Hoenn League: A Brendan and May Adventure

[Dark Latios]

yay! a new chap this is my fav fic so far anyway good chap it's so funny how May and Brendan tease each other all the time can't wait for the next chap ^^

 

[HK]

As for a new chappy at ff.net, it would of prolly been today if I could log in >_<

Thanks for reviewing guys, you rock! ^_^

LaTeR dAyZ!

that's cool, so you should have chapter 43 up tomorrow(if you are able to log in), and maybe a few others(please, i'll give ya a bag of cookies!)? if not, when do you think you will be able to update with new chapters? i think that your other stories like "Who Shot Brendan Birch", "Hoenn League: The Kero Chronicles" and "May I" (for the Hoenn Shipping) were all really great, and i can't wait till you add chapters to those as well. one question: when do you expect for you to start on these stories,"The Elite League: The Brendan and May Adventure II", and"The Indigo League: The Brendan and May Adventure III"? i know you haven't even finished probably half of the first one of the series, but i would like to know.

 

[Breezy]

Rivals at our Own Game ​

The words that came out of May's mouth didn't surprise him. “I hate you,” she muttered as she pulled out a dry washcloth from her fanny pack, rubbing it against her face.

“I love you, too,” he dryly replied, looking into the distance. They were near the cliff side, and he could hear the ocean waves crash against the hard rock, occasionally sending up a light burst of spray. “You owe me a new bottle of water, by the way. I used it all when splashing you.”

“I don't owe you anything. You didn't have to spray me, you know,” the girl said hastily. She threw her damp washcloth as Brendan's face, letting out a giggle at his disdained look as the towel slid down, dropping onto the floor. He picked it up, shook it a few times to get rid of the dirt that caught in it before sliding it into an open pocket in his backpack.

“Fine. If you stop being bratty about it, we'll go back to Fallabor and I'll buy you ice cream,” he offered.

“I do like ice cream ...” she said dreamily. “Fine. I want two scoops, though.”

“Just a tad hungry aren't you?” Brendan noticed May's angry glare. “Shutting up now.”

“You better.”

There was a loud beep coming from the pokenav clipped to May's fanny pack belt as the two reentered Meteor Falls. While the cave was still beautiful and the sound of the waterfall colliding with the water below was peaceful, the message on her device had more of her attention. The message was urgent but simple: Get to back to Mount Chimney. We really need your help. Of course; Archie.

May almost stumbled, not noticing the staircase, and Brendan quickly grabbed her by the arm so she wouldn't fall forward.

“What are you reading, May? Who's that from?” The girl felt Brendan's hot breath against the nape of her neck, sending shivers up her spine as the two climbed up the staircase that lead back toward Meteor Falls entrance.

She shut her pokenav off quickly, creating more suspicion. “No one,” she quickly replied, hooking it back to her fanny pack.

“Is it Wally again?”

“No. I'm not sure why you have an odd obsession over him.”

“I don't! I just ... it's really ... you know he likes ... Never mind.”

May watched as Brendan turned his head away, though it was impossible to miss the flushness that made its way to his face. Why was he blushing? Why was he flustered? Thoughts about Brendan began to race through her mind, pushing the Team Aqua message out of her head, if only for a quick second. He was acting different around her. Well, not different. Just ... nicer. He hadn't called her “girl” for awhile, and he's been actually helping her get around tough obstacles instead of making fun of her for it. She changed, too. She wouldn't even let Brendan within a ten foot radius before, let alone touch her arm, grab her by the hand, breathe on her, even. Maybe he wasn't that bad after all. Even though he is cocky, something that she was sure would never change, he was still a good boy. And the cockiness kind of grew on her. It was pretty endearing. Charming, in a queer sense. They haven't been traveling long – only a couple of months or so – but she felt so ... comfortable with him now. It was nice.

“May?”

She blinked out of her thoughts as Brendan waved a hand in front of her face. When did they pass through the route that lead back to Fallabor Town? Was she that lost in thought?

“Hmm?” she replied, eyes shining in the light of the sunset. The red rays of sunlight made her hair look like it was tinted with red.

Brendan nudged his head to the building they were in front of, an ice cream parlor made out of the same wooden planks the rest of the town was built in. May could smell the sweetness of the sugary treat seep it ways through the cracks of the door, making her stomach rumble. And yet she was in panic; she had to help Archie. There was no time for ice cream.

The boy grabbed the metal bar of the door and pushed his back against it, the cold of the glass pressing against the thin cloth of his sweater, allowing May to enter first. He then looked down after hearing his pokenav beep a few times and picked it out of his pocket, opening the new message he received. As expected, it was from Maxie: Come to Mount Chimney A.S.A.P! That infuriating Team Aqua is trying to ruin our plans.

“Mmm,” he murmured, licking his lips, his head still bent down. May looked at him curiously as he snapped his pokenav shut and pocketed it. “Hey listen, May–”

“I'm not that hungry anymore,” she interrupted, gripping her stomach, her eyes narrowed a bit in queasiness. “The smell is kind of making me feel sick, and Meteor Falls made me cold. I don't think ice cream would help. I might ... um ... go to the pokémon center for a bit and rent a room for the night, if that's okay. I kind of just want to lie down.”

Things couldn't have worked out better. Thank god for womanly issues.

May raised an eyebrow at the odd expression that crossed Brendan's face at his last thought. “Brendan?”

“Ah, right. That's fine, May. I might just go train then.” Brendan closed the door of the ice cream parlor, the cold air of the building brushing through his hair, causing him to shiver. He motioned toward the waterfall up ahead on the path. “Sapphire really needs to work on her underwater tactics now, and Muddy will like it for sure. He also needs to work on his swimming skills.”

She nodded, going ahead toward the pokémon center. “So, um, I'll see you later?”

“Yeah.” Brendan waved at her as May looked back, unsure. “Just call me if you need anything.”

“Okay,” she replied softly, the same look of distress on her face. Slowly, she turned her head back toward the front, her eyes fixated on the doors of the pokémon center. She knew better. She knew Brendan was heading toward Mount Chimney. That Maxie was probably the one that messaged him right now. That was just fine; she was going there, too. Well, as soon as Brendan was a good distance away.

May sat at the window inside the pokémon center and looked outside toward the mountain range. The sun was beginning to set, the colors a blend of orange and red, something that would only be seen in a cowboy movie. The clouds were clear albeit the tiny dot of cloud, minuscule to the rest of the canvas. It was such a pretty day, and it would have been such a nice day, too, if Team Magma didn't get involved. It was actually rather sweet that Brendan showed her Meteor Falls and that he helped her get to it in the first place. This was the first time May felt any sort of ... feeling toward Brendan. So strange, so bizarre ...

No, he was a jerk. You can't fall for him.

And yet ...

May pressed her hand against the window and slowly trailed it down, leaving behind streaks. She looked down the trail that lead to the waterfall; no Brendan, but she expected it. He wouldn't be training there. He went to Mount Chimney. This is why she couldn't – or shouldn't – like Brendan. It just bewildered her how he thought Team Magma's cause was right. Did that make her right, though? Was joining Team Aqua hypocritical?

Shaking her head, the girl trainer got up and exited the pokémon center, breathing in the fresh air. That was enough time to give Brendan enough lead. Hopefully she wouldn't have to see him there.

- - -​

The storm of falling ashes was thicker than usual. In fact, Brendan had to shield his eyes from the flying ashes as he looked around, trying to find Maxie or some sort of leader so he could figure out what he was supposed to do. The sky was smoky and dark red, and dead trees littered the battlefield, the fine and dusty dirt coating his legs in a thin powder.

He had to dodge quickly to avoid a couple of poochyena that were tackling each other, each commanded by a Team Aqua and Magma grunt. The further he walked up, the hotter he got, though he wasn't sure if this was because he was nervous or because he was getting closer to the center of the mountain. After a good amount of walking, running, and jumping over things, Brendan finally saw Maxie heavily guarded by a few of his admins.

“Maxie!” he yelled, trying to run toward him. He was stopped by a few of the admins, pushing him in the chest to move him back.

“Watch it, punk!” the admin that pushed him snarled. “Sir, what do we do this kid? He just came wandering here.”

“He's with us,” coolly replied Maxie, his hands turning knobs on a strange machine ahead. The machine made buzzing noises, and Brendan could see the meteorite contained in a glass holder. It vibrated and seemed to be glowing red. “Give him something to separate him from the others. If those goody-goody Team Aqua members see him, they'll probably try to pull him away.”

The admin pressed his hands against his body, trying to search for something, before pulling off the bandanna connected to his belt loop. He forced it into Brendan's hand, the cloth a little scratchy. “Put it on,” he ordered.

Brendan flapped the bandanna in the air, observing it. It was the same colors as the one he was wearing now – red and black – but the back color was red while the symbol, a weird M shape, was black with red stitching. His fingers pulled off his old bandanna and pocketed it, quickly tying the Team Magma bandanna around his head. “Er, now what?” he asked meekly.

“Battle any Team Aqua member that comes this way,” was the swift reply from Maxie who had not looked up from the machine.

With a nod, Brendan ran ahead and waited with the rest of the grunts, pokéball in hand. As he waited, his mind couldn't help but think about May. She'd be disappointed in him. Probably mad at him, too, if she knew he was here. But this was his choice. This was what he believed in.

The boy got ready as a few Team Aqua grunts marched up the slope.

- - -​

“Oh, why did I come here?” May whined, sitting behind a boulder, her knees pressed up against her chest. She let out a loud squeak as she heard a loud explosion; was the volcano exploding? No, it couldn't be; Maxie wasn't that cold. He wouldn't activate the volcano with this many people here. Then again, he didn't really seem to care who he was hurting period since he was going through with this insane plan.

Another load of Team Aqua members ran up a steep incline. One of them noticed May hiding behind the rock. “Little girl, are you lost?” she asked, the partner next to her stopping as well.

“Little?” she shouted, hopping onto her knees, her hands clenching into fists.

“Nah. This is that girl from earlier. The one we met in Meteor Falls, remember?” the other member reminded.

“Ah, right. Archie was raving about her earlier and raving more about you actually helping us.” The girl Team Aqua agent rolled her eyes. “I have no idea why. Listen here, girly. If you think you can get Archie to like you just because you just joined his team, don't even try; he's not ever going to be interested on this team ever.” She gave a hopeless sigh, her eyes cast toward the floor.

The partner next to her simply shook his head and pulled out a spare bandanna from the back of his pocket. “Well, you were called here for a reason, and that was to help, wasn't it?” He threw the bandanna toward her, and she caught it in her hand. “So help.”

“How?” May asked, pulling off her bandanna and tying on the new one.

“Getting to Maxie and stopping him,” replied the girl agent like it were obvious. “Of course, rookies like us aren't going to get near him, so we're mostly just distracting the Team Magma underlings.”

May gave a nod as the two other Team Aqua grunts ran ahead, pokéball in hand. Like them, May pulled out her own ball as well and chased after them, ready to face the onslaught of Team Magma members.

- - -​

Brendan watched as Muddy hurled out sticky, gooey mud at a Team Aqua member's poochyena. The canine howled, the heavy mud hardening on his skin in the hot, dry weather, and his opponent quickly redrew his pokémon and ran away. The boy laughed at the sight, throwing Muddy's pokéball in the air and catching it.

“You're doing great, Muddy!” Brendan cheered, pumping his fist in the air. “That's, like, the third Team Aqua Ggunt we beat!”

The marshtomp didn't reply as he collapsed onto his knees, his face twisting in sickness and his skin turning a pale shade of blue. He clutched at his stomach, his eyes clenched shut. “I don't feel so good,” Muddy groaned, sweat running down forehead. He wiped at the beads with his paw, only for more to come running down.

Brendan ran to his pokémon's side, dropping onto his knees and rubbing Muddy's back soothingly. “Did I make you battle too much?” he asked worriedly.

Muddy put a paw up, dropping onto all fours like he was back in his first form. “No. I just have this funny feeling in the pit of my stomach–” White light bathed over Muddy before he could finish his sentence. Brendan watched in awe as his little marshtomp grew into something ... bigger. He still had the same rubbery, blue and orange skin, of course, and was still able to stand on his hind legs, but it was formed over a taller, more muscular structure. Large, gray fins decorated his back and head, the fins leading toward his bright, orange eyes. His tail was thicker, something the boy was sure would help the pokémon with while swimming.

The pokémon was still panting, the evolution taking a toll on his energy. “Am I ... a ... what am I?” he managed to gasp out. “S-swampert?”

Brendan nodded, his eyes wide in disbelief. “Wow ...”

- - -​

“Flare! Use Fire Punch now!” May commanded.

The combined elements of lava and ash powered up Flare as she charged toward her enemy, a golbat, her right claw thrust backward, flames licking the tips. Snarling, she punched the bat right in the head, sending him flying back into the arms of the Team Magma grunt. Screeching at his defeat, the grunt quickly returned his fallen pokémon and ran in the other direction.

“Yay! Good job, Flare!” May cried, running up to her pokémon and squeezing her tight.

Flare would have usually loved the attention, but the hug made her feel sick. She collapsed to her knees, gasping for breath, pushing her trainer away. “May, I'm not feeling so hot ...” she muttered, coughing and clawing at the ground.

May looked at her pokémon anxiously. “Do you need a super potion or something?” She trailed off as she saw bright, white light blanket over Flare, and she quickly stumbled back, her blue eyes wide. When the light died down minutes later, Flare was a changed pokémon. Instead of her smaller combusken frame, the tall, lean flame of a blaziken, Flare's final evolution, took her place. Flames licked at her gray, sharp claws, and bright reddish-orange and yellow feathers decorated her body. Her eyes were blue and gleaming, and the tip of her beak was adorned with a sharp, v-like decoration. Slicked back tan feathers started at the top of her head and trailed down toward her chest.

The newly evolved pokémon stood back up, a good foot or so above her head. “May?” Flare asked, looking at her claws while standing up, not used to her tall height. She wobbled a bit, trying to gain balance.

May just nodded, her eyes wide, her mouth wide open.

- - -​

“They just won't stop coming!” shouted one of the grunts, his zubat biting into the wing of a wingull. The bird squawked, flapping her wings, trying to shake her opponent off.

Brendan was down on one knee, scratching his poochyena behind the ear. The canine let out a low growl from the back of his throat, his back leg pounding the floor, his tail wagging back and forth happily. He quickly got back up as one of the admins glared at him, Sirius jumping out in front of him, snarling. Another couple of Team Aqua grunts came charging up, and each free Team Magma grunt quickly entered battle. Brendan looked around and saw the figure of another Team Aqua grunt come charging up. She was adorned with Team Aqua's infamous blue bandanna, of course, but there was something familiar about her. Blue eyes, brown hair, red shirt, black biker shorts, long, long legs ... Ah, crap. It was May.

Wait, May? What was she doing here? Why was she still coming this way, pokéball in hand? Why wasn't she stopping?

“Birch, stop her!” barked one of the grunts as she ran past him, turning his attention back toward the battle.

He couldn't battle May. Not here, anyway. Not while he was sporting a Team Magma bandanna. That would just anger her more. Yet the girl wouldn't stop running, her eyes fixated on him. She wanted to battle him? Really?

Or maybe not. She tore her eyes away from him as she tried to run past him toward the group of crowded admins, but Brendan quickly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back, hearing her gasp.

“You're not suppose to be here,” he muttered, his grip firm on the squirming girl.

“Neither are you,” she growled back, trying to pry her arm free by using her other hand. “Let me go!”

“No.”

May's fingernails dug into his hand the more she tried to free herself. “Stop it! Let go!”

“What is she? Your girlfriend? Get her out of here!” One of the admins was watching Brendan and May and barked orders.

Brendan nodded and tried to step forward in an attempt to drag the girl with him, but the girl held her ground and refused to be moved. Again, Brendan put more force in his pull (he didn't want to hurt her, though) but May stood firm, her eyes narrowed.

“If you won't let go, then I'll make you!” May's free hand reached toward her belt and unclipped a pokéball. She threw it toward the ground, releasing a kitten pokémon, her red ears pointed up as they twitched. She swatted a few ashes away with her thick tail, her usually cute, petite face twisted into a disgusted one. “Doubleslap him, Skittles!”

The skitty mewed and swung her tail a bit before whacking Brendan in the shinbone with it, causing the boy to shriek and release May from her grip. Immediately, May ran toward the admins with Skittles on her heels, but Brendan, quickly thinking, demanded, “Sirius, Bite on Skittles!”

This stopped May in her tracks. She turned around just as Sirius ran behind Skittles and bit on her mid-back, his sharp teeth sinking into her skin. She hissed in pain and shook Sirius off with a good shake of her body, shivering at the feel of saliva coated in her precious fur.

“Fine! If it's a battle you want, then it's a battle you'll get! Skittles, Assist!” commanded May, glaring at Brendan.

Skittles concentrated as one of May's pokéballs began to glow a bright red. Her eyes snapped open as she sprinted toward the poochyena, scratching at his face. May realized that it was Flare's scratch attack. Sirius cried out, knocking the skitty back with a swift blow to her head. This didn't stop Skittles, though, as she leaped toward him again, scratching at his face once more. Sirius stumbled back a bit, but he looked determined than ever.

“Use Take Down, Sirius!” Brendan commanded, his fists clenching up in fury.

Sirius sprinted toward Skittles, kicking up dust, and collided with her, using his head to push her back into a boulder, causing the skitty to screech in protest. He then ceased his attack and backed down, letting Skittles slide down the boulder, landing on her bottom, gasping for breath.

“Skittles, try Faint Attack!” May directed.

Skittles shakily got back on all fours and closed her eyes, disappearing from sight, leaving Sirius confused. Without him knowing, she then appeared from behind him and tackled. Sirius, surprised by the attack, flew face forward into the ground, skidding along his chin. Wincing and trembling in pain, the poochyena stood back up, wobbling like a newborn pokémon learning to walk.

“Sirius! Finish her off with another Take Down!” Brendan ordered.

Slowly, Sirius turned around and lowered his body closer to the ground, pawing at it before running, tackling Skittles with his head, slamming her into the ground with a loud thud. The poor kitten did her best to stand up but just couldn't due to her fatigue. She laid there, not moving.

“Skittles, return!” May pulled out Skittles' pokéball and returned her, whispering words of gratitude into it. “I see you've improved since the last time I've battled you,” the girl trainer remarked, raising an eyebrow.

Brendan smiled smugly. “Got a problem with that?”

The girl trainer smirked back. “No, because I've improved, too!” She enlarged another pokéball, thrusting it toward the battlefield. “I choose you, Tai!” May released Tai, and the bird took to the air swiftly, chirping his name. “Trust me, Brendan. Tai! Quick Attack now!”

Like a rocket, Tai spiraled downward toward the canine, his velocity increasing per second. Looking like a blur of red and blue, Tai's quickly side swept Sirius with his wing and sent him flying a few feet into the air. The canine landed with a rough thud, twitching, his eyes clenched shut.

Brendan glared at May who only smiled in return. “Return, Sirius!” He recalled his pokémon and whispered words of praise into it before shrinking it down and enlarging another. “Well, May. It looks like the score is now one to one.”

May nodded, her battle face not faltering for a second, her dark blue eyes piercing into Brendan's own crimson orbs.

Brendan smiled, his eyebrows raised. “Aren't you the serious one?”

“We're here to battle, not talk!” May answered furiously.

Brendan flicked a piece of ash of his shoulder and shrugged. “Tsk, tsk, May. Every good trainer knows that getting mad is not the key to winning.”

May shifted the bangs on her forehead so they wouldn't block her vision and smiled. “Now why would a bad trainer know what a good trainer does?”

Brendan growled, for he was the one mad now. “I am a good trainer, May. Better than you anyway!”

May laughed mockingly. “You? Better than me? Who was the one who beat you two times straight when we battled against each other? That's right. I did! You're not even half of what I am, Brendan Birch!”

Brendan bit his lip and glared at May, his anger rising also. “Don't even go there.” He felt his body pulsing with white, hot anger, and he heard his pokéball crack in protest as he squeezed it tighter. “Go, Sapphire!” Brendan released his chipper lanturn, causing the girl to raise an eyebrow.

“Well, isn't that a surprise?” May said sarcastically. “An electric type. Need to fight against the elements to beat me now, huh?”

“Shut up! Just because I know my tactics and you don't doesn't mean you need to insult me!”

May put her hands on her hips, blowing up her bangs. “Let's make this quick. Tai, Quick Attack!”

“All right, Sapphire. We've been practicing this for weeks. Now it's your time to shine!” He watched as his lanturn nodded, Tai closing in on her. “Let's clip these birds wings with Spark!”

Sapphire charged up the lantern on her head, swinging it back and forth, her eyes sparkling, her eyes watching Tai's come closer. Crying out her name as her body pulsed with power, she swung her beacon back, and it collided with Tai, bolts of electricity zapping him. The tiny bird fell toward the ground in a thump before slowly picking himself back up with a flap of his wings. Sapphire's eyes were clenched shut, and she was shivering; even though the training seemed to be paying off, the energy seemed to take a toll on her energy.

“Hang in there, Tai! Wing Attack!” his trainer commanded.

Tai spun a quick spiral to the right before diving, using his right wing to slap Sapphire. Sapphire groaned, skidding back on the dirt ground, her eyes closed as she took the attack head on. She then opened her eyes, releasing she wasn't hurt too badly.

“Sapphire, use Confuse Ray!” Brendan ordered.

Red light spilled out of Sapphire's beacon, flashing before the taillow's eyes. Tai, startled, hovered midair, trying to concentrate as the bright light blurred his vision, his eyes glazed over.

“Concentrate, Tai, and use Quick Attack!” ordered May.

Tai heard his trainer, but his eyes were dazed out, and things were in places that they shouldn't have been. Assuming that a boulder Sapphire was sitting next was the pokémon, he gave a mighty flap of his wings and dove down, spiraling. It was too late before he realized that “Sapphire” was actually a boulder; his beak collided with it, hard. He fell flat on his belly, his wings twitching. The attack must have knocked him out.

“Return!” May returned Tai and whispered kind words into his ball. She took out another pokéball. “Ready for this one? I think you'll be surprised.” She smiled at the confused look on Brendan's face. “I choose you, Cherry!” The girl released her newly evolved beautifly in a blaze of white light and silver sparkles. Cherry took to flight, extending her massive yet colorful wings, her antennas waving in the wind.

“Ah. So she finally evolved,” murmured Brendan, rubbing his chin. “Finally. Wurmples aren't that hard to evolve. Took you long enough.”

“Hush your mouth.” She pouted, crossings her arms. “Silver Wind!”

The wind blew hard, and silver pixie dust came out of Cherry's wings, beautiful yet deadly. The attack engulfed Sapphire and suffocated her, the wind nipping at her rubbery flesh. As quickly as it came, the attack ended, leaving behind a bewildered lanturn, short of breath and worn down.

“Hang tight, Sapphire. Try Spark again!” Brendan ordered, wringing his hands.

Sapphire tried to charge up energy, her beacon sizzling with energy but was too tired to release it. The electricity that ran up and down her body died down. She panted, shivering from fatigue.

“Don't give up, Sapphire! Water Gun her then!”

Sapphire sucked in breath and blew a jet of water toward Cherry, the jet streamlining toward her. The butterfly took the attack head on and got blown back a few feet because of the enormous power. Soaking wet, water dripping off her wings, Cherry shook, droplets flying everywhere. Despite the fact that the attack hit her dead on, Cherry was still hanging on strong.

“Cherry, finish things off with Secret Power!” May commanded.

Cherry's usually big, blue eyes glowed an eerie yellow, her wings flapping rapidly. Shaking with power, the beautifly flew down toward the tired lanturn, slamming into her, sending them both skidding toward the rock wall. Sapphire was Cherry's cushion, though, taking all the damage. The poor lanturn finally gave up, too tired to open her eyes.

Brendan returned Sapphire and whispered gentle words into her pokéballs. He then enlarged another ball. “Two to two. I choose you, Silver!” He released his bug type who hissed at Cherry menacingly, his beady eyes narrowing as he clapped his small but powerful claws. His usual silver body gleamed red, reflecting the sky. “Silver, use Slash!”

“Fly up high and tackle down!” May countered.

The nincada scuttled over to Cherry and tried to hack away at her, but Cherry avoided it by flying up high with a huge flap of her wings. She then aimed and tackled downward, sending Silver flying backwards, kicking up dust.

“Hang in there, Silver, and climb up on to the boulder.” Brendan could tell this was going to be a tougher match since of Cherry's flying capabilities. He watched as the nincada flipped over back onto his feet and scuttled on top of a boulder, snapping his claws. “Now wait for it.”

May smirked. She could easily tell what was going on with Brendan's strategy. He ordered his nincada onto the boulder so he would be able to get to Cherry's height and use String Shot or some other sort of attack to capture Cherry. She would fix that problem quite easily.

“Cherry, tackle the boulder!” May cried as a counter.

“Perfect.” Brendan smirked as Cherry smashed the boulder into pieces with her head, sending Silver and bits of rock and dust flying, making the battlefield harder to see. “Nice try, May, but you're going to have to do better than that!”

“What?” May asked, puzzled. She watched impatiently as the cloud dusts died down, and she gasped as she saw the nincada riding on Cherry's back, digging into the screeching beautifly's skin. Chery did her best to throw him off, but he was holding on tight.

“Finish her off, Silver!” Brendan yelled. “Slash!”

Silver used one of his spiny legs to slash at Cherry's head. Cherry cried out and fell in a heap, ashes on the floor coating her body, while the nincada flipped and landed gracefully on the floor, clicking his front claws together.

“Cherry, return!” May recalled Cherry and switched pokéballs on her belt. “I choose you, Thunderbolt!” In a blaze of light, Thunderbolt burst out of his pokéballs, his bright green fur contrasting against the red sky. He pawed at the ground, lowering his head and snarling.

“Even if Thunderbolt loses this one, you'll never defeat my Flare!” May shouted triumphantly.

Brendan snorted. “In your dreams, May, because guess what? This battle has just begun!”

Last Revision: 7/5/09

 

[Dark Latios]

yay! another chap^^ not good May and Brendan might be against eachother because of Team Aqua and Team Magma. hopefully they become friends again... anyway good chap very descriptive and long I enjoyed it good job!

 

[Breezy]

Love and Hate ​

May smirked, causing Brendan to look at her with mock seriousness. “True, it is getting started, but I'm about to end it!” She looked at her pokémon she had on her field, her electrike she fondly named Thunderbolt, admiring his tiny but fierce stature. His green, coarse, short fur sparkled with electricity, and his mouth was open, revealing a sharp row of teeth. “Thunderbolt, use Spark!” she ordered, rage in her eyes.

Thunderbolt charged up with electricity, tackling Silver with full force, sending the bug type flying near the edge of the lava pit, his body trembling with shocks and sparks of electric power. Brendan gasped as his pokémon tumbled close toward the lava pit and then sighed in relief as he stop inches away from a fiery death. That was it. How dare she even get that close to almost ... almost killing one of his pokémon. She was a Team Aqua member, though. Or at least allied with them. Maxie was right; they didn't care. Why would May? Why would he care for her? Brendan's eyes felt blank as he stared at her, and his determined smirk quickly died down into nothing but a limp frown.

“So, May,” he started, already sending goosebumps onto May's fair skin. “That's the way you want to play, huh? Then let's play! Silver, another Slash!” He slashed through the air, his palm flat and his fingers straight. “Show them no mercy!”

Silver quickly got onto his spiny legs and scuttled over to Thunderbolt with amazing velocity. Raising his front left claw, he slashed with all his power across Thunderbolt's face, making him tumble over into a boulder side, taking a huge part of the boulder with him.

“Thunderbolt!” May cried, running over to his side. She dug through the debris only to find Thunderbolt dented and scratched from the sharp rocks falling onto his tiny body. But what really angered May what the dark, red slash on Thunderbolt's face, courtesy of Silver's claw. A dribble of blood ran down toward his jawline.

May used part of her shirt to wipe the blood off of Thunderbolt's face before she returned him and promised him that the battle would be over soon. She walked over to her place on the battle field, her eyes burning with anger.

“What exactly is wrong with you?” she muttered, her gloved hand wiping at her forehead, prying off the bangs that were glued to her forehead by sweat.

Brendan smirked a little, bending over to give his nincada a little pat on the back. “Nothing. Nothing is wrong with me.” So simple, yet so cold and monotonous at the same time. Where was his emotion, his vigor for battle? It was like it was sucked out of him.

The girl shrunk down Thunderbolt's pokéball and pocketed it with one hand while grabbing and enlarging Flare's pokéball with the other. “I know this isn't you,” May said quietly but loud enough for Brendan to hear. “I don't know who the Brendan Birch I'm looking at right now is, but the old you is somewhere. The old Brendan that I liked being around, that seemed to care about me just a little.” Her eyes darted back and forth in worry.

She was Team Aqua scum. Those words kept repeating in his head. She doesn't care about you, or your pokémon. Didn't you see what she did? She almost killed your nincada right now, even if it weren't on purpose. He almost fell into the lava, for latios' sake!

“Aw, don't you know your friend?” he murmured, his voice lower in pitch. “The one you care for so very much? The one who helped defeat those big bad Team Magma members when you were down? How do I know this stuff? It is because I am the real Brendan Birch!”

May took in a short breath and glared ice cold daggers. “I love the kind-hearted Brendan, but not you!”

Brendan rolled his eyes. “Whatever you say, May.”

“Prepare to lose!” May cried, her fingers wrapping tightly around her last pokéball. “Show 'em your new you, Flare!” She released her last pokémon but instead of the short, young fowl pokémon Brendan was used to, there stood a blaziken, a good few inches taller than him. “Flare! Finish Silver off with Fire Punch!”

Flare obeyed and set her right claw on fire, bending over and punching the nincada right in the kisser despite the height difference. Silver rocketed up from all the power and fell toward the ashy ground with a loud thump, fainting from the powerful blow to the chest.

“Return, Silver!” Brendan recalled his pokémon and took out his abra's pokéball. “Get ready for another type advantage!" He smirked at the look of disdain that crossed May's face. “Up and at 'em, Cy!” he yelled, throwing Cy's pokéball onto the battlefield. With a burst of red light, the abra appeared, sleeping, curled up in fetal position. With his eyes still closed, he sat up, covering his mouth as he yawned.

When May figured out Brendan caught the abra, an abra he creatively named Cy of all things, she was pretty mad. After all, she was the one that found him and weakened it. All he really did was capture him. Not that it mattered, though. “Flare, Fire Punch again!” she commanded.

“Dodge with Teleport!” Brendan countered.

Flare's right claw fired up in heat and flames as she tried punching the abra across the field. Cy quickly reacted by teleporting, dodging the attack as he disappeared, the sound of wind rushing wind filtering through their ears. The wind abruptly stopped as Abra reappeared behind Flare, his eyes still closed.

“Confusion!” Brendan barked out his order. “Let's show 'em how to heat things up!”

Cy glowed a rather violent shade of violet as he concentrating on sending Flare backward into the lava pool. Flare tried to dodge the purple light but failed as she was blasted off her feet and sent flying off the cliff and into the fire.

“Flare!” May screamed in fear, running over to the edge of the cliff and dropping onto her knees, peering over the side, her throat dry, her heart racing. She sighed in relief, her hand clutching her chest, as she saw Flare hanging on by a claw by a dent in the drop-off, but her troubles weren't over yet. “Are you okay, Flare?” she asked worriedly, gasping for breath, her eyes wide.

“Talk about a cliff hanger!” Flare joked, her body swinging back and forth.

“This is no time to be funny!” May cried, a few tears falling from her eyes. “I thought I lost you for a minute!”

“Aw, May.” Flare tried to cheer up her trainer despite her circumstances. “It'll take a lot more than a puny, little Confusion attack to get rid of me! So get back to that battlefield and get some strategy ready! Don't worry about me. I'm coming out from this literal hell-hole!”

“Oh, Flare,” May whispered, tears streaming down her face. She stood across from Brendan once again and waited for Flare to jump back up into action, wiping furiously at her eyes. She wouldn't let Brendan see her cry. Not here.

Meanwhile, Flare used her strong arms to push herself up from the pit of lava, the heat of the sunset against her back. She landed in front of the abra's face who was too surprised to teleport or counter the attack. The psychic pokémon's tiny claws reached for his face, crying out in pain.

“All right, Flare!” May cheered, blinking away her final tears. “Finish that abra off with Double Kick now!”

Flare obeyed and kicked Cy with tremendous force, sending him flying into Brendan's arm. The abra went limp in Brendan's arms, groaning. Brendan returned Abra from his arms and enlarged Muddy's pokéball, his last pokémon. He smiled, a cold, meaningless one, and May, from far away, could see the anger within his eyes. He asked a short yet meaningful question that could change the tide of the battle: “Do you want to quit, May?” His gaze sent May the most sickening feeling in the world: Fear. So many thoughts ran through her head, almost poetic-like.

That wicked smile of his was about a mile wide and those flame-enraged orbs of his penetrating into my soul with such malice and terror. He spoke, such angst dripping from his tongue, sending shivers up and down my spine.

May shivered but replied quite confidently, “Never!”

Brendan put his arms behind his head as though he were in deep thought. “Fine,” he said simply, “but just wait until I release the terrible horror upon your precious Flare!”

His hands, clenched at his side, trembled with every word he spoke as if he were trying to contain the anger that he has withheld inside of him for so long.

May felt her heart beat faster with every passing moment ...

My heart was pounding rapidly, beating against my chest as if it were trying to get out from its rib-caged cell.

... But she kept her cool. She smiled smugly. “Release Muddy. I know he evolved by the way you said it,” she said with a hint of haughtiness. “Bring it on!”

“I choose you, Muddy!” Brendan shouted, releasing his final Pokémon.

Muddy, in his new swampert form, glared at the Flare with hatred, Flare doing the same.

Even the ones we thought would stay best friends forever fought because of his terrible peril.

“Muddy! Mud Shot!” Brendan directed.

Muddy shot out sticky mud from his mouth, hitting Flare full blast, coating her fine feathers in goop. Luckily for May, Flare wasn't damaged too badly as Brendan would have thought. Flare wiped the excess mud off her body, her face twisted up in disgust, and she charged up the flames on her arms and wrists.

“Flare, Double Kick!” May instructed, a worried look on her face. She knew this battle was going to turn out one hell of a hard one.

Flare, her arms still ablaze with fire, kicked Muddy in the stomach twice, causing the ground and water type to topple over like a domino. Small scorch burns were marked on Muddy's stomach like a branding mark.

Pain didn't matter to him as long as he was the victor of this so-called game.

“Muddy, Muddy Water!” Brendan bellowed, his eyes ablaze.

Muddy concentrated, and the ground shook, a large crack appearing behind the boy and his pokémon. Instantly, water sprouted from the crack before bursting forth into a huge wave of both dirt and water. The wave went overhead Flare, drenching her from head to foot in muck. Flare groaned in pain as she toppled over from the might of the wave, landing on her back, the mud embedding itself in her feathers.

“Hang in there, Flare!” May cried, more tears flowing down her face. How badly she hoped for this terrible battle to be over. “Try a Slash attack!”

Flare, quite weak, jumped up and landed in front of Muddy, a small smirk plastered on her face as she slashed across Muddy's face, causing Muddy to howl in pain. She jumped back to her rightful spot on the battlefield, her smirk growing by the minute. She knew she was going to win this battle again even with Muddy evolved and the type advantage.

“Muddy! Water Gun!” Brendan yelled.

Muddy was getting tired by the moment and without Brendan's usual positive comments at hand, he had lost the will to battle. But he obeyed; he wanted to make his trainer happy no matter what.

I can tell that your side is getting growing weary of your actions and how they yearn for you back.

Muddy sent out a jet of ice cold water hurtling toward Flare who was too tired to evade. She took the attack dead on and skidded backward before slowly getting back onto her feet, soaking wet, her flames doused.

May was getting concerned not only for Flare, but for Muddy as well. But with Brendan and his strange mindset right now ... She sighed and chose another attack. “Flare, try and use another Fire Punch!”

Flare, panting from the jet of water, tried to charge up the fire on her arms but with no luck; the water wore it down.

Brendan laughed; it grew louder with each passing moment. “Haha, what luck you have, May! Too bad it's going to end now! Muddy, finish her off with Mud Shot!”

Muddy glanced apologetically at Flare who smiled weakly in return, knowing that she had to be defeated in order to bring the real Brendan back. Muddy shot out mud at an incredible fast pace, making Flare skid backward on her back. Her head collided with a dead tree, causing the branches on the trees to rattle and Flare to groan. She twitched for a bit before she stopped moving completely.

“Flare!” May cried, running over to her fallen pokémon's side. She fell to her knees and cried, knowing that the worst was over for her and her fainted pokémon. With red and puffy eyes, she looked into Brendan's eyes with fear. Brendan blinked twice as he returned his pokémon.

Slowly yet steadily, my eyes reach into his own, my heart skipping a beat because underneath all of that pure horror, there lived a scared, innocent boy, waiting for someone to wake him up from this living nightmare ... I knew he still cared for me.

He ran, leaving May behind on top of the fiery hill. May smiled slightly. She lost the battle but gained her old Brendan back.

And I knew I cared for him, too.

Last Revision: 7/5/09

 

[HK]

thanks Breezy, i know that i have been impatient with you putting up new chapters on fanfic.net, along with a few other people, but i guess it is ok. i don't want you to rush a create a dumba** story, while you could take some time a make a great one. i'm glad that you are still posting the stories on these forums, and so is everyone else. you are one the best fan fiction authors i know(not personally). for a while i thought you weren't going to post the old stories, but it is good to know that you still are.

 

[Trainer Justin]

Nice chap! I like all the chapters you put. I don't get the last part though......... Sorry!

 

[Dark Latios]

this chap is good as well at least May got Brendan back that is the good thing. very descriptive and long I love this chap can't wait till the next

 

[HK]

hey Breezy, i was just wondering, how old is Brendan, May, and Wally? if you already answered this then i'm sorry for asking, i just want to know.

 

[Breezy]

hey Breezy, i was just wondering, how old is Brendan, May, and Wally? if you already answered this then i'm sorry for asking, i just want to know.

There around the 11 - 12 year old group lol. Why though? I'm not sure. . . well Ruby is 11 in the manga so whatever *shrugs*.

 

[HK]

Breezy, i was wondering, are you going to catch up on HLBMA here before you post an update on fan fiction? i think you should do that, so you shouldn't have to worry about catching up on HLBMA here while posting on fan fiction. you can focus on getting chapter 43 done... just a thought.

 

[Yuugis Black Magician]

Breezy told me that FF.net wouldn't let her log in. And thus, no chpter 43, even though shes finished with it.

 

[HK]

Breezy told me that FF.net wouldn't let her log in. And thus, no chpter 43, even though shes finished with it.

huh, so that is the problem. well she could either see what's wrong and contact some help on FF.net, or she could post the chapters including the ones not on FF.net here. one thing bothers me though. if breezy can't login(which she actually mentioned a few days ago), then how come she updated her stoy "Muddy and Flare", and also write in the little journal thing sayin she still has writers block? Breezy, think you can explain this?

 

[Yuugis Black Magician]

My guess is that shes lazy. Besides Breezy has a life besides Pokémon you know.

 

[Breezy]

Yeah, I can explain it lol. ^_^; So let us start from the beginning shall we?

1) I guess I could post all the chapters here but that would take too long so might as well try to update at both at Serebii and fanfiction.net. Eventually, HLBMA here will catch up to the one at ff.net.

2) Yeah I couldn't log in for a day or two for some reason. That was when ff.net was having difficulties or something. But chapter 43 was never done. Its kinda close (sarcasm) but yeah lol. Usually, updating Muddy and Flare gets rid of the writer's block flu but apparently it didn't, hence the lack of updates. That's what I said in my little journal thing too lol.

Hope that clears some things up! ^_^

 

[HK]

My guess is that shes lazy. Besides Breezy has a life besides Pokémon you know.

true, very true. hell, pokemon is actually just one of my things to do in my like. i play football a helluva lot, play video games, watch t.v., read(not very often), and of course, spend time on the computer. all i am saying is that she hasn't updated anything except one story in over a month. but it isn't really entirely her fault. when you have writers block, it can really keep you down.

 

[Breezy]

Yes, yes I am lazy! ^_^;

But really though, I've been having like a bajillion dance rehersals this month and last month plus summer school so that's another reason as to why updates aren't coming up so fast.

Plus the small fact that journey fics (like this fic or Brendan and May adventures) are taking over ff.net and it kinda kills your spirit that everyone takes all your nicknames, ideas, and etc.

 

[HK]

Yes, yes I am lazy! ^_^;

But really though, I've been having like a bajillion dance rehersals this month and last month plus summer school so that's another reason as to why updates aren't coming up so fast.

Plus the small fact that journey fics (like this fic or Brendan and May adventures) are taking over ff.net and it kinda kills your spirit that everyone takes all your nicknames, ideas, and etc.

yeah, you do seem to have a lot going right now. but everyone says your one of the best fanfic writers(and agree with them), and they just want to see more of your work. as for other people taking your ideas, don't worry about that. they either are "inspired" by your work, or they can't think of anything truly original, and steal your ideas(most of them probably).just continue what you were doing before, and people will love ya for writing it.

(kind of weird me sayin all this, i don't usually talk like that, excuse me... TYPE like that, but sometimes i go into little "speeches" like when someone doubts themself about doing something they want to do)

 

[Breezy]

Thoughts ​

May frowned, rubbing her sapphire-colored eyes from the ashes and the blinding tears. Her knees sunk into the soft soil, dirtying her usually silky smooth legs. She gave her starter pokémon a slight smile, whispering kind words to her before returning her into her pokéball. A faint feeling on her left shoulder caught her attention, and she turned around, finding the pair of Team Aqua grunts that encountered her back at the entrance of Mount Chimney.

“Get up,” the girl grunt muttered. May glared at this.

“You don’t have to be so rude about it.”

“Well, we can’t stay here. Archie and a couple of admins managed to defeat Maxie’s plans if you haven’t noticed.” The girl grunt gestured her head behind her, and May saw the Team Magma grunts scattering about while Maxie and his admins were huddled together around the machine. The machine seemed to be buzzing and making strange noises.

“That battle must have taken a toll on you,” the guy grunt muttered, noticing the trail of tears that dried on May's cheeks.

May stood back up, brushing the dirt off her legs. “I guess,” she replied quietly, looking into the distance where Brendan ran off to. She wondered where he went. She hoped he was okay ... that things would be okay between them.

The girl grunt waved her arms frantically. “Hello?” she urged, pushing the guy grunt and May forward. “Let’s get out of here ... like, now!”

She stumbled forward, brushing the girl grunt’s hand off her back and walked forward on her own toward the forest that bordered Mount Chimney and Lavaridge -- if she remembered her map correctly. The leaves of the trees were red -- maple trees, she figured –- and covered in white ash which really wasn’t a surprise. The two grunts and May stopped at the building where the cable cars rested.

“Are you coming with?” asked the guy grunt as the girl grunt went ahead and entered the cable car building. “I’m sure there’s going to be a meeting over what happened.”

May shook her head. “Archie asked me just to help battle, and that’s that.” Her hands made their way to the top of her head, slipping off the blue bandanna. She dug around the pocket of her fanny pack and pulled out her old red and white one, tying it back on

The boy grunt shrugged. “Suit yourself.” With that, he followed after the girl grunt into the cable car building, leaving May behind.

The slope that lead down the mountain was steep, bordered with maple trees and dusty grass. She made her way toward the long grass and kicked her leg through it, and instantly, flakes of ash floated into the air and swirled in the air space in front of her before settling down. She left Mount Chimney, its loud vicious battles and boiling lava turning into the quiet twittering of birds. Slowly, she began to descend down the mountain, her arms stretched out on either side of her like it would help maintain her balance. She couldn’t help but think about Brendan; he would have helped her get down this hill. But dammit, though. He was a jerk, too. He could also have easily made her trip and fall. So conflicted. Brendan was awfully confusing. Where was Brendan anyway? Where could he have gone? She doubted he would have gone back toward Fallabor; there was really nothing there besides Meteor Falls. He probably went to Lavaridge since it was the closest city from Mount Chimney albeit the steep decline.

So deep into thought, May hadn’t noticed the slight ledge and missed her footing, immediately slipping and falling on her rear. She groaned, rubbing her sore back, her eyes slightly narrowed as she turned her head toward the left. There was a boy, his back pressed up against the tree as he sat upon its thick outer roots, staring up toward the sky. He hugged his knees to his chest, the slight breeze shifting his hair lightly.

“Brendan?” she asked. She then noticed the tree he was leaning against. “Ah, of course. I forgot about your tree fetish.”

Brendan, on the verge of a smile, scowled quickly to cover it as he sat up straight. His ruby-red eyes glared coldly at May.

May, baffled at Brendan's sudden change of behavior, stood up, glowered right back, and put her hands on her hips. “No need for the attitude,” she said, popping her hip before marching over toward Brendan and standing in front of him. Her shadow covered his body from the rays of the setting sun.

Brendan smirked slightly. “Oh, came back crying for me huh?” He observed May's somewhat red and puffy eyes. “Figures. You can't live a hour without me to catch you now, huh?”

May snorted as she rubbed her eyes, trying to get rid of the inflammation. “Oh, right. I need you so much! You're, like, my hero!”

“That's right!” Brendan said, clearly aware that May was being sarcastic. He decided to use it against her. “I am a hero!”

May rolled her eyes. “Sure you are, Birch.”

Brendan glared at her again. “Don't you have your own life you have to follow instead stalking me like a crazed fan?”
“Crazed fan? You don't even have fans.”

“I have fans!”

“Origami ones don't count.”

Brendan stood up and kicked a rock in frustration. “Latios! Just get away from me, okay?”

May bit her lip. A hint of sadness passed through her eyes. “And to think I called you good. To think I thought you'd never leave me again like last time. To think I thought you were my best friend!” She put emphasis on the last three words. “But guess what? I don't need your help, I don't need your support, and I especially don't need you because guess what? It's over!”

“It's over?” He raised an eyebrow at this. “I'm not even sure what has even started!” Brendan might have as well been yelling at his fellow trees because May stormed off and jumped down a ledge.

“Women!” Brendan bellowed, frightening a few taillows that flew from the maples toward the sky.

Bursts of light shone from his belt and part of his pokémon team appeared – well, at least the ones that were not badly injured. One was the thick build of Muddy, the second was the small, puppy form of Sirius, and the other was the hard, insect shape of Silver. All three moved their legs, cracking them in odd places.

“Brendan, would you mind if I spoke my mind?” Muddy asked politely after he finished stretching, completely different from his sarcastic and dim-witted self.

“Um, sure,” Brendan said nervously.

Muddy took in a deep breath and began to ramble: “How could you do that to May, you idiot! You battle like you were possessed by an evil duclops during that entire battle! Then you run away after it, leaving a crying girl behind! Then you put the icing on the cake and act reaaaalllyy stupid, making her run away from you again! And now what's this? Scaring taillows where their only crime is being happy?” Muddy, almost out of breath finished his lecture. “Poké-poké-pokém ... pokémon trainers! Kyogre, why did you make them like this?” he shouted to the sky, finally collapsing onto the ground, his legs kicking up in the air.

Sirius and Silver looked at each other oddly before gazing at their befallen pokémon “leader.”

“What he was trying to say is-” Silver started.

“-that you are being a moron,” Sirius finished. “No offense.”

“None taken.” Brendan shrugged. “But I don't see how it's my fault when May was the one who started it! I told her that I was not changing my mind and that I wanted to join Team Magma! Yet she follows me up to Mount Chimney, tries to stop Maxie by charging toward him, for latios’ sakes, and then battles me! Battles me, you guys, battles me!”

“We were there,” muttered the swampert.

“Guys!” shouted Sirius out of the blue. He motioned his head forward to turn everyone's attention there. Up ahead was a group of rocks, the one in the middle the biggest with two smaller ones lined up on its sides. “Rock! I like rocks. I want to be one.”

“Yeah. The whole almost falling into lava thing was pretty memorable for me. And of course, Sirius. I can imagine you being a rock,” muttered the nincada with an eye roll. “Anyway, you have to get her back, Brendan.”

Brendan blinked. “Wha – what?” he cried out. “Why me? Why can't she – why won't she be the one crawling back to me? I didn't do anything!”

“Understatement.” Muddy sat down, plopping onto his bottom, and leaning against his arms, stretching his chest. “Do you want me to tell you again?”

“If it'll make you faint again, knock yourself out!” Silver replied. “Literally,” he added with a smirk.

“Hey, uh, Silver,” murmured Sirius, his head lowered. “I was kidding about being a rock, you know.”

“We're not on that right now, Sirius.”

The swampert, frustrated, sat back up. “Hello?” Muddy waved a paw in front of their faces. “Important issues here! B Boy, May, run away, madness, MADNESS!” he said loudly. “Yeah, remember? Or do your little brains have trouble comprehending that?”

“Look who's talking!” the nincada retorted.

“Someone has been spending a little to much time with Cy and his big 'ole words,” Sirius taunted, grinning

Brendan fell back onto the floor, his elbows digging into his knees to support his fallen head on his hands. He closed his eyes and thought, trying to block out his pokémon's arguments. Was it true? Did he go ... crazy during his last battle with May? Was he really that bad?

“Well how much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?” Sirius questioned.

“See you said, 'If a woodchuck COULD chuck wood,'” Muddy answered. “If it COULD chuck wood! So therefore, I can't answer it! So in your face, you big, bad wolf!”

“I did not eat the extra rice balls!" Sirius exclaimed. “They fell into my mouth somehow!”

Silver blinked twice, confused. “What?”

Sirius smiled nervously. “Nothing.”

Brendan laughed silently to himself, still thinking. Crawling back to May didn't sound appealing; it'd make him look weak after all. But then again, if he didn't do SOMETHING, he'd be alone ... and friendless ... and kind of a loser. Like that Wally kid.

“They want you to take the rolls!” Muddy replied. “That's why they give you so many Oh and the butter, too! They give you a lot of butter.”

Traveling with May was a whole lot better than traveling alone. And despite being ... annoying, she did have her good qualities. She was kind of cute, for example. Cuteness helps woo over guy clerks, giving them discounts on pokeballs. And he liked buying pokeballs for cheap.

“I didn't 'lose' my brain, Silver. I just misplaced it!”

“Whatever you say, Mud Brain.”

And he didn't know if he could used to the idea of traveling alone.

“Hey, if every kid wants to dig to China, where do the kids that live in China want to dig?”

“I don't know actually.”

He'd still have his pokémon to talk to he guessed ...

“What does PMS really mean anyway?”

“Er, Pissy May Syndrome?”

“Well, it does work.”

And while his pokémon were great, they didn't really replace the lack of human companionship.

“You're not serious are you, Muddy?”

“No, I'm Sirius, Silver!”

“That's an old and tired joke, my friend.”

“I know. Sad ain't it?”

Brendan stood up quickly, his heart pounding in his chest. The sudden movement alerted the attention of his pokémon.

“So what's the plan, captain?" Muddy asked.

Brendan shrugged. “Don't know. We're just gonna wing it!”

This left three looked at each other dully before glaring at their trainer.

- - -​

May sat solemnly at a table, watching and waiting for her pokémon to heal at Lavaridge's pokémon center. Her fingers tapped impatiently on the clean tabletop along with the patting of her foot on the cold linoleum. Nurse Joy came down to May's table and smiled warmly.

“Well the rest of your pokémon are fine,” she said with a grin as she presented May with her pokéballs, “but your electrike needs to stay overnight because of that deep gash on his face. I need to stitch it up and make sure it's not infected.” Nurse Joy's grin faded a bit. “How did your electrike get that awful cut?”

May shifted uncomfortable in her seat. “When my other pokémon and I were training,” she began, lying, “Thunderbolt ran into a sharp, low tree branch that scratched his face. It didn't look too bad at first, and then I saw he got it in there pretty deep and he started to bleed and ... yeah.”

Nurse Joy nodded, giving the tabletop a good rap with her knuckles. “Well I better check on the pokémon! Bye, May!”

“Bye, Nurse Joy!” May replied back, waving her off. She sighed once again as she twiddled with her hair. Brendan and she always seemed to be fighting no matter what they did. Why was that? Were they not as close as they thought? Then again, they only did pretty much just start their journey. As long as this journey seemed to be taking, in all reality, it had only been a couple of months, give or take. A couple of months wasn't that long to build a good relationship with someone.

The girl trainer reached down and unclipped her pokénav on her fanny pack and placed it on the table, staring at the screen just in case Brendan called her. She doubted this, but she couldn't help but hope. Why should she, though? He was mean to her. He joined that ridiculous Team Magma gang or whatever the hell they are. He didn't care about how she felt about it, just that he was going to do it. Jerk. Besides that, he still refused to call her by her name and he was still pretty sexist.

May, finally realizing how much of a jerk Brendan was around her, stood up and stomped up furiously, alarming a few rookie trainers. With four out of five pokémon equipped on her belt, she marched out the door, ready to “talk” to a certain white-haired, red-eyed, bandanna-wearing boy they call Brendan. She threw open the doors of the pokémon center, the hot heat enveloping her, despite the fact that twilight was starting to settle in. It was still bright outside, though the sun had already set behind the mountains.

Her loud stomps kicked up dust, the clean airspace in front of her slowly tinting into a speckled light brown. Soon, she found herself back at the base of the hill she recently almost died getting down. Okay, maybe she was being over dramatic. Either way, she could have used that annoying boy's help. She looked up, standing on tippy toe (not that it would have helped), trying to spot her “friend.” No dice.

“This is pointless!” she shouted to herself. “He probably went back down to Mauville to be an idiot no doubt!”

Nevertheless, she stormed back up the hill and stopped at the ledge, trying to figure a way back up. She noticed several slippery stones embedded into the wall of the ledge, and she figured trainers used them to climb back up. With a slight sigh and a shrug of her shoulders, May walked toward them and put one foot on the stone, boosting herself up, quickly grabbing onto another stone with her left hand. Something grabbed her by the shoulder, and she immediately freaked out, jumped off the rocks, and backhanded whoever touched her. Unfortunately for her, she slapped a certain boy who crept up behind her to scare her. Or maybe she wanted to slap him. She didn't know.

“Ow!” Brendan screamed in pain, his hand immediately springing to where May hit him – the cheek of course. He rubbed it, and May could see through the gaps of his fingers that the skin below was turning red.

May put her hands on her hips and looked into Brendan's eyes. “Look. We need to talk about things.”

“Things?” He dropped his hand, aghast. “You just realize now that we have to talk about things?”

“Brendan, I–”

The fact that May slapped him for no reason whatsoever made him angry and made him forget that he was looking for her to apologize. So granted, he really had no idea what he was saying at the moment. “Don't even try to explain yourself because I don't need you like you said before! Just travel with Wally and see if I care!”

“You don't really mean–”

“Yes, I do mean that, so go!”

May didn't feel like crying at the moment; she was sick of crying over this boy. “Whatever you say, Birch,” she said calmly and coldly. “Whatever you say. I don't care anymore. You always think you're right, even when you're wrong.”

“Oh? And what's that suppose to mean?” Brendan demanded.

“Simple. You always want things to go your way, even if it's not right.”

“That's not true! Who was the one that came back to you?”

“I'm not even on that topic right now, Brendan.”

“Who cares?”

“See! That's what I mean! I don't know what the battle on Mount Chimney did to you, but ... but I don't like it at all! When the battle was over, I thought you went back to your real self, but I guess I got my hopes up to high.”

“What? I'm the same person I was even when we did battle!”

“Liar! I know you know that wasn't you! The real you anyway!”

“Fine! So what if I went crazy on the battle? So what if I'm an agent in Team Magma? Nothing would have changed the way we traveled until you made a big deal out of it.”

May frowned, pressing her back against the ledge as Brendan looked at her curiously. She sat down angrily on the ground, her arms crossed, a scowl on her face. “That's not true,” she said quietly, looking down at her feet, avoiding Brendan's eye contact. “I mean, if you haven't joined Team Magma in the first place, then maybe we wouldn't be in this predicament now would we?”

Brendan clenched his teeth and sat down across from May, avoiding her eyes as well. “No, if you just let me be what I wanted to be, then maybe we wouldn't be having another stupid fight over nothing.” He fell on his back, his snow-white hair catching a few twigs and mud. “Why is traveling with you so complicated?”

“I don't know,” muttered May, scooting over toward Brendan's side and lying down next to him, staring up into the twilight sky. Stars littered the canvas, twinkling. “I didn't mean all that stuff earlier ... about not needing you, I mean.”

“I know, May. I need you, too.”

“I don't want to travel alone. I want to travel with you.”

“As do I – er, with you. I thought a lot and I realized ... Hell, this would be a boring journey without you.”

She laughed, a pleasant ringing in Brendan's ears.

“You're mean,” she finally said. “But in a good way.”

“And you're crazy. In a crazy way.”

Last revision: 7/9/09

 

[HK]

*shrugs* I'm not that good HellKorn lol. I'm still just a. . . a. . . uh raisin in the group of. . . grapes.

Did I just sa- type that? How about I'm still a small fish in the big pond? That's it! Okay, I'm good now lol.

well, your definetly one my favorite fanfic writers. anyways, good luck with updating your HLBMA, i'm sure even if it takes you till nxt year, it will be worth the wait.