Chapter 9: Web
That same night, Lance was tucking Ash into bed, when Ash asked him
for the favor.
"Lance-chan… can you give me a kiss to keep the monsters away?"
Lance frowned, but then Ash started to tear up.
No, my little koibito, what are you doing to me?
I'll lose control and hurt you again.
But… I can't bear to see you cry…I cannot…
I will not hurt you…
I cannot hurt you…
I…
Sighing, and vowing never to ever do it again, Lance brushed his lips
softly against Ash's. "All right. No monsters tonight."
Ash smiled tearfully as he hugged Lance tightly. "Good night."
Gently, Lance untangled the boy's hands from his clothing, before he
shut the light and left the room.
"Can't even control yourself for a second, can you, Dragon Master?"
He said, glaring at his reflection with unmitigated hatred.
"Trying to hurt him again?" Lance snapped.
He slept in a different room that night. There was no point in
tempting himself even farther.
Well, that put a wrench in Ash's plans.
Why didn't Lance want him?
He knew Lance loved him, the trainer had told him himself. But…
If Lance did love, why didn't he ever touch him anymore?
It really was time for drastic action.
Lance woke up to find Ash kissing him senseless, hands sliding
everywhere they should not be going.
"Ash! What are you doing?!"
"So sweet…" Ash whispered, between kisses.
Lance pushed him away. "Ash, stop this."
"But… last time, you didn't mind…"
Lance stood up, his _expression melting into anger. "That was an
accident! It can never happen again!"
"Why?" Ash asked coyly, though unaware of his sudden shift in
_expression. "You don't like it?"
Lance twitched, breath hitching as Ash's hands brushed over a
particularly sensitive spot. "Please, stop…"
"Don't you want me?"
Lance shook his head. "No. You are still a child, I cannot hurt you
again. Perhaps, when you understand, you can come find me."
His eyes glowed bluely, Hypnosis taking affect.
Ash, startled, did not have time to react before sleep took its toll.
Lance dressed quickly, and was far from the Plateau by the time Ash
woke up.
It was time to shatter the illusion. You couldn't stay a child forever.
"I could have kept him a child forever," Lance mused, as he stood
overlooking the Whirl Islands, Lugia next to him. "But it would have
been a lie."
< You did the right thing, my Chosen. >
"Are you sure? I thought you wanted to keep him as a child?"
< True, but… it was not light he was shining. It was shadows: Only a
warped reflection of light, in a false world. >
< I see… but why didn't you tell me? >
Lugia chuckled. < Would you have believed me? >
<… No… >
< You see. >
< I think so. > Lance said. He sighed. * So now, we wait… *
Ash was shocked when he woke up.
"I thought he wanted me…"
Oh, he did. Lance's Dragonite said. You have no idea…
"But then why would he leave?"
To know that, you have to look to the past for the answers.
Ash froze.
I don't want to look in the past! It hurts too much!
It hurts…
But this hurts too…
Lance-chan, come back, please…
Please?
It was only a week later, when Ash realized Lance would not be returning.
He cried.
It was the first real sign of emotion he had seen in who knows how long.
But it was a start, as the fog in his mind slowly started to lift,
ever so slowly, forcing him to relive the pain in the back of his head.
It had to be done. There was no other choice.
His love for the other boy was strong enough to pull him out of the
dream he had been living in.
A dream created and destroyed by the same person.
A tear rolled down his cheek. It was time to stop being a child and
move on.
No one ever said it would be simple.
It was hard, so hard, not to cling to someone. It was so hard to walk
the painful road to recovery alone.
But it had to be done.
He had to walk this path, or be alone forever…
THE END
Yes, I am ending the fic here. That way, you readers can decide if
they got a happy ending or not.
*Bows* Bye!
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