He walked ahead, his footsteps echoing on the black void below him and shattering the peace of this small corner of reality. He knew that this quiet was not peaceful. No, he knew first-hand that this silence was a torture to the lone resident of this place. He tried not to think, he just walked ahead and waited for that small splotch of color to appear.

There it was.

His eyes narrowed as he found a small frame curled up in a corner, arms wrapped around his knees and his dull eyes looking out into nothing. This lonely figure was wearing nothing but a white shirt and pants that seemed to hang off of a sickening bag of skin and bones. A soft white glow seemed to surround the boy as he waited patiently for his visitor to appear.

A small gulp accompanied quiet footsteps as the taller figure walked ahead to reach the small boy. He didn't speak. He simply walked ahead with a dignified calm and only stopped once he reached the small boy. His eyes didn't look down to the crouched figure. Instead, they locked high above his head, as if having an instant of eye contact would kill him.

"...You're late." The small boy's voice was quiet and hoarse, similar to one who had screamed and cried for hours. "You promised you would come back, but you didn't."

The taller figure didn't respond. He simply stood there with his hands buried in his pockets. The boy continued to stare at the visitor's shins, not even fazed by the cold atmosphere. Instead, he simply took a shaking breath and continued on with his chiding.

"I knew that you wouldn't come back. You never stay with me anymore." The boy slowly looked up at the mess of hair that draped over the visitor's shoulders. "I knew that you would run away and never look back. You've always been a coward."

"I am not a coward." The visitor finally spoke, only his voice was strong and void of emotion. "I simply had no time to visit a sickly, pathetic child such as yourself. I am far more important than to succumb to wasting my precious time on such a worthless little boy." The boy simply smiled a bitter smile and brushed some of his long hair back over his own shoulder.

"Since when have you turned into him? You used to be so nice to me, now you're no better than him and his stupid lackeys." The taller figure simply blinked as the boy seemed to chuckle. "It's such a shame that you've turned into such a vile thing."

"I am not a 'vile thing', and I am not a coward. I simply have better things to do with my time and to stand around and amuse you. I am much more than just a simple playmate to a dying boy. I am a Pokémon Trainer, destined to become the very best. I shall succeed where he had failed and become the strongest in the world." The young boy scrunched up his pale nose at the emotionless declaration and instead turned his head away.

"That sounds boring. You're all stuffy now, too. Why did you have to go and be such a meanie?"

The taller figure just continued to stare at the black wall above the boy's head, holding on to some shreds of patience. "I am not a 'meanie'. I am simply an adult. I am no longer some pathetic little boy who plays around, blinded by his ideals. I have to train and overcome all obstacles to become the greatest there ever was. Wasting my time playing games with children is something I simply have no time for."

The boy slowly, weakly rose to his feet and grinned at the tall figure. Once on his feet, he found himself only reaching the figure's thighs. It was such a shame to know that he had seemingly shrunk in comparison. The last time the figure before him visited him, he had reached his waist at the very least. It almost pained him to see how the person before him has deteriorated. Such a shame, such a waste.

"Still wearing your mask?" The boy innocently cocked his head at the sight of the white shield guarding the visitor's face from his prying eyes. "I already know what your face looks like. It's really stupid to hide it like that." The masked figure simply shook his head and continued to stare ahead.

"Do not be such a fool. I am not wearing this mask to hide, I am wearing this because I have to. This is my burden that I must hold. I am not wearing this by choice." The boy narrowed his eyes at the figure before shaking his head. He decided that asking questions about him would only lead to more dead-ends, so decided to switch topics.

"Where is she?" The boy's broken voice seemed to gain a little bit of air as he brought this new topic. "I miss her. She's very nice and kind to me. She listens to me and stays with me a lot longer than you do." At this new person, the taller figure visibly stiffened. He then let out a growl as the weak boy below simply gave a satisfied grin.

"She is nothing but a liar. She is simply toying with you, she does not care about such a poor excuse for a boy. Soon enough, she will leave forever and you shall be left here all alone, where you should be. She is nothing but a distraction for the moment. Soon she will leave and you will be left in peace." At this, the boy frowned and reached a quivering hand out to the unmoving figure. He gently grabbed the figure's purple jeans and looked up with wide eyes.

"But I don't want her to leave. I like her. Please, can she stay here with me?" The masked figure, for the first time since he had arrived, tilted his head down to the young boy below him. He made sure to avoid looking at the pitifully thin face and instead focused on the boy's white shirt.

"No. She cannot stay here. She is not even supposed to be here, let alone stay here. You shall be left in peace, just as you deserve." The boy's face sank as the masked figure went on, "This is simply a bump in the road. I can assure you that such worthless things as her shall soon be a forgotten memory. Then, you can rest here in silence."

"I don't want to be alone!" The boy cried out before he could stop himself. "I want her to be here with me! She's nice and kind and pretty and she actually cares about me! I want her to stay! Oh, please let her stay! Don't make her leave!" At these choked pleas, the mask-donning figure shoved the pale hand away and took a step back. The pale white surrounding the boy sickened him. He couldn't stand to stay here any longer.

Just as he turned to leave, a new visitor entered the dark. The masked figure turned just in time to see her standing before them with a gentle smile. A brilliant white glow engulfed her as the white sundress at her ankles billowed in the small space as a non-existent gust of wind teased her hair. At the sight of the girl, the boy's face lifted into a bright smile. The masked figure watched on with eyes of hatred as she took another step towards the duo.

"I'm back." The girl's voice was clear and gentle, reminding both males of a bell. "I'm sorry I took so long to find you. I got a little lost here." The girl took another step closer as she smiled at the two of them. "It's so confusing, all of these twists and turns. But I don't mind too much. I'm sure I'll get used to it."

"No, you will not." The boy snapped his attention to the taller figure with utter horror flashing in his eyes. The figure stuck his pale hands into the pockets of his navy blue jacket as he narrowed his eyes at the girl.

"Why not?" The girl didn't bat an eye at this sudden hostility. She simply stood there with a slightly smaller smile. "I only came to play. I like playing with him, he's very sweet and gentle. He's funny, too."

"You are not welcome here." The masked boy walked forward with a tight frown hidden behind the white shield. "This place is reserved only for him and him alone. Leave now, before I make you leave." The boy then walked forward with a single hand raised, held high as to strike her where she stood.

Just as he was about to attack, something unthinkable happened.

The girl smiled.

"Why are you wearing that mask?" The hand stopped in mid-air only inches from her head as the question knocked him off-balance. Her eyes locked on to the white mask, never looking away for a single second. "It's such a shame that you hide your face from us. I'm sure it's quite lovely."

Before either of the two boys had a chance to question this sudden change of events, the girl rose up on her tiptoes and knocked the boy's mask off by the very chin of the white shield. It fell to the floor with an ear-splitting shatter of glass, leaving white shards all over the floor. The girl simply smiled as the two looked on in shock.

Vibrant greys, similar to pools of moonlight shone in the darkness, radiating some white light into this dismal abyss. Red locks that were once restricted now fell down in his face as they hurried to their previous locations, back to their homes on his forehead. The pale skin exposed the boy for who he was, a lonely coward with fear swirling in his grey pools of light.

The girl smiled before taking a single step back. "There, now you can see again. Isn't that much better than hiding away behind that mask?"

The exposed boy looked down at the girl for a few painful moments before falling to his knees beside the younger boy, covering his face with his hands. Without that mask, that burden, he felt so light and insignificant that he had no idea what to do. He felt as if he were made of air, just seconds away from rising above their heads and disappearing into the dreary existence he had left this short boy to rot in.

No, what he had left himself to rot in.

The younger redhead watched on as the girl reached out and held his hands in her own, gently giving them stability against the salty onslaught they held back. The boy lowered his hands to see that smile still on her face, waiting for him to stop crying. The sound of footsteps rang out as yet another visitor entered this small scene, becoming the fourth actor in this unseen drama.

A taller brunette with bright eyes simply smiled as she found the broken redhead before her. The scene of the previous heartbeats had been erased, leaving a sobbing boy with red hair mourning over his shattered mask, left to drown in his tears. The newcomer did not taunt his despair. She simply walked on with quiet steps and placed a single hand on his shoulder.

The contact snapped him out of his sobs and brought his attention right back up to the newest member of this stage. For the smallest fraction of a second, the image of her flashed before him, engulfing him in a small flame of white. The smile on her face eased into a gentle, reassuring grin as the girl uttered only two words.

"Found you."

Author's Note: Here, have some symbolic stuff. /tosses this fic at you/ I doubt anyone will get the symbolism, but a girl can try.