Finally! The fic is flowing nicely!

Disclaimer: Pokemon belongs to Nintendo and Shogakukan Comics. This non-profit, non-copyright infringing fanfiction belongs to me under international copyright laws and taking it is plagiarism. Thank you. *Phantomness bows*

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

Chapter 12

As it turned out, with Houndour to help, Sabrina really was not that difficult to beat. He still smiled a bit when he saw her frustrated expression as she tried to read his mind, decipher his strategy…

It was kind of funny after all!

Now though, he was waiting to fight Giovanni.

If he won, Father would take him to the Safari Zone afterwards, and they could go camping! Plus he might be able to catch some new pokémon.

He hadn’t gone camping with Father since he was six…

This would be fun!

Lance closed his eyes as he watched Red’s battle. Giovanni was a powerful trainer, and he had Viridian’s Power on his side, but Red.

Red had something that Giovanni lacked.

Compassion.

One simple word could convey so much.

And so, he watched in triumph as Poliwhirl evolved into Poliwrath – without a stone, even -! And defeated the Nidoking.

No Horn Drill today.

“You are an adorable child.” Giovanni said, panting, as he recalled his Golem. “It is a pity.”

Red blinked.

The man moved, but Red was smaller and thus more agile. He vaulted into the air, releasing Aerodactyl in one heartbeat, and the fossil dragon spat out Hyper Beam, furious. How dare this man try to claim Master Lance’s mate?
Giovanni, though he might be strong, had not expected a Hyper Beam to the face. He was thus rather disoriented as he toppled like a felled tree. Red scooped up the Earth Badge from where it had fallen a few feet away, and kicked off.

“Let’s go home.”

Aeroy nodded, and they shot off towards Pallet Town.

Lance was seething as Red raced through the doors and flung himself into his Father’s arms, and only then did Red realize that his earrings had been in the ‘ON’ position.

No wonder…

“Are you all right?”

Red shuddered. He managed a nod, but Lance did not say more.

That bastard… he was going to disembowel Giovanni slowly… and then he was going to scrape his skin off, piece-by-piece, and then move on to the muscles, and finally, he would rip out the man’s beating heart…

Red shivered and pressed closer to his Father.

Even though Giovanni hadn’t done anything, the mere thought of it made his stomach turn.

“Shh…” Lance soothed, as he reached into Red’s minds and carefully unlocked the mental shielding he had put up. With Giovanni defeated and near death, it would be simple to finish it.

There were no barriers necessary now.

Red let himself cry as Lance rubbed slow circles on his back, trying to ease out tension.

It wasn’t as though Giovanni had touched him, but even so…

< He is conflicted. > Aeroy whispered. < Poor child. >

Lance nodded, though he brooked no reply.

< You will comfort him now, I assume? >

< Yes…. >

Poor child, precious child… I will never let anyone hurt you, Red. I promise… you will not need to worry about him, at any rate.

The Earth Badge was in hand.

Giovanni was no longer necessary.

He coaxed Red into drinking warm milk with honey, and let him lay on the couch and watch pointless television shows for a few hours.

Red did not protest, as he was in no frame of mind to think up battle strategy now.

Even though it was a waste of time, he allowed it, for Red had to heal.

He could not touch him, not while his mind was so fragile. One wrong move and glass would shatter.

It was terribly difficult to put children back together after they broke.

Lance let him sleep, wrapped in a warm quilt patterned with sunflowers. Then, he and Aeroy flew to Viridian, and made sure Giovanni was dead.

It was lucky that the gym was far from the populated region of town. Viridian was not a bustling metropolis like Saffron or Celadon, and that helped.

Of course, he did not have time to torture him, but Lance amused himself by burying each piece of the corpse in a different locale, and feeding several to wild Sharpedo and Carvanha off in Houen.

That way, no one would ever be able to call the man up from the dead.

There was no sense in doing a job halfway.

Red was still asleep when Lance returned, so the trainer showered, washing all of the blood out of his face and hair, and making a mental note to send this jumpsuit off for dry cleaning.

He dressed quickly in black jeans and a white t-shirt with an Aerodactyl on the front, and headed downstairs.

What should he make Red to cheer him up?

Soon, the smell of burnt sugar and flaky pastry roused the Pallet trainer from his sleep. He yawned and rubbed at his eyes.

Crying had helped, as shameful as it might be.

Lance presented him with a tray of tiny pecan tarts, and he ate three of them before he felt better.

Father always knew how to help.

Lance paused, and then as Red was relaxing, slipped an arm around his waist and pulled him into a kiss.

Red felt his legs turn to jelly. They hadn’t really touched, not since that first day, and now, that he could speak again, he really wanted to… but he was too scared to ask.

“Father…”

“Do you trust me?” Lance asked.

Red nodded, and the pleasure that followed swept away any lingering misgivings he might have had.

Lance smirked as he watched Red sleep, sated.

Precious child.

Red slept, and closed his eyes.

Lance watched as the eight badges of Kanto floated in a circle above his hands.

“We have succeeded.” Agatha smiled. “It is a pity that we must wait until the New Year.”

“Yes, well, can you keep an eye on them while Red and I are camping?”

“Of course.”

Lorelei threw Lance a board wink. “Have fun!”

Lance chuckled. “I believe that I will. Thank you, Lorelei dear…”

Upon reflection Red thought later, it was wonderful. They had two weeks all to themselves, and while he did miss the comforts of living at home, camping was fun too.

And afterwards, when New Year’s Day rolled around, they all stood in front of Cerise Island, and watched Lugia rise over the rim of the volcano, and rain curses down upon the cities….

For that was the power of the badges.

Concrete and glass and metal shattered and were obliterated, and while they waited, everything rebuilt.

And he was happy.

It did not matter that the world had fallen into ashes.

He had his pokémon, he had friends, and he had his Father.

And he was content.

END FIC

Completed 7/12/06

Done!

Yes, another fic down! *Waves pompoms*

Lance can be a pretty heartless bastard, ne? But I do think he loves Red, or at least is very affectionate. Either way, as long as they’re happy…

I noticed that I write tons more fic in the summer and during weekends/vacations. That way, I can still update during school when I’m too busy! ^^