Feathers for Falkner- chapter 61

~Jasmine~

I sat, shivering softly in the pokemon league lobby, on an off Wednesday, two days after the lighthouse burnt down—after I burnt it down. And I was so afraid… so guilty and full of anger that I could hardly contain the emotions rattling deep within my frail bones. I hadn't eaten in a few days, and seeing as though my stomach—an ulcer most likely—rejected any substance I was barely alive to say the least. I felt hallow, insecure, ugly, and most of all confused. My body was pale, skin like chalk rather than the soft peachy color it used to shine. My eyes looked flat and dull, no longer the dusty chestnut they were. I was started to fail, my hips too narrow to touch or even brush one another as I walked—I surely looked like an anorexic rather than the slender, healthy woman I used to be.

I ran through a list of acts I had done in the last few months, checking them off in my head as I sat waiting, holding myself together in the soft plush of a hoodie that once belonged to my father—trying to remember who I was in the process. First I had gotten jealous, then I had been raped and sought out for vengeance. I was harmed in a club. I had tormented numerous pokemon to death—killing all three of my partners and initially regretting it.

Steelix had never done anything wrong… he had only loved me unconditionally like a pokemon should—and I loved him in the same manor—and while I went out and acquired a new female pokemon to raise in his place, I knew it would never be the same. This was the first flaw in my reckless planning. The second was the fact that I had to pin the lighthouse incident on someone, and though I knew who, I didn't know how. Plus I wanted to tie the whole thing into Chuck's death… without it concerning me that is.

"Jasmine?" A soft-spoken male approached me, a tender smile on his narrow, Persian like face. It was Will, the most mysterious of all the elite four members. "Lance is ready to see you… you can go to the meeting room."

His smile was genuine, proof that he didn't notice my ragged appearance, or that he was a good enough actor not to let it show. His teeth gleamed like the sparkles on his flamboyant mask, and I couldn't help but feel a spark of assurance. My whole like I had enjoyed the company of soft, more feminine men—which was my down fall when I fell for Falkner, since he's gay now—but it was a heart reminder that I was still somewhat of the person I used to be. My preferences hadn't changed, even though if you put me in a room alone with a very masculine man I would probably feel threatened.

Shit.

"C—Can't Lance come out here?" I whispered, hugging my knees tightly and not making eye contact with Will.

"I don't suppose… Lance doesn't care for me all that much—we fight all the time—so I know he won't listen…"

I took a deep breath. "O—Ok…"

"Sorry…"

"N—No its fine." I pushed away from the chair in the lobby, anticipating this one on one meeting as if I were a whore selling myself to the devil. I couldn't handle masculinity—I hated it with a passion, even if it was perhaps the most stunning of this worlds natural creations.

"You know where to go." Will pulled a clipboard out from behind his back and made a scribbling noise as I turned and walked off, legs wobbly from lack of nutrition.

The door to the meeting room was open to my preference, so I didn't have to waste energy pushing the heavy thing open just to re-closing it when I was inside. However this meant that Lance didn't find the meeting important enough to be confidential, even if he didn't know yet what I wanted to talk about.

"Hey!" A loud, demanding voice shook me to the core as I walked, freezing in my tracks as a second Elite four member shower up—having been high school sparing partners with none other than Chuck. It was Bruno. I shivered as his huge hand reached out for me, though not touching me because it would surely crush my thin, boney shoulder if he did. "Jasmine Hun, I'm so sorry about you're loss… Chuck really loved you, yah know?"

I nodded silently, a feeling stirring inside of me. The look on Bruno's face showed great depression for his lost friend, and I knew that this was just another human being I had hurt in the process of killing Chuck. My chest felt tight with hate, though I hid it well behind my solemn eyes—did Bruno know what kind of love Chuck felt for me? Did he realize that it wasn't the Uncle-to-niece love that everyone thought it was? Did he know that Chuck had only "loved" me because I was a reflection of my mother—the woman that ran away after cheating with him?

"Sorry… I—I understand. You can't talk about it yet." Bruno took my silence as sorrow for his death. "But if you ever need anything, hun, you can trust us here to back you up."

I was surely counting on that…

"I have to talk to Lance." I whispered coldly, turning away from the man and letting my lungs have air again. I hated this feeling… I hated thinking that every masculine figure in my life would harm me.

Clair passed me in the hall as I approached the meeting room, long and powerful legs strutting in high heel boots because she was just so great that it was necessary. I glared openly at the woman, envying he strength and body because it was something I could never have.

"You look like shit." Clair shot over her shoulder as she realized I had started a war with my eyes.

"Clair you bitch." Lance appeared, having heard the remark from the doorway. "A little respect!"
I frowned, feeling smothered by Lance's powerful voice and strong muscles already.

"That's not what you said when I was sucking your pathetic wiener last night." Clair barked, strutting away and leaving Lance red in the face.

"Where were you today anyways? Clair!" Lance roared over me, making me flinch and shudder.

The dragon gym leader turned and crossed her arms, a smirk across her plump lips. "I was at Falkner's having a giant orgy with him and his birds. And his dick is bigger than yours by the way."

Lance let out a low, throaty sigh. "Go find Karen, she was looking for you."

"Why?"

"I don't know! Just go!"

The dragon trainer flipper her mentor off before turning and leaving for good this time. Lance pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"Sorry Jasmine… there's no living with her, trust me."

I nodded as he gestured for me to enter the familiar room, feeling quite small in comparison to his massive size. I wanted second next to nothing to do with being alone with Lance, except for this plan of mine to work. I forced a clean breath as the dragon trainer approached a mini fridge, pulling out a casual bottle of soda and offering me something when I sat down in my usual chair—intending for him to do the same and be four seats away from me.

I shook my head at his offer, though my stomach snarled for something—anything.

"So how are you?" Lance murmured, shutting the little door and reaching the seat beside me—perhaps gesturing that he wanted me to think of him as an equal instead of a leader. It surely wasn't that way when we held league meetings… but in a strange way I knew he was only acting out of being courteous. I would have appreciated that if I wasn't so damn afraid he would rape me.

"I—I have to tell you something." I began in a pained voice, setting the thoughts in my head straight as the leader opened his bottle of soda and took a quick sip, flinching at the carbonation that hit his nose.

"Lance… I—I think I know who killed Chuck."

He nearly spit his drink everywhere in shock, pulling his sleeve up and covering his mouth as he forced a swallow that left him breathless. "Jasmine, why didn't you say anything before?"

"Be—because I didn't want the other gym leaders to know."

"Well don't be shy, go on!"

I took a long, steady breath, focusing on the wood grain table before me, and wishing that the words would form on their own. This wasn't originally part of my plan, but it all seemed to fit into place now.

"Morty." I whispered.

"What about him?"

"I—I think he killed Chuck!"

Lance turned a rather pale shade, staring down at me mystified and trying to grasp the pointing finger. He blinked once, mouth parted slightly and then clenching his jaw. "Ja—Jasmine… you realize what this can do?"

"Of course I do. Wouldn't you rather have a suspect than no one at all?"

"Why though?" He pierced his strange, pale yellowish eyes into me. "Why Morty? This doesn't have something do to with your jealousy does it?"

"How dare you!" I snarled.

"Well it's no secret that you're jealous of Falkner and Morty…"

"Lance you can't deny this." I brought my skinny hands forward and twined them together on the table. "Morty lost his gym, isn't hat reason enough to believe he would kill Chuck? So that he could get his spot back?"

Lance shook his head. "Morty forfeit his gym, if it meant being a murderer to him, then he wouldn't have given it up to Falkner in the beginning. He would have kept it himself."

"Love is a powerful thing Lance, and like hate it can't take advantage of you… think about it. Just consider the options. Why would Chuck have been killed in his own gym? He couldn't leave the doors open for strangers to walk in, and the gym door were locked—untouched when Bugsy found him. How could someone break in without damage to property? Unless of course… they had the help of a ghost to lock and unlock doors."

Lance scowled quietly, contemplating as I went on. His was held no regard to disbelief, but no desire to believe either.

"Just because Morty forfeit his gym to Falkner doesn't mean he wouldn't want it back…"

"Well why Chuck?" Lance enquired, sipping his soda as if it tasted terrible.

"Why not? It could have been any of us…" I tilted my head to the side, perching my lips and forcing him to meet my gaze. I needed this—I needed him to believe me no matter how scared I was. "Morty has always been the odd man out, Lance don't you remember how strange he was before Falkner came along? Don't you remember what an outcast he was? The weird things he did—he talks to the dead, he might as well be the dead, ok Lance you're a fool if you think he wouldn't kill as well."

"Morty is going to talk to Chuck's ghost as soon as the investigations are done…" He said to himself.

"And what better way to cover his own tracks?" I smacked my hands on the table. "Use your head Lance!"

"We don't have enough evidence!" He insisted. "Jasmine—I'm sorry, I know you want justice for your uncle, but I can't go about it this way…"

"So what are you going to do then? Give Morty his gym back? Doesn't that feel wrong? That was Chuck's spot!"

"Someone needs to step up and Morty is the obvious answer." He crossed his arms. "I already signed the gym over to him anyways, as of this morning he's back on the list."

My stomach twisted with hate for the ghost trainer—the man that stole Falkner away from me. It seemed I was too late to stop this in its tracks. Furious I stood, shoving the chair out and letting it tumble over onto the floor.

"Jasmine!" Lance reached out to me, unsuccessful as I stormed out of the room.

"You're a fool Lance!" I snarled. "A fool!"