They ran for what seemed like an eternity, dodging trees and jumping over rocks and fallen logs. Finally, Professor Oak had to stop and catch his breath. Even though he was in good shape for a man his age, it still didn't change the fact that he wasn't as young or agile as Delia. Realizing that Professor Oak wasn't behind her anymore, she wheeled around and stopped.
"No, go on," he panted. "I'm holding you back. It's me they want, anyway."
"I'm not going to leave you," she said as she ran to his side.
"Delia, go. Save yourself. I'll be all right."
"I'm not leaving you," she insisted, taking his arm.
In the distance they could hear the rustling of bushes and shouting. Delia tugged at his arm and the two started running again. Finally, in the midst of a thicket, they stumbled upon a small cabin. The door easily swung open when they pushed against it, causing them to fall in a heap on the floor inside. The billowing dust made Delia sneeze as they examined around the cabin's interior. There was an overturned table with two chairs, a bed in the far corner, a cupboard with one door dangling open along one wall, and a fireplace on the opposite wall. Scrambling to their feet, Delia quickly shut the door. Professor Oak grabbed the chairs and propped them against the door.
"They're coming," Delia said as she heard voices in the distance.
"The bed. Tip it over." Professor Oak and Delia grabbed the bed and tipped it on its side. The mattress started falling down, but Professor Oak grabbed the edge and lifted it back into place. He then pulled Delia into his arms and the two huddled together in the dark corner behind the bed. Both held their breath as they heard a rattling at the door.
"I can't open it, Cassidy. It's stuck."
"Let me try, Butch." The girl shoved against the door and cursed as she fell backwards. Brushing herself off, she told her partner "Give me your flashlight. Let's see if they're in there."
Shining the light through the dirty window, Cassidy peered inside.
"Do you see anything, Cassidy?"
Professor Oak pulled Delia closer to him as the light crept around the edge of the bed.
"Just a broken old table and bed. There's no one here."
"Maybe they're around back. Let's go look there."
Professor Oak and Delia remained motionless in their hiding place as they heard the pair walk around the outside of the cabin.
A minute later, they heard a boy's voice exclaim, "They're not here. Let's go, Cassidy."
They stayed in their dark corner until the footsteps faded into the distance. Convinced that the pair was gone, Delia slowly peered around the bed.
"I think we're safe now. They're gone." She stood up and stretched out her hand to help Professor Oak up.
"We did it," Delia proclaimed happily as she gave Professor Oak a hug. The two remained in each other's arms for a few seconds, then Delia's stomach growled.
"Guess we'd better try to find something to eat." She went over to the cupboard and rummaged through its contents. "I wish I could see what I'm doing," she said as she squinted in the fading light. "You wouldn't happen to have a flashlight, would you?"
"As a matter of fact, I do," Professor Oak said as he dug in the pocket of his lab coat and produced a small pen light. "I use it for examining Pokémon as part of my research."
Delia took the flashlight and searched through the cupboard. "Hmmm, here's some crackers….only two years past the expiration date." She opened the package, took a small bite of one of the crackers, then spat it out on the floor. "Yuck. That's awful!" She dug through the cupboard some more. "Here's a can of peaches, but no way to open them. You wouldn't happen to have a can opener on you, would you?"
"Sorry."
"Wait! Here are some granola bars…and they're still wrapped. Maybe these will be okay to eat." She handed him the four bars. "And here's a can of some kind of cola." She took the can out of the cupboard and looked around one last time. "Looks like that's it."
"At least we won't starve for a while. Help me right the bed. We can eat on that." She helped him put the bed back in its original position.
"Eww, I'm not eating on those dirty sheets. Let me shake these out." She took the sheets off of the bed and shook them. Dust billowed up in a cloud around her, causing them both to sneeze repeatedly. "Maybe I'd better do this outside," she coughed.
Once she had shaken the dust out of the sheets, she remade the bed and the two ate their makeshift dinner.
"What should we do now?" she asked when they finished eating.
"It's getting dark. It'll be too dangerous for us to continue through the woods. I think we should spend the night here and try again in the morning."
"Do you think we should try to start a fire? It's getting a little chilly," Delia commented as she buttoned her sweater.
"I don't have any matches on me. Do you?"
"Let me check the cupboard again." Professor Oak handed Delia the flashlight. "I saw a metal box back here on the top shelf. Ah, there it is." She pulled out the box and placed it on the bed. "Oh, it's locked," she exclaimed in frustration.
"I could look outside for a rock and try to smash it open," Professor Oak suggested.
"No, you don't need to do that." Delia reached up and undid the barrette that held her hair back. She took the metal end of the barrette, inserted it in the lock, and twisted it. The lid of the box popped open.
"I did learn something from being in Team Rocket," she said as she put the barrette back in her hair and opened the box. It contained some small tools, a couple of fishing lures, some string, and…
"Matches!" Delia exclaimed happily. "We're in luck."
"I saw some firewood out back. I'll go get some." Professor Oak took the flashlight and went outside.
In a few minutes, they had a fire started and the two sat side-by-side in front of the fireplace, warming themselves.
"This feels good," Professor Oak said as he held his hands in front of the fire. "It's getting chilly out there."
Delia closed her eyes and sighed contentedly.
"Getting tired, Delia?"
"It's been a long day," she yawned as she rested her head on his shoulder.
"Why don't you go to bed? I'll sleep on the floor here."
"Oh, Samuel, I can't let you do that. The floor's too hard, not to mention filthy. The bed's big enough for two people."
Professor Oak wondered if Delia realized what she had just said.
"There are two blankets. You can take one, and I'll wrap myself up in the other. That way, we'll each have a blanket and both be cozy." To demonstrate, she took one of the blankets, wrapped it around her, then laid down on the bed. "There. Now you lie down and take the other one."
Hesitantly, he took the other blanket, wrapped up in it, and laid down on the bed next to her.
"There. Now we'll both be warm all evening." She rolled over and smiled at him. "Good night, Samuel."
"Good night, Delia."
Delia rolled back on her side and snuggled into the pillow.
"Delia?"
"Yes?"
"Would it be all right if I put my arm around you? Not that I'm going to try anything, just that maybe we'd be a little bit warmer."
Delia smiled and moved closer to him. Professor Oak put his arm around her waist.
"Good night, Delia."
"Good night, Samuel."
---
He was awakened in the middle of the night by the sound of whimpering. Rolling over, he found Delia in the throes of a nightmare.
"No, Giovanni…no…please."
The bastard won't even let her sleep in peace,
he thought angrily as he reached over and touched her shoulder."Delia, wake up."
At his touch and the sound of his voice, her eyes opened. Obviously terrified, she threw her arms around him. He put his arms around her and held her. She was clutching him so tightly that he could feel her heart pounding against his.
"You're safe now, Delia. Everything's all right," he said reassuringly as he stroked her hair. He felt her relax against him. "I won't let Giovanni hurt you again. Not as long as I'm alive."
Delia sighed and buried her face in the warmth of his neck.
I do love him.
He was momentarily startled by the sensation of her lips against his neck, but then he closed his eyes and let himself be overtaken by a wave of joy and desire. As he began to kiss the soft warmth of her neck she moaned in pleasure, which intensified his desire for her tenfold. Finally, their lips met and his hands slowly started to explore her body. As he slipped his hand under her sweater, he felt a dampness against his cheek and saw that tears were falling from Delia's eyes. Suddenly ashamed of his conduct, he quickly pulled away from her. The last thing in the world he had wanted to do was hurt her.
"Oh, Delia, I'm so sorry," he whispered in an anguished voice. "Forgive me. I got carried away. I never should have…"
She gently took his hands and guided them back to her body. "No. Don't stop."
"But why are you crying?"
"Because it wasn't until now that I realized how much I do love you."
Overcome with joy, he kissed her with unrestrained passion as his hands began to touch her in ways that made them both dizzy with ecstasy.
"I love you too, Delia."
---
Afterwards, they lay in bed together with Professor Oak's arm wrapped around Delia's waist, their clothes piled in a heap on the floor.
"Do you think I should tell Ash?" Delia wondered as she gazed out the window, watching the sunrise.
"Uh, I think maybe we should wait and see what happens between us, don't you?"
"No, I'm not talking about this," Delia said as she flipped over to face him. "About my past. Being in Team Rocket. About Giovanni."
"Well, I think you should. Hasn't he ever asked you about it before?"
"Sometimes. But I've always come up with some excuse to put it off. I'm just afraid of what he'll think of me."
"You told me, and I don't think any less of you," he said as he brushed the hair away from her face. "Matter of fact, I admire you even more for having the courage to walk away from Team Rocket and Giovanni."
She smiled at him. "Thank you, Samuel."
"Ash loves you, Delia. Just like I do. It'll be all right." He drew her close to him and kissed her.
After making love for a second time, they got dressed, had another granola bar, and set out to find their way back home. Fifteen minutes into their journey, they spotted a well-worn trail. Less than two hours later, they finally caught sight of Celadon City.
"Looks like we've completed our journey," Delia said as the sun glinted off of the tall buildings in the distance.
"Actually, I think it's just begun," Professor Oak smiled as he took her hand and together they headed to a destination that promised safety, security, and hope.
THE END