purple_drake
E/GL obsessed
This fic is PG-13 for violence and some swearing.
Disclaimer: Once again, I am only one of those poor, deprived fans of pokemon, with no affiliation to the franchise.
Any simularity between this and anyone else's fic is completely coincidental.
WARNING: Highly recommended you read 'Heart of the Magma' beforehand.
Phew! Finally got around to putting in chapter links...
Chapter 1: To Dance Or Not to Dance
Chapter 2: Myth and Shadow
Chapter 3: The Facts Unseen
Chapter 4: Tricks of the Trade
Chapter 5: She's Got the Powder
Chapter 6: Some Like It Hot
Chapter 7: A Butterfree in the Hand
Chapter 8: Blast from the Past
Chapter 9: The Skylord's Wrath
Chapter 10: Wings 'n' Things
Chapter 11: Go With the Flow
Chapter 12: The Price of Distraction
Chapter 13: Under the Rockets' Red Glare
~ I ~
TO DANCE OR NOT TO DANCE
NIGHT.
The streets of Alto Mare were quiet, darkness hanging over the city like a thin layer of fog. Moonlight glinted off the graceful steel curves of the city’s various window frames and railings, their reflection rippling in the black canal water. Comfortably slumbering within their homes, the inhabitants of Alto Mare were unaware of the two shadows which flashed over the rooftops on silent feet, mirrored only in the water below.
Stealthily Keegan jumped from one rooftop to the next, crouching cautiously and looking around to make sure her presence had gone unnoticed. Like a shade, her eevee Hazel appeared at her side, her fluffy tail twitching with tension. Throwing a quick, slightly forced grin at the pokémon, Keegan lay on her stomach over the edge and rapped lightly on the glass pane of balcony door below.
“Ross!” She hissed. Something inside the room rustled and Keegan heard the sound of someone fumbling for the lamp nearby before light flashed on inside the room. She saw Ross rubbing his eyes sleepily, sitting up in his quilted bed, the white stripes on his otherwise blue shirt looking orange in the dim glow. Blinking, he slipped out from under the covers and padded across the wooden floor, running a hand through his sleep-tousled brown hair.
“Keegan?” He threw open the window, almost hitting Keegan in the face, and winced at her expression. “They said no, huh?”
“Good guess,” Keegan retorted, her voice unintentionally angry. Her cheeks were beginning to look flushed from hanging upside-down and her blonde hair glinted in the light from Ross’s room. “Listen, can we talk?”
“Sure,” Ross yawned. “It looked to be a nice night at sunset.”
“I… didn’t see,” Keegan admitted reluctantly. Usually all she looked at was the night sky… unless she was too angry at her foster parents to notice. She swung back up to the tiled roof as Ross clambered onto the balustrade of his balcony and hoisted himself up onto the edge to sit with his legs hanging down. Keegan brushed her hair out of her eyes and smiled gratefully, the faint burn scars on her arm looking shiny in the dim light. “Sorry for waking you,” she apologised, settling down beside him with her legs crossed.
Ross just waved a hand and smiled good-naturedly, the slight breeze tugging at his hair and clothes. “It’s no problem,” He assured her, and chuckled. “I should be used to this by now.” He gave her a quick squeeze around the shoulders and leaned back on his hands as Hazel crawled onto Keegan’s knees, a bundle of warmth compared to the chill night. “So what’s up?”
Keegan stroked Hazel’s fur absently, taking comfort in her pokémon’s presence as the eevee yawned and snuggled into Keegan’s lap soothingly. “It’s not fair,” she said, her tone frustrated beyond words. “It’s like my foster parents are trying to stop me from having a life. I mean, this is Alto Mare, for God’s sake, but they won’t even let me participate in the water chariot races!”
“You know they’re only trying to protect you,” Ross pointed out mildly, gazing up at the stars winking down from the heavens. There was a multitude up there, the only witnesses to Keegan’s nightly rooftop walks.
“Then they’re screwing up,” Keegan retorted viciously, glaring down at the water of the canal below where Ross’s boat bobbed gently. Hazel’s ears twitched and she looked at Keegan mournfully upon hearing her tone of voice. “Because they’re going too far. There’s a difference between protecting and coddling, and they crossed the line years ago.”
“Yeah,” Ross agreed sympathetically. “But when Pete and Simon found you, you were half dead. Ever since then you can’t stand the open sea or being under water. I guess they can’t see the difference between that and surfing.”
“Surfing I can control,” Keegan grumbled. “Out in the ocean you’re at the mercy of the waves – and underwater you can’t breathe. That’s the difference; how is that difficult to understand?” She plucked at her fire stone pendant with her spare hand broodingly. It flashed in the dim light emitting from Ross’s window and Hazel licked Keegan’s hand sympathetically. “But it’s not just the chariot races,” Keegan continued angrily, squeezing the pendant so the chain dug into the palm of her hand. “It’s like they think I’ll break apart if anything bad happens to me. I don’t even remember what happened that night, why do they assume I can’t handle the bad stuff?”
Ross shook his head, regarding his frustrated friend with a slightly sorrowful look. He didn’t want Keegan to be hurt as much as her foster parents, but he was closer to her in age and knew when to let well enough alone. But they’re good people. Sometimes I get the feeling she wants to do more and more dangerous things just because they’re trying to stop her. Instead of speaking the words which leapt to his lips, he said something else.
“You know what I don’t get?” Interested, Keegan looked up to find him studying the sky and followed his gaze. The wind whispered past, making goosebumps rise on her bare arms. “You come out onto the rooftops every night, which some people would say is practically trespassing, and your parents would definitely disapprove.”
Keegan snorted a little derisively. “Of course they would. I could fall off, I could get hurt, I could come across a real criminal and it breeds mischief.”
All valid points, you know. Was Ross’s immediate thought, but he squashed it. He wanted to give Keegan his support, not more doubts. If she felt he was the only one to whom she could rant, how could he estrange her by seeming to take her foster parents’ side? Damn, but they’re gonna hate me for saying this… Ross turned and shot a slightly forced grin at her. “So why haven’t you just entered the chariot races, with or without their permission?”
Keegan blinked and remained silent, thinking about the answer. “Because that’s crossing some major lines,” she said at last. “They don’t know about what I do at night, so we can’t argue about it – but if I entered a race, then they’re sure to see it.”
“So?” Ross shrugged, his next words honest. “You’re eighteen. That’s old enough to make those kinds of decisions in my book.” If only you would listen to them once in a while…
Hazel put her paw in Keegan’s hand and the girl looked down at her. “Bui,” Hazel mewed encouragingly.
Keegan chewed the inside of her cheek and gazed up at the stars thoughtfully. She remembered the fight she’d had with Miriam and Peter, her foster parents, mere hours ago, and again felt the anger rise. Ross and Haze are right, she thought to herself, her jaw clenching with determination. I should be able to choose for myself. I should be able to choose if I want to enter the race, and I should be able to choose if I want to leave Alto Mare. Then she remembered something and groaned, the excitement which had been building vanishing in an instant.
“It’s tomorrow,” she said dispiritedly. “And because it’s not the open chariot race, there’s no more time to enter.”
Ross laughed, covering up a twinge of guilt. “Hey, no sweat. You can take my place.” I just hope none of you overreact… maybe it’ll end up with a fight. Maybe you’ll start listening to each other. Discreetly he crossed his fingers, praying for the latter.
“Serious?” Keegan exclaimed, her blue eyes suddenly blazing with anticipation.
“Sure,” Ross shrugged. “I can redeem my loss next year.” He grinned truthfully this time. “I just have to hope Misty’s not there.”
Keegan laughed and threw her arms around him, disturbing Hazel. Fondly miffed, the pokémon scrambled out of Keegan’s lap and instead curled up beside her. “Thanks a ton, Ross,” Keegan hugged him fiercely. Ross just chuckled and put his arm around her shoulders while she twined the fingers of her spare hand into Hazel’s fur. The three of them looked up at the stars visible over the line of the buildings, listening to the lap of canal water against the curb long into the night.
The next morning Keegan hardly noticed her lack of sleep; she was too charged up, knowing she was about to participate in the water chariot race for Alto Mare citizens only. The fact that it was a secret from her parents just made the tension worse – she had to pretend she was still angry when really she wanted to jump for joy. Although she was directly disobeying them, the freedom of knowing she had made her decision was intoxicating.
She deliberately wore her denim shorts and her cut-off, sleeveless top. It could be cold, but at least her customary jeans wouldn’t weight her down. “Okay, Firefoot, today is gonna be different,” Keegan sat cross-legged on the wooden floor of her room, stroking Firefoot’s orange pelt. The growlithe pup gnawed playfully at her hand, making small growling noises in the back of his throat as his shaggy orange paws danced over the wooden floor. He wasn’t as good at climbing as Hazel or Keegan and so had to remain behind during the night.
Keegan grinned and tousled the white tuft of fur on the top of his head. “We’re gonna go to the library like usual,” she told him, lowering her voice so Peter or Miriam couldn’t hear. “But we’ll sneak out the back window first chance we get. I’m gonna enter the water chariot race, Firefoot.”
“Graawlth!” Firefoot barked, cocking his head and wagging his thick, fluffy white tail furiously.
Keegan chuckled. “So I guess it’s okay if I leave you and Hazel with Ross on the sidelines, right?” She glanced up at Hazel, lying on Keegan’s bed and chewing on her white-tipped tail.
“Eebui,” Hazel mewed, her brown eyes sparkling with her own excitement and not a little bit of pride that Keegan was finally making her own choice.
“Keegan!” Miriam called from down below. “We’re leaving for the library soon!”
“Alright!” Keegan yelled back, tugging on her running shoes. Hazel jumped off the bed, leaving behind an imprint and moulted fur on the quilt, and shook herself. “C’mon,” Keegan gestured to her pokémon, unable to resist a grin as she trudged downstairs. Firefoot followed closely, his wet nose occasionally bumping the backs of her legs, while Hazel squeezed past to lead.
While they walked to the library, Keegan barely listened to Miriam as the plump, good-natured woman chattered on. Her gaze was set absently on the cobblestone path in front of her and her mind dwelled on the race she was to run. Hazel and Firefoot bounded ahead of them, darting and playing blithely, dodging the other citizens of Alto Mare who were enjoying the early morning.
When they reached the library, Keegan was beginning to feel nervous, because she had to get away in time to reach the canal where the race was to begin. But that day luck was with her, for Miriam left her in the back room with orders to unpack the books stored in boxes while she herself went into the main area to watch over the looming shelves.
With a deep breath Keegan set to her task. Switching on the television to make some noise, she worked in the light of the round window overhead, illuminating the otherwise darkened room. Firefoot, nosing around a pile of books in the corner, squeezed past the perilous stack. Hazel, however, jumped nimbly onto the round table where Keegan worked to settle down and watch her trainer.
The next thing Keegan heard was a creak and she turned around just in time to see the tall, unsteady pile of books tumble down around Firefoot, making dust billow. Firefoot, sitting back on his haunches among the books with a look of utmost surprise, sneezed and shook his head, blinking owlishly. Keegan giggled, stepping carefully through the mess of books and removing a loose page which had floated down to land on Firefoot’s head.
“Bui,” Hazel sighed in a long-suffering manner, rolling her eyes skyward and licking her paw delicately.
Keegan began stacking the books carefully, checking the time, as Firefoot watched. The fine dust settled about him turned his black stripes grey and made Keegan’s eyes water annoyingly.
“Oh, I can’t take this anymore,” The girl groaned finally, grabbing Firefoot around the belly and lifting him up onto the top of the bookcase in front of the window. The growlithe, moving carefully against the slight rocking of the shelves, put his paws on the round windowsill and nosed open the latch. The window swung open as Keegan lifted Hazel up to the top and Firefoot bounded through, onto the slight ledge outside.
Within seconds, all three had escaped the stuffy office. Keegan pulled the window closed behind her and clambered down, catching each of her pokémon as they jumped from the ledge. “Okay, let’s hurry,” Keegan urged, checking the clock just visible through the glass for the umpteenth time, and the trio hurried off.
Behind them, the television blared to an empty room.
Ross scanned the multi-coloured crowd anxiously, searching for Keegan. I hope she didn’t get caught. I hope nothing’s happened. I wish she didn’t have to sneak away at all… in the canal beside him, his wailmer tugged impatiently at the leash, almost pulling him into the rippling water. Most of the other contestants were already at the starting line, waiting for the race to begin.
Finally Firefoot bounded out of the crowd, tongue lolling happily. Hazel squeezed her way past two legs and Keegan pushed through the crowd, tugging off her shoes almost as soon as she’d reached a relieved Ross.
“Good luck,” he murmured, handing her the leash. Maybe this will prove to Miriam and Pete that they don’t need to worry… I just hope you don’t forget why they’re so strict. He thought inwardly, his soft eyes regarding Keegan with unseen seriousness.
“Thanks, I’m gonna need it,” Keegan answered with a nervous laugh, stepping uncertainly onto the slick, streamlined chariot. She almost tipped over right there and then as the chariot rocked, making the water splash over the curb and drenching Firefoot and Hazel, but after a moment she regained her balance and Wailmer motored its way to the starting line.
Keegan found herself staring into the clear water. She could almost see the bottom, fragmented and distorted by the waves, and shivered. Falling in wasn’t going to be fun – but she wasn’t intending to fall in. She closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath. When she looked again at the glittering water track in front of her, her blue eyes were determined. Water, yes. I’m not under it, so it doesn’t matter.
“Okay, Wailmer, ready to show ‘em what we’ve got?” she said to the round, rubbery blue pokémon. It nodded, making waves rock nearby chariots, and Keegan found herself grinning. Who cares if we win? She thought silently to herself, enjoying the bob of the chariot. I’m on the water, I’m about to go fast and I’m sticking to my decision for once. What does it matter if we win or not?
She cast a quick glance to the side, fleetingly touching her pendant for good luck, and Ross gave her a thumbs up sign; then she heard the xatu crow. Wailmer surged forward, already speeding through the water and throwing up two curtains of foam on either side of Keegan’s chariot.
Blonde hair lashing in the wind, Keegan leaned back on the leash the way Ross had taught her during one of the memorable nightly excursions. Someone cut in front of them, spraying Keegan with water, and Wailmer cut their speed abruptly to avoid the collision as Keegan’s spare arm windmilled frantically. Oh God, don’t fall in…! With a jerk the whale pokémon rushed forwards, dodging a spiky, scaled seadra to dart around the corner, hauling the chariot behind him as it skidded on the surface of the track against the force of its momentum.
Her heart pounding, Keegan caught her breath and her balance as they streaked towards the man in the lead, the walls and canals of Alto Mare blurring past her in a rush of exhilarating wind.
Back at the library, Miriam lifted the pile of old books she had just sorted from the shelves, heading to the back office where she’d ask Keegan to pack them away into a box for shipping to the library on the mainland. The salty water around Alto Mare made it difficult to maintain the library properly, so the oldest and most precious of books were kept elsewhere.
As she came to the door, Miriam heard the sound of the television and smiled. Of course Keegan would want to watch Ross in the water chariot race. Using her elbow, Miriam levered the door open and was greeted by an empty room. Shocked, she blinked, setting the books down on the table and looking around.
“And newcomer Keegan just taken the lead with former champion Ross’s wailmer, but Marlin and his golduck aren’t gonna let the race go that easily, as he tails her close behind –”
Miriam whirled about to stare at the screen incredulously, sure she’d heard wrong. But no, there was Keegan, balanced perilously on a speeding, streamlined chariot with her rival pulling up beside her. Miriam’s heart leapt to clog her throat as the water shifted, throwing the chariots together. The plump woman let out an involuntary cry of distress, clutching herself fearfully as they scraped each other, the announcer’s voice merely noise in the background. Keegan’s chariot rocked wildly, almost sending her plummeting into the water. Don’t let her fall, don’t let her fall, don’t let her fall…! Marlin leaned away, narrowly avoiding a second, more serious collision as the foamy plumes sprayed up around them, and Miriam let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding.
She could have gotten herself hurt! Miriam thought tearfully, covering her eyes with frustrated apprehension. I don’t care how old she is, she acts like an irresponsible child! That’s half the reason we’re so strict with her, doesn’t she realize that? How could Ross have let her enter… she shuddered. Without looking again at the screen Miriam hurried out of the office, her adrenaline-weak legs fuelled by worried anger.
Back at the race Keegan swerved around the last, sharp corner, the chariot wobbling dangerously. The side scraped the brick wall and Keegan winced, her cheeks flushed with windburn and her fringe threatening to lash in her eyes. Not far ahead, Marlin was speeding towards the finish line.
“Let’s go!” Keegan urged Wailmer. With a deep rumble, Wailmer picked up the pace. His watery backlash made Keegan’s chariot veer from side to side but she had a firm grasp of its capabilities now and balanced skilfully against its roll as they drew abreast of Marlin. He glanced over at her and found the time to grin at her under his beard. Catching Keegan’s gaze, she grinned back as Wailmer slowly pulled in front, the water around them and the rainbow coloured audience ranged on the streets a mere blur.
The next thing Keegan knew, the finishing banner had flashed overhead and Wailmer came to a halt, slinging the chariot around as Keegan struggled to maintain her balance. Her adrenaline-weak legs collapsed on her, sending her careening into the clear, lapping water. Her shoulder jarred the chariot, making her hand tingle numbly as water closed over her head with a shocking of gasping panic. Nonono, God this was supposed to be fun! Terrified, choking on water, she scrambled for the surface as Wailmer came up beneath her, lifting her on its rubbery blue back to safety.
Trembling and weak with relief and exhaustion, Keegan coughed and took in a gulp of blessed air to calm her pounding heart, sitting with her legs sprawled on Wailmer’s back as she brushed her wet hair from her eyes with a shaky hand. She suddenly became aware of the shouts and calls coming from the sidelines and looked up to see Marlin give her a fleeting salute, which she returned with a weak, slightly forced smile. She glanced over to the side to see a worried-looking Ross, prepared to jump in the canal for rescue her. She threw him an unsteady grin and a thumbs-up. Relieved, Ross settled for waving his hands with reproachful elation as Firefoot jumped about excitedly, accidentally knocking Hazel into the water. Drenched, looking remarkably like a wet rattata, Hazel scrambled out of the water and glared at Firefoot, long fur dripping.
And then it finally began to dawn on Keegan, something completely unexpected: she’d won.
The medallion flashed in the light of the day, the path barely visible through the rippling, tinted glass. Keegan studied it, rocking it back and forth and admiring the way the sun brought out the different hues.
Ross chuckled, poling his boat along the canal beside her. “You’ve seen that thing a million times, you know,” he reminded her.
Keegan grinned. “Yeah, but that’s always after you’ve won it.” She rubbed her hand proudly over the raised glass outlines of Latios and Latias circling the Soul Dew, unaware of the troubled look which passed over Ross’ face.
She didn’t learn anything, he thought with the chill of sorrow. She got dunked in and she didn’t even realize why Miriam and Pete’s fears might be justified. He shuddered, remembering the look of terror on her face as Wailmer lifted her through the thin, crystalline sheet of the surface; the look which no one else had seemed to notice.
Firefoot jumped up onto his hind legs, forepaws stabbing in the air as he struggled to see the medallion, so Keegan lowered the medallion to let the growlithe pup take a look. Up ahead, Hazel stopped in her tracks with a gasp, then darted back and hid behind Keegan’s legs. Keegan giggled elatedly, too much on a high to realize something dire might have happened. “What’s the matter, Haze?”
“Grawlth, grrra,” Firefoot backed away slowly, nervously. Keegan finally looked up to see Miriam bearing down on them with hard steps, her brown curls accenting her furious scowl. She didn’t see the worry buried deep in her foster mother’s brown eyes.
“Uh oh,” Keegan went pale, having completely forgotten about the consequences of entering the race. “Listen, Ross, I – I’ll see you later, okay? No point in her getting angry at the both of us.”
Ross nodded, leaning on his pole and staring at Miriam between the long fringes framing his face. “Yeah, sure… ” He felt a pang, knowing that the upcoming argument was his fault. I’m the one who let her enter, I was just hoping that maybe – without finishing his thought or figuring out exactly what he’d been hoping he pushed off the curb, turning down a thin canal, and waved after him. Keegan raised a hand in answer, then glanced down at the medallion.
Once again she rubbed her thumb over the raised glass, her eyes darkening. It was worth it, she thought defiantly, and raised her chin to face her foster mother.
“What were you thinking?!” Miriam shrieked in her shrill voice once Keegan was in hearing range.
<<She’s not happy…>> Firefoot’s ears went down and he slunk behind Keegan’s legs to look at Hazel. His head lowered near the ground and his mournful eyes darted back to Miriam, his fluffy tail twitching.
Hazel rolled her eyes apprehensively in his direction, ears flickering. <<You think?>> she answered, her tone heavy with sarcasm as she rubbed her furry head against Keegan’s legs comfortingly. Oh Latias, when will this conflict end? She thought sadly, regarding Miriam’s round, red face.
“I was thinking about having fun,” Keegan snapped back to her foster mother heatedly, only half aware of the exchange which had gone on beneath her. Miriam grabbed her hand and began dragging her back home, while Hazel and Firefoot exchanged a worried glance and trailed after.
“There’s a reason your father and I stopped you from entering those races!” Miriam said angrily between breaths, yanking Keegan under a bridge down one alley and then another. It was as much for punishment as for safety, didn’t you see that?
Keegan tried to tug her hand away, but for a plump woman Miriam was amazingly strong. “Pete’s not my father!” the girl retorted, her tone just as angry as Miriam’s. Her spare hand was clenched around the medallion, the metal edges digging into her palm and the chain trailing behind her. “And you’re not my mother! You have no right to tell me what to do!” Miriam’s stride faltered and she gave Keegan a stricken look, stopping in the sheltered alley. Keegan wrenched her hand out of Miriam’s grasp, massaging her fingers, and ignored Miriam’s hurt eyes as Hazel and Firefoot crowded supportively at her legs.
She doesn’t think of us as her parents? Miriam swallowed through the hurt lump in her throat and took a deep breath. “We’ve been your only family for eight years, Keegan,” she began, her tone thick with forced calm. Keegan scowled into the ground, trying to fight off the feelings of guilt which were warring with her anger. There was already a lump in her throat and her eyes began to shine with unshed tears; she hated arguing. “I would have thought that meant something to you.” Miriam’s voice was unintentionally accusing.
Keegan gritted her teeth, looking away. How dare she use guilt on me like that! She raged inwardly, angry enough to say something she’d regret forever. “Well, it doesn’t!” she choked. “All you’ve done is hold me back! You won’t even let me compete in harmless chariot races! You won’t even let me leave Alto Mare!” she gestured wildly with the hand clutching the medallion, looking up finally to meet Miriam’s shocked eyes.
Keegan took a deep breath, tears spilling down her cheeks. “All I want to do is make my own decisions,” she continued stubbornly. “I want to be able to decide what I do and where I go, but you won’t even let me do that!”
“And until you learn to look at life seriously, I won’t!” Miriam snapped, finally finding her voice. I can’t! You might get hurt, you might accidentally hurt other people! “So far all you care about is having some fun and getting up to mischief! I’d thought that reading about Lance the dragon master and the other Elites might make you realize just how dangerous it is out there, but so far it doesn’t seem to have worked!” Keegan flushed and Miriam continued relentlessly, brushing her curls behind her ear as she tried passionately to make her stubborn foster daughter see, make her understand – “You of all people should know how dangerous the world is, Keegan. It’s because of those dangers that we came to call you our daughter.”
“It’s because of those dangers that you’ve chained me here to Alto Mare!” Keegan retorted in a trembling voice, her cheeks still pink under the tear tracks. “You’re afraid I’ll break apart or I’ll get hurt, but you don’t know that at all! How am I meant to prove myself if you won’t let me shoulder any responsibility? Facing danger is just part of that!”
“Facing danger is being stupid,” Miriam countered angrily. “You don’t go looking for danger, you have to take it as it comes.”
“I can’t take it as it comes if I can’t live my own life!” Keegan shouted, her voice shaking dangerously. “I don’t even know what I want to do with myself, because this city is all I remember!” she gestured around at the shadowed, ivy-swathed brick walls. “I don’t even know where – where I got this,” she tugged at her pendant vehemently, her wet eyes boring furiously into Miriam’s face. “When am I going to find out who I am, what I’m meant to do?”
“When you finally realize that life isn’t all fun and games,” Miriam answered heatedly. “The people here in Alto Mare know that better than anyone – the sea is dangerous, you have to take it seriously! It’s not a game! No matter where you go and what you do, there are always rules to follow – but you seem to dedicate yourself to breaking them! Until you learn a little responsibility and respect, you’re not ready to go out into the world.”
“Wha – how dare you decide that for me!” Keegan’s fists were clenched, and she was shaking and crying with fury.
Miriam sighed, her frustration draining out of her like a sieve. “Come on home, little fox,” she held out a hand, her tone as gentle as she could make it. Please, please come home. I’m only trying to protect you.
“Don’t call me that!” Keegan screamed, covering her ears childishly, and Miriam flinched with a jolt. “You can’t! You’re not allowed!” With a ragged, choked sob, she dodged down the alley, shoes pounding the stones.
“Grawlth!” Firefoot barked, darting after her. Hazel paused and looked up at Miriam with sad, accusing eyes; then she bounded after Keegan and Firefoot. Shocked, angry and guilty, Miriam watched them vanish around the next corner.
Keegan trudged down the path, wet eyes staring dully at the cobblestones before her. Hazel backed away in front of her, cocking her head to gaze at Keegan’s tear-stained face. Firefoot’s own stride reflected Keegan’s depression. He walked so close behind her his nose occasionally bumped the backs of her legs, as was his wont.
The usually slate-grey streets now looked golden in the late afternoon sun that flashed from across the ocean and most people had retreated into their homes to enjoy a clear, brisk evening. But not Keegan.
The breeze gusted through the lanes and canals of Alto Mare, making the water lap against the curb. It wrapped around Keegan and she shivered, suddenly coming out of her reverie to realize the day was cooling and she was still only wearing her denim shorts – hardly enough to keep her warm.
But she kept walking. Walking was the only way she had to exercise her frustration; and though her stomach rumbled with hunger and her limbs with weary with lack of energy, she felt she couldn’t stop.
The wind tugged insistently at her hair, drawing her ponytail over her shoulder and playing with it, shaking it in her eyes. Idly, Keegan brushed it out of her face and behind her ears, but it tangled annoyingly around her hand. Hazel tripped over a loose stone and tumbled backwards, her fur fluttering in the playful fingers of the breeze.
Suddenly Keegan realized she had reached the edge of Alto Mare and gazed out over the gold and orange lit ocean. The horizon was dyed with purple and red, the clouds etched over the sun dimming its bright glow. Keegan’s jaw clenched momentarily and she glared out at the sea. The snowy-white wingull cawed, darting and diving in the final hour or so of daylight. “Look at them,” Keegan said enviously, feeling wrung out and emotionally exhausted. “They’re free.” As she watched, a mantine broke the surface of the glittering water, rising in a graceful arc before vanishing back beneath the crystalline ocean with hardly a splash.
“Bubui,” Hazel mewed sympathetically.
“Gawlth,” Firefoot whined, and sat at Keegan’s feet, his orange-and-black fur blazing in the setting sun.
“There’s no way,” Keegan said bitterly, eyes following the wingull. “They can go where they want, when they want. Like Lance and the Elites,” she added broodingly. “Sure, they have responsibilities, but they chose to take on those responsibilities. I bet you if Lance were in my position he wouldn’t take all this guff. He’d go out and do what he thought was right, no matter what anyone said.”
“Graaw,” Firefoot cocked his head, soft puppy eyes looking up at Keegan.
Keegan sighed, depressed, and realized she still held the medallion. She lifted it, examining it in the golden light. Distantly, from the last house, she heard the sound of radio music, and tilted her head to listen.
‘I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance;
Never settle for the path of least resistance.
Living might mean taking chances, but they’re worth taking…’
Keegan’s heart skipped a beat; it was as though the radio echoed her frustration. Miriam and Peter just didn’t seem to understand that sometimes, to find your dream, you had to take risks. They truly were afraid of those mountains…
If I stay here, she thought to herself, would I be bowing to Miriam just to avoid a fight? Just to avoid hurting her? She tuned in to the song again, idly wondering what other advice it could give her.
‘Don’t let some hell bent heart leave you bitter;
When you come close to selling out, reconsider.
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance…’
Spellbound, Keegan’s gaze was drawn inexorably to the uppermost stars beginning to wink in the slowly darkening sky, and remembered telling Ross the night before that she’d been too angry at her foster parents to notice them. She spent too much time being bitter to see the beauty around her…
‘…tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder
Where those years have gone?’
I don’t! Keegan felt like shouting, but the lump in her throat stopped her from speaking. The next words she heard with a great deal of irony.
‘I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean…’
No trouble there. She thought with a sigh, her brow wrinkling forward as she stared at the lapping waves.
‘Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens…’
If I left now, one door would close… Keegan thought almost wonderingly. But how many would open for me?
‘Promise me that you’ll give faith a fighting chance…’
I will.
‘And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance...’
Keegan lifted the medallion, tilting it from side to side. In the dying light of the sun and with the rippling ocean behind it, it almost looked at though Latios and Latias were doing just that: dancing. Free.
‘I pray you’re dancing…
I pray you’re dancing…
I hope you dance.’
For the first time in what seemed like years Keegan took a deep breath, suddenly realizing that her cheeks were once again damp. Though she still felt exhausted, it was a weariness that she’d never felt before; not angry or tense, but peaceful.
“You know what?” she said at last, to her pokémon.
“Eeeii,” Hazel purred, her voice vibrating. She felt the sudden change in Keegan, her oldest friend.
“Yeah…” Keegan smiled slowly, the breeze wisping past her and drawing her gaze, not for the last time, up to the sky. “I think… I’m gonna dance.”
When Keegan got home the horizon was still lit with the glow of twilight. The tentative calls of the hoothoot and noctowl were oddly comforting and the dust the ledyba and ledian scattered in a celebration of impending nightfall gave Alto Mare a strangely mystical aura.
Keegan pushed open the door and marched tight-lipped through the kitchen, ignoring Peter sitting at the table; in all likelihood Miriam was up in their room. Although it seemed that Miriam was the dominant one, because she got angry at Keegan’s antics more often than Peter, he was really the one who enforced their rules.
And that night there was no way he was going to let the girl go that easily. “Keegan,” he said, swirling his coffee with a spoon absently. Sitting on the table, his aipom held the sugar bowl, dipping his tiny fingers into the granules and licking them off quickly.
Keegan paused, one hand already on the banister of the stairs, and sighed inwardly. “What?”
“You’re grounded until further notice,” Peter’s voice was bland, somewhat depressed. I’m sorry, little fox. He apologised inwardly. I truly am. He had seen the race himself, on a tinny TV in the tackle shed where his sloop was moored. You fell in and you were terrified – and it has changed nothing. If you simply refuse to listen, then we have to try something else.
“Aipuu?” Aipom cocked his head and looked at the girl frozen at the stairs, one paw hovering above the bowl. He exchanged a warning glance with Firefoot, still at the base of the first step.
“Whatever,” Keegan answered so softly she could hardly be heard. Hazel’s ear twitched; she was already halfway up the stairs.
“No going outside except to the library,” Peter continued with a guilty pang. Aipom’s tail waved and he looked back at Peter with huge eyes but Pete looked away, instead studying the grain of the table.
“Uh huh.” Keegan continued on her way up as Aipom watched after her before returning to his sugar. There’s no way they can keep me locked up, the girl thought serenely. I’m leaving tonight, and they can’t stop that. She glanced down at the medallion, hardly noticing the slight smile that tugged at her lips.
Hazel was sitting in front of Keegan’s room, waiting patiently. Keegan threw open the door and headed straight for her wardrobe, letting Firefoot nose the door closed behind them while Hazel leapt onto the soft bed.
Keegan draped the medallion around her neck and opened the door to the wardrobe, grabbing her shoulder bag off the inside handle. She snatched up a pile of clothes and other necessities and stuffed them inside the bag. Hazel, standing on the bed, placed a paw on the tubs of pokémon food she had rolled across from the bedside table and Keegan made sure they were full before fitting them into the bag carefully. Firefoot padded over, Keegan’s belt in his mouth.
“Thanks,” Keegan murmured, taking the belt and brushing her fingers over his orange-and-black fur before buckling it on. She unclipped Firefoot’s pokéball and expanded it, gazing at it doubtfully. She had never once returned Firefoot to his pokéball, but knew that if they were to leave Alto Mare it was necessary. She held out the pokéball to Firefoot. “I have to return you, Firefoot,” she told him gently.
Firefoot cocked his head in an expectant manner. “Grrrawlth, grraw!” he barked.
Keegan smiled fondly, and gave him one last scratch behind the ears. “I don’t know what I’d do without you two,” she told him honestly.
“Eebui, bubui,” Hazel shook her head from side to side, making her ears flap. Keegan chuckled and raised the pokéball, returning Firefoot for the first time in the four years since Officer Jenny had given him to her. The growlithe pup had been too curious and uncommitted to be cut out for police work and a chance meeting on the street made Officer Jenny convinced he should go with Keegan.
Straightening up, Keegan shrank the pokéball and returned it to her belt, slinging her bag over her shoulder. Then she turned towards the window and turned the latch to push it open… but it didn’t budge.
“Bubui?” Hazel whispered incredulously. With a sick feeling of disbelief, Keegan rattled the latch, but it didn’t move. She tried pushing on the window, to no avail. Dropping the bag, she sank to the floor, stunned. Hazel nuzzled her hand, making sympathetic purring sounds. Her huge eyes locked onto something behind Keegan.
“How did they find out?” the girl choked, entwining her fingers into Hazel’s long fur.
“Officer Jenny,” a deep, grating voice, conditioned by a life on the sea, said behind her. Keegan turned around to see Simon leaning against her doorway, his sleeveless T-shirt making his tanned biceps seem even bigger than they were.
“Bui?” Hazel gasped. Keegan just stared blankly; she hadn’t even heard the door open.
“She came round while you were out,” Simon took a step into the room, his dark eyes studying Keegan over his bearded face. He felt a pang; her eyes looked so lost. “She was pretty disappointed, actually. Said she saw you creeping across the rooftops last night and thought we might want to do something about it. Some people wouldn’t take kindly to having a girl on their roofs.”
“But… but…” Tears spilled out of Keegan’s eyes. “But… I’m grounded… I can’t…” A sob wracked her, the peaceful feeling she had managed to sustain shattering. Too emotionally exhausted to even feel angry, she suffered only despair.
“Bui,” Hazel put her paws on Keegan’s shoulders, licking at the salty tracks down her cheeks, the pokémon’s eyes also shining with sympathetic tears. Keegan hugged her tightly, burying her face in Hazel's soft fur.
Simon glanced into the hall and quietly closed the door behind him, kneeling beside Keegan and putting a hand on her shoulder. “Come on now,” he said quietly. “Crying won’t help.” He held out his hand. “But this might.”
Keegan lifted her head, wiping her eyes, and picked the key off his palm, staring at it uncertainly. “You’re gonna let me out?” she asked, her voice wavering.
“I’ve never agreed with their way of raising you,” Simon admitted. “You’re a curious, adventurous girl, so trying to lock you up only made you want out even more. I’m surprised it took you so long to try and leave.” I just wish it didn’t have to be like this. You still have a lot to learn about the world, little fox – but if you refuse to learn it here, then you’ll have to learn out there, where the lesson will be harsher.
Keegan stood and unlocked the window, then handed the key back to him as Hazel jumped up onto the windowsill. “Here,” Simon held out a pokégear, a small device with several purposes; among those serving as a map, a radio and a phone. It looked small in his big hand. “This might help.” He grinned fervently. “And you’ll need this, too,” He held up a ticket. “For the next ferry out of Alto Mare. It’ll take you to Cianwood – from there you should be able to go to Olivine.”
Keegan took them, clipping the pokégear onto her belt, and stood staring at the ticket for long moments. This is the point of no return, she found herself thinking. If I use this… I can’t go back. She tucked it her back pocket and looked up at Simon, utterly speechless. ‘Thank you’ seemed so… inadequate. Finally she hugged him fiercely and whispered it anyway. “Thank you.”
He squeezed her back. “Get going, little fox. There should be one last ferry leaving tonight, but you have to get there quickly.” Keegan picked up her bag, slinging it over her shoulder once again. “Keegan…” the girl paused and looked back at Simon, who regarded her seriously. “You know they love you.”
Keegan hesitated, then nodded, her eyes downcast. “I know. G’bye, Simon.” Hazel grabbed onto the strap with her teeth and rode the bag as Keegan scrambled out of the window and onto the roof for the last time.
Keegan hurried over the rooftops, ignoring the chill wind that made goosebumps rise on her bare skin and checking the horizon anxiously. The trip to Cianwood City was several days long, and she couldn’t afford to miss the last ferry for a week, but she also knew they had to get out of the harbour before full night.
And yet she couldn’t leave without first saying goodbye to Ross. She dropped silently down onto his balcony, bathed in the yellow glow of his bedroom light, and rapped at the window. Instantly Ross looked up from the book he had been reading and tossed it aside, coming to the glass doors; Keegan stood away as he pushed them open.
He took in Hazel, standing on the balcony balustrade, and Keegan’s bag over her shoulder. “You’re leaving.” It wasn’t a question; his soft brown eyes were already resigned. It had to come to this, didn’t it? The only way you’d learn why Pete and Miriam did what they did – the only way they’d realize why you did the same.
Keegan nodded, her own eyes glimmering. “I have to hurry – there’s only one more ferry, and I have to catch it. But I had to say goodbye.”
“Eebui,” Hazel agreed forlornly.
“Well, then, here,” Ross grabbed an empty pokéball from his bedside table and held it out. “You can’t go around with Hazel free like that. Under the Pokémon Association’s rules, if she doesn’t have a pokéball, she’s wild and therefore fair game.”
Keegan took it gingerly, knowing he was right but not liking it one bit, as Hazel jumped down from the ledge, her eyes resolute. Keegan tossed the pokéball gently; it bounced off Hazel and enclosed her in a flash of red light before dropping to the balcony, rocking only once before locking down. Keegan picked it up and looked down at it somewhat regretfully; it represented just one more change.
Then Keegan drew the medallion from around her neck and looked at it briefly before handing it to Ross. “I was gonna keep it, as a reminder… but I think it’d do better here.” Ross accepted it reluctantly, and met Keegan’s gaze. She managed a shaky grin. “We’ll be okay,” she promised.
Ross smiled fondly. “I know you will,” he said simply before drawing her into his arms. She clasped him around the neck, embracing him tightly for as long as she dared. Then she let him go and gave him one last, fleeting smile before climbing lithely back onto the roof. Ross leaned on the edge of the balcony, the medallion still clutched in his hand, and gazed out into the slowly darkening city with a bitter-sweet pang as the wind whispered assurances in his ears.
Keegan ran as fast as she could, ignoring the stitch in her side and the annoying bounce of the pendant at her throat, her breath coming in short gasps. It was almost full night now, but she could see the ferry up ahead, still moored to the almost deserted pier.
A sailor still on the dock was untying the rope securing the small ship to the wharf. “Hey!” Keegan shouted breathlessly, and the sailor looked up. He waved to her, gesturing for her to hurry, and called something to someone in the shadow of the awning over the deck.
Keegan pounded up the gangplank, legs aching and chest heaving, and sank to her knees, exhausted. “Thanks,” she gasped to the sailor unlatching the gangplank from the ship, and he chuckled.
“It was a close one,” he said, pushing the railing clear of the ship. Keegan struggled to her feet, the salty breeze already cooling her off, and walked to the bow to stand watching the rolling sea as they cleaved through the water.
She looked back only once at Alto Mare. The city was still lit up by the lights of the houses, a glittering metropolis amid the churning, restless ocean. Then she turned forward to their destination and her future.
She was content with her choice; the first of many. Whatever the consequences were… she was ready to face them.
--------------------
Lame? Yes, it is. So sue me.
For those who are interested, the song is called 'I Hope You Dance' by Ronan Keating.
Disclaimer: Once again, I am only one of those poor, deprived fans of pokemon, with no affiliation to the franchise.
Any simularity between this and anyone else's fic is completely coincidental.
WARNING: Highly recommended you read 'Heart of the Magma' beforehand.
Phew! Finally got around to putting in chapter links...
Chapter 1: To Dance Or Not to Dance
Chapter 2: Myth and Shadow
Chapter 3: The Facts Unseen
Chapter 4: Tricks of the Trade
Chapter 5: She's Got the Powder
Chapter 6: Some Like It Hot
Chapter 7: A Butterfree in the Hand
Chapter 8: Blast from the Past
Chapter 9: The Skylord's Wrath
Chapter 10: Wings 'n' Things
Chapter 11: Go With the Flow
Chapter 12: The Price of Distraction
Chapter 13: Under the Rockets' Red Glare
~ I ~
TO DANCE OR NOT TO DANCE
NIGHT.
The streets of Alto Mare were quiet, darkness hanging over the city like a thin layer of fog. Moonlight glinted off the graceful steel curves of the city’s various window frames and railings, their reflection rippling in the black canal water. Comfortably slumbering within their homes, the inhabitants of Alto Mare were unaware of the two shadows which flashed over the rooftops on silent feet, mirrored only in the water below.
Stealthily Keegan jumped from one rooftop to the next, crouching cautiously and looking around to make sure her presence had gone unnoticed. Like a shade, her eevee Hazel appeared at her side, her fluffy tail twitching with tension. Throwing a quick, slightly forced grin at the pokémon, Keegan lay on her stomach over the edge and rapped lightly on the glass pane of balcony door below.
“Ross!” She hissed. Something inside the room rustled and Keegan heard the sound of someone fumbling for the lamp nearby before light flashed on inside the room. She saw Ross rubbing his eyes sleepily, sitting up in his quilted bed, the white stripes on his otherwise blue shirt looking orange in the dim glow. Blinking, he slipped out from under the covers and padded across the wooden floor, running a hand through his sleep-tousled brown hair.
“Keegan?” He threw open the window, almost hitting Keegan in the face, and winced at her expression. “They said no, huh?”
“Good guess,” Keegan retorted, her voice unintentionally angry. Her cheeks were beginning to look flushed from hanging upside-down and her blonde hair glinted in the light from Ross’s room. “Listen, can we talk?”
“Sure,” Ross yawned. “It looked to be a nice night at sunset.”
“I… didn’t see,” Keegan admitted reluctantly. Usually all she looked at was the night sky… unless she was too angry at her foster parents to notice. She swung back up to the tiled roof as Ross clambered onto the balustrade of his balcony and hoisted himself up onto the edge to sit with his legs hanging down. Keegan brushed her hair out of her eyes and smiled gratefully, the faint burn scars on her arm looking shiny in the dim light. “Sorry for waking you,” she apologised, settling down beside him with her legs crossed.
Ross just waved a hand and smiled good-naturedly, the slight breeze tugging at his hair and clothes. “It’s no problem,” He assured her, and chuckled. “I should be used to this by now.” He gave her a quick squeeze around the shoulders and leaned back on his hands as Hazel crawled onto Keegan’s knees, a bundle of warmth compared to the chill night. “So what’s up?”
Keegan stroked Hazel’s fur absently, taking comfort in her pokémon’s presence as the eevee yawned and snuggled into Keegan’s lap soothingly. “It’s not fair,” she said, her tone frustrated beyond words. “It’s like my foster parents are trying to stop me from having a life. I mean, this is Alto Mare, for God’s sake, but they won’t even let me participate in the water chariot races!”
“You know they’re only trying to protect you,” Ross pointed out mildly, gazing up at the stars winking down from the heavens. There was a multitude up there, the only witnesses to Keegan’s nightly rooftop walks.
“Then they’re screwing up,” Keegan retorted viciously, glaring down at the water of the canal below where Ross’s boat bobbed gently. Hazel’s ears twitched and she looked at Keegan mournfully upon hearing her tone of voice. “Because they’re going too far. There’s a difference between protecting and coddling, and they crossed the line years ago.”
“Yeah,” Ross agreed sympathetically. “But when Pete and Simon found you, you were half dead. Ever since then you can’t stand the open sea or being under water. I guess they can’t see the difference between that and surfing.”
“Surfing I can control,” Keegan grumbled. “Out in the ocean you’re at the mercy of the waves – and underwater you can’t breathe. That’s the difference; how is that difficult to understand?” She plucked at her fire stone pendant with her spare hand broodingly. It flashed in the dim light emitting from Ross’s window and Hazel licked Keegan’s hand sympathetically. “But it’s not just the chariot races,” Keegan continued angrily, squeezing the pendant so the chain dug into the palm of her hand. “It’s like they think I’ll break apart if anything bad happens to me. I don’t even remember what happened that night, why do they assume I can’t handle the bad stuff?”
Ross shook his head, regarding his frustrated friend with a slightly sorrowful look. He didn’t want Keegan to be hurt as much as her foster parents, but he was closer to her in age and knew when to let well enough alone. But they’re good people. Sometimes I get the feeling she wants to do more and more dangerous things just because they’re trying to stop her. Instead of speaking the words which leapt to his lips, he said something else.
“You know what I don’t get?” Interested, Keegan looked up to find him studying the sky and followed his gaze. The wind whispered past, making goosebumps rise on her bare arms. “You come out onto the rooftops every night, which some people would say is practically trespassing, and your parents would definitely disapprove.”
Keegan snorted a little derisively. “Of course they would. I could fall off, I could get hurt, I could come across a real criminal and it breeds mischief.”
All valid points, you know. Was Ross’s immediate thought, but he squashed it. He wanted to give Keegan his support, not more doubts. If she felt he was the only one to whom she could rant, how could he estrange her by seeming to take her foster parents’ side? Damn, but they’re gonna hate me for saying this… Ross turned and shot a slightly forced grin at her. “So why haven’t you just entered the chariot races, with or without their permission?”
Keegan blinked and remained silent, thinking about the answer. “Because that’s crossing some major lines,” she said at last. “They don’t know about what I do at night, so we can’t argue about it – but if I entered a race, then they’re sure to see it.”
“So?” Ross shrugged, his next words honest. “You’re eighteen. That’s old enough to make those kinds of decisions in my book.” If only you would listen to them once in a while…
Hazel put her paw in Keegan’s hand and the girl looked down at her. “Bui,” Hazel mewed encouragingly.
Keegan chewed the inside of her cheek and gazed up at the stars thoughtfully. She remembered the fight she’d had with Miriam and Peter, her foster parents, mere hours ago, and again felt the anger rise. Ross and Haze are right, she thought to herself, her jaw clenching with determination. I should be able to choose for myself. I should be able to choose if I want to enter the race, and I should be able to choose if I want to leave Alto Mare. Then she remembered something and groaned, the excitement which had been building vanishing in an instant.
“It’s tomorrow,” she said dispiritedly. “And because it’s not the open chariot race, there’s no more time to enter.”
Ross laughed, covering up a twinge of guilt. “Hey, no sweat. You can take my place.” I just hope none of you overreact… maybe it’ll end up with a fight. Maybe you’ll start listening to each other. Discreetly he crossed his fingers, praying for the latter.
“Serious?” Keegan exclaimed, her blue eyes suddenly blazing with anticipation.
“Sure,” Ross shrugged. “I can redeem my loss next year.” He grinned truthfully this time. “I just have to hope Misty’s not there.”
Keegan laughed and threw her arms around him, disturbing Hazel. Fondly miffed, the pokémon scrambled out of Keegan’s lap and instead curled up beside her. “Thanks a ton, Ross,” Keegan hugged him fiercely. Ross just chuckled and put his arm around her shoulders while she twined the fingers of her spare hand into Hazel’s fur. The three of them looked up at the stars visible over the line of the buildings, listening to the lap of canal water against the curb long into the night.
The next morning Keegan hardly noticed her lack of sleep; she was too charged up, knowing she was about to participate in the water chariot race for Alto Mare citizens only. The fact that it was a secret from her parents just made the tension worse – she had to pretend she was still angry when really she wanted to jump for joy. Although she was directly disobeying them, the freedom of knowing she had made her decision was intoxicating.
She deliberately wore her denim shorts and her cut-off, sleeveless top. It could be cold, but at least her customary jeans wouldn’t weight her down. “Okay, Firefoot, today is gonna be different,” Keegan sat cross-legged on the wooden floor of her room, stroking Firefoot’s orange pelt. The growlithe pup gnawed playfully at her hand, making small growling noises in the back of his throat as his shaggy orange paws danced over the wooden floor. He wasn’t as good at climbing as Hazel or Keegan and so had to remain behind during the night.
Keegan grinned and tousled the white tuft of fur on the top of his head. “We’re gonna go to the library like usual,” she told him, lowering her voice so Peter or Miriam couldn’t hear. “But we’ll sneak out the back window first chance we get. I’m gonna enter the water chariot race, Firefoot.”
“Graawlth!” Firefoot barked, cocking his head and wagging his thick, fluffy white tail furiously.
Keegan chuckled. “So I guess it’s okay if I leave you and Hazel with Ross on the sidelines, right?” She glanced up at Hazel, lying on Keegan’s bed and chewing on her white-tipped tail.
“Eebui,” Hazel mewed, her brown eyes sparkling with her own excitement and not a little bit of pride that Keegan was finally making her own choice.
“Keegan!” Miriam called from down below. “We’re leaving for the library soon!”
“Alright!” Keegan yelled back, tugging on her running shoes. Hazel jumped off the bed, leaving behind an imprint and moulted fur on the quilt, and shook herself. “C’mon,” Keegan gestured to her pokémon, unable to resist a grin as she trudged downstairs. Firefoot followed closely, his wet nose occasionally bumping the backs of her legs, while Hazel squeezed past to lead.
While they walked to the library, Keegan barely listened to Miriam as the plump, good-natured woman chattered on. Her gaze was set absently on the cobblestone path in front of her and her mind dwelled on the race she was to run. Hazel and Firefoot bounded ahead of them, darting and playing blithely, dodging the other citizens of Alto Mare who were enjoying the early morning.
When they reached the library, Keegan was beginning to feel nervous, because she had to get away in time to reach the canal where the race was to begin. But that day luck was with her, for Miriam left her in the back room with orders to unpack the books stored in boxes while she herself went into the main area to watch over the looming shelves.
With a deep breath Keegan set to her task. Switching on the television to make some noise, she worked in the light of the round window overhead, illuminating the otherwise darkened room. Firefoot, nosing around a pile of books in the corner, squeezed past the perilous stack. Hazel, however, jumped nimbly onto the round table where Keegan worked to settle down and watch her trainer.
The next thing Keegan heard was a creak and she turned around just in time to see the tall, unsteady pile of books tumble down around Firefoot, making dust billow. Firefoot, sitting back on his haunches among the books with a look of utmost surprise, sneezed and shook his head, blinking owlishly. Keegan giggled, stepping carefully through the mess of books and removing a loose page which had floated down to land on Firefoot’s head.
“Bui,” Hazel sighed in a long-suffering manner, rolling her eyes skyward and licking her paw delicately.
Keegan began stacking the books carefully, checking the time, as Firefoot watched. The fine dust settled about him turned his black stripes grey and made Keegan’s eyes water annoyingly.
“Oh, I can’t take this anymore,” The girl groaned finally, grabbing Firefoot around the belly and lifting him up onto the top of the bookcase in front of the window. The growlithe, moving carefully against the slight rocking of the shelves, put his paws on the round windowsill and nosed open the latch. The window swung open as Keegan lifted Hazel up to the top and Firefoot bounded through, onto the slight ledge outside.
Within seconds, all three had escaped the stuffy office. Keegan pulled the window closed behind her and clambered down, catching each of her pokémon as they jumped from the ledge. “Okay, let’s hurry,” Keegan urged, checking the clock just visible through the glass for the umpteenth time, and the trio hurried off.
Behind them, the television blared to an empty room.
Ross scanned the multi-coloured crowd anxiously, searching for Keegan. I hope she didn’t get caught. I hope nothing’s happened. I wish she didn’t have to sneak away at all… in the canal beside him, his wailmer tugged impatiently at the leash, almost pulling him into the rippling water. Most of the other contestants were already at the starting line, waiting for the race to begin.
Finally Firefoot bounded out of the crowd, tongue lolling happily. Hazel squeezed her way past two legs and Keegan pushed through the crowd, tugging off her shoes almost as soon as she’d reached a relieved Ross.
“Good luck,” he murmured, handing her the leash. Maybe this will prove to Miriam and Pete that they don’t need to worry… I just hope you don’t forget why they’re so strict. He thought inwardly, his soft eyes regarding Keegan with unseen seriousness.
“Thanks, I’m gonna need it,” Keegan answered with a nervous laugh, stepping uncertainly onto the slick, streamlined chariot. She almost tipped over right there and then as the chariot rocked, making the water splash over the curb and drenching Firefoot and Hazel, but after a moment she regained her balance and Wailmer motored its way to the starting line.
Keegan found herself staring into the clear water. She could almost see the bottom, fragmented and distorted by the waves, and shivered. Falling in wasn’t going to be fun – but she wasn’t intending to fall in. She closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath. When she looked again at the glittering water track in front of her, her blue eyes were determined. Water, yes. I’m not under it, so it doesn’t matter.
“Okay, Wailmer, ready to show ‘em what we’ve got?” she said to the round, rubbery blue pokémon. It nodded, making waves rock nearby chariots, and Keegan found herself grinning. Who cares if we win? She thought silently to herself, enjoying the bob of the chariot. I’m on the water, I’m about to go fast and I’m sticking to my decision for once. What does it matter if we win or not?
She cast a quick glance to the side, fleetingly touching her pendant for good luck, and Ross gave her a thumbs up sign; then she heard the xatu crow. Wailmer surged forward, already speeding through the water and throwing up two curtains of foam on either side of Keegan’s chariot.
Blonde hair lashing in the wind, Keegan leaned back on the leash the way Ross had taught her during one of the memorable nightly excursions. Someone cut in front of them, spraying Keegan with water, and Wailmer cut their speed abruptly to avoid the collision as Keegan’s spare arm windmilled frantically. Oh God, don’t fall in…! With a jerk the whale pokémon rushed forwards, dodging a spiky, scaled seadra to dart around the corner, hauling the chariot behind him as it skidded on the surface of the track against the force of its momentum.
Her heart pounding, Keegan caught her breath and her balance as they streaked towards the man in the lead, the walls and canals of Alto Mare blurring past her in a rush of exhilarating wind.
Back at the library, Miriam lifted the pile of old books she had just sorted from the shelves, heading to the back office where she’d ask Keegan to pack them away into a box for shipping to the library on the mainland. The salty water around Alto Mare made it difficult to maintain the library properly, so the oldest and most precious of books were kept elsewhere.
As she came to the door, Miriam heard the sound of the television and smiled. Of course Keegan would want to watch Ross in the water chariot race. Using her elbow, Miriam levered the door open and was greeted by an empty room. Shocked, she blinked, setting the books down on the table and looking around.
“And newcomer Keegan just taken the lead with former champion Ross’s wailmer, but Marlin and his golduck aren’t gonna let the race go that easily, as he tails her close behind –”
Miriam whirled about to stare at the screen incredulously, sure she’d heard wrong. But no, there was Keegan, balanced perilously on a speeding, streamlined chariot with her rival pulling up beside her. Miriam’s heart leapt to clog her throat as the water shifted, throwing the chariots together. The plump woman let out an involuntary cry of distress, clutching herself fearfully as they scraped each other, the announcer’s voice merely noise in the background. Keegan’s chariot rocked wildly, almost sending her plummeting into the water. Don’t let her fall, don’t let her fall, don’t let her fall…! Marlin leaned away, narrowly avoiding a second, more serious collision as the foamy plumes sprayed up around them, and Miriam let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding.
She could have gotten herself hurt! Miriam thought tearfully, covering her eyes with frustrated apprehension. I don’t care how old she is, she acts like an irresponsible child! That’s half the reason we’re so strict with her, doesn’t she realize that? How could Ross have let her enter… she shuddered. Without looking again at the screen Miriam hurried out of the office, her adrenaline-weak legs fuelled by worried anger.
Back at the race Keegan swerved around the last, sharp corner, the chariot wobbling dangerously. The side scraped the brick wall and Keegan winced, her cheeks flushed with windburn and her fringe threatening to lash in her eyes. Not far ahead, Marlin was speeding towards the finish line.
“Let’s go!” Keegan urged Wailmer. With a deep rumble, Wailmer picked up the pace. His watery backlash made Keegan’s chariot veer from side to side but she had a firm grasp of its capabilities now and balanced skilfully against its roll as they drew abreast of Marlin. He glanced over at her and found the time to grin at her under his beard. Catching Keegan’s gaze, she grinned back as Wailmer slowly pulled in front, the water around them and the rainbow coloured audience ranged on the streets a mere blur.
The next thing Keegan knew, the finishing banner had flashed overhead and Wailmer came to a halt, slinging the chariot around as Keegan struggled to maintain her balance. Her adrenaline-weak legs collapsed on her, sending her careening into the clear, lapping water. Her shoulder jarred the chariot, making her hand tingle numbly as water closed over her head with a shocking of gasping panic. Nonono, God this was supposed to be fun! Terrified, choking on water, she scrambled for the surface as Wailmer came up beneath her, lifting her on its rubbery blue back to safety.
Trembling and weak with relief and exhaustion, Keegan coughed and took in a gulp of blessed air to calm her pounding heart, sitting with her legs sprawled on Wailmer’s back as she brushed her wet hair from her eyes with a shaky hand. She suddenly became aware of the shouts and calls coming from the sidelines and looked up to see Marlin give her a fleeting salute, which she returned with a weak, slightly forced smile. She glanced over to the side to see a worried-looking Ross, prepared to jump in the canal for rescue her. She threw him an unsteady grin and a thumbs-up. Relieved, Ross settled for waving his hands with reproachful elation as Firefoot jumped about excitedly, accidentally knocking Hazel into the water. Drenched, looking remarkably like a wet rattata, Hazel scrambled out of the water and glared at Firefoot, long fur dripping.
And then it finally began to dawn on Keegan, something completely unexpected: she’d won.
The medallion flashed in the light of the day, the path barely visible through the rippling, tinted glass. Keegan studied it, rocking it back and forth and admiring the way the sun brought out the different hues.
Ross chuckled, poling his boat along the canal beside her. “You’ve seen that thing a million times, you know,” he reminded her.
Keegan grinned. “Yeah, but that’s always after you’ve won it.” She rubbed her hand proudly over the raised glass outlines of Latios and Latias circling the Soul Dew, unaware of the troubled look which passed over Ross’ face.
She didn’t learn anything, he thought with the chill of sorrow. She got dunked in and she didn’t even realize why Miriam and Pete’s fears might be justified. He shuddered, remembering the look of terror on her face as Wailmer lifted her through the thin, crystalline sheet of the surface; the look which no one else had seemed to notice.
Firefoot jumped up onto his hind legs, forepaws stabbing in the air as he struggled to see the medallion, so Keegan lowered the medallion to let the growlithe pup take a look. Up ahead, Hazel stopped in her tracks with a gasp, then darted back and hid behind Keegan’s legs. Keegan giggled elatedly, too much on a high to realize something dire might have happened. “What’s the matter, Haze?”
“Grawlth, grrra,” Firefoot backed away slowly, nervously. Keegan finally looked up to see Miriam bearing down on them with hard steps, her brown curls accenting her furious scowl. She didn’t see the worry buried deep in her foster mother’s brown eyes.
“Uh oh,” Keegan went pale, having completely forgotten about the consequences of entering the race. “Listen, Ross, I – I’ll see you later, okay? No point in her getting angry at the both of us.”
Ross nodded, leaning on his pole and staring at Miriam between the long fringes framing his face. “Yeah, sure… ” He felt a pang, knowing that the upcoming argument was his fault. I’m the one who let her enter, I was just hoping that maybe – without finishing his thought or figuring out exactly what he’d been hoping he pushed off the curb, turning down a thin canal, and waved after him. Keegan raised a hand in answer, then glanced down at the medallion.
Once again she rubbed her thumb over the raised glass, her eyes darkening. It was worth it, she thought defiantly, and raised her chin to face her foster mother.
“What were you thinking?!” Miriam shrieked in her shrill voice once Keegan was in hearing range.
<<She’s not happy…>> Firefoot’s ears went down and he slunk behind Keegan’s legs to look at Hazel. His head lowered near the ground and his mournful eyes darted back to Miriam, his fluffy tail twitching.
Hazel rolled her eyes apprehensively in his direction, ears flickering. <<You think?>> she answered, her tone heavy with sarcasm as she rubbed her furry head against Keegan’s legs comfortingly. Oh Latias, when will this conflict end? She thought sadly, regarding Miriam’s round, red face.
“I was thinking about having fun,” Keegan snapped back to her foster mother heatedly, only half aware of the exchange which had gone on beneath her. Miriam grabbed her hand and began dragging her back home, while Hazel and Firefoot exchanged a worried glance and trailed after.
“There’s a reason your father and I stopped you from entering those races!” Miriam said angrily between breaths, yanking Keegan under a bridge down one alley and then another. It was as much for punishment as for safety, didn’t you see that?
Keegan tried to tug her hand away, but for a plump woman Miriam was amazingly strong. “Pete’s not my father!” the girl retorted, her tone just as angry as Miriam’s. Her spare hand was clenched around the medallion, the metal edges digging into her palm and the chain trailing behind her. “And you’re not my mother! You have no right to tell me what to do!” Miriam’s stride faltered and she gave Keegan a stricken look, stopping in the sheltered alley. Keegan wrenched her hand out of Miriam’s grasp, massaging her fingers, and ignored Miriam’s hurt eyes as Hazel and Firefoot crowded supportively at her legs.
She doesn’t think of us as her parents? Miriam swallowed through the hurt lump in her throat and took a deep breath. “We’ve been your only family for eight years, Keegan,” she began, her tone thick with forced calm. Keegan scowled into the ground, trying to fight off the feelings of guilt which were warring with her anger. There was already a lump in her throat and her eyes began to shine with unshed tears; she hated arguing. “I would have thought that meant something to you.” Miriam’s voice was unintentionally accusing.
Keegan gritted her teeth, looking away. How dare she use guilt on me like that! She raged inwardly, angry enough to say something she’d regret forever. “Well, it doesn’t!” she choked. “All you’ve done is hold me back! You won’t even let me compete in harmless chariot races! You won’t even let me leave Alto Mare!” she gestured wildly with the hand clutching the medallion, looking up finally to meet Miriam’s shocked eyes.
Keegan took a deep breath, tears spilling down her cheeks. “All I want to do is make my own decisions,” she continued stubbornly. “I want to be able to decide what I do and where I go, but you won’t even let me do that!”
“And until you learn to look at life seriously, I won’t!” Miriam snapped, finally finding her voice. I can’t! You might get hurt, you might accidentally hurt other people! “So far all you care about is having some fun and getting up to mischief! I’d thought that reading about Lance the dragon master and the other Elites might make you realize just how dangerous it is out there, but so far it doesn’t seem to have worked!” Keegan flushed and Miriam continued relentlessly, brushing her curls behind her ear as she tried passionately to make her stubborn foster daughter see, make her understand – “You of all people should know how dangerous the world is, Keegan. It’s because of those dangers that we came to call you our daughter.”
“It’s because of those dangers that you’ve chained me here to Alto Mare!” Keegan retorted in a trembling voice, her cheeks still pink under the tear tracks. “You’re afraid I’ll break apart or I’ll get hurt, but you don’t know that at all! How am I meant to prove myself if you won’t let me shoulder any responsibility? Facing danger is just part of that!”
“Facing danger is being stupid,” Miriam countered angrily. “You don’t go looking for danger, you have to take it as it comes.”
“I can’t take it as it comes if I can’t live my own life!” Keegan shouted, her voice shaking dangerously. “I don’t even know what I want to do with myself, because this city is all I remember!” she gestured around at the shadowed, ivy-swathed brick walls. “I don’t even know where – where I got this,” she tugged at her pendant vehemently, her wet eyes boring furiously into Miriam’s face. “When am I going to find out who I am, what I’m meant to do?”
“When you finally realize that life isn’t all fun and games,” Miriam answered heatedly. “The people here in Alto Mare know that better than anyone – the sea is dangerous, you have to take it seriously! It’s not a game! No matter where you go and what you do, there are always rules to follow – but you seem to dedicate yourself to breaking them! Until you learn a little responsibility and respect, you’re not ready to go out into the world.”
“Wha – how dare you decide that for me!” Keegan’s fists were clenched, and she was shaking and crying with fury.
Miriam sighed, her frustration draining out of her like a sieve. “Come on home, little fox,” she held out a hand, her tone as gentle as she could make it. Please, please come home. I’m only trying to protect you.
“Don’t call me that!” Keegan screamed, covering her ears childishly, and Miriam flinched with a jolt. “You can’t! You’re not allowed!” With a ragged, choked sob, she dodged down the alley, shoes pounding the stones.
“Grawlth!” Firefoot barked, darting after her. Hazel paused and looked up at Miriam with sad, accusing eyes; then she bounded after Keegan and Firefoot. Shocked, angry and guilty, Miriam watched them vanish around the next corner.
Keegan trudged down the path, wet eyes staring dully at the cobblestones before her. Hazel backed away in front of her, cocking her head to gaze at Keegan’s tear-stained face. Firefoot’s own stride reflected Keegan’s depression. He walked so close behind her his nose occasionally bumped the backs of her legs, as was his wont.
The usually slate-grey streets now looked golden in the late afternoon sun that flashed from across the ocean and most people had retreated into their homes to enjoy a clear, brisk evening. But not Keegan.
The breeze gusted through the lanes and canals of Alto Mare, making the water lap against the curb. It wrapped around Keegan and she shivered, suddenly coming out of her reverie to realize the day was cooling and she was still only wearing her denim shorts – hardly enough to keep her warm.
But she kept walking. Walking was the only way she had to exercise her frustration; and though her stomach rumbled with hunger and her limbs with weary with lack of energy, she felt she couldn’t stop.
The wind tugged insistently at her hair, drawing her ponytail over her shoulder and playing with it, shaking it in her eyes. Idly, Keegan brushed it out of her face and behind her ears, but it tangled annoyingly around her hand. Hazel tripped over a loose stone and tumbled backwards, her fur fluttering in the playful fingers of the breeze.
Suddenly Keegan realized she had reached the edge of Alto Mare and gazed out over the gold and orange lit ocean. The horizon was dyed with purple and red, the clouds etched over the sun dimming its bright glow. Keegan’s jaw clenched momentarily and she glared out at the sea. The snowy-white wingull cawed, darting and diving in the final hour or so of daylight. “Look at them,” Keegan said enviously, feeling wrung out and emotionally exhausted. “They’re free.” As she watched, a mantine broke the surface of the glittering water, rising in a graceful arc before vanishing back beneath the crystalline ocean with hardly a splash.
“Bubui,” Hazel mewed sympathetically.
“Gawlth,” Firefoot whined, and sat at Keegan’s feet, his orange-and-black fur blazing in the setting sun.
“There’s no way,” Keegan said bitterly, eyes following the wingull. “They can go where they want, when they want. Like Lance and the Elites,” she added broodingly. “Sure, they have responsibilities, but they chose to take on those responsibilities. I bet you if Lance were in my position he wouldn’t take all this guff. He’d go out and do what he thought was right, no matter what anyone said.”
“Graaw,” Firefoot cocked his head, soft puppy eyes looking up at Keegan.
Keegan sighed, depressed, and realized she still held the medallion. She lifted it, examining it in the golden light. Distantly, from the last house, she heard the sound of radio music, and tilted her head to listen.
‘I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance;
Never settle for the path of least resistance.
Living might mean taking chances, but they’re worth taking…’
Keegan’s heart skipped a beat; it was as though the radio echoed her frustration. Miriam and Peter just didn’t seem to understand that sometimes, to find your dream, you had to take risks. They truly were afraid of those mountains…
If I stay here, she thought to herself, would I be bowing to Miriam just to avoid a fight? Just to avoid hurting her? She tuned in to the song again, idly wondering what other advice it could give her.
‘Don’t let some hell bent heart leave you bitter;
When you come close to selling out, reconsider.
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance…’
Spellbound, Keegan’s gaze was drawn inexorably to the uppermost stars beginning to wink in the slowly darkening sky, and remembered telling Ross the night before that she’d been too angry at her foster parents to notice them. She spent too much time being bitter to see the beauty around her…
‘…tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder
Where those years have gone?’
I don’t! Keegan felt like shouting, but the lump in her throat stopped her from speaking. The next words she heard with a great deal of irony.
‘I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean…’
No trouble there. She thought with a sigh, her brow wrinkling forward as she stared at the lapping waves.
‘Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens…’
If I left now, one door would close… Keegan thought almost wonderingly. But how many would open for me?
‘Promise me that you’ll give faith a fighting chance…’
I will.
‘And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance...’
Keegan lifted the medallion, tilting it from side to side. In the dying light of the sun and with the rippling ocean behind it, it almost looked at though Latios and Latias were doing just that: dancing. Free.
‘I pray you’re dancing…
I pray you’re dancing…
I hope you dance.’
For the first time in what seemed like years Keegan took a deep breath, suddenly realizing that her cheeks were once again damp. Though she still felt exhausted, it was a weariness that she’d never felt before; not angry or tense, but peaceful.
“You know what?” she said at last, to her pokémon.
“Eeeii,” Hazel purred, her voice vibrating. She felt the sudden change in Keegan, her oldest friend.
“Yeah…” Keegan smiled slowly, the breeze wisping past her and drawing her gaze, not for the last time, up to the sky. “I think… I’m gonna dance.”
When Keegan got home the horizon was still lit with the glow of twilight. The tentative calls of the hoothoot and noctowl were oddly comforting and the dust the ledyba and ledian scattered in a celebration of impending nightfall gave Alto Mare a strangely mystical aura.
Keegan pushed open the door and marched tight-lipped through the kitchen, ignoring Peter sitting at the table; in all likelihood Miriam was up in their room. Although it seemed that Miriam was the dominant one, because she got angry at Keegan’s antics more often than Peter, he was really the one who enforced their rules.
And that night there was no way he was going to let the girl go that easily. “Keegan,” he said, swirling his coffee with a spoon absently. Sitting on the table, his aipom held the sugar bowl, dipping his tiny fingers into the granules and licking them off quickly.
Keegan paused, one hand already on the banister of the stairs, and sighed inwardly. “What?”
“You’re grounded until further notice,” Peter’s voice was bland, somewhat depressed. I’m sorry, little fox. He apologised inwardly. I truly am. He had seen the race himself, on a tinny TV in the tackle shed where his sloop was moored. You fell in and you were terrified – and it has changed nothing. If you simply refuse to listen, then we have to try something else.
“Aipuu?” Aipom cocked his head and looked at the girl frozen at the stairs, one paw hovering above the bowl. He exchanged a warning glance with Firefoot, still at the base of the first step.
“Whatever,” Keegan answered so softly she could hardly be heard. Hazel’s ear twitched; she was already halfway up the stairs.
“No going outside except to the library,” Peter continued with a guilty pang. Aipom’s tail waved and he looked back at Peter with huge eyes but Pete looked away, instead studying the grain of the table.
“Uh huh.” Keegan continued on her way up as Aipom watched after her before returning to his sugar. There’s no way they can keep me locked up, the girl thought serenely. I’m leaving tonight, and they can’t stop that. She glanced down at the medallion, hardly noticing the slight smile that tugged at her lips.
Hazel was sitting in front of Keegan’s room, waiting patiently. Keegan threw open the door and headed straight for her wardrobe, letting Firefoot nose the door closed behind them while Hazel leapt onto the soft bed.
Keegan draped the medallion around her neck and opened the door to the wardrobe, grabbing her shoulder bag off the inside handle. She snatched up a pile of clothes and other necessities and stuffed them inside the bag. Hazel, standing on the bed, placed a paw on the tubs of pokémon food she had rolled across from the bedside table and Keegan made sure they were full before fitting them into the bag carefully. Firefoot padded over, Keegan’s belt in his mouth.
“Thanks,” Keegan murmured, taking the belt and brushing her fingers over his orange-and-black fur before buckling it on. She unclipped Firefoot’s pokéball and expanded it, gazing at it doubtfully. She had never once returned Firefoot to his pokéball, but knew that if they were to leave Alto Mare it was necessary. She held out the pokéball to Firefoot. “I have to return you, Firefoot,” she told him gently.
Firefoot cocked his head in an expectant manner. “Grrrawlth, grraw!” he barked.
Keegan smiled fondly, and gave him one last scratch behind the ears. “I don’t know what I’d do without you two,” she told him honestly.
“Eebui, bubui,” Hazel shook her head from side to side, making her ears flap. Keegan chuckled and raised the pokéball, returning Firefoot for the first time in the four years since Officer Jenny had given him to her. The growlithe pup had been too curious and uncommitted to be cut out for police work and a chance meeting on the street made Officer Jenny convinced he should go with Keegan.
Straightening up, Keegan shrank the pokéball and returned it to her belt, slinging her bag over her shoulder. Then she turned towards the window and turned the latch to push it open… but it didn’t budge.
“Bubui?” Hazel whispered incredulously. With a sick feeling of disbelief, Keegan rattled the latch, but it didn’t move. She tried pushing on the window, to no avail. Dropping the bag, she sank to the floor, stunned. Hazel nuzzled her hand, making sympathetic purring sounds. Her huge eyes locked onto something behind Keegan.
“How did they find out?” the girl choked, entwining her fingers into Hazel’s long fur.
“Officer Jenny,” a deep, grating voice, conditioned by a life on the sea, said behind her. Keegan turned around to see Simon leaning against her doorway, his sleeveless T-shirt making his tanned biceps seem even bigger than they were.
“Bui?” Hazel gasped. Keegan just stared blankly; she hadn’t even heard the door open.
“She came round while you were out,” Simon took a step into the room, his dark eyes studying Keegan over his bearded face. He felt a pang; her eyes looked so lost. “She was pretty disappointed, actually. Said she saw you creeping across the rooftops last night and thought we might want to do something about it. Some people wouldn’t take kindly to having a girl on their roofs.”
“But… but…” Tears spilled out of Keegan’s eyes. “But… I’m grounded… I can’t…” A sob wracked her, the peaceful feeling she had managed to sustain shattering. Too emotionally exhausted to even feel angry, she suffered only despair.
“Bui,” Hazel put her paws on Keegan’s shoulders, licking at the salty tracks down her cheeks, the pokémon’s eyes also shining with sympathetic tears. Keegan hugged her tightly, burying her face in Hazel's soft fur.
Simon glanced into the hall and quietly closed the door behind him, kneeling beside Keegan and putting a hand on her shoulder. “Come on now,” he said quietly. “Crying won’t help.” He held out his hand. “But this might.”
Keegan lifted her head, wiping her eyes, and picked the key off his palm, staring at it uncertainly. “You’re gonna let me out?” she asked, her voice wavering.
“I’ve never agreed with their way of raising you,” Simon admitted. “You’re a curious, adventurous girl, so trying to lock you up only made you want out even more. I’m surprised it took you so long to try and leave.” I just wish it didn’t have to be like this. You still have a lot to learn about the world, little fox – but if you refuse to learn it here, then you’ll have to learn out there, where the lesson will be harsher.
Keegan stood and unlocked the window, then handed the key back to him as Hazel jumped up onto the windowsill. “Here,” Simon held out a pokégear, a small device with several purposes; among those serving as a map, a radio and a phone. It looked small in his big hand. “This might help.” He grinned fervently. “And you’ll need this, too,” He held up a ticket. “For the next ferry out of Alto Mare. It’ll take you to Cianwood – from there you should be able to go to Olivine.”
Keegan took them, clipping the pokégear onto her belt, and stood staring at the ticket for long moments. This is the point of no return, she found herself thinking. If I use this… I can’t go back. She tucked it her back pocket and looked up at Simon, utterly speechless. ‘Thank you’ seemed so… inadequate. Finally she hugged him fiercely and whispered it anyway. “Thank you.”
He squeezed her back. “Get going, little fox. There should be one last ferry leaving tonight, but you have to get there quickly.” Keegan picked up her bag, slinging it over her shoulder once again. “Keegan…” the girl paused and looked back at Simon, who regarded her seriously. “You know they love you.”
Keegan hesitated, then nodded, her eyes downcast. “I know. G’bye, Simon.” Hazel grabbed onto the strap with her teeth and rode the bag as Keegan scrambled out of the window and onto the roof for the last time.
Keegan hurried over the rooftops, ignoring the chill wind that made goosebumps rise on her bare skin and checking the horizon anxiously. The trip to Cianwood City was several days long, and she couldn’t afford to miss the last ferry for a week, but she also knew they had to get out of the harbour before full night.
And yet she couldn’t leave without first saying goodbye to Ross. She dropped silently down onto his balcony, bathed in the yellow glow of his bedroom light, and rapped at the window. Instantly Ross looked up from the book he had been reading and tossed it aside, coming to the glass doors; Keegan stood away as he pushed them open.
He took in Hazel, standing on the balcony balustrade, and Keegan’s bag over her shoulder. “You’re leaving.” It wasn’t a question; his soft brown eyes were already resigned. It had to come to this, didn’t it? The only way you’d learn why Pete and Miriam did what they did – the only way they’d realize why you did the same.
Keegan nodded, her own eyes glimmering. “I have to hurry – there’s only one more ferry, and I have to catch it. But I had to say goodbye.”
“Eebui,” Hazel agreed forlornly.
“Well, then, here,” Ross grabbed an empty pokéball from his bedside table and held it out. “You can’t go around with Hazel free like that. Under the Pokémon Association’s rules, if she doesn’t have a pokéball, she’s wild and therefore fair game.”
Keegan took it gingerly, knowing he was right but not liking it one bit, as Hazel jumped down from the ledge, her eyes resolute. Keegan tossed the pokéball gently; it bounced off Hazel and enclosed her in a flash of red light before dropping to the balcony, rocking only once before locking down. Keegan picked it up and looked down at it somewhat regretfully; it represented just one more change.
Then Keegan drew the medallion from around her neck and looked at it briefly before handing it to Ross. “I was gonna keep it, as a reminder… but I think it’d do better here.” Ross accepted it reluctantly, and met Keegan’s gaze. She managed a shaky grin. “We’ll be okay,” she promised.
Ross smiled fondly. “I know you will,” he said simply before drawing her into his arms. She clasped him around the neck, embracing him tightly for as long as she dared. Then she let him go and gave him one last, fleeting smile before climbing lithely back onto the roof. Ross leaned on the edge of the balcony, the medallion still clutched in his hand, and gazed out into the slowly darkening city with a bitter-sweet pang as the wind whispered assurances in his ears.
Keegan ran as fast as she could, ignoring the stitch in her side and the annoying bounce of the pendant at her throat, her breath coming in short gasps. It was almost full night now, but she could see the ferry up ahead, still moored to the almost deserted pier.
A sailor still on the dock was untying the rope securing the small ship to the wharf. “Hey!” Keegan shouted breathlessly, and the sailor looked up. He waved to her, gesturing for her to hurry, and called something to someone in the shadow of the awning over the deck.
Keegan pounded up the gangplank, legs aching and chest heaving, and sank to her knees, exhausted. “Thanks,” she gasped to the sailor unlatching the gangplank from the ship, and he chuckled.
“It was a close one,” he said, pushing the railing clear of the ship. Keegan struggled to her feet, the salty breeze already cooling her off, and walked to the bow to stand watching the rolling sea as they cleaved through the water.
She looked back only once at Alto Mare. The city was still lit up by the lights of the houses, a glittering metropolis amid the churning, restless ocean. Then she turned forward to their destination and her future.
She was content with her choice; the first of many. Whatever the consequences were… she was ready to face them.
--------------------
Lame? Yes, it is. So sue me.
For those who are interested, the song is called 'I Hope You Dance' by Ronan Keating.
Last edited: