Bite The Dust

Awaking from a dream
Arising from a slumber
I’m far away from home
On my own

The crimson flame
Like a ruby
It’s the hope
In my eyes

 --Waiting for the Rain / Maaya Sakamoto

The dark haired girl jolted awake under the covers of her bed in a cold sweat.

Gasping, she squinted at the foggy red numbers of the clock on the bedside table. Struggling to steady her breathing, she rubbed at her temples and tried to relax.

Another nightmare, the third one in a week. It was always the same: trapped in a cave, at night, in a snowstorm. Attacked by the same shadowy creature.

Being cast into the odd twilight hours was something she had grown to hate.

Her right hand ached, a constant reminder of the incident. She vividly recalled the pain that shot through her body when fangs sank into her flesh and crushed her bones.

She was unconscious in the hospital for weeks. Months later, chronic headaches plagued her daily life. She could barely hold a pencil, not that she had the will to do so. It was crippling.

There came a creaking of floorboards. The soft padding of footsteps slowly came closer to her door.

"Are you all right? I heard you moving around."

She looked up to see her childhood friend Ethan.

"I'm okay. I'm sorry for waking you."

"I'll get you some water," Ethan said, before disappearing down the hall.

She was lucky to have such a good friend, although it had been hard to convince her mother to let her move out into Goldenrod City with a male roommate. If it had been anyone other than Ethan, she didn't think it would have happened.

Ethan returned with a cup of hot water, placing it on the night stand.

"What did you dream about this time?" he asked, sitting down on the bed beside her. His brown eyes reflected the dim light, and she could tell they were filled with worry.

"I can't remember," she lied. "Everything just hurts."

"Don't forget to keep taking your medication," he said.

"I won't."

She felt compelled to open her arms to him.

"Do you mind if... I ask you to stay with me a while longer?"

He obliged, gathering her in his arms. She leaned against him, trembling slightly. He gently stroked her hair and back.

"Maya... I told you not to push yourself so hard. This never should have happened."

The girl smiled bitterly.

"A lot of things don't go according to plan sometimes, Ethan. Like how eevee was supposed to turn into jolteon."

"I blame your training in Snowpoint. That's what caused all this." He let out a remorseful breath. "Actually, you're lucky eevee evolved when she did. Otherwise, you probably wouldn't be here."

It was true; that night, her eevee--glaceon now--was the one that fiercely fought off the wild pokemon. If it hadn't run to seek help afterwards...

Maya didn't want to think about it.

The doctors examined the bite marks and determined it must have been from an absol. That definitely explained the glowing red eyes that haunted her in her dreams.

"Are you still meeting Blue at the department store tomorrow?" Ethan asked. "If you're not feeling well, just stay home."

Was tomorrow Sunday already? The days all seemed to blend together, it was hard to keep track of time.

"I need the fresh air. I have to take flaaffy for a haircut, anyway."

Ethan smiled knowingly. "I'm sure you two will have a lot to talk about, Maya."

---

The next day, Maya pulled herself out of bed. Using her good hand, she turned on the sink and began her daily routine, duly noting her ragged complexion in the bathroom mirror.

She dabbed on some concealer and lip gloss, clipping her bangs up with a hair pin. She looked tired; she was tired. Meanwhile, Blue had travelled to a tropical region for a few months and was probably coming back with a killer tan.

"Arceus... He isn't going to let me hear the end of it..."

Glaceon hopped onto the counter with her scarf in its mouth. Maya smiled and gave it an affectionate pat.

"Thank you."

She wrapped the scarf around her neck and pulled on her pink jacket.

"Ryuji, let's go. Sayo, watch the house, okay?"

The streets were chilly this time of year. It was deep into November, and Maya could see strings of Christmas lights put up numerous balconies. They were also strung around trees like icing on a cupcake.

Flaaffy walked beside her, happily watching all the hustle and bustle of people and pokemon in the morning. The pair reached Goldenrod Department Store and strolled through the automatic glass doors.

A store employee greeted her with a flyer. "Welcome, miss! We have different holiday sales each week, so don't miss it!"

Maya decided to climb the stairs instead of taking the elevator, much to her flaaffy's dismay. With each step she took, she felt more and more apprehensive. She hadn't seem him in a long time. Perhaps things might be different now?

When she got to the 6th floor atrium, Blue was already there waiting. He was taller than before, and looked older. He skin did have a beautiful bronze glow to it, she noted.

"Maya." He grinned when he saw her. "It's exactly like you to keep me waiting."

"Blue..." Maya stared at his bright green pants. "Those capris are ridiculous!"

"Hey, we've barely reunited and you're already on my case." He rested his hands on his hips. "It's just like old times, yeah?"

"I guess..." She looked down, stuffing her right hand into her jacket pocket. "How was your trip?"

"It was amazing. Alola is a beautiful region. We should go someday."

"And what about Red? Did he enjoy the trip as well?"

"He started off griping over everything, but I think he's the one that had the best time. He decided to stay longer, so he's still island hopping. The food there was amazing, they have these special pancakes..."

"I'm glad you had a good time."

"Yeah." He reached out and touched the ends of her hair. "It's much longer now, isn't it?"

"I guess."

She suddenly felt nervous, in a way she had never felt before. For years she convinced herself their relationship was purely platonic. They were close, and everyone always assumed differently, but nothing ever happened. She was too busy with her training, and he with leading the Viridian City gym.

Now that she was taken out of commission by the accident, and he had some vacation time...

She stomped on the thoughts before they had time to surface.

"Anyway, I have to take my flaaffy to the underground shops to get a haircut. Did you want to come?"

"Sure. But first," Blue reached into his silver shoulder bag. "I have something to give you. An early Christmas gift, let's say."

He handed her a small blue box, wrapped with a white ribbon. Maya tugged off the ribbon and flipped open the lid. Inside was a shining pearl pendant shaped like a droplet.

She stared. It was beautiful. It was nothing she had ever seen in Johto.

He scanned her face intently. "Do you like it?"

"I do, thank you."

Maya carefully took it out of the box. Blue took it from her hands and she gathered all her hair to one side so that he could clasp it around her neck. She was grateful for his help; she wasn't certain how well her hand would have taken the task.

"I couldn't help thinking of you when I saw it," he said.

His words made her want to melt into the ground. She ignored the feelings stirring up inside her chest and tucked the pendant under her scarf.

"Let's go."

---

The pair sat on a bench in Goldenrod's underground level, across from the haircut stall. Flaaffy was thoroughly enjoying its grooming time, goofing about with the younger of the two haircut brothers.

"So, how's Ethan?" Blue asked, more out of politeness than anything.

"He's spending time with his grandparents today. You know, the day care owners."

"I hear you two are living together now?" Blue narrowed his eyes. "Goin' steady or something?"

Maya almost choked on air. "No, that's not it! He checks in on me from time to time, but he's rarely home."

"Does he still rant on and on about how perfect his marill is? He never used to shut up about it."

"That's died down a bit. He's a good roommate, but he likes to let his noctowl out at night. And usually there's a... present the next morning."

"Ugh, annoying as a delibird."

Between the bits of small talk, Maya didn't know how she felt about anything. All she knew was that if she didn't recover soon, she wouldn't be able to continue her journey to become stronger.

Then she really would be left behind. By everyone.

"Did you want to have dinner together?" Maya found herself asking. The words flew out before she could stop them. "Ethan won't be home tonight, so... we could cook something at my place."

She thought he might tease her for being too forward, but his gaze was unreadable.

"You do know the only thing I can make are poffins, right?"

Maya answered him with a nod, and Blue laughed.

"As long as you do, then okay. Let's do it!"

"Great."

His smile slowly faded.

"You know Maya... you've changed."

"How so?"

"You're a lot... nicer now, for starters. But there's something else... you haven't asked me for a battle once. Did something happen?"

She felt her fist clench involuntarily in her coat pocket.

"I'm feeling tired, that's all. It's nothing." Maya touched her forehead, feeling the ripple of a headache coming on. "Can you get flaaffy for me? I need a moment."

Blue suspected something was wrong, but knew she wasn't the type he could force things out of. Seeing her look so lifeless and frail alarmed him. There used to be sparks of determination in her eyes, now zapped away... by what?