Hi

Hi! *waves* I’m not supposed to time jump in this fic, so I will try not to! However, there is no guarantee…

Notes: <> for telepathy, ** for thoughts, italics if a pokemon talks

Disclaimer; I don’t’ own pokémon. It belongs to Nintendo and Shogakukan Comics! This is non-profit fanwork, non-copyright infringing, and since I wrote it, the fanfic belongs to me! Taking it will be plagiarism.

Phantomness: ^-^
Lance: I’m a girl…

Phantomness: So?

Lance: I’m not sure whether to be grateful or not. Your shonen-ai is catching up to your het fics in terms of count.

Phantomness: Ah…

Chapter 9: Dewdrop

“I’m _fine_.”

“But Cat, it’s only been three days! You’re still tired! That’s too early to go out traveling again! And you didn’t sleep last night!”
Lance shot Ash a sharp look. “How did you know?”

“Um… Xatu told me.”

Xatu began to feel an uncomfortable chill in the air.

Lance crooned in telepathy. < Remember, ice controls psychic too, and without fire there, it might prove dangerous for you to be playing around. >

Xatu refused to show fear, though, brave bird that he was. < Killing yourself will do him no good.>

< You’re very foolish, or very loyal. > Lance commented, as she pulled a card out of her cloak. < Well, I’ll let it slide this time. >

Ash blinked.

“Cat? Are you okay? If you’re spacing out we really shouldn’t leave!”

“Fine. two more days of rest here.”

“Yatta!” Ash cheered, jumping up and down.

“If you missed your parents and wanted to stay longer, you could have just said so.” Lance told him.

< Oh. >

“Remember, sometimes just asking is the best policy.” Lance walked away from him into the bathroom.

Ash sighed. “Okay.”

Pidgeot preened her wings, after having beaten off a rather vicious wild Ponyta. She had just been hunting bugs and minding her own business when the fire horse attacked. Maybe it was rabies?

Well, she was no nurse so she couldn’t tell.

< Hi beautiful. >

She blushed as Xatu flew up to her. Hello to you too, handsome.

.

I love you too, you know. But shouldn’t you tell him about our relationship?

He already knows I bet.

Really!

< Ash is more perceptive than he seems. >

Pidgeot coughed. * Maybe, but I don’t feel that way. And I’m not quite ready for motherhood just yet. Winter is almost here and that’s no time to raise chicks, we can wait until spring. *

She rested her head against Xatu’s as they perched in a convenient tree.

Sandshrew yawned and ate some more dirt, while conversing with Lance’s Larvitar.

Dirt tasted good!
So you’re a ground-type like me, huh?

Yes. Larvitar said. But I’m rock as well.

It must suck fighting water-types…ugh… makes me nauseous just thinking about that… and grass is bad too…

Actually, if I’m fast enough I hit first.

It’s all about speed?

For me it is.

Larvitar yawned and ate another clump of dirt.

Inside the restroom, Lance locked the door and then pulled out her key. It glittered darkly, reflecting the light in her eyes.

“Not yet… but I should start testing now, you’re thirteen and the power was granted earlier, so let’s see how you fare…”

< Are you sure, Chosen? >

< He must learn to accept responsibility bit by bit. >

< Do not worry, Lugia-san. >

< But he does not have the key yet! How are you going to? >

< The key will come when he calls. He has only to call. >

< Still, with no memory… >

< You forget, lugia, even without that he can still slip into the dream realm. It’s only a matter of time. >

< This is not safe, Chosen. >

< Nothing is safe. Call it an experiment in conditioning if you will. But everything will work out in the end. >

“Key that hides the power of darkness, Show thy true form before me. Your master under the seal of contract Lance commandeth you, Release.”

Instantly, the key spun, whorls of black and blue light surrounding it before a staff appeared in its place. The sun, moon, and a sprinkling of stars glinted, silver and gold on a mix of crimson and azure, below the length stretched black, tapering off into a blade of steel.

“Let’s try something easy first…” Lance mused, as she selected a card from her deck. “This one ought to be fairly easy to beat, even with normal pokemon…”

“Arbok…”

Ash put down his green tea ice cream as Charmander flamed the Arbok that had just charged him out of the grass.

            Now was no time to relax, apparently!
            “Charmander, Flamethrower!”
            The snake charged again, despite the burns on its skins, seemingly with nothing but malice on its mind.

Ash gulped. “Maybe I’d better use more than one. Squirtle, Ice Beam!”

The Arbok was temporarily frozen, and Ash quickly used the time to inflict physical damage via Slash and Skull Bash. By the time arbok defrosted approximately four minutes later, it was practically out of HP and a final Water Gun finished it off.

“Phew…” Ash said, when it slithered away.

Charmander and Squirtle echoed his relief as they both made a quick trip to the pokemon center for rejuvenation. What had that all been about? The Arbok was more powerful than normal wild pokemon in these parts…

Was it normal?

The pokemon were probably getting stronger fighting amongst them.

Out of sight, the snake dissolved into blue sparkles and vanished.

< Very good… > Lance sent, as Arbok smiled toothily, before it re-entered the dream realm.

< Unharmed? >

< They can’t harm card creatures like us, you know that. >

Lance nodded. * Yes… * < Rest well. >
Arbok saluted with a tail flap, before the portal closed, hiding a swirl of blues and purples and pastel greens from view.

The dream realm was very… sheltered. It was protected against invaders and intruders by layers of traps.

That kept all the hungry power-seekers out.

The three guardians could summon creatures from the Dream Realm, and live there for years if that was needed.

However… a few of the other masters could enter, once they proved their worthiness, usually with the Test of Mastery.

It was all bout control and preventing abuse of power.

Lance unclasped the golden cords at the throat of her cloak, it was too close to what she normally wore, and Ash didn’t need to know her real identity just yet.

That could always cause problems. Knowledge was best revealed when it had a purpose.

She dropped that back inside her closet, sighing a little.

< You know, Master, you don’t have to wear that _ugly_ trainer’s outfit if you don’t want to. >

< It’s not that bad. > Lance said, < But I don’t need the vest. > She tossed it into the closet as well, and then the fingerless gloves. Those were pointless.

With a smile, she unbraided the little pigtails, letting her hair fall to her shoulders. < I’ll just tell him I felt like a change. >

< In more ways than one. >

Lance said, as her clothes shifted into a black t-shirt and jeans, keeping the poke belt and sneakers for the time being.

End Chapter!
I love clothing descriptions, its just one of my little *squee* moments, that’s why Ash has so many costumes in CCA…

Completed 5/5/04