skillful and resourceful trainer."

Danny glanced at White before looking at the badge. She couldn't help but recall the Red she knew. He had been quiet and wasn't very social. Danny was the same, but he got angry faster than his brother.

"Thank you," Danny said quietly after a minute. "I'm sorry if I annoy you with my rants."

"Not at all. It's nice hearing someone rant besides myself." White replied with a small smile.

A scuttering noise brought the two of them back to earth. They turned to see a large, yellow tarantula-like pokemon playing with what appeared to be a rubber ball in the tall grass. It seemed too occupied to notice the two trainers, which White was grateful for.

"Are those kind of pokemon native to Kalos?" Danny asked her in a whisper.

"No, they're not," she answered, moving away from him and approaching the pokemon.

When she got close enough to the Galvantula that her shadow fell over it, the Bug Type turned slowly to see what had approached her. It squeaked and jumped in the air after seeing White. The pokemon was breathing heavily as it picked up its ball with her pincers.

"Hello, Jo Jo," White greeted the Galvantula calmly, kneeling down to see it. "Do you know where your trainer is?"

Jo Jo twitched nervously before squeaking, "Noooooo, and the ball is mine!"

"I don't want your ball, I want your trainer's head. Please, can you tell me where Sky is?"

The Bug Type blinked at White with her multiple blue eyes. She then pointed one of her legs at a path that led deeper into Route 5.

"Thanks," White told Jo Jo, giving the Galvantula's head a quick pat. Jo Jo purred before scuttering back into the grass to play with her ball.

"What was that?" Danny asked White as she walked back over to him.

"That was Jo Jo," she answered back. "She's my friend's only female pokemon. She's kinda like my personal spy sometimes. Well, come on, we're probably close."

The older trainer beckoned the rookie down the path that Jo Jo had showed her. White knew Sky Blue well enough to know that he hides in unexpected places, even when injured. She was pretty sure that Danny thought she was just as crazy since she kept stopping to look in holes in the ground. They did run into native pokemon, like Skiddos and Gulpins, but Danny took the responsibility of defeating them.

After awhile of searching, White began to hear voices of both human and pokemon. She stopped walking and held up her hand to stop Danny.

"What's wrong?" He asked, sounding tense.

"Be quiet for a minute," White requested, straining to hear the voices.

"How long are we going to be up here?" a pokemon's voice complained. "Why couldn't we stay at that hotel in the city?"

"I'm broke, remember?" snapped a familiar human voice. "I don't have the money to stay there! Now, would one of you please pass me that stupid tool?"

"Aye!"

White made a motion to Danny to tell him to stay put and to be silent. She then carefully and quietly approached a large tree with a thick trunk. The voices seemed to be coming from it. She then took her staff and slammed it against the tree trunk.

There was a yelp as a bag, some unfinished mechanical technology, and a shell fell from the tree. A Squritle poked its head out of the shell and looked around the area. It squeaked and went back in its shell after seeing the intruders.

A loud pop announced the arrival of the person White was looking for. A white and green humanoid pokemon teleported next to the Squritle. A boy in his late teens was sitting on the humanoid pokemon's shoulder.

"Oh snap, she's brought a posse, run!" Sky Blue yelled as White swung her staff at him.

"YOU IDIOT!" White bellowed at him as Shane the Gallade teleported a few feet away from her. "GET OVER HERE RIGHT NOW!"

"Ah, come on, Whit!" The other trainer replied as she ran over to the Gallade and tried aiming her staff at him. "I've almost been killed by one person, I don't need you to turn against me!"

"WHY I EVEN BOTHERED WORRYING ABOUT YOU, I WILL NEVER KNOW!"

"That means you still love me!"

"WELL NOT AT THE MOMENT, YOU LITTLE CYCLOPS!"

"Ok, now that's just insulting!"

"THAT'S THE WHOLE IDEA!"

"White, I don't think I signed up to murder anyone today," Danny interrupted, who had walked between White and her victims. "I don't even know the guy."

"Ugh, fine!" White snarled, putting down her staff and giving Sky the death glare. "I'll deal with him later!"

With the danger gone, Sky Blue slid off Shane and landed with a wince on the ground. He looked the same as he did when White last met with him. His usual messy black hair covered his navy blue eye patch, so people could only see his one bright blue eye. He still had his immature and crazy personality.

However, this time Sky looked a little more battle scarred. His leather jacket and jeans were all torn, and she could see that he now wore lots of bandages. One of his legs was now in a medical boot, which explained why he needed Shane for support. He also wore a splint on one of his arms. Dark bruises and shiny burns were all over him. Sky Blue was apparently in a worse condition than White expected.

"That cyclops thing hurt, like, deep!" Sky Blue complained as he picked up the Squritle, which had crawled over to them.

"So does finding out that you almost died!" White retorted furiously.

"Well there's a lot more painful things than dying!"

"Like what?!"

"Like receiving the medical bill for the treatment!"

She hissed furiously at this, but she heard Danny chuckle a little.

"Whatever," White growled. "Danny this is the lunatic Sinnoh produced, Skyler Azul, but he prefers the name Sky Blue. Sky, this is Danny Ketchum, he's a trainer for that will be traveling with us."

"Oh, hi- wait, traveling?" Sky Blue added blankly.

"Remember the message I sent you? The one where you just sent back a smiley face?"

"Oh yeah, about that, I thought you were just pulling my leg..."

"Skyler, I never lie to you when I'm in a bad mood." She snarled, narrowing her gaze as she used his real name.

"You two don't like each other, do you?" Danny asked before Sky could retort.

"Let's say that I'm not in the mood for his immature behavior." White answered coldly.

"Aw, but I like ya!" Sky whined, but then winced as White elbowed him.

"Just please be quiet, Sky! And before you stop talking, where did you get the Squritle from?!"

"Hey, his name is Scotty!"

"Scotty?" repeated Danny. "Isn't that a strange name for a Squritle?"

"Not for a Squritle of his kind!" The one-eyed trainer replied, and then whispering in White's ear, "Scotty has a bit of a strong accent!"

"Aye!" the Squritle, Scotty, giggled in a foreign accent.

"Where did you get him?" White demanded, ignoring the Squritle.

"He is the reason that I am still alive! He scared off the attacker, and he brought help! He wanted to stay with me, so the dude at the lab gave him to me!"

"Ok, we're moving over the foreign Squritle. Sky, get your stuff together, you're coming to Lumiose City with us."

"White, I don't want to go on your adventure around this creepy region!" Sky Blue argued, now becoming angry. "Me and Kalos have never been friends! Look at what happened last time!"

White couldn't really argue back with him. She could understand his reluctance to come with them. It was unlikely that Sky would forget the trauma he was put through the last time they came to Kalos. White was also worried that the events would repeat themselves and that she would lose Sky Blue. But she had already promised that she would come on the journey.

"Well we're going to have to suffer through this together," White finally sighed, putting her hands on her hips. "Any other complaints from any of you boys? Questions? Concerns?"

When nobody said anything, she continued, "Alright, suit yourself. Sky Blue, I would get your junk before I throw my stick at you."

"Are you ever gonna explain what happened on your first visit?" Danny asked White as Sky Blue huffed furiously and went to get his possessions.

"It's not really my place to tell," she admitted. "It's really Sky's decision, and he's never told anyone."

Just then, Scotty the Squritle jumped into White's overcoat hood and giggled madly.

"Halo, lad and lass!" He greeted in his accent. "Scotty's the name! Hou ar ye, lad and lass?"

White clenched her teeth to keep herself from yelling at Sky Blue to get his pokemon off her. She didn't appreciate being called a lass.

"I'm not an expert, but I think that Squritle likes you already." Danny teased her, smirking slightly.

"I see that," White growled as she took Scotty out of her hood and set him down. She noticed that he had a red bandana tied around his neck. She then told him, "Go and help your trainer, Scott."

"Aye!" Scotty responded, saluting to her and running back over to Sky Blue.

White looked over her shoulder and watched Sky climb back onto Shane's back. Though she never really showed it, it always hurt her to see her friend so injured and weak. She loved Sky Blue very much, even though she would beat him up every once in awhile (like any normal sibling would). He was like her second older brother. White didn't want to see him face the same dangers in Kalos as he did before, so she would do everything in her power to keep him safe.

~~~

....You guys wanted pokemon with accents? Here, have a Scottish Squritle. He's named after one of my favorite chief engineers in Star Trek, Montgomery "Scotty" Scott. I have been learning Scottish expressions and phrases just for him.

So, hi. I personally think I gave this chapter a terrible ending, but it will have to do. I loved writing the flashback though. I don't know about you guys, but I thought little Sky was cute x3

Skyler Azul, aka Sky Blue, will now be in most of White's flashbacks. This flashback was almost a year after the previous flashback, so White is currently seven years old in flashbacks, and Sky Blue is eight years old.

Sky Blue is actually a personal favorite of mine, so that's why I enjoyed writing this chapter. I know most readers never really cared for him, but I like writing about him. I think I made him a little too creepy and insane, but that wasn't my intention. He's a character that I can just have fun with, because I can't really have fun with White ;3 He will be appearing a little more often than he did in SWS.

I think I should give a heads up: starting with this chapter, the AmosXWhiteXSky love triangle now begins. Though most readers of SWS approve of WhiteXSky (Skite) , I'm still a WhiteXAmos (Whimos) sucker. So the two shippings will be decided in this book. Most Skite scenes will be in flashbacks, but some will be in the present. Whimos scenes are also in the present.

My birthday is in a week or two, so I'm not sure when the next update will be. The next chapter will be in a new POV. I can't think of much else to say. If I think of something, I'll add it later.

I will see you guys later! Remember to vote and/or comment! I'm sorry if this chapter was rushed! Next chapter might take awhile! I'll see you all later! Bye!

(Video: Feeling So Blue by Michael Mind Project feat. Dante Thomas)