Pokemon Quest 2: Melody of Hope (Yusei Fudo and Duke Devlin)

Twitch cried out, and shoved his claws down with all his strength.
Into the snow and frozen earth. Somehow, Shooter was not there.

Shooter rolled to his right, and Twitch burst into a laughter as he watched the boy's hair spikes backward and his eyes sharpened and shades of red appeared in the boy's brown eyes.

"Hello there, Ales!" Twitch said in a gleeful tone. "I still couldn't believe my eyes when I saw you yesterday, but here you are again. You're very persistent, huh?

"The hell do you want?" Ales asked, pulling his sword out of thin air. The blade glowed light blue and was apparently infused with pure electrical energy, hence its name. The blade was unusual in that, though it appeared to retract into or emanated from the hilt, it was apparently solid. "You could have killed him!"

"Ah, but I know you won't let that shit happens. That was the only way I can speak to you."

---

"Why the rush? You wanna see Dan that bad?" Van asked, glancing at Mesprit Red's table. "Dan and our class is going to graduate soon... What a shame, huh?"

---

Diego took Vara's shopping bags and placed it in front of her room. Though he briefly wondered how could possibly she got bored with all those clothes in her wardrobe, Diego dismissed the thought and entered his room, leaving Jasmine and Vara to talk downstairs.

"Yeah... too bad." Midori let out a heavy sigh. "I guess that just means I stay here longer." She chuckled softly.

***

"I know. I have a problem." Vara let out a heavy sigh and ran her fingers through her hair. "But... but everything will be okay once I see Ales again. I..."

"Vara, do you know how Ales is here?" Jasmine asked her friend. The brunette frowned.

"What do you mean, how do I know Ales is here? He is here. I saw him last night. Jazz, are you trying to pull something on me?"

"Ales Celestia is alive, yes. But only just. Vara, the only reason Ales is still alive is that he is possessing the body of Shooter."

"...And?" Vara's eyebrows raised.

"What do you mean, and? Doesn't that bother you, even a little?"

Vara frowned and looked down at the granite countertop. "Not really... should it?"

"Now listen up, Ales..." Twitch said, reverting back to his normal body. "I had plenty of experience with ghosts. Hell, they're like my family. But you can't just keep living inside the boy."

"I know..." The red haired prince frowned, his sword disappearing. "But this is only way I can see Vara again..."

"Ales, her pretty face won't last forever! What, were you hoping for Shooter to die so you can take his body? By the time the boy died, she'll be old. Beauty don't last forever!"

"Just shut up! I'll find a way! I promise I will!"

"How?!"

"I don't know!!" Ales punched the tree beside him in frustration as he bit back a sob. "Yet. I don't know yet, but I will."

---

"Haha, you're right. Well, it's about time we go back." Van smiled.

"Everyone, you done?" Zane announced to his house mates. Everybody in Azelf Blue table nodded and Zane stood up from his seat. "Well then, let's go back..."

"Okay!" Midori sprang up from her seat. "Um... Can you show me to the dorms? I err... Have a bad sense of direction..."

She glanced around the room, looking to see if Shooter had come back. He hadn't.

***

"Should it? Uh.... Yeah, it should." Jasmine nodded. "What do you think is going to happen to the boy? What do you think is going to happen to Ales? I know you think this is a miracle and all, and I'm not trying to rain on your parade or anything, but..."

"But.... What?" Vara crossed her arms in front of her chest. "What would you do if Diego had been the one sealed in Shooter's body? Oh wait, I forgot... You're in love with Twitch too."

Jasmine's face flashed with shock and anger. "Damn it Vara, I am not in love with Twitch! Diego is my husband and I am in love with him. Stop trying to change the subject. Look, I just don't want to see you get hurt again, alright? I just want you to be careful."

"Alright," Vara said finally, shrugging. "Alright. You just want to protect me. I understand. But you underestimate the power of love, Jazz. When it's real, it doesn't fade away. It's always there. Ales and I love each other. We'll find a way."

The champion's expression softened for a moment, but then that mischievous, damned grin painted his face again.

"Let me tell you a story, my friend. Long, long ago, there was a boy named Travis. His family were poor, and he goes from town to town selling cookies," the champion climbed a tree and he sat in one of the branch, leaning his back against the trunk and folded his hand. "One day, little Travis was very hungry. He don't want to eat the cookies because he wanted to use the money to buy a medicine for his sick mother. He reached a house and as he ringed the doorbell, a little girl about his age opened the door. She was pretty, and they share the same blonde hair and green eyes. Her name was Ignis. Travis asked the girl, 'I'm so hungry, will you buy one of my cookies?'"

"The girl said 'I don't have any money. But I have a glass of milk.' And so the girl ran inside her house and came back with a glass of milk and handed it over to the boy. The boy took the glass, thanked the girl, and quickly finished the milk."

"So?" Ales raised his eyebrow. "What does it has to do with me?"

"I haven't finished yet, dammit," Twitch rolled his eyes. "Then, seventeen years passed. Ignis was twenty four now. Sadly, she got sick and doctor diagnosed her with a cancer. She knew of course, that can't afford to pay for the operation. But somehow, the hospital is willing to do the operation for her."

Twitch's eyes strayed deeper into the forest, and he sighed.

"Two days after the operation is finished, the nurse handed a letter to Ignis. She was scared to open it because she knew she didn't have a lot of money. But once she opened it, she only found a blank paper and a small note that said 'you have paid me with a glass of milk. It was more than enough. Doctor Travis'"

The champion returned his gaze to Ales. "The girl burst into tears and as days passed, they fell in love, get married, and then they had a beautiful daughter named Elisabeth. A perfect love story, isn't it? And this is really happened, a long time ago."

"... I still don't get it. Why are you telling me this?"

"Dammit how thick are your skull, flamehead?!" Twitch said, resisting the urge to whack the prince in the head. "What I'm trying to say is that no matter how hard it may seems at first, if it's meant to be, it will be. If you guys are destined to be together, then you will be together. So yeah, good luck on figuring out how to walk this earth freely once again."

The champion smirked as he seemed to melt into the shadows.

"... Thanks."

---

"Hey, we're going to our dorm together, so don't worry. And please, try to remember it next time." May tapped the new girl's shoulder and she stood up. The rest followed and formed a tidy line, and soon, they all walked towards Uxie Yellow building.

"O-oh. Right." Midori flushed a light red and took her place in the line to the Uxie Yellow dorm.

***

"Alright..." Jasmine let out a sigh. "Whatever you say."

Vara also sighed. "I think I'm heading to bed. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Alright. Night."

Vara started up the staircase, and Jasmine watched. She could remember a time when Vara would have scoffed at the power of love, a time where the mention of Celestrians made her laugh... How long ago that was. How much she'd changed. How much they'd both changed....

Jasmine let out a sigh and headed back to the fridge, looking for something else to satisfy her stomach.

Soon, they were inside reached the Uxie Mansion, which is right beside the library.

Uxie Yellow common room is one of the airiest rooms at the Academy. It is a wide, circular room with a yellow carpet and arched windows hung with yellow and white silks. During the day, Uxie Yellow students have an excellent view of the school grounds, including the lake, the forest, gardens and the surrounding mountains. The room is furnished with tables, chairs, and mostly bookshelves. By the door leading up to the dormitories stands a tall statue of Uxie made of white marble.

The Uxie Yellow dormitories are also located in the castle, beside the statue of Uxie, with two doors leading off from the common room. One of them leads to the girls' dormitory, the other to the boys'

"Well, here we are," May said, throwing herself to the couch. "Midori, the girl's dorm is to the right. And Van, stay away from Midori and Angel's room."

"Worry not, May. I have better things to do."

OoC: timeskip to tomorrow? :)

Midori smiled at May and Van. "Thank you two for being so kind to me and helping me out, I appreciate it."

She started up to her dorm, then found it and entered.

As Midori entered her room, nothing changed. Everything is where she had left them, however... Angel is not here.

---

The next day

---

Jasmine's Pokenav beeped once. An unread e-mail.

"Good morning, here are today's news

At 13:00, a farmer is going be murdered.

Victim (dead):
Robin Silkwood

Suspect:
Ky Midgard

At 23.00 in Snowpoint Station, a body will be found drained of all blood.

Have a nice death!"

"Nnnnnngh..." Jasmine's hand shot out from beneath her covers and fumbled around on her nightstand for the phone. Her fingers finally touched it and she pressed the button, reading the message. She blinked, rubbed her eyes, then read it over again.

"....No freakin' way."

OoC: I'm borrowing Selene for a while, okay? XD

---


Zane's eyes darted open as a feminine voice carried through his room. He reached for his training sword beside his bed. "The hell? Who's there? Where are you?"

A giggle. "In this room~"

"I kinda figured that, you little shit…wait." His eyes widened with recognition. "Selene? The hell are you doing here?"

"I said I will always be by your side. So, here I am!" From the shadows, a figure of a curvy, beautiful woman formed. A pair of black, feathery wings on her back.

"What the hell do you want?"

"I'm just here to talk, seriously."

"To talk? Seriously?"

"Mm-hmm. It's, like, super-boring back in the Observatory, Zane. So I decided to--"

"So you decided to talk to me in my sleep. Got it…wait a minute." Thinking back, Zane scowled. Last he remembered, he'd been taking a night time walk around the school and then... nothing. He'd just blacked out, something that should not have happened. "You knocked me out for this, didn't you?"

"I just did what I had to… you blocked your ears with a headphone and I know you won't listen, so..."

For the first time, Selene sounded less than cheerful. Her tone of repentance managed to quell Zane's anger somewhat. "You little…well, whatever. What do you need to talk about so badly?"

"…ehm, well, listen to me closely. I know you just wake up, but try to get this through your thick skulls, okay?" The Celestrian winked.

And everybody wonders why I'm antisocial.

"Well, the hell with this, then. I kinda have somewhere I need to be, so if you don't mind, hurry up."

"Okay,"

"Alright, good. And only pull this shit if it's something important," Zane sit up straighter, stretching his body and yawned. "Okay, what is it?"

"Well, it's about your mansion..."

Zane scoffed. "Again? What, I've rebuild your statue few years ago."

"No, it's not that," the woman's brow furrowed, and she makes the puffy pissed off face. "There's an ancient Celestrian weapon hidden in your mansion. Your uncle got it by buying it with a ridiculously high price from a criminal organization, but it seems he can't use the sword, so he just left it. The weapon name is Fireseal."

Fireseal. A weapon forged by Dragonus Midgard, the legendary blacksmith and the ancestor of Ky and Jasmine, the same person that forged Thunderseal. Unlike Thunderseal, which is meant to be used to protect lives, Fireseal is a weapon of mass destruction.

"Go on, Selene."

"Well, dear Zane, if you can find it, you can use it. You know, to burn school down and stuff..."

Zane scoffed and put away his sword away. "Sounds great. But, why the hell you tellin me this?"

"I told you I'm bored..."

this isn't possible, Jasmine thought. Father would never go after Robin. Robin was his very best friend. He'd never do such a thing... Would he?

"Well then, I gotta bounce," Zane stood up, throwing his blanket aside and strode towards the bathroom. "And don't follow me."

"Fiiineee..." Selene rolled her eyes, and in a blink of an eye, she melts into the shadow.

---

The door of Midori's dorm opened, and Angel stepped inside, fully clad in her school uniform. She took her bag and shook Midori, trying to wake her up. "Hey, it's morning."

"Mmmh..." Midori groaned and opened her eyes. Being awakened out of a dream where her and Dan were taking a nice walk together down by the lake wasn't a pleasant experience, but she tried to make her reply as polite as possible.

"Hello, Angel... Hey, where were you? You weren't at the opening feast last night..."

***

Jasmine let out a sigh. Either way... She had a lot of work to do today. She got out of bed, put the phone aside, and started running the shower.

"Ah, well..." Angel laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. "You remember my twin brother yesterday? He got a fever, and whenever he's sick, he keeps on ranting that I should keep him company, so I slept in his room."

---

Vasilios, who was sitting alone in his office smirked as a figure of a woman formed from the shadows. "... Bravo. You make a good actress, Selene."

"Mhhm, anything for you, dear prince." She winked.

---

Ky strode through the passageway and finally entered his quarters. He entered the secret exit built into the wall. He pushed aside the hanging tapestry to reveal the small door hidden behind it. He opened it and walked down the twining staircase. The door was physically and magically disguised to look exactly like the walls, so nobody knew about the room, except himself.

The Royal Knight reached the secret room and his lips twisted upward in a sad smile. It has been so many years since he entered this room. The black suit of armor hanging on the wall is very dusty, and so is the spear next to it. For a moment, he still can't believe that he's going to fight his best friend. He knew Robin wouldn't put up a fight if he knew it was him, so using the armor is probably a good idea.

The armor itself, is a prized treasure of Midgard family, along with Thunderseal and the lost weapon Fireseal. This armor enhances the reflexes, speed, and strength of the wearer, however... If the blood of a Midgard doesn't run through your veins, donning this armor is a suicide, because it gradually takes your eyesight away.

Ky stepped forward and wiped the dust with his hands, tears almost falling from his bright blue eyes.

Even if Celestrians are fighting for a just cause, the human and Celestrian nature is far from just. When one engage in war, saying they're going for honor and peace, they're actually contributing to the injustice in this world. Celestrian are fighting for a better world.... for humans. And in return, they just want a little appreciation from the humans. A small, silent prayer would be enough.

Observatory is no longer the free and honorable place it once was, in fact, it never was. This place was founded on the basis of embracing individual freedom, but they haven't even achieved that yet. Think about all the wars and Dimago village they've conquered or massacred in the name of justice. Wingram Clan, Silverhorn Clan, Stranglethorn Clan, Tidehunter Clan, and many other Dimago clans. Must this go on?

True, orders are orders, and it is not a knight's duty to think. He had vowed loyalty to the king, and today is the day or reckoning. He must kill the man he sees as his brother.

In the name of honor.