Second Chances (Sequel to Hearts of Gold)

We Will Rock You

Juliet bares her ears, clenching them into fists. "Go, Amaura!" A tiny blue dinosaur, like the one Rune owns, comes out of the Pokeball, the sails on it's back glowing a spectrum of color.

Juliet lunges at it gracefully, her newfound speed and power overwhelming. "Are you forgetting something?" She yells, lunging in to strike with her ear extended, just to dodge away when the little Amaura's sails glow and it uses Aurora Beam.

"Oh. Right." I let myself go numb, my consciousness flowing into her own and my eyes glowing a bright gold. Grant looks almost shocked at it, muttering something we can't hear because we are too busy pummeling the Amaura with our ears.

Juliet's new strength isn't just great, it's enveloping. I find myself giddy with it, but she keeps me focused. When we try to deal with each other, a blast of ice hits us in the face. Snarling, we lunge forwards with a Mud Bomb held up high, slamming it down.

The Amaura retaliates with Thunder Wave, the electricity painlessly tickling us as it works into the ground. "I'm a ground type." We says, ears held high and ready for the finishing blow.

"Are you now?" The Amaura laughs. "Then you'll love this!" I feel my consciousness returned to my own body, and terrified, I look on as Juliet screams. It's just Take Down... no, it's Take Down encased in ice. An overpowered, dangerous, super-effective move.

Ice shards fly everywhere, and one hits me in the heart, melting as it touches my yellow shirt. "Juliet!" I run onto the battlefield, and she looks up at me, eyes glazed over with pain.

"Lilly... I... want to ask you something." she says, her ears feebly twitching as the cold and icy numbness spreads up them.

"Shhh. It's okay." I lather on Potion, hoping for anything to happen, then go at it with Ice Heal before the last spasm of her ears knocks it away.

"Finish... finish my story. I hope, if there's any justice in the world... I want to be lucky like you. A... real person... no more pretending. Never again."

"Juliet, you'll be okay. Please don't die. Don't die on me."

She smiles, her whole body silent and cold now. "Shin... he's really here for me. My noble lion." Then she's gone. She died in the cold, but no, someone is there to warm her. I have to believe so. Our link is cut, the golden bond disappeared, turning into energy. Hatred. Rage. Hot tears against my cheeks.

"Go, Crypt!"

With one powerful Bite, there's a crack and the Amaura lies silent, glittery blood somewhere between water and actual blood pooling around it's neck. Crypt savagely snaps at it, feeling my hatred and letting it consume him. Grant withdraws it before I can cause the amount of harm I would've liked, sending forth his bulkier Tyrunt. Leering it down, Crypt lunges and uses Dragon Claw, but the other Tyrunt deflects it with his own Dragon Claw.

It bites Crypt, who makes an awful screeching noise, gurgling as the other Tyrunt bites into his neck. It's a feral fight, with fossil Pokemon who know no rules. Chrona runs onto the battlefield, whipping the other Tyrunt's neck so hard it opens it's rock-hard jaw and lets Crypt go.

"Hey, you want me, you little bastard?!" Chrona yells, giving Crypt time to run back to me.

The Tyrunt charges, tiny hands flailing, but Chrona dodges, spreading a thin layer of poison dust over it. When it charges again, the purple poison sinking into it's skin, she Leech Seeds it, taking the full hit of it's Bite attack.

Throwing it off, she hold it in the air with a Vine Whip, suffocating it, the poison and the Leech Seed all draining it's health until it slackens. She drops it like a hot rock, and Grant looks at us, shocked.

"Can the speech, give me the badge." I say firmly, and he obeys.

Unable to return Juliet to her Pokeball, Chrona, Rune, Pich and I all carry her down the slope and lay her outside. We debate making the journey back to where Shin is buried, but I find a nice place by the sea.

My Pokedex buzzes, and a notification shows up- "ONE NEW MESSAGE ON PIKAPAD."

I feel sick.

That night, in bed, I feel the silence that will never be filled in her absence, without anyone to type away at the Pokedex or reassure me when the nightmares come.

I write the obituary on her PikaPad page, not caring who believes me or who finds it.

"This is to Juliet. To a loyal friend, one who fought until the end without hesitating. To someone who no matter what, kept believing because she thought she could be like us. Humans. We take too much for granted. Why do we use Pokemon as tools? Why don't we listen? Why, just why, is it always too late?

Remember what you have.

You could lose it come morning."