Hi everyone!!  SK here.

Yeah I had no idea what to name this chapter, cause there's A LOT of stuff happening.  I'm updating early because this weekend I'm gonna be busy, so I want to make sure there's an update out on time!!

Anyways, as always, be sure to enjoy :)

Ash

"R...Rin?" I ask slowly.  "Like... the Dark Leader Rin?"

The spirit sighs.  "Yes, Ash.  That's because I am him."

A pause.

"You don't believe me, do you."

"No no, it's not like that..." I say, then stop.  I don't believe him.  The Dark Leader right now is Rin, not whoever this spirit is.  I've seen Rin with my own eyes.  There's no way-

"Stop that.  Want me to prove it?"

"Um... sure?" I say, my voice rising at the end to signal my uncertainty.  

"Okay.  Close your eyes, and focus very, very hard.  It will be harder to do this without your Necklace, but if you want to see the truth, you have to pretend.  Some fairy already gave this conversation a helping hand, so you need to do the rest."

"I've never used a Necklace before," I point out, but close my eyes anyway.  "See the truth," Rin said.  See... I'll try.  I channel my inner focus, much like how Layra has taught me to do up to this point.  I try to conjure up some sort of image in my head, putting my power into my eyes.  

"Okay, Ash, open your eyes."

I blink them open, and almost yelp at the blurry image of a boy in front of me.  His hair is short and spiky, showing off a light blonde colour- almost white.  His skin is almost as pale as his hair, and he sports a long black suit with a white tie.  His suitcoat is black with gold stripes, and his high black boots have gold trim around the edges.  He looks my age, but I can tell that he's much older than that.  It's funny though, the only thing that differentiates him from the Rin I know is his eyes- his eyes are golden brown while Rin's are purple.

The realization dawns on me.

"He's not Rin, is he," I whisper.

The spirit shakes his head, creating a ripple in the air as he does so.  "No, he's not.  I'll explain everything to you, Ash.  Thank you for trusting me."

"Oh, um, no problem," I blurt out, suddenly feeling sheepish.

"Sit down," Rin says, gesturing to the dewy grass beside him.  "This will be a lot to process."

I do what he says, waiting for him to tell his tale.

"So, how much do you know about the Necklaces?" he asks, beginning with the question.

I think for a moment.  "Not much," I admit.  "All I really know for certain is that they allow fairies to communicate with the spirits that reside inside of them."

"Yes, that much is true," Rin adds.  "The Necklaces function to connect the wearer's soul to the spirit world, which gives them spiritual power along with their magic abilities.  It also gives the spirits an option to stop a fairy if they are abusing their power for selfish reasons, or if they were to be deemed unworthy of being a fairy."

This peaks my interest.  "Really?  How?"

"There are millions of Elementals in the world.  Only a small handful of them ever make it to the fairy world.  The Legendary Pokemon choose which people will enter.  However, even they make mistakes sometimes.  If a person becomes tainted, then when they first bond with the Necklaces the spirits have the option to take over.  It can happen any time after the bonding process, if a fairy can no longer fill their position but will not leave on command."

"Take... over?"

"Take control.  Control the fairy's body," Rin puts simply.  "All that has to happen is that one of the spirits, the challengers, have to win a Pokemon battle against the tainted fairy.  Whoever wins is who gets to take control of the body until the new winner is challenged again."

I nod.  "That's what happened to you, isn't it," I tell him, looking him over.  He doesn't look like a bad fairy, but appearances can be deceiving.

"Yes, but not just to me.  It's happened to every single Dark Leader ever since the war ended."

I stare at the spirit in utter shock.  "What!?"

Rin nods, grimacing.  "The Leader at the time of the war... he was pretty insane.  He was very devoted to his goal, which was to decimate the Light Fairies.  He died during the war, so the Dark Fairies retreated and made a new camp.  A day later, a new Dark Leader came in.  His name was Xavier, he's very nice actually.  Very beautiful ocean-blue eyes and the prettiest smile that I've ever seen-"

"I get it, you're in love," I tell him, grinning at him as he blushes slightly.

"Sh-Shut up," he protests.  "Anyway, he was trained to become the Leader, and as soon as he was fully bonded with the Necklace, he was to go negotiate peace with the Light Fairies.  Well, when he bonded with the Necklace, the previous Leader, Drago, challenged Xavier for his body.  Drago, being as powerful as he was, won the battle, and soon he awoke in Xavier's body with his purple eyes.  Instead of initiating peace, Drago continued to rage war.  Every single Dark Leader challenged him for control but he beat every single one of them, including the great Zagan.  He took control of every single Leader, even now.  The 'me' you saw?  That was really him.  The war was thousands and thousands of years ago... that's how he learned to cheat death.  He robbed countless fairies of their lives and leadership."

"Wow," I say, because what else is there to say?  "I'm... really sorry.  I honestly had no idea.  He's just so-"

"Convincing?" Rin says, finishing my sentence.  "Yes, yes he is.  He's had thousands of years to practice.  He's spent at least a hundred years in my body, I've lost count.  But Ash, this is your chance.  Your have great magic capabilities, your skills in Pokemon battles must be just as high, if not higher.  You can defeat Rin, and become the Leader yourself.  But you won't be able to reverse what he's done unless you wear the Necklace and bond with it.  Drago will most definitely challenge you, and you must win.  For if you don't..." he lets out a sigh.  "With a Dual Bond, he will be unstoppable."

I nod, tense.  "I will beat him," I vow.  "I swear to Zagan I will."

Rin smiles slightly.  "You'd be the first then," he says.

I smile too, then notice him start to fade.  "W-Wait!" I exclaim.  "Rin, wait!  There's so much I-"

He keeps smiling even as he fades into nothingness.  "It might be hard for us to communicate, but I'll find a way," he promises.  "But ask Layra for help.  She's the one who made this whole little chat possible."

"But why would she have you tell me, instead of tell me herself?"

"That's..." Rin's voice fades out, then comes back again.  "That's for you to ask her."

And then he's gone.  

I stand up.  What Rin said, about Drago controlling everyone... sounds scary.  And if he couldn't beat Zagan, the most powerful leader, what chance do I have?

No.  You're Ash Ketchum.  Never give up until it's over.

Except it's not me saying those words, it's Serena, with her enchanting blue eyes.  She puts her hands on my shoulders and reassures me, filling me with confidence just like she always does.

I head deeper into the forest, knowing what I need to do.  It's only when I see the colours start to grow faintly brighter and the buds of flowers slightly open that I know I'm headed in the right direction.  For now, I'm not scared of what Rin- no, not Rin, Drago, will do to me if he catches me out.  

I need to do this, I need to see Serena and face whatever she has to tell me.  If we cannot be in love, I will to be ready to accept that.  In the potential few days I have left, I want to see her happy.  I want to be happy, and her joy fills me with endless light.  

All I want is her happiness, and if that's not with me, then I'll be okay.  Deep inside it will hurt, but as long as we are together, it will make it better.

I face the light, ignoring the darkness surrounding me.

Sorry for the shorter chapter, but I wanted to get an update out this week.  As always, I hope you've enjoyed!!

I've been rewatching some Amourshipping moments in the XYZ anime and just aah.  So cute!!! ^w^

Anyways that's it.  Stay tuned for more ;)