Story Notes:
Pokemon isn't mine, and will probably never be mine, so any and all characters and settings that are official Pokemon/nintendo proterty are copyright to them. This IS a fan work, and the plot and setting is not intended to be commercial.
Mothers
Sandy groaned as she struggled to sit up in bed. She couldn't figure out why she felt so heavy and why it was so difficult to breathe until she remembered the events of the day before. She looked down and noticed Blueberry, still splayed out on her torso, his legs out around her sides as if he were trying desperately to hug her in his sleep. He shivered lightly, despite the toasty warm room. Sandy sighed. His hypothermia looked like it was going to take more than one night in an especially warm room to cure. She slowly put her head back on the pillows and smiled lightly, wrapping an arm around him and stroking him in his sleep. He didn't wake, but he whined and twitched his leg. She continued to run her hand along his back as he twitched and whimpered more and more frequently. Sandy pulled her arm away and looked into his face. He looked so... Scared, and sad...
"He is having a nightmare." Came the familiar voice of Alice. Sandy looked down over the bed and saw the Espeon sitting at her side.
"How long have you been there?" Sandy asked.
"Since just after you went to sleep." Alice replied. "Daniel and Simon have gone to the next town over to fight the gym, but Garde said she would like to stay.
'Standing guard.' Sandy thought. How cute. Was she so worried about them and stricken by remorse over her actions the day before that she'd do something like that..?
"You didn't put that nightmare there, did you?" Sandy asked.
"No, I didn't." Alice replied. "I cannot learn the ability to do it. I would break him from it with dream eater, but that would also injure him."
Sandy sighed. "Can you see what he is dreaming about?"
Alice sat for a short while before she shifted and tucked her tail between her legs and her face mimicked that of Blueberry's. "It is awful." She said. "Torture, starvation, neglect... At the hands of a human." She shuddered. "I am unsure how much more of this I can see before I..."
"Don't hurt yourself." Sandy said.
"This is awful." Alice mumbled. "This kind of nightmare... I could never imagine this much despair and sorrow."
Sandy put her hand back on Blueberry's back. "Shh, it's alright." She cooed. "I've got you."
Blueberry whined one last time before he stopped twitching so violently. He subconciously nuzzled Sandy's chest in his fitful slumber.
"The dream has changed." Alice informed her. "He is recalling the events that brought him to you." She said, her eyes closed tight. "The thunderstorm... He was awake while you ran on, did you know that?"
"Yes, I know." Sandy replied.
Alice watched the events unfold in Blueberry's mind, watched him search for food when he had woken, and even gasped slightly when he used Hydro Pump on his former trainer. She was impressed, to say the least, that he had shown such restraint when he used Giga Impact to get her away from him. A move like that should have hospitalised her, but instead of hurting her, he had made it hit no harder than a tackle and instead put all his effort into pushing her.
"He knows both Hydro Pump and Giga Impact..." Alice mumbled to no-one in particular. "And he has such restraint over his abilities..."
"Were those the mumbles of someone who has just had a revelation?" Sandy cheekily asked her. "He is strong, yes. But his past and weak heart are his achilles heel. He could easily fight in battles, but over the last year, every rocket that has attacked us has not gotten back up afterward. He loses control at the sight of them, and even I can't restrain him."
Alice blushed at her sudden lack of inner monologue. "I should go." She mumbled. "He would not be happy to see me when I wake."
Sandy nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure he'd be upset." She said. "But drop by sometime."
"Why? All he would do is cower from me or lash out at me again." Alice mumbled.
Sandy lowered her hand over the edge of the bed and stroked Alice's long ears. "That may be, but it'll be a much different meeting than the last. Trust me."
Alice affectionately leaned into Sandy's hand for a moment before moving to leave. It was now, of all times, for Azure to walk in. Azure growled at Alice's presence and hastily walked up to the bed and pushed Alice over.
"What're you doing here?" She snapped. "Have you not done enough damage already?"
Alice's face once again became crestfallen, and she yelped loudly when Azure kicked her.
"Hey!" Sandy protested. "Azure, that's enough!" She snapped, grabbing the now struggling female Zangoose.
"Leave Alice alone." Came the voice of Blueberry from Sandy's chest.
"But she!"
Blueberry whipped his tail around and slapped Azure in the face. "Leave her alone!" He snapped. "It was an accident, she has nothing to be punished over. I know you want to hurt her for what she did to me, but if we were to brutallise her over something she did in a fit of rage we'd be no better than our previous trainer!"
Azure humphed. "You're on her side because you're infatuated with her!" She snapped back. Blueberry was taken aback for a moment. He carefully got off of Sandy's chest and leapt down between Azure and Alice.
"I've had enough of a wake-up call to know what I'm doing." He growled. "She may have hurt me and subsequently Sandy, but I don't hold a grudge. If you want her, you have to go through me, and I will not hold back!"
"You are suffering from hypothermia, you'd never be able to stop me!"
Gardevoir came wandering into the room and idly lifted Azure from the ground and held her there.
"What're you doing?!" Azure yelled angrily.
"You have much contempt for psychic types, cursing us at each opportunity, but have you ever once thought that we are popular for a reason? We feel emotions stronger than others, capable of reading the true feelings and intentions of others. Blueberry knows this, and you are trying to ignore Alice's current feelings so that you can get your own form of justice." Gardevoir calmly stated. "Why don't you look at your target's face?"
Azure, though still angry, did turn her head to look directly at Alice. She was stunned, to say the least, that a Psychic type of Alice's strength was cowering, afraid and teary eyed with her tail between her legs and her huddled figure pathetically shivering as she awaited the next blow.
"Azure, tell me what you wanted." Sandy ordered.
"I- uh... Crystal wanted to know if it was safe to come visit." Azure said, still perplexed at Alice's state.
"Tell her that it's alright to come up here. I have a plan which she is perfect for." Sandy said. "You are not to be mean or vindictive to Alice while I am recuperating; Garde is keeping an eye on you for me. Go now." She finished, adding a small amount of anger to her voice. Gardevoir released Azure, and the white and blue Zangoose fled the room. Sandy held her arms out to Alice and Blueberry. "C'mere you two."
Blueberry hurried over and buried himself in Sandy's warmth, trying desperately to make himself warm again. Alice, however, simply sniffled and stayed huddled on the other side of the room. Sandy tapped Blueberry's shoulder to get his attention directed his face to Alice. Gardevoir had left with Azure, and now it was just the three of them, but Alice was still dreading the next blow.
"Alice, come here." Sandy ordered. Alice obeyed, albeit reluctantly, and slowly dragged herself to Sandy's bedside. Sandy grabbed her around the waist and pulled her onto the bed. "Alice, I've known you since you were just a little Eevee." Sandy mumbled. "You've never been this miserable."
"I-I..." Alice whimpered. "Azure... You should not have stopped her..."
Sandy frowned and scratched Alice's ears. "If I hadn't, she'd have let years of frustration out on you. You might have not survived it."
"But..."
"What I said before, Alice." Blueberry said, still shivering. "We do not hold you to it. It was an accident and nothing more. Azure does not want us to come to harm, she's too afraid to lose the shelter she has gained that she never had before. She has a child to worry about, so she's the most affected of all of us." He said before coughing heavily.
"She doesn't realise that I'd never let that happen." Sandy said, still scratching Alice's head. "I'd leave her and the others to my parents, and you already know what they're like."
Alice sniffled sadly. "You do not hold me accountable, but everyone else does." She mumbled. "... As do I..."
"Well then you're an idiot." Blueberry growled.
"Look, Alice;" Sandy said in a motherly tone, "you're like the sister I never had. We've had our ups and downs, but we always love eachother, regardless of how things turn out. Whenever one of us has been sad or lonely, it's always the other who comes in to level the field. I know you wanted to retaliate for the pain you suffered from the Giga Impact, but you show remorse at the fact that, unlike I would, he has not simply bounced back from it."
Alice nodded weakly. "Crystal is at the door." She mumbled, climbing down off the bed.
The door opened slowly as little Crystal nudged it open with her nose. She smiled at Sandy and Blueberry, but upon noticing Alice in the room her cheerful face changed and she took a step back.
"Come in, Crystal." Sandy said. "I won't bite."
Crystal reluctantly wandered through the room and climbed up onto the end of the bed, ever wary to stay as far away from Alice as possible without sliding down the back of the bed into the inky black void beneath the bedframe. In a flash, Sandy picked the little puppy up and dumped her onto Alice's shoulders. Crystal yelped loudly at being exactly where she didn't want to be, but when she tried to climb off Alice's shoulders Sandy held her in place.
"Crystal, I want you to be in Alice's direct care for the next day or so." Sandy said. "And Alice, I want you to take good care of her."
"But mommy~!" Crystal protested.
"No buts, Crystal." Sandy said. "She is still the same Alice you've known since you hatched, it's just that now you know what she's capable of. Alice shall watch over you like a mother, I want her to know what being one is like, maybe then she'll understand why she is incapable of replacing me as trainer to Blueberry." She said, running her hand over Crystal's mane. "And Alice? You're to give her everything she requires. Food, play, warmth, you name it. When she asks you for something, you are to go as far as you can to get it. Ask Azure, Garde and my mother for help, but you are to do this alone. If Azure gives you grief, defend yourself without hurting anyone or go to Garde for help." She said. "Azure is likely to not let you anywhere near Izaac, but just be calm and keep Crystal and him together."
"Why do you want them together?" Alice asked.
"I want them to be like brother and sister." Sandy replied. "Garde will be expecting you downstairs, and she will be trying her best to keep you safe for the first hour or so. Crystal, you are to play with Izaac during that time."
"Gardevoir will not be needed." Izaac said as he wandered in the door. "I am not afraid of Alice."
Sandy sat in wonder for a short moment before pushing the hair from her eyes. "And why would that be? Are you truly unafraid of her psychic prowess, or is this a case of wreckless male brovado?" She asked. "Alice is extremely powerful, Izaac. Your mother hit her earlier without realising that Alice didn't care if she got hurt."
"W-what do you mean?" Izaac asked.
Alice, without warning, pulled all the stuffed dolls from the room using only her psychic powers and made them levitate over Izaac, all in a perfect circle that towered from above his head to the roof. They spun rapidly before whipping back to their original positions as if they had never moved. A box full of coloured construction bricks flooded out into the room and stacked together making a massive tower with the flat panels actually making floors every two inches. As soon as it was finished, however, it pulled itself back apart and flew back into the box.
"I see..." Izaac said, now with his tail between his legs.
"She has some quite potent abilities." Sandy said. "She survived a Giga Impact from Blueberry, I'd say that even Azure isn't much of a match for her if Alice decides to seriously fight back."
Alice lay on her stomach to allow Crystal to climb off before she nodded. "The only Pokémon whom I would have trouble fighting that you know are Charizard, Daniel's Gyarados and Darma." She mumbled.
"Not that you'd ever have to fight them." Sandy said. She watched Crystal sniff Alice quizzically for a moment before giving a light smile and curling up with her, resting in the larger Pokémon's warmth. Alice, taken aback by this, looked shocked for a moment before she curled herself around Crystal and nuzzling her affectionately.
"Thanks, kid." She whispered.
The rest of the day passed rather uneventfully. Sandy shined her Poké Balls and badges, had frequent visits from her mother and father, and only had to have a small meal before bed. Blueberry was once again reluctant to take his medecine, but Sandy made him swallow it by threatening that if he didn't she'd make him drink the whole bottle over the rest of the month, regardless of whether or not he was still sick. The only important thing that happened was when Gardevoir came up to inform her of how the day had progressed.
"Badly." Was almost all that she could say. "Even your parents seemed upset at Alice, and she's become extremely moody."
Sandy had gritted her teeth at this. Pokémon were easy to give a pep talk, but parents were a whole other basket of chips. She instructed Garde to get Sandy's parents up into her room the following day so that she could talk with them, and told her to keep a close eye on Alice and Crystal.
It was roughly two in the morning when she awoke. She had slept soundly, but something begun to push and prod at her, and she had to wake, if only to see what it was. In the half-light from the downstairs light, she could see little Izaac trying to wake her.
"Izaac..?" She sleepily mumbled. "What time is it..?"
"It's two twenty five in the morning." Izaac replied. "But that's not important."
"What's wrong then?" Sandy asked, leaning up in the bed.
"It's Alice." Izaac said hysterically. "She's gone!"
This got Sandy wide awake. "Gone?" She asked.
"Gardevoir woke about ten minutes ago to get a drink and she couldn't feel Alice's mind in the house." Izaac replied. "She awoke your mother, and the search of the house has shown up nothing. We don't know where she's gone! Crystal's in tears, we didn't know what to do, so I thought I'd come wake you. Help, please!"
Sandy carefully slid out of bed. Her ankle resisted, but she quickly donned her cold-weather gear and lifted Izaac from beside the bed. "Alright." She said confidently. "Let's go find us a psychic." She limped out the bedroom door and down the hall, stopping every so often to listen for any sounds. There were the noises of an hysterical household from downstairs, and no other sounds that she could identify.
"What're you doing?" Izaac asked. Sandy had put him on her shoulders, and he tapped her head lightly when he spoke.
"Listen." Sandy replied. "Do you hear anything unusual?"
Izaac silently perked his ears and listened intently, but he couldn't hear anything. "Not really." He mumbled. "Apart from everyone else downstairs the house is silent."
"Exactly." Sandy replied, limping to one end of the hall and pulling down the attic stairs. "There's always been Hoothoots in the attic that we've never been able to get rid of, but they're not making any noise, and they're usually very active during the night, but they're dead quiet." She explained. "I can't climb the stairs easily, could you go up there and find her for me?"
Izaac nodded and carefully climbed the stairs. He got to the top, but was thrown back down, holding his head as he yelled in pain. Sandy caught him before he hit the ground.
"Damn." Sandy growled. "That's a clever tactic." She put Izaac on the carpet and struggled her way up the stairs. She lifted her head into the darkened space and looked about cautiously; a psychic barrier or attack might not hurt her much, but a physical assault would send her tumbling back down to the carpet below, and subsequently onto Izaac. Content that she would not be attacked, she pulled herself into the dark attic.
The feeling up here was incredible. Sadness permeated the very walls, yet the darkness and constant psychic assault on her mind kept Sandy terrified. She stumbled a few steps before finding the inside of the roof and crept along it, pushing against the beams for support as she wandered past boxes of old discarded books and broken pens. Finally she found some light, an old window in the far wall letting the meagerest amount of light in through its dust encrusted panes. She could see the Hoothoots, all knocked out from the constant field of psychic energy, lying in a heap in a corner; but she couldn't find Alice.
"I know you're over here, Alice." Sandy announced. "Please come out? Everyone is frantic trying to find you."
'Why waste their time?' Alice said to Sandy in her head. 'I'm not welcome anymore.'
Sandy frowned. "That's not fair, Alice." She said. "It was an accident, stop beating yourself up about it."
Alice remained silent. Sandy slid around the little clearing, looking in broken pens and opened boxes for the hiding psychic.
"Please?" Sandy emplored.
'No.' Alice replied telepathically. 'No-one wants me around anymore, so I'll stay out of everyone's way.'
"It's too cold for you up here, Alice." Sandy replied. "You'll catch hypothermia just like Blueberry has." She heard Alice snuffle from the far corner of the clearing.
'Then I'll die and be out of your hair.'
Sandy crept over to the corner and knelt down infront of a damaged wooden pen. "Alice..." She mumbled. "what about Crystal?" She asked.
'What about her?'
"Can you not feel her sorrow? You're directly above the room she is in, surely you can read her emotions and sadness from here." Sandy asked. "She was fully ready to accept you as her mother Pokémon and you left her. If you died she would be even more torn up than she is now."
Alice didn't reply, but Sandy was sure she could feel Alice thinking this over.
"And what about me?" Sandy asked. "We're like sisters, Alice. I don't know what I would do if..." Sandy trailed off sadly. "Please, Alice. Don't do this." She reached into the box and pulled the Psychic out. Her fur was covered in dust and cobwebs, and the fur on her face was matted down with tears. She also had a remarkable amount of blood in her fur. "A-Alice!?"
"You're too late." Alice mumbled weakly. "Just let me die up here..."
Sandy, without any thought to the pain in her ankle; pulled Alice up, ran to the stairs and leapt down them. She rolled on her good leg and continued for a few steps before she found herslef unable to continue, her already damaged foot giving way.
"Gardevoir!" She yelled. "Help!"
The taller psychic appeared at her side and lifted her without moving a muscle.
"We need to get to nurse Joy!" Sandy yelled at her. "Now!"
"Why won't you just let me go?" Alice asked.
Gardevoir grabbed Sandy around the stoamch and they vanished. Izaac, still at the base of the stairs, fell to his knees.
"Why would we let go..?" He mumbled to no-one in particular.
Sandy, Alice, and Gardevoir appeared in the Poké Center. Sandy struggled to her feet and rushed to the counter as fast as her legs would allow. Joy gave her a surprised look.
"You're supposed to be in bed with a twisted ankle." She mumbled before Sandy dumped Alice on the counter with a splat.
"Joy, forget me!" Sandy said frantically. "Alice is bleeding to death! Help, please!"
Joy grabbed Alice and rushed into the ward, slamming the door shut behind her in her haste. Sandy, no longer able to ignore the screaming pain in her foot, slumped to the floor.
"Dammit, why?!" Sandy said to the floor. "Why would she do this?!"
"She felt she had no other choice." Gardevoir sadly stated from behind her. "She felt abandoned, like no one loved her anymore... Guilt is a powerful motivator when aided with sorrow."
"I told her that we didn't care what happened!" Sandy sobbed. "It didn't matter to us! Why should she think otherwise?!"
Gardevoir stayed quiet. She lifted Sandy from the floor and put her into one of the large red couches.
"You can go home if you want to, Garde." Sandy said with a sigh.
"No, I'm staying." Gardevoir replied. "I'd like to ask Joy some questions, and this way you can get some sleep."
"Are you sure, Garde?" Sandy asked. "I can stay awake for Joy's report myself?"
Gardevoir shook her head. "No, it might be hours before she comes back, and you need your rest. I'll get a blanket and pillow from the dorms for you." Gardevoir walked off to the dorms, leaving Sandy to lie in the couch alone for a short while. Sandy kept going over what had happened in her head. Gardevoir returned, gave Sandy the blanket and pillows, and then went and sat in a nearby couch.
Sandy awoke the next day in a dormitory room. She sat bolt upright in the bed, wondering where she was before she recalled the previous night and sighed heavily. She slid out of bed, pulled her shoes on and limped out of the room. Gardevoir was sleeping on the floor outside the door, and Sandy gently shook her awake.
"Garde?" Sandy mumbled. "Garde? It's time to wake up."
Gardevoir slowly woke, opening her eyes carefully before she stood up. "Sandy?" she asked, still slightly asleep.
"Yeah." Sandy replied. "C'mon, let's go back down to the center."
Gardevoir nodded and lifted Sandy off the ground, levitating her along behind as she walked down to the Poké Center. They approached the counter and Joy gave them a happy look and pulled Alice onto the counter.
"Alice is free to go." She said. "The bites were extremely deep, but I managed to get them healed up. She's a little low on blood, but she will recover perfectly well in a day or so."
"Thankyou." Sandy replied.
"It is no problem." Nurse Joy replied.
Sandy lifted the sleeping Psychic from the top, waved goodbye and then vanished as Gardevoir teleported them back home.
They reappeared in the family room, and sandy stumbled for a moment before falling into the couch heavily. Her parents came rushing over, as did Crystal and Izaac, but Azure sat in the corner and avoided Sandy's gaze. Sandy's parents were the first to speak.
"Is she alright? Where'd you find her?"
"She's okay." Sandy replied. "She was in the attic, hiding in one of the old pens."
"Why the sudden trip to the Poké Center?" Her father asked.
Sandy was hesitant, to say the least, about revealing the reason behind her trip to Nurse Joy; but she knew her parents'd keep hounding her until she gave in. "She... Bit herself until she bled." She said.
"Why in the world would she do that?" He asked.
"She felt she wasn't welcome..." Sandy sadly replied, stroking Alice's ear. "She said that we'd be better off without her... Mum, dad, what were you two doing all day yesterday?"
"We were watching the workmen start construction on the new pens." Her mother replied. "Alice kept trying to go into the backyard, but we told her it wasn't safe and that she should stay away."
"Were those your exact words?"
"Pretty much."
Sandy frowned. "She misread your intentions, and thought you were telling her you didn't want her around." She said. "She's taken the accident the other day to heart, and it's quite a burdon on her mood. She thinks that everyone hates her now." Alice shifted lightly. Sandy could tell she was awake, but that she didn't want to let everyone know.
'Don't you?' Her voice rang out from the very walls.
"No, we don't." Azure replied from the other side of the room."We are simply upset at the last few days. If Sandy and Blueberry don't dislike you for it, then we have nothing to hate you over."
'But yesterday...' Alice's voice rang out again.
"Yesterday was simply a misunderstanding of intentions, Alice." Sandy replied. "Nothing more, nothing less. You terrified me with your suicide attempt, I don't want you to go like that."
Crystal dawdled across the couch and nuzzled Alice's face. Her own face was matted down from crying the whole night, and she looked like she hadn't gotten any sleep; but she was extremely cheerful despite this, and was undoubtedly relieved to be back with Alice again.
"Yesterday morning I asked you to look after Crystal like she were your own." Sandy said. "And you promised me you would do your best. You broke your promise and paid the price for it. Today we start anew; look after Crystal as you would your own pups. Play with her, get her food when she is hungry, teach her to use her abilities. You're her mentor and her guardian." Sandy finished, still stroking Alice's ears. Sandy picked her up and put her onto the couch next to her before struggling back to her feet. "Now, I believe it's breakfast time." She said, clapping her hands together. "I'll go prepare your foods."
She met Blueberry in the kitchen. He was warming himself directly infront of an electric heater, and yet he still shivered horribly. He went to sneeze and Sandy grabbed a tissue from a nearby box, pulled him away from the heater and shoved the tissue to his noze all in one swift move. Blueberry snuffled loudly before he looked up at her.
"Thanks..." He sniffed.
"Blueberry, don't sneeze on the heater. You'll electrocute yourself." She warned. "Go sit in the family room, the fire is roaring; I'll bring the food out in a minute."
The Vaporeon nodded, gave a hacking cough and walked out. Sandy wandered around the kitchen making the Pokémon's respective breakfasts before putting the bowls and plates of Pokémon food onto a tray and carrying it out. She got halfway out before she tripped over somthing in the middle of the carpet and almost lost the food, but Gardevoir dutifully caught her again. She looked down to see what it was that she had tripped on and found Blueberry huddled on the carpet. She steadied herself and allowed Gardevoir to take the food from her, watching it hover into the next room. She knelt down to shake Blueberry and tell him it was a bloody stupid place to be sleeping; but before she could tell him off, she noticed his breathing was slow and labored, and he looked alot paler than usual.
"Mum!" She yelled. "Mum! Get a thermometer!"
She could hear her mother yell something to Gardevoir, and then saw her come running in and grab Blueberry right out from under her. Sandy stared perplexed at her mother for a moment before she stood and followed as best she could. Her mother went to the main bathroom of the house, where the bathtub was already filling with warm water.
"Mum, what're you doing?!" Sandy asked.
Sandy's mother put Blueberry in the water. The sudden water around him woke him slightly, and he lifted his head. "Blueberry, you've got to dissipate!" She yelled. "Now!"
He nodded and put his head back down. Slowly his body vanished as it liquified as all Vaporeon can. Sandy's mother had her hand in the water, and she shuddered.
"The water temperature just dropped dramatically." She said. "If we fill the bath with hot water, his body temperature'll rise with the water around him."
"But doesn't that come with a risk? If he's dissipated too long he'll change." Sandy pressed.
"No, it's only got to be a short while." Her mother explained. "The hot water will heat him through, and then when he comes out he'll not have any hypothermia. the only downside of this drastic measure is that he's far more vulnerable to disease; but we can use Antidotes on him later if it's that bad."
"What caused this?" Sandy asked.
"Probably exhaustion. He was awake all night worrying about you and Alice, his body just couldn't handle the strain any longer." Her mother replied.
Sandy sighed. It was going to be a very long day, and she was all out of chocolate.
A few hours later Sandy sat in her bedroom once more. Growlithe hadn't moved, and was still keeping the room a toasty temperature, and now she was cradling Blueberry in her arms while he slept off his exhaustion. Alice and Crystal were in the bathtub in the room below her, as could be heard from their playful laughter and splashing. Every so often Alice would mumble an apology for the last two days into her head telepathically, and Sandy would shrug it off, but she knew she'd have to confront her once more before the week was over. For now, she was content to keep Blueberry warm in her arms. Azure eventually wandered in, followed closely by Izaac and they say by Sandy's side.
"Is he going to be alright?" Azure hesitantly asked.
"He'll be fine." Sandy replied. "He's gotten a bad cold, but he should be fine in a few days."
"That's good." Azure replied. The awkward silence that followed these words was painful, and even Sandy could read what Azure was thinking.
"Azure..." Sandy mumbled. "I want you to forgive Alice."
The rather dusty Zangoose was startled for a moment. "But..!"
Sandy grabbed Azure by the back of her head. "But nothing!" She snapped quietly. "Everything is fine, and I'd never let anything bad happen to you; please don't punish her for something as little as this."
"But she-"
"Did exactly what you would have done in the same situation." Sandy finished for her. the splashing sounds cut off abruptly, and Sandy could hear Crystal laughing all through the house until the door to her room swung open and Alice trotted in, her face covered in white fluffy snow.
"She splashed me and then used icy wind!" Alice giggled as Crystal nipped at her back. "It's cold!"
Inside of Sandy's head, she could hear Alice's telepathy continue. 'I heard what you were talking about.'
'What do you want me to do about Azure then?' Sandy thought as loudly as she could. thankfully Alice was listening.
'Coax her into a battle with me.' Alice replied. 'I will go easy on her, but it's the only way to get the message across that she will understand.'
'Slap to the face style conversation?' Sandy asked back, brushing the snow off of Alice's face.
'something like that, yeah.'
Sandy sighed. "Alright, Azure." She said. "I've a propostion for you."
"What is it?" Azure asked.
"You're going to fight Alice." sandy said. "If you can beat her, you don't need to forgive her for anything, but if she beats you, you will forgive her for the accident, deal?"
Izaac looked shocked, to say the least, but Sandy covertly waved him to silence.
"Deal!" Azure said, before getting into a battle-ready stance. "Here I come, Alice!" She cheered.
"Your friends will not long mourn your passing." Alice said calmly. Her battle cry needed some work for practice matches, but it got the enemy scared well enough.
Azure charged, her claws extended at her sides ready to slash at Alice; but before she could get close enough, she was thrown back. Her head pounded in agony. Alice managed to use Psychic without even moving, and it had been a fearsome blow indeed.
"I'm holding back, Azure." Alice said. "I do not wish to kill you."
Azure growled. despite the pain thumping through her head, she charged on. She missed by inches when her Payback slammed into the carpet. Another fierce Psychic threw her back and onto her knees.
"Is that all you've got?!" Azure growled her taunt.
"It's not." Alice said, the taunt bouncing off her. "But I do not wish to seriously harm you. Your claws are good for nothing but damage, while my mind is capable of so much more." Her eyes shone brightly, and her figure wavered a little before she stood ramrod still.
'Hit me and see all the good it shall do!' Her voice echoed from the walls.
Azure laughed and rushed forth, smashing into Alice with Pursuit. Alice exploded in a cloud of dust, and her laughter could be heard from the very walls. Azure was suddenly smashed by another Psychic, and she fell.
"Substitute." Alice cheerfully said from behind the fallen Zangoose.
Azure growled.
"I could have beaten you on the first blow, Azure." Alice stated.
Azure slowly got to her feet and turned around. "Prove it then!" She yelled.
Alice mentally looked to Sandy, who nodded with a sigh.
Azure suddenly felt as if thousands of tonnes of bricks occupied her head all at once and her world went black.
"Confusion." Alice said. "Not even a full strength one, either."
"That's enough, Alice." Sandy said. "You've taught her the lesson. Give her a revive and go to bed for the night; it's past Crystal's bedtime."
Alice nodded, fished a revive from sandy's backpack and slid it into Azure's mouth before she walked out, still with Crystal on her back.
Azure slowly woke. She sat upright and sighed.
"I lost, didn't I?"
"Yes you did." Sandy said. "Now go have a bath and go to bed, and never mention it again."
Azure picked up Izaac and carried him into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. A few moments later the water started to hit the bathtub and the noise drowned out any sound that could have been made in the bedroom. Blueberry lifted his head with a sly grin on his face.
"That was clever." He wheezed.
Sandy smiled and stroked a hand along his side. "Yep, and it got us the result we needed, too."
Blueberry nodded weakly and put his head back onto Sandy's lap.
"You know Alice likes you, don't you?" Sandy asked.
Another nod.
"You've shown some real strength over the last few days, putting up with all this; and she figured out that you didn't hit her as hard as you could have."
He nodded once more.
"You'd give her a good fight if you did battle her, you know that, right?"
"I know." Blueberry said quietly. "And I also know I'm going to have to fight her soon."
"How do you know that?" Sandy asked.
"I can smell it." He replied.
"He is having a nightmare." Came the familiar voice of Alice. Sandy looked down over the bed and saw the Espeon sitting at her side.
"How long have you been there?" Sandy asked.
"Since just after you went to sleep." Alice replied. "Daniel and Simon have gone to the next town over to fight the gym, but Garde said she would like to stay.
'Standing guard.' Sandy thought. How cute. Was she so worried about them and stricken by remorse over her actions the day before that she'd do something like that..?
"You didn't put that nightmare there, did you?" Sandy asked.
"No, I didn't." Alice replied. "I cannot learn the ability to do it. I would break him from it with dream eater, but that would also injure him."
Sandy sighed. "Can you see what he is dreaming about?"
Alice sat for a short while before she shifted and tucked her tail between her legs and her face mimicked that of Blueberry's. "It is awful." She said. "Torture, starvation, neglect... At the hands of a human." She shuddered. "I am unsure how much more of this I can see before I..."
"Don't hurt yourself." Sandy said.
"This is awful." Alice mumbled. "This kind of nightmare... I could never imagine this much despair and sorrow."
Sandy put her hand back on Blueberry's back. "Shh, it's alright." She cooed. "I've got you."
Blueberry whined one last time before he stopped twitching so violently. He subconciously nuzzled Sandy's chest in his fitful slumber.
"The dream has changed." Alice informed her. "He is recalling the events that brought him to you." She said, her eyes closed tight. "The thunderstorm... He was awake while you ran on, did you know that?"
"Yes, I know." Sandy replied.
Alice watched the events unfold in Blueberry's mind, watched him search for food when he had woken, and even gasped slightly when he used Hydro Pump on his former trainer. She was impressed, to say the least, that he had shown such restraint when he used Giga Impact to get her away from him. A move like that should have hospitalised her, but instead of hurting her, he had made it hit no harder than a tackle and instead put all his effort into pushing her.
"He knows both Hydro Pump and Giga Impact..." Alice mumbled to no-one in particular. "And he has such restraint over his abilities..."
"Were those the mumbles of someone who has just had a revelation?" Sandy cheekily asked her. "He is strong, yes. But his past and weak heart are his achilles heel. He could easily fight in battles, but over the last year, every rocket that has attacked us has not gotten back up afterward. He loses control at the sight of them, and even I can't restrain him."
Alice blushed at her sudden lack of inner monologue. "I should go." She mumbled. "He would not be happy to see me when I wake."
Sandy nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure he'd be upset." She said. "But drop by sometime."
"Why? All he would do is cower from me or lash out at me again." Alice mumbled.
Sandy lowered her hand over the edge of the bed and stroked Alice's long ears. "That may be, but it'll be a much different meeting than the last. Trust me."
Alice affectionately leaned into Sandy's hand for a moment before moving to leave. It was now, of all times, for Azure to walk in. Azure growled at Alice's presence and hastily walked up to the bed and pushed Alice over.
"What're you doing here?" She snapped. "Have you not done enough damage already?"
Alice's face once again became crestfallen, and she yelped loudly when Azure kicked her.
"Hey!" Sandy protested. "Azure, that's enough!" She snapped, grabbing the now struggling female Zangoose.
"Leave Alice alone." Came the voice of Blueberry from Sandy's chest.
"But she!"
Blueberry whipped his tail around and slapped Azure in the face. "Leave her alone!" He snapped. "It was an accident, she has nothing to be punished over. I know you want to hurt her for what she did to me, but if we were to brutallise her over something she did in a fit of rage we'd be no better than our previous trainer!"
Azure humphed. "You're on her side because you're infatuated with her!" She snapped back. Blueberry was taken aback for a moment. He carefully got off of Sandy's chest and leapt down between Azure and Alice.
"I've had enough of a wake-up call to know what I'm doing." He growled. "She may have hurt me and subsequently Sandy, but I don't hold a grudge. If you want her, you have to go through me, and I will not hold back!"
"You are suffering from hypothermia, you'd never be able to stop me!"
Gardevoir came wandering into the room and idly lifted Azure from the ground and held her there.
"What're you doing?!" Azure yelled angrily.
"You have much contempt for psychic types, cursing us at each opportunity, but have you ever once thought that we are popular for a reason? We feel emotions stronger than others, capable of reading the true feelings and intentions of others. Blueberry knows this, and you are trying to ignore Alice's current feelings so that you can get your own form of justice." Gardevoir calmly stated. "Why don't you look at your target's face?"
Azure, though still angry, did turn her head to look directly at Alice. She was stunned, to say the least, that a Psychic type of Alice's strength was cowering, afraid and teary eyed with her tail between her legs and her huddled figure pathetically shivering as she awaited the next blow.
"Azure, tell me what you wanted." Sandy ordered.
"I- uh... Crystal wanted to know if it was safe to come visit." Azure said, still perplexed at Alice's state.
"Tell her that it's alright to come up here. I have a plan which she is perfect for." Sandy said. "You are not to be mean or vindictive to Alice while I am recuperating; Garde is keeping an eye on you for me. Go now." She finished, adding a small amount of anger to her voice. Gardevoir released Azure, and the white and blue Zangoose fled the room. Sandy held her arms out to Alice and Blueberry. "C'mere you two."
Blueberry hurried over and buried himself in Sandy's warmth, trying desperately to make himself warm again. Alice, however, simply sniffled and stayed huddled on the other side of the room. Sandy tapped Blueberry's shoulder to get his attention directed his face to Alice. Gardevoir had left with Azure, and now it was just the three of them, but Alice was still dreading the next blow.
"Alice, come here." Sandy ordered. Alice obeyed, albeit reluctantly, and slowly dragged herself to Sandy's bedside. Sandy grabbed her around the waist and pulled her onto the bed. "Alice, I've known you since you were just a little Eevee." Sandy mumbled. "You've never been this miserable."
"I-I..." Alice whimpered. "Azure... You should not have stopped her..."
Sandy frowned and scratched Alice's ears. "If I hadn't, she'd have let years of frustration out on you. You might have not survived it."
"But..."
"What I said before, Alice." Blueberry said, still shivering. "We do not hold you to it. It was an accident and nothing more. Azure does not want us to come to harm, she's too afraid to lose the shelter she has gained that she never had before. She has a child to worry about, so she's the most affected of all of us." He said before coughing heavily.
"She doesn't realise that I'd never let that happen." Sandy said, still scratching Alice's head. "I'd leave her and the others to my parents, and you already know what they're like."
Alice sniffled sadly. "You do not hold me accountable, but everyone else does." She mumbled. "... As do I..."
"Well then you're an idiot." Blueberry growled.
"Look, Alice;" Sandy said in a motherly tone, "you're like the sister I never had. We've had our ups and downs, but we always love eachother, regardless of how things turn out. Whenever one of us has been sad or lonely, it's always the other who comes in to level the field. I know you wanted to retaliate for the pain you suffered from the Giga Impact, but you show remorse at the fact that, unlike I would, he has not simply bounced back from it."
Alice nodded weakly. "Crystal is at the door." She mumbled, climbing down off the bed.
The door opened slowly as little Crystal nudged it open with her nose. She smiled at Sandy and Blueberry, but upon noticing Alice in the room her cheerful face changed and she took a step back.
"Come in, Crystal." Sandy said. "I won't bite."
Crystal reluctantly wandered through the room and climbed up onto the end of the bed, ever wary to stay as far away from Alice as possible without sliding down the back of the bed into the inky black void beneath the bedframe. In a flash, Sandy picked the little puppy up and dumped her onto Alice's shoulders. Crystal yelped loudly at being exactly where she didn't want to be, but when she tried to climb off Alice's shoulders Sandy held her in place.
"Crystal, I want you to be in Alice's direct care for the next day or so." Sandy said. "And Alice, I want you to take good care of her."
"But mommy~!" Crystal protested.
"No buts, Crystal." Sandy said. "She is still the same Alice you've known since you hatched, it's just that now you know what she's capable of. Alice shall watch over you like a mother, I want her to know what being one is like, maybe then she'll understand why she is incapable of replacing me as trainer to Blueberry." She said, running her hand over Crystal's mane. "And Alice? You're to give her everything she requires. Food, play, warmth, you name it. When she asks you for something, you are to go as far as you can to get it. Ask Azure, Garde and my mother for help, but you are to do this alone. If Azure gives you grief, defend yourself without hurting anyone or go to Garde for help." She said. "Azure is likely to not let you anywhere near Izaac, but just be calm and keep Crystal and him together."
"Why do you want them together?" Alice asked.
"I want them to be like brother and sister." Sandy replied. "Garde will be expecting you downstairs, and she will be trying her best to keep you safe for the first hour or so. Crystal, you are to play with Izaac during that time."
"Gardevoir will not be needed." Izaac said as he wandered in the door. "I am not afraid of Alice."
Sandy sat in wonder for a short moment before pushing the hair from her eyes. "And why would that be? Are you truly unafraid of her psychic prowess, or is this a case of wreckless male brovado?" She asked. "Alice is extremely powerful, Izaac. Your mother hit her earlier without realising that Alice didn't care if she got hurt."
"W-what do you mean?" Izaac asked.
Alice, without warning, pulled all the stuffed dolls from the room using only her psychic powers and made them levitate over Izaac, all in a perfect circle that towered from above his head to the roof. They spun rapidly before whipping back to their original positions as if they had never moved. A box full of coloured construction bricks flooded out into the room and stacked together making a massive tower with the flat panels actually making floors every two inches. As soon as it was finished, however, it pulled itself back apart and flew back into the box.
"I see..." Izaac said, now with his tail between his legs.
"She has some quite potent abilities." Sandy said. "She survived a Giga Impact from Blueberry, I'd say that even Azure isn't much of a match for her if Alice decides to seriously fight back."
Alice lay on her stomach to allow Crystal to climb off before she nodded. "The only Pokémon whom I would have trouble fighting that you know are Charizard, Daniel's Gyarados and Darma." She mumbled.
"Not that you'd ever have to fight them." Sandy said. She watched Crystal sniff Alice quizzically for a moment before giving a light smile and curling up with her, resting in the larger Pokémon's warmth. Alice, taken aback by this, looked shocked for a moment before she curled herself around Crystal and nuzzling her affectionately.
"Thanks, kid." She whispered.
The rest of the day passed rather uneventfully. Sandy shined her Poké Balls and badges, had frequent visits from her mother and father, and only had to have a small meal before bed. Blueberry was once again reluctant to take his medecine, but Sandy made him swallow it by threatening that if he didn't she'd make him drink the whole bottle over the rest of the month, regardless of whether or not he was still sick. The only important thing that happened was when Gardevoir came up to inform her of how the day had progressed.
"Badly." Was almost all that she could say. "Even your parents seemed upset at Alice, and she's become extremely moody."
Sandy had gritted her teeth at this. Pokémon were easy to give a pep talk, but parents were a whole other basket of chips. She instructed Garde to get Sandy's parents up into her room the following day so that she could talk with them, and told her to keep a close eye on Alice and Crystal.
It was roughly two in the morning when she awoke. She had slept soundly, but something begun to push and prod at her, and she had to wake, if only to see what it was. In the half-light from the downstairs light, she could see little Izaac trying to wake her.
"Izaac..?" She sleepily mumbled. "What time is it..?"
"It's two twenty five in the morning." Izaac replied. "But that's not important."
"What's wrong then?" Sandy asked, leaning up in the bed.
"It's Alice." Izaac said hysterically. "She's gone!"
This got Sandy wide awake. "Gone?" She asked.
"Gardevoir woke about ten minutes ago to get a drink and she couldn't feel Alice's mind in the house." Izaac replied. "She awoke your mother, and the search of the house has shown up nothing. We don't know where she's gone! Crystal's in tears, we didn't know what to do, so I thought I'd come wake you. Help, please!"
Sandy carefully slid out of bed. Her ankle resisted, but she quickly donned her cold-weather gear and lifted Izaac from beside the bed. "Alright." She said confidently. "Let's go find us a psychic." She limped out the bedroom door and down the hall, stopping every so often to listen for any sounds. There were the noises of an hysterical household from downstairs, and no other sounds that she could identify.
"What're you doing?" Izaac asked. Sandy had put him on her shoulders, and he tapped her head lightly when he spoke.
"Listen." Sandy replied. "Do you hear anything unusual?"
Izaac silently perked his ears and listened intently, but he couldn't hear anything. "Not really." He mumbled. "Apart from everyone else downstairs the house is silent."
"Exactly." Sandy replied, limping to one end of the hall and pulling down the attic stairs. "There's always been Hoothoots in the attic that we've never been able to get rid of, but they're not making any noise, and they're usually very active during the night, but they're dead quiet." She explained. "I can't climb the stairs easily, could you go up there and find her for me?"
Izaac nodded and carefully climbed the stairs. He got to the top, but was thrown back down, holding his head as he yelled in pain. Sandy caught him before he hit the ground.
"Damn." Sandy growled. "That's a clever tactic." She put Izaac on the carpet and struggled her way up the stairs. She lifted her head into the darkened space and looked about cautiously; a psychic barrier or attack might not hurt her much, but a physical assault would send her tumbling back down to the carpet below, and subsequently onto Izaac. Content that she would not be attacked, she pulled herself into the dark attic.
The feeling up here was incredible. Sadness permeated the very walls, yet the darkness and constant psychic assault on her mind kept Sandy terrified. She stumbled a few steps before finding the inside of the roof and crept along it, pushing against the beams for support as she wandered past boxes of old discarded books and broken pens. Finally she found some light, an old window in the far wall letting the meagerest amount of light in through its dust encrusted panes. She could see the Hoothoots, all knocked out from the constant field of psychic energy, lying in a heap in a corner; but she couldn't find Alice.
"I know you're over here, Alice." Sandy announced. "Please come out? Everyone is frantic trying to find you."
'Why waste their time?' Alice said to Sandy in her head. 'I'm not welcome anymore.'
Sandy frowned. "That's not fair, Alice." She said. "It was an accident, stop beating yourself up about it."
Alice remained silent. Sandy slid around the little clearing, looking in broken pens and opened boxes for the hiding psychic.
"Please?" Sandy emplored.
'No.' Alice replied telepathically. 'No-one wants me around anymore, so I'll stay out of everyone's way.'
"It's too cold for you up here, Alice." Sandy replied. "You'll catch hypothermia just like Blueberry has." She heard Alice snuffle from the far corner of the clearing.
'Then I'll die and be out of your hair.'
Sandy crept over to the corner and knelt down infront of a damaged wooden pen. "Alice..." She mumbled. "what about Crystal?" She asked.
'What about her?'
"Can you not feel her sorrow? You're directly above the room she is in, surely you can read her emotions and sadness from here." Sandy asked. "She was fully ready to accept you as her mother Pokémon and you left her. If you died she would be even more torn up than she is now."
Alice didn't reply, but Sandy was sure she could feel Alice thinking this over.
"And what about me?" Sandy asked. "We're like sisters, Alice. I don't know what I would do if..." Sandy trailed off sadly. "Please, Alice. Don't do this." She reached into the box and pulled the Psychic out. Her fur was covered in dust and cobwebs, and the fur on her face was matted down with tears. She also had a remarkable amount of blood in her fur. "A-Alice!?"
"You're too late." Alice mumbled weakly. "Just let me die up here..."
Sandy, without any thought to the pain in her ankle; pulled Alice up, ran to the stairs and leapt down them. She rolled on her good leg and continued for a few steps before she found herslef unable to continue, her already damaged foot giving way.
"Gardevoir!" She yelled. "Help!"
The taller psychic appeared at her side and lifted her without moving a muscle.
"We need to get to nurse Joy!" Sandy yelled at her. "Now!"
"Why won't you just let me go?" Alice asked.
Gardevoir grabbed Sandy around the stoamch and they vanished. Izaac, still at the base of the stairs, fell to his knees.
"Why would we let go..?" He mumbled to no-one in particular.
Sandy, Alice, and Gardevoir appeared in the Poké Center. Sandy struggled to her feet and rushed to the counter as fast as her legs would allow. Joy gave her a surprised look.
"You're supposed to be in bed with a twisted ankle." She mumbled before Sandy dumped Alice on the counter with a splat.
"Joy, forget me!" Sandy said frantically. "Alice is bleeding to death! Help, please!"
Joy grabbed Alice and rushed into the ward, slamming the door shut behind her in her haste. Sandy, no longer able to ignore the screaming pain in her foot, slumped to the floor.
"Dammit, why?!" Sandy said to the floor. "Why would she do this?!"
"She felt she had no other choice." Gardevoir sadly stated from behind her. "She felt abandoned, like no one loved her anymore... Guilt is a powerful motivator when aided with sorrow."
"I told her that we didn't care what happened!" Sandy sobbed. "It didn't matter to us! Why should she think otherwise?!"
Gardevoir stayed quiet. She lifted Sandy from the floor and put her into one of the large red couches.
"You can go home if you want to, Garde." Sandy said with a sigh.
"No, I'm staying." Gardevoir replied. "I'd like to ask Joy some questions, and this way you can get some sleep."
"Are you sure, Garde?" Sandy asked. "I can stay awake for Joy's report myself?"
Gardevoir shook her head. "No, it might be hours before she comes back, and you need your rest. I'll get a blanket and pillow from the dorms for you." Gardevoir walked off to the dorms, leaving Sandy to lie in the couch alone for a short while. Sandy kept going over what had happened in her head. Gardevoir returned, gave Sandy the blanket and pillows, and then went and sat in a nearby couch.
Sandy awoke the next day in a dormitory room. She sat bolt upright in the bed, wondering where she was before she recalled the previous night and sighed heavily. She slid out of bed, pulled her shoes on and limped out of the room. Gardevoir was sleeping on the floor outside the door, and Sandy gently shook her awake.
"Garde?" Sandy mumbled. "Garde? It's time to wake up."
Gardevoir slowly woke, opening her eyes carefully before she stood up. "Sandy?" she asked, still slightly asleep.
"Yeah." Sandy replied. "C'mon, let's go back down to the center."
Gardevoir nodded and lifted Sandy off the ground, levitating her along behind as she walked down to the Poké Center. They approached the counter and Joy gave them a happy look and pulled Alice onto the counter.
"Alice is free to go." She said. "The bites were extremely deep, but I managed to get them healed up. She's a little low on blood, but she will recover perfectly well in a day or so."
"Thankyou." Sandy replied.
"It is no problem." Nurse Joy replied.
Sandy lifted the sleeping Psychic from the top, waved goodbye and then vanished as Gardevoir teleported them back home.
They reappeared in the family room, and sandy stumbled for a moment before falling into the couch heavily. Her parents came rushing over, as did Crystal and Izaac, but Azure sat in the corner and avoided Sandy's gaze. Sandy's parents were the first to speak.
"Is she alright? Where'd you find her?"
"She's okay." Sandy replied. "She was in the attic, hiding in one of the old pens."
"Why the sudden trip to the Poké Center?" Her father asked.
Sandy was hesitant, to say the least, about revealing the reason behind her trip to Nurse Joy; but she knew her parents'd keep hounding her until she gave in. "She... Bit herself until she bled." She said.
"Why in the world would she do that?" He asked.
"She felt she wasn't welcome..." Sandy sadly replied, stroking Alice's ear. "She said that we'd be better off without her... Mum, dad, what were you two doing all day yesterday?"
"We were watching the workmen start construction on the new pens." Her mother replied. "Alice kept trying to go into the backyard, but we told her it wasn't safe and that she should stay away."
"Were those your exact words?"
"Pretty much."
Sandy frowned. "She misread your intentions, and thought you were telling her you didn't want her around." She said. "She's taken the accident the other day to heart, and it's quite a burdon on her mood. She thinks that everyone hates her now." Alice shifted lightly. Sandy could tell she was awake, but that she didn't want to let everyone know.
'Don't you?' Her voice rang out from the very walls.
"No, we don't." Azure replied from the other side of the room."We are simply upset at the last few days. If Sandy and Blueberry don't dislike you for it, then we have nothing to hate you over."
'But yesterday...' Alice's voice rang out again.
"Yesterday was simply a misunderstanding of intentions, Alice." Sandy replied. "Nothing more, nothing less. You terrified me with your suicide attempt, I don't want you to go like that."
Crystal dawdled across the couch and nuzzled Alice's face. Her own face was matted down from crying the whole night, and she looked like she hadn't gotten any sleep; but she was extremely cheerful despite this, and was undoubtedly relieved to be back with Alice again.
"Yesterday morning I asked you to look after Crystal like she were your own." Sandy said. "And you promised me you would do your best. You broke your promise and paid the price for it. Today we start anew; look after Crystal as you would your own pups. Play with her, get her food when she is hungry, teach her to use her abilities. You're her mentor and her guardian." Sandy finished, still stroking Alice's ears. Sandy picked her up and put her onto the couch next to her before struggling back to her feet. "Now, I believe it's breakfast time." She said, clapping her hands together. "I'll go prepare your foods."
She met Blueberry in the kitchen. He was warming himself directly infront of an electric heater, and yet he still shivered horribly. He went to sneeze and Sandy grabbed a tissue from a nearby box, pulled him away from the heater and shoved the tissue to his noze all in one swift move. Blueberry snuffled loudly before he looked up at her.
"Thanks..." He sniffed.
"Blueberry, don't sneeze on the heater. You'll electrocute yourself." She warned. "Go sit in the family room, the fire is roaring; I'll bring the food out in a minute."
The Vaporeon nodded, gave a hacking cough and walked out. Sandy wandered around the kitchen making the Pokémon's respective breakfasts before putting the bowls and plates of Pokémon food onto a tray and carrying it out. She got halfway out before she tripped over somthing in the middle of the carpet and almost lost the food, but Gardevoir dutifully caught her again. She looked down to see what it was that she had tripped on and found Blueberry huddled on the carpet. She steadied herself and allowed Gardevoir to take the food from her, watching it hover into the next room. She knelt down to shake Blueberry and tell him it was a bloody stupid place to be sleeping; but before she could tell him off, she noticed his breathing was slow and labored, and he looked alot paler than usual.
"Mum!" She yelled. "Mum! Get a thermometer!"
She could hear her mother yell something to Gardevoir, and then saw her come running in and grab Blueberry right out from under her. Sandy stared perplexed at her mother for a moment before she stood and followed as best she could. Her mother went to the main bathroom of the house, where the bathtub was already filling with warm water.
"Mum, what're you doing?!" Sandy asked.
Sandy's mother put Blueberry in the water. The sudden water around him woke him slightly, and he lifted his head. "Blueberry, you've got to dissipate!" She yelled. "Now!"
He nodded and put his head back down. Slowly his body vanished as it liquified as all Vaporeon can. Sandy's mother had her hand in the water, and she shuddered.
"The water temperature just dropped dramatically." She said. "If we fill the bath with hot water, his body temperature'll rise with the water around him."
"But doesn't that come with a risk? If he's dissipated too long he'll change." Sandy pressed.
"No, it's only got to be a short while." Her mother explained. "The hot water will heat him through, and then when he comes out he'll not have any hypothermia. the only downside of this drastic measure is that he's far more vulnerable to disease; but we can use Antidotes on him later if it's that bad."
"What caused this?" Sandy asked.
"Probably exhaustion. He was awake all night worrying about you and Alice, his body just couldn't handle the strain any longer." Her mother replied.
Sandy sighed. It was going to be a very long day, and she was all out of chocolate.
A few hours later Sandy sat in her bedroom once more. Growlithe hadn't moved, and was still keeping the room a toasty temperature, and now she was cradling Blueberry in her arms while he slept off his exhaustion. Alice and Crystal were in the bathtub in the room below her, as could be heard from their playful laughter and splashing. Every so often Alice would mumble an apology for the last two days into her head telepathically, and Sandy would shrug it off, but she knew she'd have to confront her once more before the week was over. For now, she was content to keep Blueberry warm in her arms. Azure eventually wandered in, followed closely by Izaac and they say by Sandy's side.
"Is he going to be alright?" Azure hesitantly asked.
"He'll be fine." Sandy replied. "He's gotten a bad cold, but he should be fine in a few days."
"That's good." Azure replied. The awkward silence that followed these words was painful, and even Sandy could read what Azure was thinking.
"Azure..." Sandy mumbled. "I want you to forgive Alice."
The rather dusty Zangoose was startled for a moment. "But..!"
Sandy grabbed Azure by the back of her head. "But nothing!" She snapped quietly. "Everything is fine, and I'd never let anything bad happen to you; please don't punish her for something as little as this."
"But she-"
"Did exactly what you would have done in the same situation." Sandy finished for her. the splashing sounds cut off abruptly, and Sandy could hear Crystal laughing all through the house until the door to her room swung open and Alice trotted in, her face covered in white fluffy snow.
"She splashed me and then used icy wind!" Alice giggled as Crystal nipped at her back. "It's cold!"
Inside of Sandy's head, she could hear Alice's telepathy continue. 'I heard what you were talking about.'
'What do you want me to do about Azure then?' Sandy thought as loudly as she could. thankfully Alice was listening.
'Coax her into a battle with me.' Alice replied. 'I will go easy on her, but it's the only way to get the message across that she will understand.'
'Slap to the face style conversation?' Sandy asked back, brushing the snow off of Alice's face.
'something like that, yeah.'
Sandy sighed. "Alright, Azure." She said. "I've a propostion for you."
"What is it?" Azure asked.
"You're going to fight Alice." sandy said. "If you can beat her, you don't need to forgive her for anything, but if she beats you, you will forgive her for the accident, deal?"
Izaac looked shocked, to say the least, but Sandy covertly waved him to silence.
"Deal!" Azure said, before getting into a battle-ready stance. "Here I come, Alice!" She cheered.
"Your friends will not long mourn your passing." Alice said calmly. Her battle cry needed some work for practice matches, but it got the enemy scared well enough.
Azure charged, her claws extended at her sides ready to slash at Alice; but before she could get close enough, she was thrown back. Her head pounded in agony. Alice managed to use Psychic without even moving, and it had been a fearsome blow indeed.
"I'm holding back, Azure." Alice said. "I do not wish to kill you."
Azure growled. despite the pain thumping through her head, she charged on. She missed by inches when her Payback slammed into the carpet. Another fierce Psychic threw her back and onto her knees.
"Is that all you've got?!" Azure growled her taunt.
"It's not." Alice said, the taunt bouncing off her. "But I do not wish to seriously harm you. Your claws are good for nothing but damage, while my mind is capable of so much more." Her eyes shone brightly, and her figure wavered a little before she stood ramrod still.
'Hit me and see all the good it shall do!' Her voice echoed from the walls.
Azure laughed and rushed forth, smashing into Alice with Pursuit. Alice exploded in a cloud of dust, and her laughter could be heard from the very walls. Azure was suddenly smashed by another Psychic, and she fell.
"Substitute." Alice cheerfully said from behind the fallen Zangoose.
Azure growled.
"I could have beaten you on the first blow, Azure." Alice stated.
Azure slowly got to her feet and turned around. "Prove it then!" She yelled.
Alice mentally looked to Sandy, who nodded with a sigh.
Azure suddenly felt as if thousands of tonnes of bricks occupied her head all at once and her world went black.
"Confusion." Alice said. "Not even a full strength one, either."
"That's enough, Alice." Sandy said. "You've taught her the lesson. Give her a revive and go to bed for the night; it's past Crystal's bedtime."
Alice nodded, fished a revive from sandy's backpack and slid it into Azure's mouth before she walked out, still with Crystal on her back.
Azure slowly woke. She sat upright and sighed.
"I lost, didn't I?"
"Yes you did." Sandy said. "Now go have a bath and go to bed, and never mention it again."
Azure picked up Izaac and carried him into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. A few moments later the water started to hit the bathtub and the noise drowned out any sound that could have been made in the bedroom. Blueberry lifted his head with a sly grin on his face.
"That was clever." He wheezed.
Sandy smiled and stroked a hand along his side. "Yep, and it got us the result we needed, too."
Blueberry nodded weakly and put his head back onto Sandy's lap.
"You know Alice likes you, don't you?" Sandy asked.
Another nod.
"You've shown some real strength over the last few days, putting up with all this; and she figured out that you didn't hit her as hard as you could have."
He nodded once more.
"You'd give her a good fight if you did battle her, you know that, right?"
"I know." Blueberry said quietly. "And I also know I'm going to have to fight her soon."
"How do you know that?" Sandy asked.
"I can smell it." He replied.