Disclaimer: Sad though it is, I don't own Pokemon. If I did Harley would get a better voice and Drew and May would have hooked up long ago.

Chapter 2: Revelations

"Not May," he thought desperately as they rounded a corner. "Not May. Misty's already gone. Not May too." Gasping, Ash sped up. Every second was another opportunity for the Rockets to be harming his friend.
"Ash, wai-" Max's voice faded away as an exhausted-looking Team Rocket grunt came into sight.
He couldn't have been much older than Ash. He had wavy black hair that fell across one of his eyes, and was wearing a red Team Rocket cap.
And in his arms was May.
She was unconscious, her arms and legs dangling limply in front of her. Her right shoulder had a gash in it and blood was beginning to congeal in the open wound. She was wearing a shapeless dress, which hung loosely off her body.
"What did you do to May?" shouted Ash, clutching a stitch in his side.
The grunt ignored the question. "Are you - her friends?" he panted.
"I'm her brother!" yelled Max, running forwards. "May! Are you okay?"
"She's - fine," gasped the grunt, gently putting her on the ground. "A psycho attacked us."
"Us?" cried Ash. "US? I don't see you with your arm half torn-off, Mr Rocket!"
The Rocket crouched, panting. "I know. She came off worse when she tried to save me."
"Save you?" asked Brock. "Why would she want to save a Rocket?"
"Because I saved her."
There was a stunned silence.
May began to stir. Groaning, she curled her legs in and propped herself up on her elbows. "Kiro?" she mumbled.
Ash, Brock and Max looked at each other quizically. "Kiro?" repeated Max.
Kiro looked relieved. "That's my name," he said for their benefit.
May sat up and smiled at him. "You saved me again."
Ash stared at Kiro disgustedly. "He didn't save you, May," he said. "He's from Team Rocket."
"I know," said May. "His name's Kiro. He saved me."
Kiro stood up and sighed. "I have to go back and face the music," he said. "Giovanni'll be looking for me."
May tugged on his shirt. "Don't!" she pleaded. "What are they going to do to you?"
Kiro shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe they'll kick me out, maybe they'll kill me."
"Serve you right," spat Ash.
May looked at him, horrified. "How can you say that, Ash?" she cried. "I owe him my life!"
"May, he's brainwashed you. How can you stand up for him? He's from Team Rocket."
"He hasn't," said May fiercely. "I remember the whole thing. You're just a prejudiced idiot." She stood up, ignoring a stunned Ash's stuttering, and told Kiro, "If you go back, I'm coming too."
"No, you're not," Kiro argued. "Your friends have been worrying about you. They might've thought you were dead. You can't let them down again. It's too dangerous."
"What about you then?" protested May. "I'm not going to let them hurt you."
And it was then that Brock realised why May was so determined to see good in Kiro, and why Ash hated him so much. It was something he had been through often, and every single time he had ended up hurt. He had to snap May out of it.

"Brock? You look kinda...spaced out," said Max concernedly. He waved a hand over Brock's face. Brock immediately snapped out of his trance.
Kiro was looking at May quizzically. "Why are you so determined to get yourself hurt, May?" he asked incredulously.
"It's not about that," replied May. She turned her hurt shoulder towards Kiro, wincing slightly. "That's what I got to save you. I'm not about to let you go and get yourself killed after they did that to me."
"That's why, is it?" muttered Brock, but only Ash heard him.
Kiro looked around hopelessly. "Fine," he sighed finally. "I won't go. Not yet. We need to get your shoulder fixed up."
"There's nowhere to go," said Ash vehemently. "Team Rocket's taken over Pewter City, and Cerulean and Vermillion as well. You must feel real proud of yourself, Kiro."
Kiro was silent for a minute. He looked at the ground and said after a while, very quietly, "Ash, you have no idea what it's like. I was forced into this. I was born into Team Rocket. You don't know what it's like to have to do things like this, to be made to do it. My life was hanging by a thread. If you're in Team Rocket, it's for life. They force you."
"You should have died then," Ash spat. "You should have been killed rather than do something like this."
"Shut UP, Ash!" screamed May suddenly. "Just shut up and leave him alone. Shut up." Her hand was over her shoulder. One eye was closed and her teeth were gritted in pain.
"May," said Max in a small voice. "May, are you o-"
"Get away!" shouted May, drawing away from her little brother. "You're just like Ash. You're a stupid...a...a prejudiced...I don't want to have anything to do with you any more."
Max looked up at her and burst into tears. "I'm sorry, May," he sobbed. "You're right."
May's expression softened. "It's okay, Max," she said softly, hugging her brother.
"WHAT?!"
Everybody looked over at Ash. He had gotten to his feet and was shaking with anger. "You're not actually putting your trust in HIM, are you Max? Not a Rocket?!"
"Maybe not, but I trust my sister!" said Max loudly. "If she was prepared to do this-" he gestured at May's injured shoulder, "- for this guy then there must be SOMETHING good about him!"
"Or maybe she's just smitten with him," said Brock in a low voice. This time everybody heard him.
May looked at Kiro. Kiro looked at May. They both exploded at Brock. "Me?!" spluttered May. "I-in love with HIM?!?!"
"I hope not!" said Kiro. It was probably meant to be a joke, but May immediately fell silent.
There was an awkward pause. Suddenly May and Kiro were both enveloped in a large net. They went rolling head over heels and smashed into a tree.
"May!" yelled Ash, Max and Brock together. Nobody yelled Kiro's name.
Suddenly a young, female voice broke out over the kerfuffle. "Got you," it said, a hint of cruel amusement showing through. "They said it was an advanced trainer and a two-faced Rocket who broke out, not a couple of wimps like you." A young girl, no older than 11, walked out of the trees. She had hooded, pale yellow eyes and unkempt black hair that fell across her forehead and hung loosely over her shoulders. A black Team Rocket cap with the trademark red 'R' on it rested above her matted fringe. She wore a white tank top with another red 'R' on it and short black pants. Something hung around her neck on a string, catching the light, but they were unable to see what it was.
"Now what have we got here," she drawled, sneering as she strolled over to her captives, who were struggling fruitlessly. She scanned over May without interest but when her eyes fell on Kiro she drew back with a gasp. "K-Kiro?" she stammered. Kiro glared back at her without any sign of recognition. "Kiro, y-you don't...you don't remember me?"
"Stop it," said Kiro. "I don't know you. What are you going to do to us?"
"You really don't remember," she said plaintively. "Hana. Don't you remember? Hana?"
"Have you just come to gawk at him?" said May angrily. "Let us go!"
Hana's look of sadness changed to one of fury. "Maybe you don't remember, but I do," she seethed. "I remember everything. I remember this." She thrust the pendant at him. May and Kiro saw that it was a locket. "And I remember when you left me, big brother."