'A-Ah...w-why...help...m-me...I...c-can't...b-b-breathe-'

Were his last thoughts before all he saw was consumed by darkness.

-A few hours ago-

Clemont was working on an invention. Bonnie and Serena had been at their sleepiest, so they eventually called it a day and left Ash and Clemont to watch yet again the creation of another strange mechanical art. 

The two girls hadn't had much interest in science, but, as he'd stated many times, Ash thought science was amazing. Even after most of Clemont's inventions having self-destructed because they weren't made properly, or for some other reason that deemed them poor products, it was still interesting to him.

And Clemont loved it; thought he wouldn't admit it openly. He'd secretly smile whenever he hear Ash say that "Science is so amazing!", and have to hide his blushing when the younger boy reveled in his creations. Of course, part of it had to come from his childlike nature, but he'd like to think to himself that, for the most part, Ash was generally interested and appreciative of Clemont's hobbies.

"Ash, are you sure you don't mind staying up with me? You can go to sleep if you want"

"Nah, I don't want to! I wanna watch you build more robots!"

Clemont laughed in admiration of his innocence. Childlike, Ash was.

"Are you sure?"

"Totally sure! It's not like I've got anything else to do, anyways. The Kalos League is over, so I've got nothing to train for"

"Okay, if you really want to. It's gonna be a long night, though"

"I'm fine with that. I'm used to long nights", Ash giggled, before looking at different parts of Clemont's invention, while Clemont watched him. He was finding it quite spectacular until he got to a slightly reflective part of glass, which he immediately turned away upon seeing.

There was a pause for a few minutes, before Clemont opened his mouth. Looking back, he really shouldn't have.

"Hey, Ash? Why do you think science is so amazing, anyway?"

Oh, why? Why did he ask that question? Of course, he couldn't have known the answer would be so much deeper than he thought it'd be.

"Oh...um, it...uh, just...I don't...it's because my dad was a scientist. That's why, haha", Ash laughed nervously.

Clemont shot him a half smile before looking back down to think. Not about the invention anymore, though. About what he'd just heard.

"Why did he get so nervous...is it because he-wait a second. 'Was'?"

Oh no. He'd said those last few words far too loud. As soon as he realized, he became equally nervous. His eyes focused from Ash to the ground, constantly switching, as he wasn't sure what, or who, to look at. However, when he looked at Ash and saw that he was looking down, he stopped shifting his gaze. Usually, Ash's cap would cast a shadow over his face, hiding his emotions a little, but it was lying on the ground instead, meaning Clemont could see the tears sparkling in his eyes.

"Oh, Ash, I'm sorry if that was a hurtful question"

"What?", Ash got startled, suddenly turning to Clemont while the tears were still there, "Oh, no. No, no, it's fine", he reassured, waving his hands frantically in front of him, "I meant to say 'is'"

Clemont was almost convinced he was as he'd said, but he could still see the shock in Ash's eyes. The tears pushing to fall out. He wasn't psychic, but he could see through his smile, that he was biting his tongue in order to stop himself showing negativity. He could tell there was a lost little boy who needed to cry, behind Ash's sunny facade.

He dropped the screwdrivers, turned his body so he was opposite Ash and held his shoulders. In surprise, Ash looked up at the taller boy's face above his, which showed assertiveness. 

"No you didn't, did you? It's not fine, is it? Ash, tell me, what happened to your dad?"

"He...I...his lab closed down. Yeah, um, his lab closed down and he got a different jo-"

"That's not the truth, is it? If it was, you wouldn't be so sad, because you're strong! Tell me!"

Clemont hardened his grip on Ash's shoulders, but Ash was quick to try and push him away. For the first time, he openly conveyed fear.

"Why do you wanna know anyway?"

"WHY CAN'T I?"

Clemont had aggressively stood up and stomped his foot on the floor. Of all places his foot could've landed in, it had to be on top of his invention. And on the electrical storage compartment, nonetheless. His device exploded, as expected from the beginning, but what wasn't expected was the severity of it. He'd been packing way too much electricity into it, and because of how hard he'd pounded it with his shoe, it'd caused something only a little but short of a nuclear bomb. Miraculously, the group's belongings managed to stay put on the cliff. Ash, however, had not. He had been thrown off the edge, so recklessly that his body was tossed around the jagged rocks, until gravity hurled him into the sea. When the smoke cleared, it was already too late to see that any of this happened to him.

Clemont sat up, coughing, looking around as the smoke cleared. Serena and Bonnie jumped out of their tents. Check. But where was Clemont's third companion? It didn't take long for him to see the blood etched on the side of the cliff, along with small parts of cloth from Ash's jacket, and lean over the edge of it, screaming his name to the moon. Screaming for him to come back. But, just like all things that made sense in life, he didn't.

Hours had passed, and it was now deep into the night. Midnight wasn't really the time to be awake, but how would Clemont sleep knowing someone he treasured had been taken from him by his own anger. Of course, many things could've caused the same explosion, but many decisions could've been changed to prevent how it happened. Asking those questions and doing those things to Ash were those decisions. Why, just why did he make them?

While sitting outside of his tent, he kept hearing Pokemon noises. Strange. What a weird Pokemon noise. Wait. Those weren't Pokemon noises. Those were some kind of energy. 

He looked up to see a black aura circling him, whispering his name.

"Clemont...Clemont..."

Clemont started to get sad and nervous at the same time.

'If this is Ash's ghost, I swear I'm gonna-'

He stopped thinking when the aura started to travel away from him. Picking himself up, he sprinted after it, which was unlikely for his nature, since he never really ran unless he had to. He panted with each step, but that didn't stop from following whatever that thing was that may lead him to Ash.

Meanwhile, Ash himself wasn't having a time as easy as Clemont's.

The dark claws kept pushing him deeper into the water. Every time he tried to get back out, he was forced back into a dizzy world of suffocation. He was really starting to lose air now.

'A-Ah...w-why...help...m-me...I...c-can't...b-b-breathe-'

Were his last thoughts before all he saw was consumed by darkness.

Clemont followed the trail of darkness, ending up losing his way and probably not seeing the campsite again for miles. But he didn't care. If this thing was going to lead him so far away, it better well lead him back.

He came to a stop at a cave, where the dark energy started to expand, becoming bigger and bigger. Clemont backed away, not only in fear, but to make space for the gigantic bustle of dark energy. It soon formed the shape of someone Clemont was starting to think had passed, except his eyes were filled with an infinite depth of black, and two demonic wings of the same color were sealed to his back. He looked angry. Not only that, but thirsty. For revenge, maybe? Most likely, since there was a chance it simply could've been Ash's ghost seeking vengeance from Clemont, who in that case, accidentally killed him.

"Ash? What are you? How did you-"

The boy only made snake-like sounds, combined with the growls of Hell. A tentacle emerged from the dark mess that surrounded him, reaching out for Clemont's shoulder. His smile grew bigger as the tentacle got closer to Clemont's body.

"Ash, what are you-no! Wait! Ash, what?"

Clemont started to hyperventilate. He started to shed tears. All he wanted was to get his beloved back, and instead, he was experiencing a living nightmare of the very same person. As soon as those thoughts rushed through his head, the boy stopped moving. The tentacle drew back, and all of the dark energy evaporated, revealing Ash, with a tear rolling down his face. In the place of the tentacle was his arm, still reaching out to Clemont.

"D-did I r-really sc-scare you th-that m-much?", he sobbed as his hand shook. Clemont took it and pulled him into a hug.

"Ash, I wasn't scared of you. I could never be afraid of you. I was scared of what you were turning into...what that, that thing was"

They were then both inside the cave, Ash shaking from the cold, especially since he'd been underwater in Winter and lost his jacket.

"Okay. I'll tell you. Everything. But, just, don't judge me. I mean, you can if you want, but-"

"I get it"

Ash paused before he spoke.

"I said 'was' because my dad is dead"

Clemont wasn't really that surprised with the first sentence. That was his best guess.

"He made things, just like you"

Still no more surprise. Maybe Ash just liked Clemont's inventions because they were similar to his father's.

"And I was the last thing he made"

Now he was surprised.

"You see, my mom was, um, infertile. My mom and dad found out after they got married. She couldn't have children, and they wanted one so badly. But my dad, being the scientist he was, found a solution. See, my parents are originally Japanese, and the Japanese are really good with technology, so he got together some DNA from him and some from my mom"

'He's right...a lot of the technology in this world is made in Japan'

"But, because he was a scientist, he wanted to try out some experiments. So, he got dark energy from dark-type Pokemon, including Legendary Pokemon, because he was kind of an adventurer, too. He put it together with the DNA, and, after a few months, I came into the world. With...this"

As he said the last word, a swirl of dark energy hovered over to him and danced around his neck, lifting his chin up and forcing him to look into its eyes. It then disappeared, dropping his neck, and allowing him to continue.

"But...after that...he died because the dark energy was slowly killing him, but he didn't know. As soon as people figured out how he passed away, they didn't want me in the country anymore. So me and my mom had to run to Kanto and learn English"

He sighed.

"These spirits...they're connected to me. They're a part of me, they're what I am. I've been trying to resist them for so long, for fear of killing anyone else. But if I resist them for too long, they try to trap me so they can make me a monster again. That's why I can't look into mirrors. That can take over my reflection, then take over me"

Clemont thought back to earlier.

He was finding it quite spectacular until he got to a slightly reflective part of glass, which he immediately turned away upon seeing.

'So that's why he couldn't look at the glass...'

"I can still use my powers without them controlling me, but it's really hard. But I had to find some sort of way to use them. So...you know how Greninja is a dark-type? I kinda...connected with him through my dark power so I could express myself without, you know, murder. But recently, since I've had to give Greninja away, it's been getting harder and harder to do that, because I can't connect with it anymore"

"Ash..."

"So, while I was falling down the cliff, they trapped me in the water and tried to take over me. And they did, because I didn't have enough air to stay awake. But I woke up...just before they could kill you too"

His eyes were suddenly filled with darkness again. His voice overlapped.

"And that's why I need to run away. I can't risk killing anyone ever again. Even if I'm powerful and could easily get away with it alive, what would be the point of living if I've taken people's lives? I already took my dad's life. I'm not going to take yours away too"

Clemont stopped for a moment to think. He gasped in realization.

"How about instead of trying to confine them and lock them away...", he suggested, "You connect with them?"

"B-b-but I can't! What if I kill someone! I that ends up happening, it'll be you!"

Clemont held his hands.

"Trust me. It won't be. I know, it's like going to sleep knowing you'd get a nightmare"

He paused again. Going to sleep knowing you'd get a nightmare? Is that why Ash didn't want to sleep? To resist? He pushed the thought away and focused again.

"But it might turn into a dream. And, if it doesn't, I'll live that nightmare with you"

Ash inhaled sharply as Clemont nodded his head and smiled, before slowly closing his eyes and letting the darkness take over. The dark aura surrounded his body. The growls of Hell started to come back. Tentacles reached out for Clemont as the lemon-haired teen held his breath and squeezed his eyes shut. He felt them touch him. But there was no pain. He opened his eyes to see the tentacles wrapping themselves around him. But not in a way of suffocation. No, they were embracing him. A wonderful silence hung in the air as, he looked at Ash. The dark energy had entered and consumed him, but he looked at peace. He fell forwards, but Clemont caught him. He let his head rest on his shoulders. He let Ash breathe onto his neck. 

A small piece of paper tumbled out from Ash's pocket. As soon as Clemont picked it up and read the writing, he knew immediately he wasn't going to be able to understand it. He pulled out from his pocket a small part of his invention, a translator, and scanned the text. It then displayed the translation to him:

'My dear Ash

These are my last words

To you and the world

Yes, you have killed me

But the scales must be even

A life for a life

Use your power

And your immortality

To protect those you love

Once you learn not to kill

Without meaning to

Do not be afraid of yourself

Embrace your power

You dear father

Satoshi'

Clemont cried. Not because he was sad. Not because he was angry. But because he was happy and grateful that he'd been introduced to a whole new story - of which he was now a part of. He heard Ash's whisper. He couldn't really put on an American accent when he was tired.

"C-Cremontu...cani yuu preasu...arwaysu...bii wis mii?"

Nevertheless, he understood what he was saying.

"Yes, I can", Clemont agreed to his request as they cuddled under the moonlight. 

It was going to be a long night indeed, but Clemont was starting to think the outcome of his decisions weren't so bad after all.

"Ash?"

"Yesu?"

"I love you"

"Ai love yu too"

That last sentence is funny because Ai actually means love in Japanese, so I'm seeing this as 'love love you too' haha. Ash's accent is not meant to be offensive to Japanese people, but I apologize if it offended anyone. I hope you enjoyed the story. That I stayed up until 1am to write haha.

Byeeeeeeeeee