OMADGFIUHASDUYF SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST CHAPTER 24 IS HERE!

Haha, I'm sorry I really slacked. School work, art, and Lovely Mine has been really taking up my time. Honestly, I'm beginning to prefer writing Lovely Mine over this. But, I'll try my best not to give up on this too easily.

Ugh.. I'm so lazy..

6/29/2016:

So today I woke up and almost immediately I started throwing up blood and having a nosebleed. Since my parents weren't home I sat around bleeding for about an hour until my mom came home and took me to the hospital ^-^... Yeah, turns out I just had 'a little bloody nose'. So it's all good now! ):D

Oooh! Once again, I offer my sincere apologies... I promised that SOTF would be completed this summer, but unfortunately, I don't think that such plans will be happening anytime soon. So, hey, that means more chapters, right? However, I'm afraid that I'll have to warn you guys ahead of time, but things will be quite slow...

I'll be especially slow since I'll be concentrating all of my writing on Lovely Mine's chapters.

WARNING: A LOT OF SHT WILL BE HAPPENING IN THIS CHAPTER**

Anyways, this'll be short, but Gratitude/Comments:

Quick thanks to Tropicallight for reviewing on Chapter 23, I appreciate it a lot! I'm glad that you're reading my work on both of my ongoing fanfictions.

That's it.

Onto the chapter.

Disclaimer:*

I don't own Pokemon in any form.

Chapter 24:

"Set that over there."

"Hn.."

Paul stepped one of the large branches in the pile of supplies. He applied pressure before tearing it in half with ease.

"Hurry up, hurry up!" Dawn called out to him, helping May hold together part of the frame.

"I'm coming, chill out.." Dragging half of the branch over to the two girls, he propped it up against a tree, hooking it on another branch up above.

"Took you long enough." May rolled her eyes and began to adjust the frame with her one arm.

"Looking good." Red nodded, coming up from behind the girl. He took it from the two girls and began to fix it, leaning it against the half-branch before digging the sides into the ground.

They had begun to build the frame and so far, things were looking pretty good. However, more supplies were needed and they couldn't do much without them. There were only a few branches and spare logs available along with many large leaves which would be used to block out rainfall. May had said that it would be wiser to make the walls and the roof of the shelter entirely out of wood before coating the hut with leaves. Meaning that more wood would be used to protect them from the typhoon.

"We used up half of the wood... Not even half of the frame is finished, are we seriously going to find enough wood to complete it and fill in the spots?" Dawn cocked her eyebrows, skeptical as she eyed the roomy frame. The shelter was massive as it needed to support nine teenagers including a very tall adult. Earlier, she had suggested that they make it smaller, but her idea was almost immediately dismissed by May.

"Don't worry about it." Paul grunted, hauling the last of the giant branches over to where the dome-like shelter was. Slowly, it began to take form as they added more wood which Red had found at the edge of the woods. It seemed like there must have been many storms in the past, way before they had even arrived on the island. Decaying wood scattered the grounds in the woods while many fallen branches could be found wedged in the earth.

"It'll be easier to find things now." Red looked up at the sky. As usual, it was cloudy, but the sun could just barely be seen. It peaked through the clouds and stood out among the familiar bright blue sky. "It's a new day, it'll be a while until it gets dark."

"How long have we been here?" Ash groaned, wiping the sweat from his forehead. In the end, it was decided that he would stay behind with May's group. So, Paul had to drag him away from the other group.

"Building? My estimation is about two hours." May looked from from what she was doing, flopping down on the sandy beach. She adjusted her sling before scanning the area for anything useful.

"No, that's not what I meant. I meant how long have we been on the island?" He shook his head with a sigh, heaving a large rock from the ground and carrying it over to the frame. The raven-haired boy began to line rocks around it with Paul in order to create a better support.

"How the hell are we supposed to know?" Paul snorted.

"Wouldn't you know?" Ash frowned.

"What makes you say that?" He rolled his eyes at him, dropping a rock with a loud thump.

"I know you found a watch on that strange man." Now staring straight into Paul's eyes, Ash stood his ground. The last thing he wanted to be was swayed by Paul's icy gaze. By now, everyone had stopped what they were doing. Eyes were on the two, making Ash nervous. However, Paul didn't seem to be affected by it at all.

"What's he talking about?" May mumbled.

"Paul?" Red raised an eyebrow at this, shifting his armful of small sticks which he had brought for the campfire.

"I found a watch on the thing Drew killed. That's it." He grumbled. "It's no big deal, it doesn't show the date, just the time.."

"That's still helpful though, right?" Dawn looked around.

"I suppose. But if it doesn't show the date, that means it's not modern, right?" May inquired. "So the savages must have gotten here years before us?"

"Not necessarily. There are still modern watches that don't display dates." Red replied. "Gary also told me that the man was big and most definitely an adult. Many adults carry around old watches so that one watch doesn't determine the time that those... things started popping up here."

"This island is dangerous." Ash let out an exasperated sigh, tilting his cap upwards so that his eyes could meet the sunlight.

"Does Drew still have that Pokeball?" Dawn took some twigs from Red and began feeding them to the fire which was beginning to die out.

"I think so.." Paul nodded slowly, lifting a thick, heavy-looking rock from the seashore.

"I totally forgot about that!" May exclaimed. She walked back and forth around the frame of the shelter, making small readjustments.

"My best guess is that the Pokeball is broken. We don't have the technology to fix it, so I wouldn't think too much about it. It's not important." Red dropped the rest of the sticks next to Dawn before brushing himself off. The tall man tore his two spears from the ground.

"Going to fish?" Dawn looked up at him with glowing deep blue eyes. They did not sparkle at all like Leaf's or grow fiery and confident like Misty and May's. But even so, they were somewhat captivating in a terrifying way. Her orbs were deep like the ocean and thick like the night sky. In a way, they seemed tired and almost lifeless despite her lively personality and gentle smiles. Something about this girl really set Red on the edge and he didn't like the feeling one bit.

Something was incredibly off about her.

Red's eyes flickered over to Paul, who had continued to lift rocks and heave them across the beach to the frame. His muscles looked strained and beads of sweat fell from his face like Ash's did. Something deep within the man was telling him that Paul knew exactly what Dawn was. And if he was right, Dawn had a secret.

"Red?" The said girl questioned, tilting her head to the side to emphasize her confusion like Leaf normally does.

"O-Oh. Yeah, we're going to need to stock up on food in case the weather gets bad." These days, Red felt incredibly unprofessional. It seemed as if his abilities as a leader were beginning to slack when they were usually polished. In fact, one could say that he was beginning to act like one of the teenagers. He slowly turned around and walked towards his usual large rock located just before the drop-off. His pant legs were already rolled up so the man did not have to stop once he reached the ocean waters.

Mentally, he smacked himself. These kids needed him and slacking off would only get them all killed. Pursing his lips, he brought his clenched hand to his face, feeling the cool metal of his engagement ring. Red knew that when he needed a breather, thinking about his fiancée would make him feel better.

"It's almost done!" Ash shouted, causing Dawn to turn her head in his direction. Suddenly, Paul smacked him roughly over the back of his head. "Ow!"

"Paul, what was that for?" Dawn's eyebrows furrowed together as she walked over and towards the two boys.

"We've only got the frame and a little bit of the walls done. We're nowhere close to being finished." He snorted, shoving a large branch onto the structure with a loud clack and a crack of wood hitting wood.

"Be careful!" May growled at him, rushing over and gently running her hand against the wood. "You'll wreck everything with that carelessness."

"Says the one with the broken arm." Paul shot her an icy glare.

"It's not her fault." Dawn defended her friend.

"If she and that moron hadn't been racing to be the best, she would still have full use of her damn arm!"

"And if you hadn't flirted with Dawn, our group would still be cooperative!"

The violet-haired boy huffed, stomping off and into the woods.

"Where are you going?!" Ash hollered after him.

"To get supplies, dipshit." Paul replied loudly, twigs and leaves crackling and snapping as he made his way in.

"He didn't take his spear." Dawn mumbled, looking to her right where the spear was, stabbed into the soft sand.

"He can handle himself." May grunted.

"He's really mad.. Should I go get Red to calm him down?" Ash sighed, glancing around for the older man.

"Red's fishing. He said that we need to stock up on food." Dawn also let out a small sigh.

"Maybe you should go?" He suggested to the navy-blue haired girl.

"She'll only be leading him on. Dawn has a boyfriend, remember? Comforting Paul will only make the situation worse." May shook her head, readjusting the wood which Paul had carelessly slammed onto the structure. She ran her hand gently along the pale, light spots of the frame which had been painted on upon contact with the wood.

"Well we can't just leave him like that." Ash pursed his lips, shaking his head.

"But I'm sure Dawn doesn't want to try to tame that hurricane. It's a waste of valuable time." May scowled a little.

"I'll be honest with you, May. There's nothing much we can do or work on until the others get back. Besides, Paul hates me and really doesn't want to see you. Plus, they're both on camp suspension, remember Red's announcement?" He argued calmly.

"Well jesus, Ash. When did you become so logical?" May sighed. "I get that Dawn would be the best one to go, but we haven't considered her thoughts yet. Besides, since they're both on camp suspension, doesn't that mean that it'd be better for you to go? Red will get mad if both of them are gone at the same time."

"I'm smarter than you think." Ash bit the inside of his cheek upon hearing this. "And-"

"Look, I'll go." Dawn let out an exasperated sigh, tearing Paul's spear from the thick earth.

"But the camp suspension.." May's eyebrows furrowed together in worry. The last thing she wanted to do was upset Red, who was their leader and commander.

"I'll be back quickly. We both will." She replied, brushing her dirty clothing off before starting towards the edge of the woods.

"W-Wait!"

"May, she'll be fine." Ash grinned and waved as Dawn disappeared into the shadows of the towering trees.

"Are you sure? I mean.. It's Paul and.. she's got a boyfriend." May grumbled, slightly wishing that Drew or Leaf were around to lighten the mood.

"I thought you didn't like Lucas?" He questioned in response to her, cocking an eyebrow.

"I don't.. But cheating is still wrong." She muttered, picking up one of the last branches and propping it up against the section of the frame closest to her.

"It's not cheating if she actually falls out of love with Lucas and in love with Paul. I mean, as long as she properly breaks ties with Lucas it's not considered cheating, right?" Ash reasoned, flopping down into the sand with a soft thud.

"Wow... That's a good point." May shifted her broken arm in it's makeshift sling before locking eyes with the raven-haired boy sitting practically at her feet. "You talk like you've been in love or something like that. Maybe you've observed true love before?"

"No. I haven't observed love, I've experienced it. And I am in love." He laughed sheepishly, blush coating his face.

"Really? You have a crush? Is it Misty?" May inquired. Of all people in the group, the only ones she'd have expected to be in love with someone were Gary, Leaf, Drew, Lucas, and possibly Dawn.

"Misty? Nah. She's a good person when she's not bashing my skull in and beating down my self-esteem, but I'm not interested. That girl hates my guts anyways."

"That's not true. Misty really likes you, she just covers that up with violence." May laughed, sitting down in the sand in front of the raven-haired boy. "So if the girl's not Misty, than who is it?"

"It's my girlfriend." Ash's eyes were suddenly hit with a wave of softness and love which spread and covered them.

"You have a girlfriend?!" May nearly shouted, eyes widening.

"Well.. I used to. She dumped me. But I still love her to the moon and back. Hell, I think I might love her even more than my... than my.."

"Your what?" She inquired, staring curiously at him as he took off his cap and ran his fingers through his greasy hair.

"I... I can't remember.." Ash grit his teeth in frustration before throwing his cap down onto the sand beside him.

"What do you mean?" May questioned.

"There's something.. Something important to me.. I remember gym battles and everything back before the crash. They were a whole lot of fun... But for some reason, my shoulder feels hollow and cold right now." Ash shivered, hot tears threatening to leak from his eyes.

"Shoulder? Don't you mean your heart?" She brought her good hand to her chest and stared at him in even more confusion.

"No, no.. It's my shoulder. Although now that I think about it.. Both my shoulder and my chest hurt." With a small cry, streams and streams of tears began to flow down his cheeks. He lowered his head in embarassment, grabbing fistfuls of sand as internal pain swept over him.

"Whoa- are you okay?" May panicked, looking around frantically for Red or somebody to come and help her out.

"My girlfriend doesn't love me, nobody loves me, and I can't even remember what I love!" Ash bit back a wail before letting out a crackly sob.

"O-Oh." May averted her eyes.

"People always look at me like I'm stupid or retarded or something. But I'm not, May, I'm not! I swear I'm not! I know a lot of things! They're always criticizing and discriminating me! I'm not mentally challenged or anything! Nobody likes me.. I swear if I could just commit suicide on this island, I would! B-But I can't... No.. Not yet! Because I've got to prove a point to my girl fri-"

Without thinking, May grabbed Ash and pulled him forward with all the strength her good arm could muster. She made sure to keep her bad arm out of the way so that it wouldn't be crushed as his body met her own. His stiff body language seemed to slacken and his cries became muffled. May readjusted herself before letting him fall into her chest and rest there. Despite his body relaxing, Ash's sobs only seemed to get more intense as she rested her chin on his head like a mother would a wailing child.

"Nothing is fair!" He cried, lifting his head and sniffing before slamming it back into her.

"Life isn't fair.." May shook her head, hugging him close to her body with her one arm.

"But why?!" Ash mumbled, tears wetting her clothing. May froze for a second. It had been days and days since she had last taken a shower, much less stepped into the sea or lake water. Of course, she knew that everyone in the group who hadn't been in the water smelled incredibly foul, but she couldn't even imagine how horrible her scent currently was. Flinching at the thought, she hesitantly glanced down at Ash. However, he seemed to be in too much pain to notice.

Although she was glad, May couldn't help but wonder whether or not Drew would have minded, much less said anything right to her face. Frowning mentally, she shook her head, realizing that Drew probably wouldn't hold back on firing a rude comment related to her body odor. But then again, nobody really smelled fresh and clean anymore.

"Why... you ask?" May murmured, startled as he started grabbing fistfuls of her shirt and trying to ball himself up into the fetal position.

"Mmm.." Ash slowly nodded into her chest.

"Well... Drew's really smart. And so is Leaf. Gary is too. Dawn and Paul are intelligent as well. And I don't know about Lucas, but I bet he knows a thing or two also. Then there's Red, he's a genius, you know? Misty's really super-duper smart, right? As for me, I don't really know how to answer your question. But we're all your friends and I'm sure when the others come back, you can ask them your question. I'm sure you'll get loads and loads of answers." May whispered softly, consoling her friend. It was a new side that she'd never seen before and May was not about to let this side of his disappear.

"They'll answer me honestly?"

"Yeah." May nodded her head, a gentle smile forming on her face.

"They won't think I'm retarded?"

"Nope."

"They won't call my question foolish?"

"Well... I think we both know that Paul might."

"Yeah.." Tears beginning to stop, Ash looked up at her with his usual toothy grin. His face was wet and it almost seemed to sparkle as the rays of sunlight peaked through the clouds and shined down on them.

"You... are quite sensitive, aren't you?" She laughed awkwardly.

"Is that a problem?" An instant frown appeared on his face.

"No. Not at all."

"I see. Well, that's good!" He sniffed, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

"Hey, Ash?" May gave him one last tight squeeze before slowly pulling back away from him. She took a moment to analyze her surroundings as she readjusted her clothing, which was wrinkled even more and wet with tears. It was also really messed up and sloppy-looking. Dark spots dotted and splattered the light-colored sand, dampening it with Ash's tears. The sand was also stirred up quite a bit and grains of it were everywhere on their clothes.

"Yeah?" He sniffled, wiping his eyes and nose with the sleeve of his shirt. Picking up his cap, he dumped the sand out of it before giving it a couple of pats. Ash put it back on his head before looking up at her. His eyes were a bit swollen and a tinge of pink outlined them. His face was no longer wet with tears and if you looked at him now, you would have almost never been able to tell that he had broken down crying just seconds ago.

"I think.. that if you gave your question to Misty to answer..."

"Hm? Can you speak just a little louder? I didn't hear the last part."

"It'd make her real happy."

"Move!"

Lucas hissed, shoved Drew to the side and tore a massive branch from its resting place beneath the leaves and roots on the ground.

"What gives, man?!" Drew scowled, shaking his head.

"You were in my way!" He replied aggressively.

"Hey man, chill a bit, okay?" Gary strolled by, tapping Lucas lightly on his back and giving Drew a friendly punch in the shoulder.

"Gary, get over here and help us!" Misty shouted, wheezing before dropping a long fallen limb of an oak tree.

"Whoa!" Leaf winced, almost falling back due to the amount of weight shifted from Misty's side to hers.

"What's going on?" The spiky-haired brunette stopped in front of the two girls. Scents of body-odor were strong in the area they were. Gary grit his teeth upon being hit with yet another wave of it. Being around the guys was bad enough, but usually women weren't supposed to smell like this. They were supposed to smell all flowery and nice, right? Or at least, that's what Gary was used to. He'd been so freaked out about crashing on a strange, scary island that he pretty much forgot about everyone's appearances and scents.

"It's stuck.." Leaf pouted, giving the branch one last tug before dropping it and stepping back. They had been in the same hour scavenging for what seemed like two hours or so. Most of the time, she and Misty were working on the one fallen arm. It was a good size and could be broken off in to many different parts to use on the shelter.

Rubbing his eyes, Gary sighed before kneeling down to inspect it. Upon closer examination, he realized that it was partially buried within the dirt. Following his eyes, Misty looked over at it.

"Oh! Never mind, I've got it, Gary." She walked over to the end of the branch and ran her fingers along it.

"Maybe we should try to cut i-"

Without hesitating, Misty slammed her foot down onto it. The sharp, loud splitting and splintering sound made everyone other than her wince. She pulled her foot back and ripped a piece of wood out of her sneaker before smashing the remains connecting the branch to the earth to bits.

"H-How'd you... do.. that?" Feeling the familiar wave of fear and shyness rush over her, Leaf whispered quietly, just barely audible.

"I'm actually sort of impressed." Lucas laughed, hauling his findings over to the pile of wood and plants that had been set up earlier.

"Is it really that big of a deal? I could do that." Drew flipped his hair and chuckled, returning to his search for medical supplies.

"The branch was already partially decayed and brittle around that part. No matter how thick it is, as long as it's still moist and flexible, anyone could break it." Misty snorted.

"Anyways, I think we'll have enough to finish the structure and build the walls. The only problem is the roof." Gary nodded as Leaf moved to help Misty pick up the branch. He made his way over to the pile and lined several logs up in his arms like rows. "Help me out, Drew."

"Seriously? You guys have interrupted me so many times already." The said boy groaned, tearing a couple dark green plants from the earth. His hands moved swiftly and carefully, dragging out the thin, white roots as well in a smooth, fluid motion. "Damn.." He grunted, slapping them on top of the ground as they were not what he was looking for.

"Just get some of your herbs, crap, and maybe some of the larger leaves. Put em' on here, we can carry more if we move like this." He looked and directed him over to the pile.

"Got it.." Drew sighed, eyes widening as he saw how large the pile had gotten since they had first moved into this area of the forest.

"You know, the roots disappear.. and the ground gets flatter... if you go a bit... further." Leaf murmured, shifting her end of the branch in her arms.

"So?" Lucas grumbled, brushing off his dirt-smothered pants and folding his arms.

"Hey, hey, let's drop the tone, okay?" Gary chided.

"What are you, my mother?" Lucas sighed, shaking his head. He didn't really want to pick a fight with his only ally.

"Anyways, Leaf." Drew shot a glare right at Lucas, piling herbs, leaves, and smaller sticks into Gary's arms. "What about the flat ground?"

"O-Oh! We... we could build a sled.. sometime... Then we'd be able to.. carry... more supplies.. in one trip.." Leaf murmured, staring nervously at Misty.

"That's... actually not a bad idea." Drew smiled, brightening up. He was relieved that they had possibly found a way to lighten the load. After all, soon foraging would become more difficult. With his tongue, he felt around his mouth. Drew remembered that his teeth were still as sharp as ever when one of his fangs scratched open his tongue. It bled into his mouth and the metallic taste of it was enough to bring him back to composure.

Days and days of living with these people out in the wild was stressing him out. They were always getting hurt, the bugs viciously attacked them at night when they weren't close to the fire, and they were unable to properly bathe or maintain dental hygiene. This island itself was also very confusing. There were oddities like two completely different trees somehow appearing and surviving on the island. Some of these plants shouldn't be able to survive in the climate of the island. Only the more tropical trees should and yet somehow the large oak was there. Drew stared down at the herbs in his dirt-stained hand. What next, an acorn tree? That would be helpful...

"Drew!" Lucas snapped his fingers in front of the chartreuse-haired boy's face.

"What?" He let out an exasperated sigh, glaring at Lucas.

"We want to know how many we should make. Should we make two specially for you and Leaf?" Misty looked at him, beginning to walk ahead of the group with Leaf. She had several roots and walnuts shoved in her back pockets. The ginger dragged her feet as she carried her half of the massive branch. The girl had taken the heavier and thicker side, leaving the smaller end of the branch to Leaf.

"Depends on the resources.. Leaf?" Drew pondered for a moment before called out to Leaf. Gary brushed past him, carrying a massive load of supplies. Lucas followed after him, taking the remains of what used to be their gigantic pile of scavenged goods.

"Just one... for us w-will do!" She stammered, stumbling in surprise upon hearing her name.

"What did she say?" Gary cocked an eyebrow, stopping and waiting for Drew.

"She said that they just need one!" Misty shouted. By now, the two girls were pretty far down the newly cleared path. In no time, they'd be back at the ocean. Misty was glad that they were done, but the walk would be torture. She'd much rather be swimming in the cool, salty ocean.

"But anyway, will the sleds and stuff even work? Although there are some clear paths, most of the woods have pretty muddy, bumpy, and rocky areas." Gary pointed out, continuing to walk. They had begun to pick up the pace, which was a good thing. He couldn't wait to get back to camp since his spiky hair was beginning to flatten right to his head. Over the past few days, he'd been using the salt water to keep it up, but unfortunately, water doesn't work as well as gel does.

"We'll never know unless we try." Drew shrugged.

"Can you guys pick up the pace?" Lucas snorted, brushing past the two boys.

"Sure, sure.." Gary sighed, stumbling to catch up to Misty and Leaf, leaving Drew to walk right behind Lucas. There was a good amount of silence, the only sounds were of them walking and treading through the woods.

"...I don't approve of you." Drew growled, tightening his arms around the load of herbs and leaves they had gathered. He moved to walk slightly ahead of Lucas, sending him a sharp glare as he passed.

"Hm? Did I ask you to?" Lucas retorted, shifting his own load of scavenged things in his left arm. The black haired boy stooped to rip a fairly large stick out of the ground before continuing to walk.

"I mean that I don't approve of you and Dawn." Drew snapped.

"Where's this coming from? Do you like her or something?" His eyes narrowed. "She's my girlfriend you know. We love each other."

"Dawn? No, she's just a beloved member of the group. That girl really isn't my type." Drew flicked his hair, a certain brunette slowly coming to mind before he quickly blushed and shut the door on her.

"Then why do you care about my relationship with her?" He frowned even more.

"Are you two even dating? Does this even count? You literally just met each other on the plane."

"We've been dating for about a week or so." Lucas reasoned as if it was simple.

"No, you've been into each other for about a week or so. Besides, it doesn't even look like she's into you." Drew grumbled.

"What do you mean? She loves me and I love her." Lucas bristled in slight irritation.

"And exactly how far have you two gone? How many moments have you shared? Have you ever considered that she just accepted your confession in the beginning because she was desperate and afraid? She's not like that anymore, everyone can see it in her eyes, why don't you two just stop playing lovers-"

"Shut the fuck up, dick-head!" Lucas cut him off with a punch to the face.

"Shit!" Drew nearly screeched, falling backwards and letting go of his supplies. By now, he could feel the eyes of Misty, Leaf, and Gary on them.

"Hey! What's going on?!" Gary carefully set his stuff down onto the ground and rushed towards them.

"Who the hell are you to judge our relationship?!" Lucas shouted. "Dawn is mine and nobody but me can take her or her firsts!"

"You don't deserve her, you retard!" Drew shouted right back, holding his cheek. It was swollen and most certainly bruising over. Based on the force of impact, it would probably be black and blue for a couple days or maybe even a week. Pain surged through his head. The chartreuse-haired boy could feel a strong headache coming on.

"Hah?! If I don't deserve her, then who the hell does?!" Lucas readjusted the things he was holding. Although he seemed unfazed, Drew could see that his knuckles were pink. Despite the fact that he had managed to hit his cheek, Drew figured that his fist was probably sore from partially hitting his jaw. Grinning, he could only imagine that Lucas and his pain were fairly equal. Ha. Fucker.

"If anyone deserves her, it's the guy she's been around the most since the minute we got here!" Drew yelled.

"Guys, cut it out, we've got to get back!" Gary roared, but to no avail. The last thing they needed was more conflict and drama within the group.

"So basically me!" Lucas growled at Drew, completely ignoring Gary.

"No! That person is Paul!"

"Paul, where are you?!"

Dawn looked around, waving his spear about. He had stormed off so fast that she was left to follow his footprints which seemed like a never ending trail. They weren't supposed to be out of camp. In fact, she was certain that Red would give them an earful when they arrived back. After all, they were only causing trouble for the man by walking off like this. She sighed. How many times has she gotten into trouble by being in these woods? Far too many times for her to even want to remember.

"Paul!" She whined loudly. For what felt like fifteen minutes, she'd been walking through what seemed like the never ending woods. "Paul!"

Her calls were unheard as far as she could tell. Step by step, she travelled further into the woods. There was a decent amount of sun, but she knew that it wouldn't be long until dark. Being away from camp almost always terrified her. Dawn exhaled as her hands tightened around the shaft of Paul's spear. The wood was smooth and cool beneath her warm hands. Suddenly, she heard a rustle.

"Hey!" The girl's eyes shot upwards, looking around frantically. It was only seconds until her eyes locked on a dark figure dashing through the shadows of the woods. "Paul, don't you run away from me!"

Dawn broke into a run. She tripped over roots several times in an attempt to catch up to him. Had he always been this fast? Her lungs began to ache as she ran, dodging trees and climbing over larger rocks. She followed the figure the best she could, but it seemed to slink swiftly throughout the woods faster than one could even imagine. Each time she made a turn, Paul was far ahead, sprinting out of view.

Faster and faster she ran, pushing herself to the limits. The bluenette made an effort to follow Paul up, down, and around. She thrust herself over boulders, rocky patches, and flew over the small hills the best she could. The massive trees seemed to loom over her and she swore she had seen each and every one of them a million times.

"God damn it!" She cried out to herself, hitting the ground with a big thump. Shifting, Dawn blinked tears away. There had been a big rock that she couldn't move around and had decided to climb over. This one was a mossy rock, far larger than the others. It was easy to climb up, but it was quite difficult to get down. On her way down, she had slipped and fallen onto the ground. She slowly pulled herself to her feet. Dawn stared down at the large root that she had fallen on. Luckily she wasn't too far off the ground before she had glided downwards.

Slapping her cheeks, she made an attempt to knock a little bit more concentration into herself. She felt dizzy, but that didn't really matter. The exhilaration of trying to catch Paul was one of the many things that kept her moving. A look of disgust crossed her face as she realized that the scarf around her neck had been collecting her sweat. Shivering, she ignored it, shaking her head and bolting forwards for what felt like hours to her.

"Crap..." Dawn panted, completely out of breath. She flopped down on a nearby log. Her head was beginning to ache. Why on earth would he run away like that? The Paul she knew would talk to her about something. She slowly looked up and around. Great. She was lost.

Without another word, she stood up. Dawn brushed off her dirt coated knees and readjusted her skirt. She then took off her scarf and tied it around her forehead before pulling her beanie down her head so that it wouldn't fall off. Confidently grinning to herself, she set off in the direction in which Paul had rushed. It seemed as if she was constantly stopping and resting. However, it wouldn't be long until she was back on her feet, searching frantically for Paul.

"Paul!" Dawn called out as loudly as possible. She listened for a reply, but upon receiving none, picked up her pace.

"Hey, you're back!"

May shouted, watching as the second group that had been scavenging broke through the edge of the woods and onto the beach. They were each carrying loads of supplies, although she frowned upon taking a closer inspection. They had one massive stick and a few decently sized ones.

"Drew, why didn't you guys gather enough supplies for the structure?" She bit her lip as she watched Leaf and May walk by, setting the huge branch down. Lucas then strolled by, dropping about five long sticks down into the pile with several loud clacks and scratches.

"Of course we did. But we also found a whole lot of different supplies. Medical-wise and such." Drew responded, moving over to the campfire area and setting an armload of stuff in the makeshift storage which was now dozens of sticks tied together side-by-side and lined with rocks about the size of a hand. It wasn't great and it was exposed to rain and wind. However, it did keep the supplies off the ground, away from sand and dirt. "Maple, the things that we collected are about as valuable as a shelter."

"But this will never be enough!" May growled, eyebrows furrowing together.

"It's alright, May. We'll go out and get some more wood and leaves for the structure." Gary reassured, adding his own load to the storage.

"Gary... no..." Leaf shook her head, looking right up at him.

"Hm?" Drew raised an eyebrow as did May and Lucas who had walked over just seconds ago.

"It's... It's... It'll get dark out by the time we're done adding the rest of the materials to the structure..." Leaf explained.

"Leaf's right. You know, actually, we'll be able to get even closer to finishing the shelter. But, I don't think it'll be ready to sleep in or anything. It's really big, you know. We still have strengthen the frame, make adjustments, and fill it all in. It'll take a lot of effort." Misty nodded, taking a look at the shelter in question.

"So basically you're saying that we'll have to go out again tomorrow just to collect wood?" Gary sighed.

"What if we switch groups? You know, we stay back and build while you guys go collect tomorrow?" Drew suggested.

"That's a good idea. But now that I think about it, the group that's here has May and I'm certain that we need you and Leaf on hand even if we aren't looking for medical or edible supplies." Gary pondered for a good minute before shaking his head.

"If possible, would you guys please go out again tomorrow?" May pleaded.

"Wow. So Miss Piggy can say please." Drew laughed.

"Shut it, you unripe banana." She stuck her tongue out at him. "Please, Misty? Gary? Leaf? Lucas...?"

"W-Why... don't we build the structure as much as we can and then go from there, supply-wise. You can never have too much, but it'd be nice to know whether or not we actually need more supplies." Ash interrupted, causing everyone to jump.

"Jesus, Ash." Misty gasped.

"Man, I didn't see you there." Gary chuckled.

"It's a good idea, I suppose... But I'm almost certain that we'll need more." May frowned. "There's only so much more you can do to a huge shelter like this with so little supplies."

"Just go with the flow... like me!" Drew flicked his greasy, matted hair the best he could.

"If we do that too much, then we'll all end up dead once the storm hits." May scowled, eyebrows knitting together in frustration.

"It's okay, May!" Ash smiled brightly, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'll go get all the supplies by myself if we really need them!"

"Thanks... but it's not just you who needs to go out tomorrow." She murmured, icy eyes flickering among those of the second group.

"May, I assure you that things will get done." Misty nodded.

"Where's Paul and Dawn?"

Red's booming voice caught everyone's attention. Looking back at him, May, like the others, eyed him up and down. There he stood, soaked with seawater from his waist down. In his hands were his two spears, holding two large skewered sea bass. Although the sight of fish made May hungry, the look on his face was what kept her stomach from rumbling aloud.

"Paul left and Dawn went after him." Ash replied casually.

"What?! How long have they been gone?" Red demanded. The grip he had around his spears tightened.

"Hmm... For hours, I think." May thought.

"And you two just let them go?!" He roared, shoving his things into Gary's hands. Red grabbed the collar of Ash's shirt. His eyes burned in worry and what the fearful Ash could see as rage. "You and May were supposed to be watching them!"

"W-We were?" Ash stammered.

"You knew that they were ordered to stay in camp!" Red yelled. "You were the man in charge! How could you have let them leave?!"

"Hey, why are you getting so mad at him?!" Misty screamed over Red's shouts.

"Red!" Drew and Gary could only stare, afraid to take any action against the man.

"Ash." Red muttered, seeing the terror in the boy's eyes. He released Ash's shirt, allowing him to stagger backwards. Luckily, Lucas caught him before he could fall.

"Y-Yes, sir?"

"Do you know why I'm mad?" The young man growled, clenching his fists.

"No... No I don't." Ash responded, causing everyone's breath to hitch. May shook her head with a sigh. He was digging his own grave.

"Drew." Red frowned at Ash.

"Yes, sir?" The chartreuse-haired boy replied immediately, staring directly into his sharp amber eyes.

"Where is the sun?" He muttered.

"Excuse me? I don't understand." Drew stiffly responded.

"Where is the sun right now?" Red folded his arms and took a deep breath. Quickly, Drew took a look around, frantically looking for the sun. The boy worriedly looked up at the others, however none seemed to show any signs of knowing the answers. Was this one of Red's tests or riddles? He couldn't tell. Drew took a couple seconds to scan the ocean, but it was then when the answer clicked within his head. It was so obvious. It wasn't a trick question or brain teaser or anything. "Drew. Give me the answer. Now."

"The sun is setting. At the moment, the ocean is splitting it in half. There's only about thirty seconds until dark." He replied confidently.

"Oh no..." Both May, Ash, Misty, and Lucas gasped.

"So does this mean that they'll have to survive the island's woods all night?" Gary murmured, planting the spears firmly into the sand.

"Unfortunately, yes." Red nodded. His eyes were as cold as ice, glowing in the darkening light.

"What... what about those... F-Ferox?" Leaf stuttered quietly.

"Ferox?" Gary raised an eyebrow.

"What the hell is a Ferox?" Lucas snorted.

"Now's not the time." Misty growled, not wanting the group to get off topic.

"Oh!" May exclaimed. "I took a Latin class before we crash-landed. Ferox is Latin for fierce or wild right? So another word for savage?"

"I suppose classifying them as Ferox would be better than just screaming about a monster, right?" Drew nodded.

"But why Latin?" Ash questioned slowly.

"My father... he taught me... a little." Leaf murmured, looking at Red who seemed very aggravated. She didn't want to continue the conversation in front of him any longer.

"Anyways, why don't we just all go and find them?" Lucas spoke up. "I'm afraid Paul will make a move on my girlfriend at this rate."

"It's been hours, I bet they've already done it." Drew snorted.

"What the fuck was that?" Lucas snarled.

"Hey, listen up! I'm afraid to send anyone out at this hour. Having anyone else outside of camp will make me a nervous wreck!" Red admitted aloud.

"So you're just going to leave my girlfriend and that long-haired purple-headed freak to the woods?" Lucas growled, earning a glare from Leaf due to his lack of respect for Red.

"Paul doesn't have long hair anymore. He cut it off, remember?" Drew spat at Lucas.

"Anyways, I'm afraid so. I'll arrange a search party tomorrow. But now, the risk of getting lost in the dark woods is even higher then it would be during the day." Red replied as calmly as he could.

"But we also need to finish the shelter and possibly go on more scavenges for supplies!" May pointed out. "The shelter needs to be completed before the rain comes!"

"We get it, Maple, chill..." Drew mumbled, yawning and stretching.

"Are we done here? I think that everyone just needs the night to chill." Gary quietly commented. "This discussion is jumping back and forth. It's getting ridiculous!"

"That's right." Red nodded.

"But how am I supposed to sleep knowing that two important group members are out there in the dark? What if they never met up with each other? What if they're both all alone in the dark?" Misty raised her voice once more.

"To be honest, Mist... We can only wait. This island will either break them or make them stronger." Ash walked over and gave his ginger friend a hug.

"We should all turn in for the night." Red announced. "Tonight, Gary and I will take watch."

"Me? Just us?" Gary stared at the man for a brief moment.

"Yes, I want to talk to you." He replied, watching as the others walked past the campfire and into the clearing where the big oak lay.

"Red... can I be on watch duty too?" Leaf murmured, gently pulling on his arm. Gary pursed his lips, averting his eyes. Wordlessly, he ripped the two spears out of the sand.

"No, sweet Leafy, I need to talk to Gary alone. Besides, you need to get a good night sleep like the others." The young man gently pinched her cheek.

"But why doesn't Gary need to sleep?" She pouted like a child.

"Gary will get to sleep later, now go to bed. Oh- but before you go, will you check the tarp and the amount of water left? We need to crack down on supply management... Could you make sure its still stable? Its makeshift so I'm not sure how long it'll last." Red smiled down at Leaf, who compliantly fled towards the trees, just outside the entrance to the clearing. Red had moved it from its former spot, which was further back in the woods to the front for easier access.

Red exhaled, walking over to the campfire, where Gary had moved while he was talking to Leaf. He was sliding the fish off of the spears and wrapping them in large leaves, wet with cold salt water. Tomorrow, they would be stripped of their scales, bones, heads and cooked over the open fire.

"So..." Gary murmured, setting the fish to the side and looking up. Red had taken his seat on the log right across from him. The fire flickered back and forth in the wind. Gary felt himself getting uneasy. The flames of the campfire licked the man's face, bringing out his piercing amber eyes as well. Red's eyes always made him uncomfortable when he wasn't smiling.

"Gary, you understand that this island is very dangerous, correct?" He finally spoke, looking around. Upon seeing Leaf checking the tarp, Red lowered his voice further.

"Yes, sir. Of course I do." Gary gave a curt nod, trying to speak in the most respectful way possible.

"And I'm just curious... but if you could rank every male's fighting ability in this group, how would you do so?" Red gave a gentle smile as he noticed Gary's behavior. "I won't get mad and I won't tell anyone what you say, I'm just curious about what you think."

"But why do you want to know? Why do you want to know what I think?" Gary questioned him.

"Like I said, I'm curious. Besides, maybe there's something important that we may have to use this information for in the future. Also, I respect everyone's feedback and opinions." He shrugged.

"Well... Red, I've never seen you fight, so I won't count you. Is that fine?" The spiky-haired boy inquired. "I mean, I'm sure that you could fight well if you wanted to, but I don't really know."

"That's fine. Start from number one?" He chuckled. Although he was calm, Red was extremely worried and anxious on the inside. In fact, you could say that he was afraid. What would he do if Paul and Dawn never returned to camp or turned up dead? There was nothing within his power he could do but wait until tomorrow. Mentally brushing those thoughts away, he listened for Gary's response.

"Drew is number one."

"Why do you say that?" Red raised an eyebrow. He felt himself relax a tiny bit as he saw Leaf bed down next to May in the grassy clearing out of the corner of his eye.

"Well, he had his teeth sharpened and plated. On top of that, he's got a crazy talent for popping out of nowhere and moving around easily. I swear, he makes his presence disappear and then... boom! He'll come from the weirdest places. Like a couple days ago, I caught him hanging upside down from a tree branch. It was a small tree, but it scared the crap out of me. Also, there was that incident where he ripped that... Ferox's throat out." Gary explained.

"I see... next?" Red nodded in agreement. Even if Drew wasn't the most reserved or quiet, he was brilliant with talents and techniques that could almost make him seem like an assassin. But that was ridiculous. Especially since the boy was the son of two medical researchers. That boy... He both interested and slightly scared Red.

"I heard from the others that Paul is quick to react and knows exactly where to... assault. Apparently he's also a pretty composed guy, even when he's afraid. Although, I've also heard that he tends to freeze up and he's usually getting bashed around. When he's down, it takes him a while to get back up. You could say he's one of the anchors of this group, actually. At least, that's what I think. He's definitely loaded up with physical strength, but it doesn't really look like he actually knows how to fight with an organized mindset. He's good, but he's reckless... but then again, aren't we all? This island has been tearing us all apart." Gary stared blankly ahead, imagining the purple-haired boy in his head.

"So that makes him second?"

"No, not exactly. I'd say he's third, actually. I don't mean to boast or anything, but I'm pretty sure I'm stronger than him. My father and grandfather were researchers. But, my mother was no stay-at-home-mom. She was really old and stuff, but she was actually an instructor at a dojo. I was forced to learn tae-kwon-do until I received my black belt." Gary laughed awkwardly. He felt a bit odd ranking himself above Paul, but as far as Gary knew, he was better and had more stamina.

"Hold up- didn't you place sixth in the Kanto Tae-Kwon-Do Regionals?" Red paused, eying Gary up and down.

"Yeah. When I was fifteen." He muffled a loud laugh.

"But you aren't doing it anymore? You're trying to become a professor?" The man questioned.

"I'm following my dreams, sir. I wasn't very good anyways. My mother knew that I wasn't a big fighter, but she told me that tae-kwon-do might eventually come in handy for impressing the ladies." Gary smiled softly. "She was quite wrong."

"What do you mean?" Red inquired, scratching his stubble.

"I became temporarily serious about tae-kwon-do when I was fifteen. That was the beginning of the most depressing area of my teenage life so far." Gary cleared his throat before continuing. "I plowed through so many girlfriends that year, but dating them made me realize something..."

"And what's that?" Red smiled a little bit, moving a log in the fire slightly with one of his spears.

"None of them accepted my weak self like a certain someone did." Gary smiled to himself.

"Who was that someone?" He questioned, even more curious than he was before.

"'Can't tell you." The brunette grinned childishly.

"Why not?" Red raised an eyebrow.

"It's a secret!" Gary replied cheerfully, bringing his finger to his lips.

"Shh, you might wake everyone, including Leaf, up." Red chuckled.

"That reminds me... do you think that Paul and Dawn will be alright?" A frown brought the atmosphere between the two to a rather grim point.

"I can't say for sure, but if they've met up, I'm sure that Paul will protect her." Red nodded slowly to himself.

"I'm scared for them." Gary groaned, shoving his head into his hands.

"I think we all are." He responded with a grim look on his face.

"If we lose Dawn, then all sorts of things could happen. Sure, Ash and Leaf also keep the mood bright, but Dawn is especially good at it. Also, there's trouble that might arise with Lucas if something happens to her." The boy murmured.

"I see your point. And if we lose Paul, then not only do we lose a strong fighter, but we also lose his..." Red paused. "I suppose I haven't really talked with him or observed him too much."

"So you don't really know anything about his life before the crash or what he's good at aside from fighting and getting grumpy?" Gary muffled a small laugh.

"Unfortunately, he's not a very open person if you didn't already know." The man joked.

"Yeah... But he's very mysterious and I'd like to know more about him." Gary picked up a fairly long stick which was laying next to the log he was sitting on. His eyes gazed upon the embers flying up as he jabbed at one of the logs in the campfire.

"Same here." Red nodded. "You know, I think that you'd make a pretty good leader."

"What do you mean?! You're the leader here! The most experiences!" Gary panicked.

"Calm down. I'm not going to just randomly decide to put you in charge. I'm just pointing out the fact that I trust you." Red laughed.

"That's good..."

"Why do you look so relieved?" Red had a feeling that he knew why. But he wanted to get a good idea of what the teenagers were thinking.

"It's just... This island is so strange and... messed up. I'm terrified and confused. It's almost like someone put this together as an experiment. It's all too creepy to be natural." Gary replied, shivering a bit.

"I suppose I agree. Everything's a bit off. Although there's nothing much we can do about it. We're here and the only thing we can do is stay alive." Sticking his hand out, Red looked up at the sky. It was beginning to drizzle.

"Honestly Red, there are so many questions I have that I know will probably never be answered any time soon. Dawn and Paul, the pokeball, the mysterious presence of foreign plants, what we've begun to call Ferox, everything. I'm sure there's more, but right now I don't think I can really process every single thing that's happened. Also, I agree with May and I have worries that we won't be able to get a shelter in time. There's a typhoon coming, I can feel it and I know you and everyone else feel it too." Gary rambled, spitting out word after word. He was speaking so quickly that Red had to pause for a couple moments, just to make sure that he noted everything the teenage boy just told him. "I feel as if I should be more confused, more afraid, more concerned, but I don't even know what to think anymore."

"What you say is interesting. I sure would love to know why we weren't screaming aloud in fear and anxiety or giving up on life the minute we crashed and ended up here." Red sighed again, standing up. "Perhaps we should at least take shelter from the rain."

"I... suppose." Gary murmured, running his hands through his hair which was now slightly damp with rainwater.

"Is the tarp up? We were running low on drinking water." He absentmindedly looked around. It seemed as if everything, exhaustion and stress, were catching up to the man.

"You told Leaf to check it, remember? It's up."

"Ah... That's good." Red took his spears and headed into the clearing where everyone was sleeping. He sat down and leaned against the large oak tree. His dazed eyes watched Gary take shelter at the edge of the clearing, where the thick tree tops stopped the water from falling. It was where everyone else had bed down for the night.

"Why am I... not terrified?" The man thought. "Why am I not as confused as I should be? What's keeping me from going insane? Is it... you?"

He gently caressed his engagement ring.

I'm done :U

There may just be a huge plot twist in the future which will explain why everything is so illogical and messed up. It'll also explain why everyone was so seemingly calm when they woke up as strangers to each other, uhuhuhu. It... It just explains everything. Don't get your hopes up though, I can't guarantee that you'll love it. It's something I've been planning, but I've made some changes. Did I rush things including this chapter? Yes. Yes I did. You know why? I'm sorry, but I might just drop this fanfiction entirely. As much as I'd love to finish it, it's kind of a pain to write.

But then... There's this other voice in my head that's beating me down and calling me a loser for wanting to quit after I've gotten this far.

I'm absolutely tired of writing and drawing right now. However I can't give it up because those are the only two things that I'm at least decent at. #nomotivation. Hopefully you guys, or at least, whatever's left of you, will stick around until the very end. I'm determined to get this story marked complete, but i've just sort of hit a wall for now. I'll try to get around to writing. I really should be free for the summer... But motivation is my problem. I also have to finish my summer homework which I haven't really started on yet... oops. I'll get around to that.

Call me lazy. I totally am. I feel hollow and blank.

Until next time.

~Bear