Chapter 5

(Note: This flashback takes place after Archy's last flashback in Spite Without Shame, which was the flashback about the forest fire.)

"Will she be alright?"

"I told you it will take time, Mister Ray. She is doing fine right now."

"But it's been four days!"

"You must be patient. We are doing all we can for her."

Whitney frowned as she listened to the conversation. She recognized Ray's voice, but the other was unrecognizable. It sounded like a female, and she was positive it was a pokemon.

She opened her eyes a little to see only blurs. The space around her was all white. Two blurs stood out against the white walls. One was dark blue and black while the other was light pink and tan.

"She breathed in so much smoke," said the pink pokemon. "Its a miracle she's survived this long."

"Do the doctors know why the fire affected her more than anyone else yet?" Ray's voice asked, sounding desperate.

The other pokemon sighed sadly.

"They believe she has Asthma, but it seems more complex than yet. They think it might be a very rare disease."

Whitney couldn't take it anymore. She sat up and winced. Ray turned around and beamed at her.

"Whitney, you're awake!" The Lucario cried, wasting no time in giving her a big hug.

She ignored the pain piercing her sides and hugged him back, smiling broadly. Ray released her a minute later. He was rubbing his eyes with his paws, probably to hide his tears of relief.

"This means everyone survived the fire!" He told her happily. "We were worried you wouldn't wake up!"

"Where is Rapi, Di-Di, and Pichu anyway?" Whitney interrupted, desperate to hear about the three other pokemon.

Ray's smile had turned into a frown after this.

"Rapi is in the Pokemon Center next door," he told her sadly. "Her jaw is broken, as well as her legs, but she'll be alright. Apparently the damage could've been a whole lot worse, but I can't see how it can. Thankfully, her bones weren't as badly damaged as the doctors thought."

The Lucario's words hit Whitney with the force of a car, even though his tone was gentle. She could remember flashes of the forest fire. She remembered Rapi trapped under the fallen tree, the leader of the Arcanine tribe giving his son the option of killing her or to be killed himself, and then the same Arcanine killing the leader and helping Whitney escape the forest. The Arcanine's image seemed to be permanently stuck in her memory.

"Where's the Arcanine?" She asked Ray.

"What Arcanine?"

"The one who saved me."

"You mean Archy?"

Ray's frown deepened.

"I don't know," he admitted. "He disappeared after he took you out of the forest."

There was a small cough behind Ray. Whitney had forgotten that the other pokemon was there. She looked over Ray's shoulder to see a light pink pokemon. The pokemon's lower face and stomach was cream colored, and it's eyes were light blue. It had oddly shaped ears and wore a nurse hat on its head. It looked a bit like a rabbit.

"Ah, she is one of the pokemon who works here," Ray told Whitney, nodding at the pokemon. "This is Nurse Audino, but her name is Amber."

"Hello," greeted the Audino, bowing her head slightly. "I will be taking care of you while you're here."

Whitney nodded and smiled at her weakly. She sat up a little straighter but winced. Pain shot through her back and legs. She moved the blanket and sheets off her. She was wearing a hospital gown instead of her old clothes, and there were bandages wrapped around her arms and legs.

"How badly am I hurt?" Whitney asked the two pokemon quietly.

"You're doing much better than when you came you." Amber reassured her, avoiding her question.

Whitney frowned and looked at Ray. The Lucario didn't say anything, but ran his paw through her hair.

"Would you like me to get you something to eat?" The rabbit-like pokemon asked her kindly.

Her stomach had just growled loudly. She blushed and put her hand on her stomach. She heard Ray chuckle next to her.

Amber smiled at her and left the room without saying anything. The Lucario sat next to her, still stroking her hair. Whitney laid back down, curling up next to him. She kept shivering from both the cool temperature of the room and worry for Rapi.

"Rapi will be fine," Ray assured her suddenly,  sensing her emotions again. "She's had much worse injuries then this."

"You're sure?"

"Positive."

Whitney couldn't help but fear for her pokemon. Even though they took care of her, she felt that they were her responsibility. Rapi, Ray, Di-Di, and Pichu were her family now, and she didn't want to lose them.

"Go back to sleep, Whit." The Lucario told her, pulling the blankets over her and sliding her pillow under her head. "Everything will be fine."

"Can you tell me a story first?" She asked him.

"What kind of story?"

"Well, can you tell me how you met Rapi, Darmanitan, and the others?"

Ray frowned a little at this. He looked a little uneasy.

"I guess you're getting older, and I might as well tell you." He finally sighed. "When I was a youngster, I lived with my family. I had a mother, father, and siblings."

"How many siblings do you have?" Whitney interrupted.

"I have two younger sisters and a brother. I was the oldest." He replied. "Anyway, my father was kinda like your mother. Your mother was against pokemon, my father hated humans. One human captured my grandfather, so he didn't want his children to be captured either. Unfortunately, I had become friends with humans. My family lived in a forest near a small town. I would occasionally visit the orphanage there and play with the orphans. I was more rebellious than my siblings. Well, my father found out and disowned me."

"Disowned?"

"Disowned means that you are no longer a part of a family. My father, for instance, made me leave our family den and to live far away."

"A-Am I disowned?"

"Uh... well..."

Ray looked extremely uncomfortable, and she knew he wished that they had never gotten onto this subject.

"No, Whit, you're not disowned," he finally answered quietly. "There is a difference between disowned and, uh, deserted."

Whitney didn't speak. At the sound of the words "disowned" and "deserted", she began to dwell back in her memories, some of them way before her life in the forest. She remembered the times she spent with her older brother, the times when they would play castle together, and when they would look for pokemon with their grandfather. She remembered the times when she got to be alone with her mother, and how Hannah Gropius would tell her stories, myths, and legends of Unova. Though her mother disapproved of pokemon because of an accident in her childhood, she found it wise to tell her children about the history of their home region.

"What about Rapi and Di-Di?" She asked, her thoughts now turning to her thoughts toward her Ponyta and Clampearl. Rapi and Di-Di never talk about their pasts, nor did Darmanitan and Woobat when they were still around.

"I don't know a whole lot about their pasts," Ray admitted. "I think Di-Di suffered from water pollution on an ocean route, and I think Rapi came from an abusive farm. Darmanitan spent most of his life in the forest, but was persecuted by the Arcanine pack. Woobat, I believe, fled from his home after it collapsed. Some humans were mining in there, I think."

Whitney felt a small pang of guilt. Humans have hurt her only family, the only family that ever accepted her. She couldn't bear to think that her kind had ruined her pokemons' lives.

"Now it really is time for you to go back to sleep, Whitney." Her Lucario advised, pulling the blankets farther over her.

She nodded sleepily. She pressed her body against Ray and closed her eyes, falling into a deep sleep almost instantly.

*~*~*

"Is she awake at all?"

"HOW SHOULD I KNOW?"

"Keep your voice down, Di-Di! Use your inside voice!"

"THIS IS MY INSIDE VOICE!"

"Of course it is..."

Whitney opened her eyes to see a blue and pink pokemon, as well as a pale yellow and black pokemon right in her face. She yelped and bolted up right. Her Clampearl, Di-Di, and Pichu were sitting on top of the blankets next to her.

"Don't scare me like that!" She panted, pulling the blankets up to her chest.

"OUR BAD!" Di-Di chirped cheerfully in her unnaturally loud voice.

"We just wanted to see you!" squeaked Pichu happily, jumping onto Whitney's shoulder. "So how are you feeling?"

Whitney shrugged in reply. She didn't know how to describe how she was feeling. Her throat was dry, her stomach ached with hunger, her limbs were all sore, and she felt like a heavy weight of negative feelings was placed inside her.

"Well you will be ok soon!" Pichu told her. "We'll be able to leave once you and Rapi get better!"

"How is Rapi?" Whitney asked nervously.

"SHE'S GETTING BETTER!" replied Di-Di. "SHE CAN'T TALK, BUT SHE CAN NOD AND SHAKE HER HEAD!"

"If we want to ask her something, we have to say it in a yes or no question." added Pichu.

"What about you two?"

"US? WE'RE FINE TOO!" The Clampearl answered, but Whitney noticed a crack in Di-Di's shell that was covered with a bandage. Pichu's left paw was wrapped up, as well as her chest.

"Where's Ray?" She then questioned after a moment.

"Over there," Pichu replied with a smirk, gesturing to the right side of the room.

Ray was sleeping in an armchair in the corner. One arm was supporting his head while the other laid on the arm of the chair.

"I'm glad he's finally asleep." The tiny mouse pokemon continued. "He's slept and ate very little since you and Rapi were hospitalized. Now that you're awake, he might relax a little more."

"THAT REMINDS ME, THE NURSE BROUGHT YOU SOME FOOD!" added Di-Di.

Whitney looked over at the counter and saw a tray set on top of it. Amber the Audino had brought her a sandwich, berries, and a glass of water while she had been asleep.

"I'll get it for ya!" Her pokemon squeaked happily, leaping up onto the counter and lifting up the tray. Whitney saw her wince, but Pichu just balanced the tray cautiously on her head. Thankfully, the tray did not fall as Pichu made her way back. Whitney took the tray from Pichu before she leapt back onto the bed.

"CAN I HAVE SOME OF THOSE BERRIES?" Di-Di requested, eyeing the small bowls of berries on the tray.

"Help yourself." Whitney replied, taking a blue straw off the tray and sticking it in the glass of water.

Both Pichu and Di-Di started to chow down on the berries at Whitney's words. She couldn't help but giggle a little at hungry they were. They were both stuffing their faces with berries. However, she had a harder time eating than they did. Her throat was still raw and dry. She had to keep sipping her water between every bite of her sandwich.

"Di-Di, what are you doing?"

Whitney looked over at Pichu and Di-Di. The Clampearl had taken an extra straw off the tray and was trying to push a berry into. The straw was aimed at Ray.

"You're gonna shoot that at Ray?!" Pichu hissed at Di-Di. "He's paranoid enough without you startling him!"

"RELAX," said Di-Di unconcernedly. "HE'LL UNDERSTAND!"

"Yeah, he'll understand when he's slammed you halfway into a wall." The mouse pokemon retorted.

"Di-Di, I don't think-" Whitney started, but Di-Di had already blown into the straw.

The berry zoomed out of the straw and sped toward the Lucario. In a flash, Ray's paw shot up and caught the berry before it hit his face. One of his eyes opened slowly and swiveled around to look at the girls.

"Did you really think after one pack of Arcanine that I was going to be this vulnerable?" He demanded quietly.

Di-Di squeaked and clamped her clam shut to protect herself as Ray flicked the berry back at her. Whitney ducked under her blankets in case Ray and Di-Di began a fight. It was normal for the Clampearl and Lucario to get under each other's skin.

However, Ray just laid his arm back down and closed his eyes. Whitney heard Pichu give a small sigh of relief. She had become intimidated of Ray's new appearance. While he had been about a foot taller than her while he was a Riolu, he was now almost twice her height.

"You have a visitor, Whitney," Amber informed her when her eyes found Whitney. "He would've came in sooner, but I had to tend to his injuries."

"A visitor?"

Ray had straightened up and was now watching Amber closely. Whitney saw his eyes narrow slightly. He must have been thinking the same thing she was. Who would come and visit her? She knew no human besides her family, and she doubted that it was any of them.

"Who is it?" Whitney asked finally.

Amber opened the door wider, and they could now see who the visitor was. A large pokemon was standing behind the Audino. It looked like a dog with fur like a tiger. It also had an appearance similar to a lion's. Bandages were wrapped around its side, legs, and neck. He also had a bandage on one of its eyes. Whitney could see the edges of a long scar protruding from outside the bandage.

The Arcanine stepped inside cautiously, eyeing Ray wearily. Ray, Di-Di, and Pichu all seemed to recognize him except for Whitney.

"Archway," Ray addressed the Arcanine quietly.

The Arcanine gave a curt little nod, but avoided looking at the Lucario.

"I will just leave you all be," Amber said as if nothing had happened. "Just call me if you need me. A nurse should be in to check on you soon."

When the door shut, nobody spoke. The tension had mounted increasingly after the Arcanine entered. The Arcanine was looking everywhere except at the pokemon and Whitney.

"What are you doing here, Archy?" Ray finally demanded, getting up and glaring at the Arcanine, Archy.

Archy looked up at him coolly. He showed no sign of fear as the Lucario surveyed him.

"Isn't it obvious?" He answered casually.

"Where's your tribe?" questioned Pichu.

"HE CAN'T GO BACK, REMEMBER?" replied Di-Di, her shell opening again. "RAPI SAID HE'S BANISHED!"

"I killed my father and my brother," Archy added. "If I stayed with my tribe, they would have killed me in return."

Whitney now knew who the Arcanine was. He was the pokemon that had saved her from the pack of Arcanines. He had slaughtered the leader and strangled his brother.

"It was you!" She gasped, pointing at Archy. "You were the one who took me out of the forest!"

Archy turned and looked at Whitney for the first time. His appearance was more frightening than other Arcanines. The bandages weren't helping either.

"I am the one, yes," He finally confirmed, nodding. "You must be Whitney."

The Arcanine held out one of his massive paws as if wanting to shake her hand. Whitney hesitated at first, but held out her hand and shook his paw. She could feel Archy's paw quivering under her fingers.

"You have a funny name." Whitney said without thinking, blushing slightly.

Archy smiled, showing one of his sharp teeth.

"I guess it is," he agreed. "But my nickname, Archy, is common in other regions. My mother named me. She wanted me to be the bridge between pokemon and humans."

"What does my name mean?" Whitney asked.

The Arcanine tilted his head thoughtfully before saying, "Your name means 'white island'. It's a very pretty name."

She smiled a little, but it faltered at the look on Ray's face. He still didn't look very happy about seeing Archy. The Arcanine glanced at Ray before releasing her hand.

"What do you want?" The Lucario asked bluntly.

Archy turned away from Whitney and gazed at Ray. The Arcanine looked as if he had been expecting to be asked this. His tail had drooped his ears had flattened.

"Please..." Archy started, his voice suddenly quiet and cracked. "I want to join you guys..."

The three other pokemon stared at him. Whitney saw one small tear escape from his one visible eye. She had never seen an Arcanine cry before. Archy lifted his paw and wiped the tear away before speaking again.

"I have nowhere else to go," he continued. "All my friends are dead, and I have no family. You're my only hope!"

Whitney was amazed to hear Archy pleading. She knew what it was like to have no one to turn to. She and her brother had to deal with that when they first lived in the forest. None of the pokemon would help them until a small group of pokemon came to their aid. The pokemon included Ray, Rapi, Darmanitan, Di-Di, and Woobat. They had been their family. They had played with them, fed them, and even protected them. But that was until N left with Darmanitan, Woobat, and Zorua. Now it was just Whitney, Pichu, Di-Di, Ray, and Rapi.

She looked up to see Pichu, Ray, and Di-Di watching her. She glanced at the Lucario, unsure whether she was allowed to answer. When he nodded, she turned back to Archy.

"I would love it if you would join us." Whitney told him in a small voice.

The Arcanine wagged his tail madly, making Whitney smile. Di-Di squealed and blew a few bubbles. Pichu beamed and leapt onto Archy's back.

"Welcome aboard!" The tiny pokemon squeaked happily, jumping onto his head.

"DOES THIS MEAN YOU ARE NO LONGER THE HEAD OF THE FAMILY?" Di-Di asked Ray slyly.

"I hope not." growled Ray, looking over at Archy. "By the way, whatever happened to that Purrloin?"

"What Purrloin?" questioned Whitney curiously.

"Well, about that," Archy started slowly. "I'm not really alone. There are two other pokemon with me."

"Who's the second?!" Ray demanded sharply.

Before Archy could answer, an ear-splitting bang of lighting came from outside, making everyone but the Arcanine jump. Whitney turned her head sharply to look out the window. It seemed to be storming.

Then something started banging on the closed window. Ray jumped up and ran over to the window. A large, light blue and purple spotted pokemon zoomed inside as he opened the window. A high pitch mewling also ran through the room.

"THUNDRUS!" bellowed the Lucario as the pokemon tried prying itself off the wall.

"Who puts a wall in a place like this?!" growled Thundrus stupidly, pushing off the wall and falling onto the floor backwards. A small, violet colored, kitten-like pokemon tumbled off Thundrus' cloud and bumped into the bed.

"You brought Thundrus?!" squeaked Pichu, leaping off the bed and onto the floor. "And who's the cat?"

Archy didn't answer right away, but he bent down and picked up the Purrloin by the scruff of the neck gently with his mouth. The Purrloin mewled weakly and went limp in the Arcanine's grasp.

"Are they ok?" Whitney asked nervously. She was mainly concerned for the baby Purrloin.

"She's just hungry," answered Archy, setting the kitten on the bed. "Her parents died in the fire, and I can't really feed her. Thundrus is just being his obviously stupid self." He added irritability.

"I'm not stupid!" snapped Thundrus from the floor.

"Were her parents by any chance Scratch and Shifty?" Ray interrupted. "The Liepard and Zangoose that were banished?"

"Yes," said the Arcanine softly. "I think the pack killed Shifty, but Scratch died from his wounds. I couldn't save them."

"T-They're dead?" stammered Whitney.

She had known the two pokemon since Ray and the others had taken her and N in. They had hoarded quite a lot of items, but they were always happy to give away some stuff to them. Then Scratch, Shifty, and Airlock, a Chandelure, were banished from the forest after insulting Archy's brother, Flash, the only shiny Arcanine in the tribe. If it was true that Scratch and Shifty were still in the forest when they died, then they probably didn't listen to the Arcanines' threats after all.

"I'm afraid so," Archy told her gently. "Their daughter, Purr, is the only one who survived."

Whitney didn't speak. She scooped up the baby Purrloin and began cradling her. The kitten started purring and batted at Whitney's brown and light green hair.

"SHE SEEMS TO LIKE YOU!" chirped Di-Di.

"How long has it been since she's eaten last?" Ray asked Archy and Thundrus.

"I have no idea." admitted Archy.

"I'll get a nurse," sighed Pichu as she leapt down from the bed. After Ray opened and shut the door for her, the only noises were Purr's mewlings and Archy trying to get Thundrus off the floor.

"S-So," Thundrus started as he finally got off the floor, floating a few feet above the ground. "Can I come with you guys too?"

"YOU WANT TO COME?" said Di-Di, sounding surprised. "WHY?"

"My life is...lonely." he replied. "All the company I have are the other legendary pokemon. However, I have not had a close relationship with any of them. You all have been the closest pokemon and person I've ever had to friends, or even a family."

"You're always welcome to join us," Whitney told him. "But I do have a question."

"Yes?"

"Did you start the storm?"

It was now raining harder than ever. Lightning was flashing outside and she could hear thunder rumbling in the distance. Thundrus glanced outside and smiled sheepishly.

"Yeah, sorry about that," Thundrus mumbled as Whitney giggled. "There is some sort of particle in my cloud that makes it storm where ever I fly. Most people think I shoot lightning on purpose. Actually, some people think I started the forest fire with my lightning."

"Hide Thundrus!" barked Ray suddenly, who was looking out the window in the door. "Pichu got a human nurse!"

Next thing Whitney knew, Archy and Ray were trying to push Thundrus out the window.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" bellowed Thundrus.

"YOU GOT TO GO OUTSIDE UNTIL THE NURSE LEAVES!" Archy retorted.

"WHAT IF I DON'T WANT TO?!"

"THE GOOD LORD GAVE YOU THE POWER TO MAKE STORMS, SO GO OUTSIDE AND ENJOY IT!" yelled Ray, giving Thundrus a final push and succeeded in pushing him out the window. They slammed the window shut behind him and locked it so he couldn't come back in.

The Arcanine was wincing and slid onto the floor. His wounds had taken advantage of him. However, Ray swiftly bounded over the bed and landed in his chair. When he was a Riolu, this was surely a stunt that he wouldn't have been able to accomplish.

The door creaked opened for the third time, and a woman nurse entered the room, followed by Pichu.

"I'm glad you're awake," the nurse said to Whitney as she came in. "I was beginning to think you weren't- well, anyway, I'm Nurse Gayle, and I'll be taking care of you while you're here!"

"H-Hi..." stammered Whitney shyly, pulling the blankets a little higher over her and the Purrloin.

"Was there anything you need?"

"M-My baby Purrloin is hungry, and I don't know how long it's been since she's eaten last."

"Ok, is it alright if I take her a for a few minutes then?" Nurse Gayle asked.

Whitney nodded and handed Purr to the nurse. Purr squeaked and curled up into a small ball. She pet her small head before letting her go.

"By the way, I wanted to ask you something now that you're awake."

"What about?"

"Well, we have been contacting the families of everyone in the forest fire, but we haven't been able to contact your family. I was wondering if you have any relatives that we can call."

Whitney didn't answer right away. She didn't have any family at all. The only relatives she had or knew about we're her parents, grandfather, and brother. She never met her father, and both her mother and brother abandoned her. That only left one person she had left who loved and cared for her.

"I have a grandpa," she finally told the nurse. "His name is Gregory Copperfield, I don't know which town he lives in though. If you find him tell him it's... Whit."

"Ok then, we'll see what we can do. I'll be back in a few minutes," Nurse Gayle told her kindly, taking Purr out of the room with her.

"What happened to Thundrus?" Pichu asked as the door swung shut.

"RAY AND ARCHY THREW HIM OUT THE WINDOW!" squeaked Di-Di excitedly.

"They WHAT?!"

"Way to go, Di-Di..." grumbled Ray as Pichu rounded on him.

"You threw him out A WINDOW?!" The small mouse pokemon shrieked.

"Chill out, he's fine!"

"HOW CAN YOU SAY THAT?!"

"Pichu, unlike the rest of us, he can fly. He didn't even fall, he just floated in mid air." Archy told her irritability.

The tiny pokemon deflated a little after this, but she could hear her continuing her argument with Archy in a hiss. Ray and Di-Di were also bickering as well, which was obvious because of the Clampearl's loud, squeaky voice.

The door thankfully reopened a few minutes later. Whitney could see Nurse Gayle carrying Purr in her arms as she shut the door behind her.

"Your Purrloin must have not eaten in awhile, because I had to give her seconds." The nurse told her as she handed her a the sleeping Purrloin.

"Did you find my grandpa?" Whitney asked her, longing to know about her grandfather.

Nurse Gayle smiled sadly.

"I'm so sorry dear, but we couldn't find a Gregory Copperfield in the region." She told Whitney sadly. "It seems that he left sometime ago, and didn't tell anyone where he was going. We're still going to try and find him, though. Do you have any other family we can try and contact besides your grandfather?"

"No..." Whitney answered at a small pause.

She could feel tears sliding down her face. Her grandfather was gone too, but she wasn't mad at him like she was with her mother and N. She knew that he would have searched the entire region to find her, but if he had done so, there was only a small chance of him finding her. She couldn't blame him for leaving the region after all of that.

"We can continue looking if you'd like," Nurse Gayle continued. "But we'll need your full name."

Whitney thought about that for a moment. She wanted to look for her grandfather herself, not a group of doctors. She also didn't know what would happen if she gave them her true name. She wouldn't be surprised if her grandfather had made sure everyone knew that she and N were gone. They would probably send her back to her mother, who didn't want her. It would also lead to awkward questions about N.

And what would happen if they didn't find Gregory Copperfield? They would probably take her to an orphanage, and they might take her pokemon away. Either way, there was the risk of being separated from her pokemon.

"White," Whitney finally said, remembering what Archy had told her about her name. "My name is White Copperstone."

***

White was getting more frustrated at her Xtransceiver by the day. She kept looking for a good radio station on it as she sat outside on Mrs. Parker's snow covered front porch, her usual brown cloak wrapped around her. She was waiting for Leia and Mira, who were supposed to be visiting her for the week. She couldn't say she was excited, but she was happy at the possibility of seeing two of her friends.

Fiona was still staying with them in Viridian City. She was recovering quickly, but neither White nor Mrs. Parker let her go too far outside. So far, they were unable to find information on her home region or her father. Mrs. Parker suggested that they ask Fiona about her family, but White was sure she would either not know which region she was from or she would not want to tell.

White adjusted her new ear buds as she kept switching channels. She didn't know half the songs, and she sometimes heard people cussing and singing about beer on some of them. Giving up, she shut off her Xtransceiver and reattaching it to her wrist. She unplugged her ear buds, pulled them out of her ears, and shoved them into her overcoat pocket.

Her spirits had lifted slightly during Fiona's visit. She was still worried about N's silent absence, but she would forget about it while with Fiona. Fiona would not sleep in a room by herself, so White was now sharing her room with her. White had also gotten to introduce her to the pokemon. Fiona had gotten close to pokemon like Abram the Absol and Jeremiah the Gengar.

A low shuffling noise made White look up. Something was tunneling under the snow. The thing kept running into dead ends, or ran into the side of the house. It was steadily coming closer to her.

"Who's in the snow?" She called over to the thing in the snow.

The thing tunneled even closer. It stopped right in front of her a second later. White looked down at the still pile of snow. She wasn't afraid of the creature hiding beneath the snow.

A light pink pokemon suddenly burst out from beneath the snow and squealed shrilly, "PEEK-A-BOO!"

Di-Di the Gorebyss landed on her back in the snow, giggling madly. Di-Di was the most hyper and positive of White's pokemon. She was also her only Water Type. She looked a bit like a thin, pink dolphin.

"You like the snow, don't you?" said White calmly. She didn't flinch or jump when the Gorebyss jumped out.

"WELL IT IS WATER!" Di-Di squeaked, rolling around in the snow.

"Yeah, but please don't give anyone a heart attack. Not everyone is as hardcore as I am."

"OKIE DOKIE!"

Di-Di then dove back into the snow and tunneled away. White snorted and began kicking at the snow.

"Aren't you tired of sitting out here?"

White looked over her shoulder and saw a Houndoom standing in the doorway. Solomon the Houndoom was another one of her grandfather's pokemon.

"I don't feel like being inside," she said as Solomon laid down next to her. "Mira and Leia could pass right by and not know I'm here."

"I've been meaning to ask you," started Solomon, his attention on the snow flying through the air from Di-Di. "How is it that your Gorebyss can breathe?"

"What?"

"She is a Water Type, and I thought they can only breathe in water. Di-Di should be, well..."

"You know what? I've never really thought about that." White admitted. "She was always in the forest when she was a Clampearl, and I believe they can survive out of water. I think she was so use to breathing air, her lungs adapted to both breathing under water and breathing in air."

"I wouldn't be surprised if that were true."

They both fell silent after a moment.

"So, who is this Mira and Leia anyway?" The Houndoom asked after a few minutes.

"Leia is a friend I made in Unova, and Mira is kinda like my foster sister."

"Sister? How did you meet?"

"Mira was around six or seven years old when I met her. Another boy was taking care of her. She's an orphan, and her last guardian couldn't really care for her and give her the attention she needed, so I took care of her."

"And who's that other boy you hung out with? The one with the eye patch and the crazy pokemon team?"

"Sky Blue?"

"Yes, him. He seems very-"

"Insane?"

"Unique. I was going to say unique."

"Sure you were." She said with a snort.

Solomon flattened his ears and his tail twitched irritability. Houndooms were usually feared for their frightening appearances and superstitions. Houndoom bites are said to never heal and will hurt forever, and the eerie howls of Houndooms were said to be the calls of the grim reaper. But Solomon wasn't like that. He was like Archy and Samuel. He was loyal and polite, and was often overprotective.

"Your grandfather loved you, Whitney," he finally answered. "He never gave up on you, and neither did I. I'm sure your grandfather would have wanted to know that you made some good friends."

White said nothing. She sometimes wondered what her family would have said about her friends, like Mira and Sky Blue. She often thought that her family would have been disturbed by Sky Blue, mainly because of his personality and his background. Mira was a bit more normal than both White and Sky Blue, so her family probably wouldn't mind her.

"So what do you think of them?" She asked slowly.

"If they haven't left or hurt you and are always by your side, then I think they are very good friends." He replied. "But of course, that's not everything a friend has to be."

"I thought you would say that."

"WHITNEY!"

White turned around just in time to see two girls running toward her. She yelped as Leia Jackson and Mira Dragonclaw both lunged at her and were now strangling her in a bone-crushing hug. Solomon leapt up and scampered backwards in surprise, barking loudly.

"We missed you so much, White!" said Leia happily.

"Yeah, it wasn't as fun as it was with you in Unova!" added Mira.

"Ugh, ok, ok!" White snapped, trying to sit up. "I'm happy to see you too!"

I had to go and think they would've matured a bit by now... She added bitterly inside her head.

Mira's Raichu, Pinch, walked straight past them, not sparing a glance for White.

"Oh good, so we can just dump are trainers here, yeah?" Pinch snorted, sounding annoyed.

White snarled at him as Mira and Leia let go of her and stood up. Both girls looked older than they did when White last saw them. They were both wearing winter clothing, and Mira was wearing a black cloak.

"So did you guys get lost?" White asked as she stood up.

"Twice." sighed Leia. "We kept going in circles, so our pokemon are a little frustrated with us."

"That would explain Pinch's bad mood."

"Yep, but speaking of Raichu, where is yours?" asked Mira.

"No idea," she admitted. "She's probably inside. She's been sent outside a lot these days, so I guess she's trying to stay as far away from the door as possible. Here, let's go inside."

Solomon must have been arguing with Pinch because he was now stalking back inside, leaving the door open by a few inches. White opened the door for them as Mira and Leia entered the house, followed by Pinch.

Fiona was in the living room, laying on the floor next to Abram. She was brushing the old Absol's fur with a brush. Abram's head was between his paws, looking relaxed. Fiona looked up as the three girls came inside.

"Oh my gosh, she's so cute!" squealed Mira, picking Fiona up without warning. The small girl squeaked in surprise as Mira hugged her.

"That's Fiona," White said, slightly embarrassed by Mira's behavior. "She's been staying with us for two or three days now."

"Well she's adorable!" commented Leia, giggling slightly as she took off her coat.

"Whitney, what's going on in there?"

Mrs. Parker had come out of the kitchen, but stopped when she saw Mira and Leia. Mira had set Fiona down and was now removing her own coat. Fiona clung to White's arm. She seemed unsure about the visitors.

"Mrs. Parker, Fiona, this is Miriam Dragonclaw and Leia Jackson," White told them awkwardly, gesturing to the two younger trainers. "They are my friends."

Leia waved at the elderly woman and Mira smiled. Mrs. Parker nodded, but her attention was mainly on Mira. White noticed that Mira was looking more and more like the rest of her family. She was wearing her older brother's old clothes, but she had added stuff to them. Her reddish orange jacket was now studded with small, fake jewels in some places. Her hair was styled differently, and White remembered her hair being straight, apart from being curly.

"Are you by any chance a dragon tamer?" Mrs. Parker asked Mira.

Mira smile faltered slightly.

"I come from a long line of dragon tamers, yes," she answered. "But I'm not a dragon tamer myself. I don't have as many Dragon types as the rest of my family."

"Well lots of dragon tamers come from Viridian City, so I was just wondering." Mrs. Parker said, waving her hand. "Should I clean out one of the guest rooms?"

"Nah, it's alright," answered Leia hurriedly. "We actually checked into the hotel because we weren't sure if we could stay or not!"

"Then I insist that next time you visit, you two will stay in my guest rooms!"

Both girls looked taken a back by this thoughtfulness. Mrs. Parker then turned around and went back into the kitchen.

"She seems nice!" Mira said in an unusually high voice.

"Yeah, I'm lucky to have her," White admitted as she picked up Fiona. "Come on, we'll go to my room."

She beckoned them upstairs. She noticed that Mira had suddenly looked depressed and on the verge of tears. White followed her two friends, Fiona gripping her arm as she trailed after her. She saw Abram yawn and stretch while Pinch began looking around for Raichu.

"I like your room!" Leia told White as she showed them her room.

"Really?" asked White skeptically, glancing around her room. She had tried cleaning it, but it was hard to do so in such a small space. "I tried cleaning it, but it's still kinda messy. I don't get visitors, which isn't really surprising."

"Well you have visitors now!" said Mira with a small smile.

"And I'm very glad you two are visiting," she admitted, sitting down on the cot she had put in the room for Fiona. "The last person to visit me was Sky."

"Yeah, I think he was the last person we visited too." Leia said, sitting down on White's bed with Mira. "We visited him in Unova. I don't know how well he's doing though. I know Hugh, Bianca, and a few other assistants are really annoyed with him, but Professor Juniper has been really patient with him."

"I really don't care where he is, just as long as he's out of my hair and not in prison."

"Um, about that," Mira interrupted quietly, the corner of her mouth twitching. "Did you know Sky Blue has a record again?"

"Wait, what?!" White snapped. "What for?!"

"He's 'accidentally' set Professor Juniper's lab on fire." Leia informed her in a huff. "It's happened three times now. It hasn't been anything serious!" She added hurriedly after seeing the look on White's face. "The fires have never been big, and they've all been in his room. They've all been the results of his inventions or experiments. The neighbors kept reporting him as a pyromaniac."

"That stupid lunatic!" She hissed furiously. "When I get my hands around his- Mira, are you alright?"

White just noticed that Mira's eyes were wet. Mira jumped a little and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She noticed that Leia looked a little anxious too.

"I-I'm fine," Mira stammered, waving her hand slightly. "I-I'll be fine."

But White took Fiona off her lap and set her next to her. She leaned over to Mira and took her hands in her own. She could feel the younger trainer's hands shaking.

"Do you wanna talk?" She asked her quietly. Her voice had changed and was now full of concern and sympathy, which rarely happened.

Mira bit her lip and gave a small nod. Leia put her arm around her best friend and White leaned back, letting go of Mira's hands.

"So I'm going to regret saying this, but how was your journey through Johto?"

White indeed regretted asking Mira this because she burst into tears and cried into her hands.

"She's been having these moments ever since she challenged the league," Leia told White in a whisper. "One minute she'll be just fine, and the next she'll be crying."

"Yeah, I'm not surprised." White muttered, putting her arms around Mira. "Mira, please calm down."

"W-Why..." choked out Mira, sobbing into the older trainer's shoulder. "W-Why do they hate me...?"

White sighed but didn't reply. Between White, Sky Blue, and Mira, Mira had the most amount of family members still alive. She had an older brother, cousin, and grandfather who were all still living. However, Mira was abused and neglected by her brother, and it was possible that her cousin and grandfather didn't even know she existed.

"Mira, look at me." White told Mira, making her look up at her. "No offense, but no matter how respected your family is, your family are idiots not to realize how special you are. You don't deserve them."

"B-But it hurts s-so much..."

"I know, I know it hurts, and it's only expected. But you have me and Sky Blue, and we love you the way you are. You also have your pokemon, Leia, Amos, and Hugh as well. But next time you go back to the league and your idiot brother still doesn't show his face to you, call me and I will be there within the hour with my pistol."

White smiled a little as Mira giggled a little. Fiona had now crawled behind White, watching Mira and Leia shyly.

"Actually, we decided we weren't going back to Johto for awhile." said Leia slowly.

"Oh?"

"W-We considered going to another region, like Hoenn," sniffed Mira, regaining her calm voice at last. "But we decided to go to Kalos. Neither of us have been there before, it seems like an interesting region. We also thought about asking Amos and Sky Blue if they wanted to come."

"That sounds like an excellent idea." White agreed encouragingly. It sounded like a good idea for Mira to travel somewhere else besides Johto while she was still depressed.

"Well... we were hoping you could come too, actually..." Leia finished.

"Wait, what- I can't go!" The older trainer snapped, her voice turning sharp again.

"Why not?" Mira asked, sounding disappointed.

"I'm an ex-convict! I'm not even welcome in my own church or neighborhood, so I'm guessing I won't be anymore welcome in Kalos!"

"We'll be with you!" Leia argued. "We wouldn't let anyone try and bully you!"

"And I can't just leave Mrs. Parker and Fiona!" White snarled.

"You can take Fiona with you, or hire someone to help look after her and Mrs. Parker!" suggested Mira.

White hissed quietly. She had her reasons for not wanting to go back to Kalos. She had been there before, and her time there wasn't pleasant. She had gone there with Sky Blue when they were younger and before they met Mira, and neither of them ever told Mira what happened during their stay there.

But she couldn't deny that she wanted to leave Kanto for awhile as well. She was slightly frightened about going back to Route 1 because of Kevin and his gang. She hadn't seen them since the battle with Danny, but she was sure they would come after her for pay back. She was also scared of going to church because a few parents have voiced concerns to Pastor Jonathon about having her in a church with over a dozen toddlers. However, Pastor Jonathon kept telling the parents that anyone, even White, was welcome in the church, and that he completely believed that White had changed and that she was Christian, but none of the parents were reassured.

"Ok," she sighed after a few moments, making Mira and Leia smile widely. "I'll think about, but let's talk about something else."

~~~

SUP. I'M IN A GOOD MOOD. I UPDATED RIGHT WHEN IT SAID I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN TWO MONTHS XD

Guess what? I updated :D but you guys noticed that already x3 lol

Today is the first day of my summer vacation, so I'm celebrating with an update :3 I'm hoping that now that I have more free time, I will be able to have more updates...hopefully. x3

-Character Profiles: Miriam Dragonclaw and Leia Jackson-

It's been so long since writing SWS, so I might forget some of Mira and Leia's pokemon ;-;

Name: Miriam Dragonclaw (Mira Dragonclaw)

Age: Between 13 and 14

Home Region(s) : Johto and Kanto

Family: ??? (Older brother; status unknown), ??? (Older cousin; status unknown), Unnamed grandfather (grandfather; status unknown)

Pokemon: Ferggy (male Feraligatr), Spika (male Steelix), Pinch (male Raichu), Sparky (male Pikachu), Taxi (Electrode, believed to be a male), Francesca (female Haxorus), Draco (male Dragonite), Suicune (believed to be a male)

Personality: Positive, friendly, outgoing, energetic, can be very serious when necessary, sensitive

---

Name: Leia Jackson

Age: 13

Home Region: Unova

Family: Hugh Jackson (older brother; working in Nuvema Town), Harriet Jackson (younger sister; living in Aspertia Town), Amos Jackson (cousin; traveling in Unova), Maud Jackson (aunt; living in Aspertia Town)

Pokemon: Severusa (female Serperior), Ringdog (male Lucario), Abby (female Audino), Randy (male Krokorok), Lily Rose (female Eevee)

Personality: Positive, friendly, outgoing, energetic

----

I kinda wanted to add a few things. Throughout SWS, people have pointed out that I have mixed up on pokemon heights. I am so sorry about that. I don't watch the anime, so I don't have a very good idea about pokemon's heights, especially pokemon like Serperior. I've probably only seen like 30 episodes of pokemon in all ;/

Another thing: I also have been asked about certain nicknames. Some people have asked if certain pokemon have been named after characters from other fandoms. Well I name some pokemon after my own pokemon, or I name them after my favorite characters from other fandoms. Yes, Severusa is named after Severus Snape in a way. I've had a Serperior in my games named Severus, and I know I'm not the first or the last to do so. Also, Draco the Dragonite isn't named after Draco Malfoy. I wasn't even thinking of him when I named him that. Pokemon like Ringdog have nicknames that I've made up. I actually have a Lucario called Ringdog from my first BW2 game, so he's named after him, not a YouTuber. If Ringdog is named after anyone, he's named after Trudog, the son of a famous Christian singer.

I just wanted to say that I made a new cover. I used some of the old pictures, but I tried to make it more organized. It was such a pain to make -_- I'm sticking with Pic Collage though. The cover has White, Sky Blue, Amos, N, Margaret, Fiona, and Danny on it, so that's kinda what they look like.

Ok, I'll move on. So today, the PokemonFanficRec added Spite Without Shame to their reading lists :3 I'm just happy about that, cause that rarely happens! However it was added to the WhitexN and OCxN reading list, which is kinda...awkward XP It was also added to the Adventure category, but it wasn't there when I check. So I just wanted to say that, and I'm sorry if it annoys you ;-;

I also wanted to thank you all for almost 1.8K reads on SWS2 and over 31K reads on SWS! Thank you soooooooooooo much! You all just make my day! Again, thank you all!

I think I've annoyed you enough today X3 Thank you for your support guys! Please vote or comment, but that's optional! I won't force you to! If you want to PM me, that's fine! I don't get many PMs these days. We're getting closer to Kalos now, so I'll try writing more.

See you guys later! :3