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Description
Azalea town, a picturesque setting of tranquility and peace set on the edge of the wondrous yet mysterious Ilex Forest. It was a place where Pokemon roamed about the quiet streets freely, unconcerned about being hurt or captured by the humans with whom they shared this little spot of paradise.

It was a quiet day at the Azalea Town Pokemon center. The gym hadn't seen too many visitors lately due to the leader Bugsy being on vacation. As a result not many trainers were passing through the town leaving the Pokemon center with few patients other than the occasional Slowpoke too stupid to get out of the way of a bike or pedestrian.

In the second floor bathroom of the center a lone Sneasel sat on a stool staring at her reflection in the mirror while idly toying with with a silver earring in her left ear.

Shadow the Sneasel was distressed. It had been a rough month for her. First off her best friend in the world, Ace the Pidgeot, had gone through surgery to have some of the pins in his foot replaced. Immediately after that Shadow had started feeling down. She didn't know why but for some reason she had just started feeling depressed and gloomy. That had continued for a few days until...until the images had started appearing in her head.

She had no idea where they had come from or what had triggered them. All she knew was that she was being driven mad by them. She would be walking along with one of her friends and suddenly in her mind's eye she would see herself killing them in a horribly macabre way. Tearing off their heads with her claws, ripping their hearts out of their chests, impaling them, skinning them alive. It terrified her that she was seeing images of herself doing this but what scared her even more were that she was doing it to friends of hers.

So far she hadn't told anyone about the thoughts that she was having. How could she. After the past she had had her friends might begin to think that she was ready to snap at any moment and kill them in their sleep. At least that's what Shadow thought.

As she continued to sit there in the bathroom Shadow looked down at her right wrist. There were several small scars hidden underneath the fur from years past. At one point shortly after she had joined up with her current master Shadow had attempted to kill herself. The emotional pain that she had been going through back then had been horrendous but at least then she hadn't been seeing her friends ripped apart by her own hands.

Shadow carefully traced each scar with the tips of her claws. She had been thinking more and more lately about ending her own life. Nothing really felt like it brought her joy anymore and she had this constant and deep seated feeling of dread that would not go away. At first she had written it off as nothing but once the thoughts had started Shadow immediately assumed that she was going insane.

As she thought more and more about ending her life her thoughts turned to Ace and the rest of her team. Yes, they would be sad to lose her at first but in the long run it would be better for them since she wouldn't be around wearing on them and being such a massive burden on their lives.

Shadow shook her head angrily as she looked at the scars and her claws. "(No! Stop it. Just stop it and and get a hold of yourself Shadow.)" She said while turning and looking at her expression in the mirror once more. Her eyes held nothing but fear in them as she continued to look at them. And deep down she felt more scared than ever before. Afraid that she would lose control, afraid that she would hurt one of her team members. And above all else afraid that she would hurt Ace.

Finally after several minutes of staring at her expression and dreading what might happen Shadow couldn't take it any longer. With a scream of rage she drew back her arm and shattered the mirror with the blunt edges of her claws, shattering it into a million pieces that scattered across the floor like the scattered emotions and feelings of her mind.

...

Ace the Pidgeot was sitting comfortably in a bed in the Azalea Town Pokemon center. It had been a full two weeks since the last operation to fix the broken pins in his foot and it felt good to actually go a while without having his leg cut open.

Although the operation itself had been undertaken in the Goldenrod City Pokemon center Ace had insisted, borderline demanded, that he be allowed to recover in the Azalea Town center. Ilex forest was where he had been born and grown up and he felt a certain calm whenever he was near to it. Also the quiet of the sleepy town was far more conducive to rest than was the hustle and bustle of nearby Goldenrod.

As he sat there Ace carefully stretched out his leg. It was still painful to walk on and the surgeon had told him to avoid putting any serious amount of weight on it for a few weeks. Although his leg still felt stiff Ace felt that he was beginning to regain a good amount of mobility back. Better than it used to be anyways. When he had awoken after the first operation his entire foot had felt like it was dipped in molten metal. Indescribable pain that wouldn't go away. Now he could actually curl his toes without crying out in pain.

Looking around to make sure that no one was watching him Ace slowly moved over to the side of the bed and against his better judgement rested his foot on the floor. The bandages pulled taught against his skin and he felt a slight pain along the edges of the scars but other than that it felt fine.

Ace was about to get his other leg out of bed and try walking around a little when he heard a loud crash from upstairs.

Ace immediately sat bolt upright, placing both claws on the ground. He winced in pain as his full body weight was put on the appendage but the pain wasn't enough to stop him from moving towards the door. He had learned a long time ago never to underestimate anything. If there was a mysterious crash then he was going to investigate it just to be on the safe side.

As he rounded a corner Ace nearly ran headlong into his friend Jake the Sceptile who had been at the center visiting Ace. As soon as he saw his friend up and about Jake immediately blocked his path and crossed his arms. "(Whoa, hold on there old buddy. No way I'm letting you go walking around like that. Especially after you just got out of surgery a week ago.)"

Ace scoffed. Although he and Jake had been friends for well over a decade Jake still took to protecting him like an older brother would more than Ace would have liked. "(Jake it's been a full week and the doctor said that I needed to stretch the muscles or they would become atrophied. Besides, didn't you hear that loud crash upstairs I'm curious what-)"

Ace didn't get any further as a second later and Audino with sea green eyes wearing scrubs ran up to the two.

Sally was the head nurse at the Pokemon center and the personal partner of Ace's master's aunt who had performed the surgery on his foot.

Sally just looked at the two for a second before her eyes fell on Shadow. She gave him a stern look after looking down at his foot but this was quickly replaced with a look of fear that sent chills down Ace's spine. He had never seen the Audino so afraid before.

"(Ace, Jake, you two have to help me. It's Shadow she's-)" Sally didn't get any further before Ace interrupted her. "(What about Shadow, is she alright, did she hurt herself, is that what I heard, where is she?!)"

It took Sally a moment to answer as she regained her composure after Ace's barrage of questions. "(I don't know if she's alright Ace but you and Jake have to come with me. She's upset about something and I can't calm her down. Other than that...well either way we'd better hurry.)"

Ace didn't waste a second replying as he followed the Audino up the stairs, leaning on Jake to help steady himself as the pain in his foot started to intensify. At the top of the stairs Sally turned and corner and stood outside of an open bathroom door. Ace could see light spilling out and small shards of broken glass littering the floor around the entrance.

As soon as he was up the stairs Ace immediately pushed Jake away and ran to the bathroom door and was shocked at what he saw.

Shadow sat in the corner of the room holding onto the pillow as if it were her last connection to life itself. Ace could see the fear in her eyes as she rocked back and forth while tears fell from her eyes in thick rivulets. Her breathing was erratic to say the least and the sound of it made Ace shutter. He had never seen her this broken up before and wasn't quiet sure what to do. Fortunately for him he wasn't alone as Sally walked up next to him.

"(She's having a panic attack Ace. I've tried talking with her but she just yells at me to get away and then goes back to being like this. I'm considering using sing and giving her a sedative but I thought that it would be best if you tried to get through to her first.)" Ace looked over at Sally for a second. He could see genuine confusion in the Audino's deep sea green eyes, she truly was at a loss as to how to help the scared little Sneasel. But what scared Ace even more was that he was just as unsure as Sally was as to how to help Shadow.

In the past whenever she had had a panic attack all Ace had to do was hold her close for a little while and it would go away. But when he had looked into her eyes, Ace had seen something that he hadn't seen since the day he met her, terror. Sheer and utter terror. A look that he had hoped never to see upon Shadow's beautiful face ever again.

Ace let out a deep sigh and looked back over at Sally. "(I'd prefer it if you didn't have to sedate her. Wait here, I'll go and see if I can calm her down. If I can't then I'll let you do whatever you deem necessary to ensure her safety.)" Sally just nodded as Ace turned and walked into the room, carefully stepping around the broken glass from the mirror Shadow has smashed in.

As soon as Shadow heard his claws clicking on the floor she immediately looked up. "(Ace! No, no no no no! Just stay away from me, I don't, I don't know what's wrong I just can't get these feelings and thoughts to go away about you and Jake and Sam! Why is this happening to me!? WHY!?)" Ace didn't flinch at her outburst as she fell to the floor sobbing uncontrollably while digging her claws into the pillow she was holding as if it were her last vestige of sanity that she was holding onto.

It tore Ace apart to see her like this and he desperately hoped that there was something he could do to calm her down. He looked around the room for a second and was about to take a step when a lance of pain shot through his foot.

Ace let out a yelp of pain and looked down. He had inadvertently stepped on a piece of glass. The thin piece of mirror had sliced through his skin as cleanly as a surgeon's scalpel, leaving a thin cut on the side of his middle toe. As he watched a small pool of blood slowly began to form around his toe.

Ace's predicament was not lost on Shadow who was broken out of her current panic attack by Ace's cry of pain. She looked over at him and her eyes immediately went to the blood now pooling on the floor. A look of horror slowly came across her face as she leaned against the wall, her breathing chaotic and out of control.

"(What have I done?)" She muttered in between her uncontrolled breaths. Ace looked down at the cut and noticing it's lack of severity continued to slowly approach Shadow. She didn't even notice him as he stood over her, instead she simply continued to rock back and forth while muttering to herself as tears streamed down her face.

Slowly, so as not to alarm her, Ace reached out his wing and gently touched her arm with the tips of his feathers. The physical contact was a shock to Shadow and she immediately pulled her arm away from Ace while turning to face him.

The two Pokemon just stared into each other's eyes for what seemed an eternity. Ace could see the pain and fear that Shadow was going through reflected in her gaze as she stared back at him through bloodshot eyes soaked with tears.

"(Shadow, it's going to be alright. Were going to get through this together okay?)" Ace's soft tone and comforting gesture seemed to strike a chord with Shadow as she gently reached a paw over and placed it on his wing. At that moment the floodgates were thrown open as Shadow gagged and started to sob again as she fell into Ace's soft down and cried.

Ace held her close against his warm body and gently rubbed her back with his wing while talking to her in a soothing tone. "(Everything's going to be okay Shadow. Shhh, just relax and listen to my voice. Nothing else, just listen to my voice.)" Shadow continued to cry as Ace did his best to calm her down. The fact that he had gotten her to come to him and hug him was a big first step from being as emotionally shattered as she had been a few minutes earlier. Now the trick was to keep her this way until he could find out what was bothering her.

His foot was starting to cause him some pain due to a combination of the new cut and the ones from his recent surgery but he ignored it. Right now the only thing in the world that mattered to him was Shadow.

He continued to comfort her for another fifteen minutes. Just holding her close and talking to her in a soothing voice. Finally after what seemed an eternity Ace felt her lightly loosen her grip around him. He looked down and saw that she had mostly stopped crying although her eyes were still bloodshot. Ace smiled and reached a wing down to wipe away the last of the tears from her face before speaking.

"(Alright Shadow, now why don't you tell me what's bothering you?)" Shadow sniffed a few times as she sank to the floor. Ace followed suit and pulled her in closer to his warm body. She just sat like that for several minutes, not moving a muscle.

"(Shadow I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong. Is it like that one time in the forest when you saw that Pidgey and heard Feng's voice? Because if it is then we need to find a good psychic type immediately or else-)" Ace didn't get any further as Shadow interrupted him.

"(It's not that Ace, it's, well it's...I've been having these disturbing thoughts lately. About you and, and everybody else on the team. I don't know where they are coming from or why I'm having them but, I want them to stop. I can't stop thinking about them and they are just driving me crazy and I can't think straight and I'm afraid I'm going to act on them and, and...)" Shadow as on the verge of hyperventilating as Ace gently placed a wing on her back and started to rub her soothingly.

"(It's alright Shadow, just take your time and slow down. Now why don't you tell me what these thoughts are about.)" Again Shadow sat quietly for several minutes before turning and looking at Sally and Jake standing in the doorway. "(I'd rather only tell you Ace.)" Ace nodded and looked over at Jake and Sally while making a shooing motion with his wing. Sally started to protest but Jake simply took her by the arm and pulled her away. Once they were gone Ace turned back to Shadow. "(Alright Shadow. It's just the two of us. Now tell me what it is that's troubling you.)" Shadow took in a deep breath and let loose everything that had been on her mind.

"(I've been having thoughts of killing you and the rest of the team Ace. I don't know why I'm having these thoughts but they just come into my mind and I can't stop them. I see myself slitting your throat, stabbing Jake in the back whenever I'm behind him, beheading Tucker and then raping his corpse. There terrible thoughts Ace and I can't stop them, I just can't stop them. And then I have thoughts of killing myself in bizarre and macabre ways because I want the thoughts to end and I...)" Shadow had started to cry again and Ace quickly wrapped his wings around her and hugged her tightly.

Ace was shocked by what he had heard. On the one hand he was rather shaken by what Shadow had said and was almost afraid of her. On the other he felt pity for her because deep down he knew that she was not capable of performing any of the acts that she had just described to him.

Ace's thoughts were interrupted as Shadow sniffed a few times and got her emotions back under control. "(Ace, what am I going to do? I can't live like this Ace. I just can't live with these thoughts.)" Ace felt his heart skip a beat as he looked down at her and saw the extreme desperation in her eyes. Shadow was at her whit's end and if she didn't find help soon she would give up completely.

The last thing in the world that Ace wanted was to lose Shadow. If she did something to end her life Ace would never forgive himself for not having stopped her when he could.

They sat in total silence for several more minutes with Shadow just nervously wringing her paws while Ace watched, totally unsure of what to do to help her remember how wonderful her life was despite the thoughts she was having.

And then suddenly out of nowhere Ace shot to his feet with a triumphant look on his face. Shadow, shocked by his abrupt action, moved back a little ways. Ace turned and looked at her and slowly reached a wing out. "(Shadow, would you like to go for a walk with me?)" It took Shadow a few seconds to respond and at first she thought that she had heard him wrong. "(What? You want to go for a walk?)" Ace nodded. "(Yes I do Shadow. I think that what you need right now more than anything is fresh air, clear your mind. What do you say?)"

Shadow looked down at the floor for several seconds. Ace could tell that she was nervous to go anywhere and it was a great struggle for her to decide whether to go with him or not. Finally after several tense seconds Shadow slowly nodded her head and got to her feet.

Ace smiled and took her paw in his wing as the two of them slowly made their way out of the center. On the way out they passed by Sally who was in the process of filling a syringe. When she saw the two of them she quickly ran over and blocked their path.

"(Hold on a minute Ace. There is no way that you are going out, not this shortly after surgery. And for that matter I don't think that it's a good idea for Shadow to be going out either, especially after suffering from a severe panic attack.)"

Ace just stepped around her and kept walking. "(Sally I don't think that you understand. Right now what Shadow needs more than anything is to get away from it all. And for that matter my foot is fine, so if you'll excuse me I'll be on my way.)" Sally tried to block them again but was stopped as Jake grabbed a hold of her arm and pulled her away. By the time he let her go Ace and Shadow were already out the door.

As soon as they were outside Shadow immediately turned to Ace. "(So...where did you want to walk?)" Ace just shrugged. "(I don't think it really matters. Maybe Mt. Silver or the beaches of Olivine City for a start. Or perhaps the Whirl Islands. Whatever suits your fancy Shadow.)"

Shadow looked at Ace like he was insane and opened her mouth to speak but before she could get a word out she felt herself being scooped up by Ace's wing and deposited on his back. Without a second of hesitation Ace spread his wings and shot into the sky like a bullet with Shadow hanging onto his feathers for dear life.

"(Ace! What are you doing?! I thought you wanted to go for a walk!)" Shadow yelled from his back. Ace turned and looked back at her with a smile. "(I do want to go for a walk Shadow. But we've seen Azalea Town so many times before I thought it would be nice to go somewhere different for a change. Not to mention I think that getting out and away from it all is the best thing for you right now. So hold on because were going to have some fun.)"

With that Ace banked sharply to the left, neatly slicing through a low hanging cloud in the process. Shadow just held on and shut her eyes tight. She didn't want to be flying right now. She just wanted to be with Ace on the ground and tell him how she was feeling, to cuddle up close to him and let her emotions pour out. She wanted to feel angry at him but she couldn't. Deep down she knew that he was trying to help her but she just felt that this wasn't helping her in the slightest. She just felt so down and didn't care about anything anymore.

As she continued to hold onto his back her thoughts began to fall more and more into the negative. Shadow started to think about what if she stabbed Ace in the back right then. He would fall and it would kill both of them. But at least they would die together and would be together forever. But then Sam and the others would be without Ace and she couldn't do that to them. This led her to thinking about ending just her own life and she started to seriously consider letting go of Ace's feathers and letting herself plummet to the ground. Sure Ace and the others would be sad but they would get over it and move on. Ace would be the hardest hit but right then Shadow didn't care about Ace's feelings. All she cared about was getting rid of the thoughts and feelings that had been plaguing her for the last couple of weeks. And right then ending her life seemed like the only way to do so.

Shadow was about to release her hold on Ace's feathers when she suddenly felt him slow down. Shadow was mildly curious as to why he was slowing down but really didn't care all that much. It wasn't until Ace spoke up that Shadow's curiosity was really piqued.

"(Oh sweet and merciful Arceus. Shadow isn't this just divine?)" When he got no response Ace turned his head and looked back at Shadow as she lay cowering on his back. Afraid to move, afraid to think, afraid to feel. Shadow was literally drowning in all of the horrible thoughts and feelings that were plaguing her mind.

Ace slowed down even more and gently nudged Shadow with his beak while speaking to her in a soft voice that was barely audible above the rushing wind. "(Shadow, I know that your afraid and scared and I can't begin to imagine the hell that your going through. But please just open your eyes, open your eyes and see the beauty of the world. I'm not going to ask you anything else I swear, all I want is for you to see what I'm seeing and to experience the wonder that there is to behold.

Shadow didn't move for a second and then, very slowly, pulled herself forward until she was laying against Ace's neck and opened her eyes.

Shadow gasped in shock at what lay before her. Ace was hovering a good thousand meters off the ground just off the coast facing towards the Whirls Islands. There was not a cloud in the sky as the sun beat down on the ocean. Where the suns rays touched the ocean it sparkled with the light of a thousand crystals and shone with a slight greenish hue that was beyond comparison. Beyond the water she could just make out the Whirl Islands. White caps crashed against the shore in a never-ending cacophony that was just barely audible at this distance. Beyond the islands the horizon seemed to vanish into nothingness as though the world would continue on in it's beauty forever.

Shadow just stared at the beautiful scene with her mouth agape. Never in her life had she seen anything as beautiful as this before. It took her breath away and brought tears to her eyes. The thoughts of ending her life instantly subsided as she continued to stare at the beautiful scene before her and tears started to stream down her cheeks as she thought of all that was before her that Arceus had made for her and for all Pokemon.

Ace just watched her and smiled quietly to himself as he saw the joy beginning to form on her face once. It touched him deeply to see joy on her face once again, especially after seeing her so broken up only minutes before.

After several more minutes of admiring the scene Ace spoke to her. "(I wanted you to see this Shadow. I wanted you to see everything that Arceus has made in all of it's splendor and to realize something very profound. You are deeply loved Shadow. Now I'm sure that you have heard this countless times from the rest of the team but I want you to hear it again. I love and care for you, so does Jake, Sam, hell even Tucker cares for you although he shows it in a rather inappropriate way. And nothing is ever going to change how much we all care for you Shadow. And the last thing we want is for you to do anything to harm yourself.)"

Ace stopped for a second to gauge Shadow's reaction. It was obvious that she wasn't enjoying this topic but Ace knew that it was what she needed to hear. "(Now Shadow I'm personally not worried about you hurting any of us, I think that's just your mind playing tricks on you. What I'm scared of Shadow is you hurting yourself to escape from the pain. But I want you to know Shadow that that pain is not going to last forever. I've known plenty of Pokemon who have gone through far worse than what your going through and they are fine today. So Shadow what I want you to do is to not give up, no matter how hard it seems just don't give up and keep fighting. And remember if you feel like your faltering and need someone to talk to I or Sally am more than willing to help you. Does this all make sense to you?)"

Shadow didn't answer for a minute as she contemplated Ace's words. She had known them to be true for many years now but this was the first time that she had ever heard them straight out. It made her feel strange. On the one hand she felt that she was letting everyone down by feeling this way when they loved her so much but it also made her feel like there was some hope after all.

She looked down at her claws and thought of all the times that she had thought of using them to end her own life. Then she looked at Ace and slowly sank to his back. "(Ace...I am so sorry.)" Ace gently nuzzled her head. "(There's no need to be sorry Shadow. Your going through a difficult time and were going to work through it together. Now do you still want to go for a walk or would you rather go back to the Azalea Town Pokemon center and have Sally take a look at you?)"

Shadow thought for a minute before answering. "(I've got a better idea Ace. How about we continue on this little sightseeing tour of yours and see if you can prove to me that you still have the moves.)"

Ace looked back at her and when he saw the smile across his face his heart melted and his ego soared. "(Your on Shadow.)" And with that Ace turned and with a burst of speed headed out towards Mt. Silver with not a care in the world.

Shadow sat on his back thinking about all that they had discussed and everything that Ace had said to her.

Just as they started to approach the beautiful mountain Shadow leaned down and lightly tapped Ace to get his attention.

"(Ace, I just wanted to thank you. Thank you for saving me from myself.)" Ace looked back at her and smiled. "(I'm happy I could oblige Shadow, and remember, no matter what happens I will never stop caring for you.)"

And with that both of them flew on. Shadow with a newfound hope and lust for life and Ace with the knowledge that he had just saved Shadow's life.

Description
Azalea town, a picturesque setting of tranquility and peace set on the edge of the wondrous yet mysterious Ilex Forest. It was a place where Pokemon roamed about the quiet streets freely, unconcerned about being hurt or captured by the humans with whom they shared this little spot of paradise.

It was a quiet day at the Azalea Town Pokemon center. The gym hadn't seen too many visitors lately due to the leader Bugsy being on vacation. As a result not many trainers were passing through the town leaving the Pokemon center with few patients other than the occasional Slowpoke too stupid to get out of the way of a bike or pedestrian.

In the second floor bathroom of the center a lone Sneasel sat on a stool staring at her reflection in the mirror while idly toying with with a silver earring in her left ear.

Shadow the Sneasel was distressed. It had been a rough month for her. First off her best friend in the world, Ace the Pidgeot, had gone through surgery to have some of the pins in his foot replaced. Immediately after that Shadow had started feeling down. She didn't know why but for some reason she had just started feeling depressed and gloomy. That had continued for a few days until...until the images had started appearing in her head.

She had no idea where they had come from or what had triggered them. All she knew was that she was being driven mad by them. She would be walking along with one of her friends and suddenly in her mind's eye she would see herself killing them in a horribly macabre way. Tearing off their heads with her claws, ripping their hearts out of their chests, impaling them, skinning them alive. It terrified her that she was seeing images of herself doing this but what scared her even more were that she was doing it to friends of hers.

So far she hadn't told anyone about the thoughts that she was having. How could she. After the past she had had her friends might begin to think that she was ready to snap at any moment and kill them in their sleep. At least that's what Shadow thought.

As she continued to sit there in the bathroom Shadow looked down at her right wrist. There were several small scars hidden underneath the fur from years past. At one point shortly after she had joined up with her current master Shadow had attempted to kill herself. The emotional pain that she had been going through back then had been horrendous but at least then she hadn't been seeing her friends ripped apart by her own hands.

Shadow carefully traced each scar with the tips of her claws. She had been thinking more and more lately about ending her own life. Nothing really felt like it brought her joy anymore and she had this constant and deep seated feeling of dread that would not go away. At first she had written it off as nothing but once the thoughts had started Shadow immediately assumed that she was going insane.

As she thought more and more about ending her life her thoughts turned to Ace and the rest of her team. Yes, they would be sad to lose her at first but in the long run it would be better for them since she wouldn't be around wearing on them and being such a massive burden on their lives.

Shadow shook her head angrily as she looked at the scars and her claws. "(No! Stop it. Just stop it and and get a hold of yourself Shadow.)" She said while turning and looking at her expression in the mirror once more. Her eyes held nothing but fear in them as she continued to look at them. And deep down she felt more scared than ever before. Afraid that she would lose control, afraid that she would hurt one of her team members. And above all else afraid that she would hurt Ace.

Finally after several minutes of staring at her expression and dreading what might happen Shadow couldn't take it any longer. With a scream of rage she drew back her arm and shattered the mirror with the blunt edges of her claws, shattering it into a million pieces that scattered across the floor like the scattered emotions and feelings of her mind.

...

Ace the Pidgeot was sitting comfortably in a bed in the Azalea Town Pokemon center. It had been a full two weeks since the last operation to fix the broken pins in his foot and it felt good to actually go a while without having his leg cut open.

Although the operation itself had been undertaken in the Goldenrod City Pokemon center Ace had insisted, borderline demanded, that he be allowed to recover in the Azalea Town center. Ilex forest was where he had been born and grown up and he felt a certain calm whenever he was near to it. Also the quiet of the sleepy town was far more conducive to rest than was the hustle and bustle of nearby Goldenrod.

As he sat there Ace carefully stretched out his leg. It was still painful to walk on and the surgeon had told him to avoid putting any serious amount of weight on it for a few weeks. Although his leg still felt stiff Ace felt that he was beginning to regain a good amount of mobility back. Better than it used to be anyways. When he had awoken after the first operation his entire foot had felt like it was dipped in molten metal. Indescribable pain that wouldn't go away. Now he could actually curl his toes without crying out in pain.

Looking around to make sure that no one was watching him Ace slowly moved over to the side of the bed and against his better judgement rested his foot on the floor. The bandages pulled taught against his skin and he felt a slight pain along the edges of the scars but other than that it felt fine.

Ace was about to get his other leg out of bed and try walking around a little when he heard a loud crash from upstairs.

Ace immediately sat bolt upright, placing both claws on the ground. He winced in pain as his full body weight was put on the appendage but the pain wasn't enough to stop him from moving towards the door. He had learned a long time ago never to underestimate anything. If there was a mysterious crash then he was going to investigate it just to be on the safe side.

As he rounded a corner Ace nearly ran headlong into his friend Jake the Sceptile who had been at the center visiting Ace. As soon as he saw his friend up and about Jake immediately blocked his path and crossed his arms. "(Whoa, hold on there old buddy. No way I'm letting you go walking around like that. Especially after you just got out of surgery a week ago.)"

Ace scoffed. Although he and Jake had been friends for well over a decade Jake still took to protecting him like an older brother would more than Ace would have liked. "(Jake it's been a full week and the doctor said that I needed to stretch the muscles or they would become atrophied. Besides, didn't you hear that loud crash upstairs I'm curious what-)"

Ace didn't get any further as a second later and Audino with sea green eyes wearing scrubs ran up to the two.

Sally was the head nurse at the Pokemon center and the personal partner of Ace's master's aunt who had performed the surgery on his foot.

Sally just looked at the two for a second before her eyes fell on Shadow. She gave him a stern look after looking down at his foot but this was quickly replaced with a look of fear that sent chills down Ace's spine. He had never seen the Audino so afraid before.

"(Ace, Jake, you two have to help me. It's Shadow she's-)" Sally didn't get any further before Ace interrupted her. "(What about Shadow, is she alright, did she hurt herself, is that what I heard, where is she?!)"

It took Sally a moment to answer as she regained her composure after Ace's barrage of questions. "(I don't know if she's alright Ace but you and Jake have to come with me. She's upset about something and I can't calm her down. Other than that...well either way we'd better hurry.)"

Ace didn't waste a second replying as he followed the Audino up the stairs, leaning on Jake to help steady himself as the pain in his foot started to intensify. At the top of the stairs Sally turned and corner and stood outside of an open bathroom door. Ace could see light spilling out and small shards of broken glass littering the floor around the entrance.

As soon as he was up the stairs Ace immediately pushed Jake away and ran to the bathroom door and was shocked at what he saw.

Shadow sat in the corner of the room holding onto the pillow as if it were her last connection to life itself. Ace could see the fear in her eyes as she rocked back and forth while tears fell from her eyes in thick rivulets. Her breathing was erratic to say the least and the sound of it made Ace shutter. He had never seen her this broken up before and wasn't quiet sure what to do. Fortunately for him he wasn't alone as Sally walked up next to him.

"(She's having a panic attack Ace. I've tried talking with her but she just yells at me to get away and then goes back to being like this. I'm considering using sing and giving her a sedative but I thought that it would be best if you tried to get through to her first.)" Ace looked over at Sally for a second. He could see genuine confusion in the Audino's deep sea green eyes, she truly was at a loss as to how to help the scared little Sneasel. But what scared Ace even more was that he was just as unsure as Sally was as to how to help Shadow.

In the past whenever she had had a panic attack all Ace had to do was hold her close for a little while and it would go away. But when he had looked into her eyes, Ace had seen something that he hadn't seen since the day he met her, terror. Sheer and utter terror. A look that he had hoped never to see upon Shadow's beautiful face ever again.

Ace let out a deep sigh and looked back over at Sally. "(I'd prefer it if you didn't have to sedate her. Wait here, I'll go and see if I can calm her down. If I can't then I'll let you do whatever you deem necessary to ensure her safety.)" Sally just nodded as Ace turned and walked into the room, carefully stepping around the broken glass from the mirror Shadow has smashed in.

As soon as Shadow heard his claws clicking on the floor she immediately looked up. "(Ace! No, no no no no! Just stay away from me, I don't, I don't know what's wrong I just can't get these feelings and thoughts to go away about you and Jake and Sam! Why is this happening to me!? WHY!?)" Ace didn't flinch at her outburst as she fell to the floor sobbing uncontrollably while digging her claws into the pillow she was holding as if it were her last vestige of sanity that she was holding onto.

It tore Ace apart to see her like this and he desperately hoped that there was something he could do to calm her down. He looked around the room for a second and was about to take a step when a lance of pain shot through his foot.

Ace let out a yelp of pain and looked down. He had inadvertently stepped on a piece of glass. The thin piece of mirror had sliced through his skin as cleanly as a surgeon's scalpel, leaving a thin cut on the side of his middle toe. As he watched a small pool of blood slowly began to form around his toe.

Ace's predicament was not lost on Shadow who was broken out of her current panic attack by Ace's cry of pain. She looked over at him and her eyes immediately went to the blood now pooling on the floor. A look of horror slowly came across her face as she leaned against the wall, her breathing chaotic and out of control.

"(What have I done?)" She muttered in between her uncontrolled breaths. Ace looked down at the cut and noticing it's lack of severity continued to slowly approach Shadow. She didn't even notice him as he stood over her, instead she simply continued to rock back and forth while muttering to herself as tears streamed down her face.

Slowly, so as not to alarm her, Ace reached out his wing and gently touched her arm with the tips of his feathers. The physical contact was a shock to Shadow and she immediately pulled her arm away from Ace while turning to face him.

The two Pokemon just stared into each other's eyes for what seemed an eternity. Ace could see the pain and fear that Shadow was going through reflected in her gaze as she stared back at him through bloodshot eyes soaked with tears.

"(Shadow, it's going to be alright. Were going to get through this together okay?)" Ace's soft tone and comforting gesture seemed to strike a chord with Shadow as she gently reached a paw over and placed it on his wing. At that moment the floodgates were thrown open as Shadow gagged and started to sob again as she fell into Ace's soft down and cried.

Ace held her close against his warm body and gently rubbed her back with his wing while talking to her in a soothing tone. "(Everything's going to be okay Shadow. Shhh, just relax and listen to my voice. Nothing else, just listen to my voice.)" Shadow continued to cry as Ace did his best to calm her down. The fact that he had gotten her to come to him and hug him was a big first step from being as emotionally shattered as she had been a few minutes earlier. Now the trick was to keep her this way until he could find out what was bothering her.

His foot was starting to cause him some pain due to a combination of the new cut and the ones from his recent surgery but he ignored it. Right now the only thing in the world that mattered to him was Shadow.

He continued to comfort her for another fifteen minutes. Just holding her close and talking to her in a soothing voice. Finally after what seemed an eternity Ace felt her lightly loosen her grip around him. He looked down and saw that she had mostly stopped crying although her eyes were still bloodshot. Ace smiled and reached a wing down to wipe away the last of the tears from her face before speaking.

"(Alright Shadow, now why don't you tell me what's bothering you?)" Shadow sniffed a few times as she sank to the floor. Ace followed suit and pulled her in closer to his warm body. She just sat like that for several minutes, not moving a muscle.

"(Shadow I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong. Is it like that one time in the forest when you saw that Pidgey and heard Feng's voice? Because if it is then we need to find a good psychic type immediately or else-)" Ace didn't get any further as Shadow interrupted him.

"(It's not that Ace, it's, well it's...I've been having these disturbing thoughts lately. About you and, and everybody else on the team. I don't know where they are coming from or why I'm having them but, I want them to stop. I can't stop thinking about them and they are just driving me crazy and I can't think straight and I'm afraid I'm going to act on them and, and...)" Shadow as on the verge of hyperventilating as Ace gently placed a wing on her back and started to rub her soothingly.

"(It's alright Shadow, just take your time and slow down. Now why don't you tell me what these thoughts are about.)" Again Shadow sat quietly for several minutes before turning and looking at Sally and Jake standing in the doorway. "(I'd rather only tell you Ace.)" Ace nodded and looked over at Jake and Sally while making a shooing motion with his wing. Sally started to protest but Jake simply took her by the arm and pulled her away. Once they were gone Ace turned back to Shadow. "(Alright Shadow. It's just the two of us. Now tell me what it is that's troubling you.)" Shadow took in a deep breath and let loose everything that had been on her mind.

"(I've been having thoughts of killing you and the rest of the team Ace. I don't know why I'm having these thoughts but they just come into my mind and I can't stop them. I see myself slitting your throat, stabbing Jake in the back whenever I'm behind him, beheading Tucker and then raping his corpse. There terrible thoughts Ace and I can't stop them, I just can't stop them. And then I have thoughts of killing myself in bizarre and macabre ways because I want the thoughts to end and I...)" Shadow had started to cry again and Ace quickly wrapped his wings around her and hugged her tightly.

Ace was shocked by what he had heard. On the one hand he was rather shaken by what Shadow had said and was almost afraid of her. On the other he felt pity for her because deep down he knew that she was not capable of performing any of the acts that she had just described to him.

Ace's thoughts were interrupted as Shadow sniffed a few times and got her emotions back under control. "(Ace, what am I going to do? I can't live like this Ace. I just can't live with these thoughts.)" Ace felt his heart skip a beat as he looked down at her and saw the extreme desperation in her eyes. Shadow was at her whit's end and if she didn't find help soon she would give up completely.

The last thing in the world that Ace wanted was to lose Shadow. If she did something to end her life Ace would never forgive himself for not having stopped her when he could.

They sat in total silence for several more minutes with Shadow just nervously wringing her paws while Ace watched, totally unsure of what to do to help her remember how wonderful her life was despite the thoughts she was having.

And then suddenly out of nowhere Ace shot to his feet with a triumphant look on his face. Shadow, shocked by his abrupt action, moved back a little ways. Ace turned and looked at her and slowly reached a wing out. "(Shadow, would you like to go for a walk with me?)" It took Shadow a few seconds to respond and at first she thought that she had heard him wrong. "(What? You want to go for a walk?)" Ace nodded. "(Yes I do Shadow. I think that what you need right now more than anything is fresh air, clear your mind. What do you say?)"

Shadow looked down at the floor for several seconds. Ace could tell that she was nervous to go anywhere and it was a great struggle for her to decide whether to go with him or not. Finally after several tense seconds Shadow slowly nodded her head and got to her feet.

Ace smiled and took her paw in his wing as the two of them slowly made their way out of the center. On the way out they passed by Sally who was in the process of filling a syringe. When she saw the two of them she quickly ran over and blocked their path.

"(Hold on a minute Ace. There is no way that you are going out, not this shortly after surgery. And for that matter I don't think that it's a good idea for Shadow to be going out either, especially after suffering from a severe panic attack.)"

Ace just stepped around her and kept walking. "(Sally I don't think that you understand. Right now what Shadow needs more than anything is to get away from it all. And for that matter my foot is fine, so if you'll excuse me I'll be on my way.)" Sally tried to block them again but was stopped as Jake grabbed a hold of her arm and pulled her away. By the time he let her go Ace and Shadow were already out the door.

As soon as they were outside Shadow immediately turned to Ace. "(So...where did you want to walk?)" Ace just shrugged. "(I don't think it really matters. Maybe Mt. Silver or the beaches of Olivine City for a start. Or perhaps the Whirl Islands. Whatever suits your fancy Shadow.)"

Shadow looked at Ace like he was insane and opened her mouth to speak but before she could get a word out she felt herself being scooped up by Ace's wing and deposited on his back. Without a second of hesitation Ace spread his wings and shot into the sky like a bullet with Shadow hanging onto his feathers for dear life.

"(Ace! What are you doing?! I thought you wanted to go for a walk!)" Shadow yelled from his back. Ace turned and looked back at her with a smile. "(I do want to go for a walk Shadow. But we've seen Azalea Town so many times before I thought it would be nice to go somewhere different for a change. Not to mention I think that getting out and away from it all is the best thing for you right now. So hold on because were going to have some fun.)"

With that Ace banked sharply to the left, neatly slicing through a low hanging cloud in the process. Shadow just held on and shut her eyes tight. She didn't want to be flying right now. She just wanted to be with Ace on the ground and tell him how she was feeling, to cuddle up close to him and let her emotions pour out. She wanted to feel angry at him but she couldn't. Deep down she knew that he was trying to help her but she just felt that this wasn't helping her in the slightest. She just felt so down and didn't care about anything anymore.

As she continued to hold onto his back her thoughts began to fall more and more into the negative. Shadow started to think about what if she stabbed Ace in the back right then. He would fall and it would kill both of them. But at least they would die together and would be together forever. But then Sam and the others would be without Ace and she couldn't do that to them. This led her to thinking about ending just her own life and she started to seriously consider letting go of Ace's feathers and letting herself plummet to the ground. Sure Ace and the others would be sad but they would get over it and move on. Ace would be the hardest hit but right then Shadow didn't care about Ace's feelings. All she cared about was getting rid of the thoughts and feelings that had been plaguing her for the last couple of weeks. And right then ending her life seemed like the only way to do so.

Shadow was about to release her hold on Ace's feathers when she suddenly felt him slow down. Shadow was mildly curious as to why he was slowing down but really didn't care all that much. It wasn't until Ace spoke up that Shadow's curiosity was really piqued.

"(Oh sweet and merciful Arceus. Shadow isn't this just divine?)" When he got no response Ace turned his head and looked back at Shadow as she lay cowering on his back. Afraid to move, afraid to think, afraid to feel. Shadow was literally drowning in all of the horrible thoughts and feelings that were plaguing her mind.

Ace slowed down even more and gently nudged Shadow with his beak while speaking to her in a soft voice that was barely audible above the rushing wind. "(Shadow, I know that your afraid and scared and I can't begin to imagine the hell that your going through. But please just open your eyes, open your eyes and see the beauty of the world. I'm not going to ask you anything else I swear, all I want is for you to see what I'm seeing and to experience the wonder that there is to behold.

Shadow didn't move for a second and then, very slowly, pulled herself forward until she was laying against Ace's neck and opened her eyes.

Shadow gasped in shock at what lay before her. Ace was hovering a good thousand meters off the ground just off the coast facing towards the Whirls Islands. There was not a cloud in the sky as the sun beat down on the ocean. Where the suns rays touched the ocean it sparkled with the light of a thousand crystals and shone with a slight greenish hue that was beyond comparison. Beyond the water she could just make out the Whirl Islands. White caps crashed against the shore in a never-ending cacophony that was just barely audible at this distance. Beyond the islands the horizon seemed to vanish into nothingness as though the world would continue on in it's beauty forever.

Shadow just stared at the beautiful scene with her mouth agape. Never in her life had she seen anything as beautiful as this before. It took her breath away and brought tears to her eyes. The thoughts of ending her life instantly subsided as she continued to stare at the beautiful scene before her and tears started to stream down her cheeks as she thought of all that was before her that Arceus had made for her and for all Pokemon.

Ace just watched her and smiled quietly to himself as he saw the joy beginning to form on her face once. It touched him deeply to see joy on her face once again, especially after seeing her so broken up only minutes before.

After several more minutes of admiring the scene Ace spoke to her. "(I wanted you to see this Shadow. I wanted you to see everything that Arceus has made in all of it's splendor and to realize something very profound. You are deeply loved Shadow. Now I'm sure that you have heard this countless times from the rest of the team but I want you to hear it again. I love and care for you, so does Jake, Sam, hell even Tucker cares for you although he shows it in a rather inappropriate way. And nothing is ever going to change how much we all care for you Shadow. And the last thing we want is for you to do anything to harm yourself.)"

Ace stopped for a second to gauge Shadow's reaction. It was obvious that she wasn't enjoying this topic but Ace knew that it was what she needed to hear. "(Now Shadow I'm personally not worried about you hurting any of us, I think that's just your mind playing tricks on you. What I'm scared of Shadow is you hurting yourself to escape from the pain. But I want you to know Shadow that that pain is not going to last forever. I've known plenty of Pokemon who have gone through far worse than what your going through and they are fine today. So Shadow what I want you to do is to not give up, no matter how hard it seems just don't give up and keep fighting. And remember if you feel like your faltering and need someone to talk to I or Sally am more than willing to help you. Does this all make sense to you?)"

Shadow didn't answer for a minute as she contemplated Ace's words. She had known them to be true for many years now but this was the first time that she had ever heard them straight out. It made her feel strange. On the one hand she felt that she was letting everyone down by feeling this way when they loved her so much but it also made her feel like there was some hope after all.

She looked down at her claws and thought of all the times that she had thought of using them to end her own life. Then she looked at Ace and slowly sank to his back. "(Ace...I am so sorry.)" Ace gently nuzzled her head. "(There's no need to be sorry Shadow. Your going through a difficult time and were going to work through it together. Now do you still want to go for a walk or would you rather go back to the Azalea Town Pokemon center and have Sally take a look at you?)"

Shadow thought for a minute before answering. "(I've got a better idea Ace. How about we continue on this little sightseeing tour of yours and see if you can prove to me that you still have the moves.)"

Ace looked back at her and when he saw the smile across his face his heart melted and his ego soared. "(Your on Shadow.)" And with that Ace turned and with a burst of speed headed out towards Mt. Silver with not a care in the world.

Shadow sat on his back thinking about all that they had discussed and everything that Ace had said to her.

Just as they started to approach the beautiful mountain Shadow leaned down and lightly tapped Ace to get his attention.

"(Ace, I just wanted to thank you. Thank you for saving me from myself.)" Ace looked back at her and smiled. "(I'm happy I could oblige Shadow, and remember, no matter what happens I will never stop caring for you.)"

And with that both of them flew on. Shadow with a newfound hope and lust for life and Ace with the knowledge that he had just saved Shadow's life.