Timeline: another 2 months down the line

 

Chapter 8: Snowball Effect

 

            Ash and Lance sat in the shade of a palm tree together. It was a rare day off, and they were at the beach near Pallet.

            Ash was wearing sunglasses and had dyed his hair blue temporarily to avoid crazy fans. Or challengers…

            At the moment, his attention was focused on the delicious banana split in his hands, shining in all of its calorie-laden glory.

            Lance was partially wrapped around him the way only a spirit can be, and half-asleep.

            Ash still felt slightly guilty. It was his fault Lance was so tired after all…

 

******************************Flashback*********************************

 

            Ash collapsed as he and Arcanine and Ninetails finished running all their laps.

            “That’s enough, Ash!” Lance said. “You’ll tire yourself out!”

            “But you told me to get stronger…” Ash panted, as he downed half a bottle of Gatorade. “I have to…”

            “Ash.” Lance said, putting an arm around him to help him stand. “I didn’t mean to kill yourself.”

            “I’m not!”

            Lance did not say another word as he closed his eyes and used the Viridian Power to heal Ash as well as his two pokemon, before fading back into the necklace.

            The next few hours were spent with his flying pokemon, doing speed drills. By the time he returned home four days later, saying he was a wreck would be an understatement.

            “Did you rest at all?” Lance demanded.

            “Um… might have gotten one or two hours of sleep…”

            Lance’s eyes glowed as he checked Ash over. What he found made him want to slap the trainer silly.

            “Pulled muscles, internal hemorrhaging, shin splints, malnutrition and dehydration… and that’s not even all of it.”

            Closing his eyes again, Lance placed his hands on Ash’s shoulders and began the healing process. * You are such an affectionate little idiot… and I think I love you. It’s a good thing you don’t know… *

            It took more than he expected out of him. Ash noticed when he felt himself perfectly fine after a nice nap, but found Lance completely knocked out on top of him. The trainer had gone incorporeal again. Weightless.

            Ash gently eased Lance back into the necklace, and then went back to sleep. It wasn’t as if they hadn’t slept in the same bed before. He didn’t mind.

            But maybe, Lance might think of him as more than a friend. He hoped so.

 

*********************End Flashback*************************************

 

            Lance was slowly regaining his energy, but since he still healed Ash’s pokemon and Red himself on a nearly daily basis, there was still some being siphoned off every day. But at least the drain was much less.

            Opening his eyes for a moment, Lance cuddled against Ash’s body before falling asleep again.

            Ash continued eating his banana split in mournful silence.

 

            < Quit beating yourself over the head about it. Just don’t do anything that stupid again. >

            < Hai! > Ash said, after he got over the initial shock.

            < You can read my mind? >

            < Well, you can feel my emotions, can’t you? It works both ways. >

            < Makes sense… >

 

            Ash ordered another ice cream. Lance also fed off a little of his energy. The Dragon Master tried to keep that to a minimum, but… it wasn’t his fault.

            They really were co-dependent.

            “We’re like two pieces of a puzzle.” Ash said. “And we can’t live without each other.”

            “Strange, isn’t it?” Lance asked, materializing. Luckily, thier portion of the beach was quite secluded.

            “No, I kind of like it.”

            Lance paused. “Oh?”

            “I love having you around. You’re the darkness to my light. You know, sometimes, when I look at you, I see who I could be?”
            “Really.” Lance said, intrigued.

            Lugia watched from beneath the ocean waves, waiting.

 

            < Soon… you two will realize your potential and complete your duty. He is starting to mirror you already, Dragon Master. >

            < Now all we have to do is wait. But we must hurry. Time is running out. >

            < Nearly a species dies every day… they hide in their secluded areas, but even those are few in this place. >

            < Hurry, please, I am counting on you… >

 

            Ash was just packing up to go home when he saw a team of rockets chasing after none other than Articuno with an army of flame pokemon. They were aided by many of the trainers on the beach.

            “No!” Ash shouted. * Articuno! I owe you after you saved my pokemon from team rocket, and its time for returning the favor. *

            “Gyra, Poli, Dragonite, Dragonair, Dratini! Attack those fire pokemon!”

            Red’s pokemon sprang to the attack, water attacks flying everywhere. Dragonair called up a furious rainstorm, further dampening the powers of the fire types.

            “Hey!” A TR member yelled, noticing. “Stay out of our business!”

            Red flew after Articuno on Aerodactyl, trying to figure out a way to calm it down and get it to a safe haven.

 

            < Ash! Watch out! Magneton trap! >

            < What? > Ash looked down and spied the hovering hordes of magneton. * Lucky I am prepared… *

            < Don’t worry, Lance. >
            With another flick of his wrist, Ash tossed out a pokemon the rockets would certainly have wanted.

            Eevee confidently landed opposite the snarling magnets. So, think I’ll go easy on you?

            Just an eevee!

            Ha! Weak!

            One? Easy.

            Besides, girls are stupid.

           

            Eevee’s eyes glowed, as the evolution collar around her neck glowed faintly. One gem pulsed.

            The next thing the magnemites and Co. knew, they were all crashing to ground as the result of an earthquake.

            “I-impossible…” One of the rockets said in fear.

            The next thing that happened, Eevee sprouted wings, and flew over to join the water types, shifting into a Vaporeon and beating back the fire types.

            In a few minutes, the tide of battle had turned, and the water pokemon all started after their trainer.

 

End Chapter

 

Started 2/27/04, finished 3/13/04