Oh HAPPY DAY! It's finally up! The sequel to the highly acclaimed "The Darkness Within", no strings attached. It takes place immediately after the end of it too and continues from there. So if your reading this sentence and wondering, "dur whats dis Darkness Within she's talkin' about?", then I must ask why in the world you're still reading this sentence and to highly recommend reading "The Darkness Within" first.

So, without further adu, I bring you the sequel, "The Shadow King"

Enjoy. Oh, and I don't own Pokemon. :)

The Shadow King

.:One:.

"ASH KETCHUM, WHERE IN THE WORLD HAVE YOU BEEN!?"

Least to say, coming home after being missing for a week trying to save the world was not a good way to greet your mother, especially with, "Hi Mom, we're back from saving the world!"

Well, maybe not in those exact words, but...

"You just up and leave without any warning for a week!"

"Mom, please..."

"How could you just leave without saying goodbye to your mother!?"

"I swear, I can explain!"

"I was worried sick! I thought something horrible had happened to you!"

"But Mom..."

"You better have a very good explanation for this, mister!"

"I would if you would give me a minute to say something!"

"You're going to be grounded for a very long time, do you hear me Ash Ketchum?"

"Mom, will you listen to me for like five seconds!?"

May, Max, Pikachu, and Brock watched the ongoing verbal battle with vague amusement. Max's head kept moving back and forth between Ash and his mother at a rapid pace that was making him dizzy. "Uh, should one of us intervene and say something?" he asked, hand to his head as if he had a migraine from too much head movement.

"Maybe we should...this has been going on for several minutes now and she still doesn't know what happened." Brock pointed out.

May smiled a little. They had just gotten back from Poke'lantis, ride courtesy a la Ho-oh (who had dropped them off on the edge of town and claimed that it was better if he wasn't noticed by any humans), and had walked through the door just as Ash's mother had turned around and nearly fainted at their arrival, in an apparent state of worry. She then immediately began berating Ash for details, who couldn't even get a word in edgewise.

What could they say? "Ash was mentally hijacked by a several hundred years old evil king who stole a balloon and forced him and his friends to come to Poke'lantis where he attempted to rule the world with Ash's body but was stopped with the help of two legendaries? Oh yeah, and Ash and May finally wised up to each others feelings and hooked up during all that madness?"

Even she wouldn't believe that if she hadn't been there to see it for herself. (And subsequently the "hooking up with Ash" part that made her the happiest, at any rate) To say that May was happy was an understatement. She was ecstatic. Ash loved her and she loved him and they were going to be together again for another adventure in the Sinnoh region. She would have to call Mom and Dad and tell them her change of plans, but she was sure they too would be happy to hear about her new-found relationship with Ash. She just had to hope that her parents would approve of it...of course, it probably had to get past Ash's mother too.

As she watched Ash's flustered attempts at trying to get his mom to calm down long enough to explain, she couldn't help but feel a sense of worry, which was quite natural. Ash was still just recovering from being mentally attacked by that horrible spirit that had been possessing him, and she knew that it would be quite a while before he really got over it, whether he said it or not. She also thought of Max, who practically died because of the King, and couldn't help but feel furious at the thought. If that bastard ever goes near them ever again, he's going to face my wrath!

The anger must have shown on her face, because Max was suddenly looking concerned as he asked, "May, are you Ok? You look mad."

May quickly shook her head and shot her brother a reassuring smile. "It's nothing. Just thinking..."

"Oh no, a sign of the apocalypse. May is thinking..."

"What was that?" She playfully grabbed Max in a headlock, who started whining, "Ow, stop it May! I was kidding!"

This seemed to grab both Ash and his mother's attention. Ash's mother still looked steamed, but Ash couldn't help but smile. The smile promptly disappeared when his mother rounded back on him.

"As I was saying, do you have any idea how worried I was?"

"I believe you've said that twice now Mom."

"And everyone else was worried too! I called Professor Oak as well as Gary and Misty, and none of them had any clue where you were!"

"Look I...wait, what?" Ash's attention suddenly seemed to snag on her last statement.

"I had to call Professor Oak, who called Gary, who called Misty...they were actually talking about coming here tomorrow to help search for you guys..."

"Well that's not necessary now! We're here, aren't we?" Ash quickly cut in, who, May noticed, looked strangely displeased at the idea.

"After a week of being missing without any explanation!"

May figured that now would be a good time to cut in. "Mrs. Ketchum..."

"And you three!" she suddenly turned on them, earning an "eep" from May, "You also better have a good reason why you were gone without any warning..."

"Mom, it's not their fault, really! It's mine!" Ash said over his mother, not wanting for her to be getting into it with his friends. In all honesty, it really was his fault that they had disappeared for over a week. Stealing a balloon and causing havoc over international waters landed all the blame on him. Or more specifically the evil spirit that possessed him, but since it possessing him, it made everything technically his fault. Not that I'm going to say all that out loud, lest May argues that it isn't. Ash couldn't help but think this, as he wanted May to be happy and not worried about him.

"Look I-"

They sighed, seeing that nothing was going to deter her.

"Hey Mrs. Ketchum, Ash and May became a couple while we were gone!" Max suddenly blurted out.

Well, that certainly got her attention. "W-what?" she asked, clearly surprised. Seeing an opening to get some sort of truth through to her, Ash smiled and walked over to May, wrapping an arm around her, pulling her closer. "It's true, Mom...I love May."

There was absolutely no hesitation in his voice when he said that, May thought, which caused her to glow a little. His mother's expression softened a little. After a few seconds of stunned silence, she suddenly grabbed Ash in a hug.

"My baby's got himself a girlfriend! And a cute one too! Wait until I tell Professor Oak..."

"Mom, really, it's not-you're crushing my lungs...", Ash suddenly sputtered, face slowly turning a light blue. She quickly let go of him before planting a kiss on his cheek. "Mommy's so proud of you..."

"MOM!" Ash groaned in embarrassment as his friends laughed behind him.

It seemed that all was forgiven, even more so when they did finally managed to tell what happened (of course, leaving some parts out, so that she didn't suddenly decide that Ash could never leave home ever again) and soon it was late evening and as they were trudging up the stairs to go to sleep, Delia suddenly spoke up, "May, can I talk to you alone for a second?"

Oh no, the "if you ever make Ash miserable I'll skin you alive speech", May thought, and it seemed Ash was thinking along the same lines, however he had no choice but to say, "See you in the morning" and plant a kiss on her cheek, before hurrying up the stairs. She sighed before walking over to stand in front of her. "Yes?"

She seemed to stare at May for an agonizing few minutes before speaking, "Just make sure the two of you are happy, OK?"

"O-of course!" May stammered, quite glad that seemed to be all she wanted. "Good night, Mrs. Ketchum." she nodded before slowly heading up the stairs. Delia turned toward the window, looking out at the darkened sky. Suddenly, she spoke again, causing May to jump a little.

"I'm glad that Ash got the girl this time..."

May didn't turn around, hand tightening on the railing. Did Delia know that May had heard that? She didn't show any signs that she knew, which meant that she had thought May had already left the room. May's thoughts were no longer on sleep, rather on those two words...

This time...?

"How are you Misty?"

Ash was on the phone with Misty, while he and his friends were resting up in Hoenn.

Misty nodded, smiling. "I'm doing great, thanks for asking Ash!"

"Of course." Ash commented, blushing a little. Over the past couple of weeks, since the last time he had seen Misty, his thoughts kept circling around her in his waking moments. And then, one day, it finally all clicked together. He loved Misty. How could he have been so...oblivious? How did he not notice the signs? Especially hers? He wasn't sure what to expect if he said anything, so he continued to be tight-lipped about it.

"Well, my sisters came back two days ago."

This he had not expected, but it was good to hear. Did this mean Misty was going to travel with him again?

"Does that mean you're going to come traveling with us, just like the old days?" Ash asked, voicing his thoughts and unable to hide the excitement in his voice.

And suddenly, her smile disappeared.

"Actually...no."

"W-what? Why?"

"Well...I still have to take care of the gym."

Ash frowned. "But your sisters are back. Can't they take over the gym again?"

"I'd rather they didn't; they're horrible, and besides..." There was a long pause before she whispered, "I'm kind of busy..."

"Doing what?", Ash asked, suddenly suspicious.

"Well, you know Gary, your rival? He's working on a project here in town...and I said I would help him out."

Ash looked down. "Oh."

"I'm sorry, Ash."

"Well, how long will it take?" he asked, still sounding hopeful.

"I don't know...it might be a while..."

And suddenly, things started going into place, whether they really fit into the slots or not.

"...I see." Ash frowned.

"Ash?"

"No, it's fine. I gotta go. Talk to you later, Misty." he said before rather rudely hanging up on her, hand clenched on the receiver.

Suddenly the world began to fall apart, cracking into jagged pieces that fell and smashed on the ground at his feet in the darkness. He could hear a familiar snide voice whisper, "You were in love with that girl...but then she broke your heart by leaving to go back home...her sisters came back, so why didn't she come back to you then? She either forgot all about you or figured you weren't worth her time...she must of found someone who actually noticed her, unlike someone as oblivious as you..."

The voice laughs. "Horrible, isn't it? He was better at everything than you! Pokemon, gym battles, and he even won the girl! Doesn't it make you want to hurt him? To rip into bloody shreds to feed to the Gyarados? While you're at it, you should feed them to her Gyarados for the pure irony of it! Hahaha!"

Ash put his hands over his ears in an attempt to block out the voice, which it seemed to find amusing. "Pretending you can't hear me then? Fine. Just watch and learn."

A glass shard lifted from the floor and floated in front of him. May was smiling back at him. "You can't trust her. She'll realize that she could do better and run off with Drew...she'll break your heart just as easily as redhead did."

"No she won't." Ash muttered, wishing he could drown out the horrible voice, which began to laugh loudly as he continued to whisper, "She won't, she won't, she won't..."

"She won't..."

Ash opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling. The moonlight was pouring into his room from his window, causing his eyes to sting a little. (Or was it the dream?) Ash slid a hand over his eyes, sighing.

It's just a nightmare...I should start getting used to this. That bastard nearly killed us and made life a living hell. I'm not going to just get over this that easily.

He moved his hand a little, so that one eye was visible. He glanced at the old Pidgey cuckoo clock that was sitting on the bedside table nearby, layered with dust from disuse. But what he cared more about was the person sleeping in the room on the other side of the wall where the clock was. But that dream...why...?

...It's anxiety about this new relationship with May, so it's digging that up too...

He returned his gaze to the ceiling, feeling a sense of determination. I won't mess this up...I love May...nothing will change that...

With these thoughts, he drifted back off into an uneasy sleep.

"Ready to go guys? The ferry to Sinnoh is going to leave in a few hours, so we need to get moving now!"

"One sec, I got to call my parents and tell them I changed our plans." May called over her shoulder to the slightly impatient Ash as she dialed the number. After a few seconds, her father popped up on the screen.

"May, there you are! You were supposed to have come home yesterday!"

"Sorry, Dad! We got sidetracked..."

"So are you coming soon?"

"Actually, I changed my mind. Me and Max are going with Ash to the Sinnoh region."

"Why? I thought you were going to Johto..."

"Well...I...Ash...we...", May sighed before saying quickly, "Me and Ash sort of...became boyfriend and girlfriend recently..."

There was a pause before...

"Wait, WHAT!?" he asked in shock.

"What's wrong, dear?" May heard her mother ask in the background.

"May has a boyfriend!"

There was suddenly a hurrying of footsteps before her mother appeared on the screen. "May, you're too young to have a boyfriend. We need to meet him and approve of him first, because what if he's just some guy who takes advantage of innocent girls like yourself-"

"Mom, it's Ash."

There was a pause before she suddenly smiled. "Oh, never-mind then. You have my approval then."

"She has yet to have mine!" Norman pointed out.

"Oh come on, Ash is nice! You would prefer him over any other boy, wouldn't you?"

"Well ordinarily yes, but that is completely beside the point-"

"Don't worry May", her mother said toward the screen, "Your father's just being naturally protective. He approves."

He huffed before turning to May, "May, tell Ash to come here a second."

Oh great, it's the "touch my daughter and no one will find your remains speech" May thought, reminded of her earlier thought when concerning Ash's mother, before calling Ash over. Ash came over, and seeing who she was talking to, made him wince. "Yes sir?"

Norman sighed before speaking, "You take care of my daughter, got it? Make sure she's never put in harms way, physically or emotionally." he added, emphasis on 'emotionally'. Ash nodded in agreement.

"Of course. I love May and would never do anything to hurt her." Excluding when he technically hurt her before this conversation during much of last week when he was being possessed of course, but that was beside the point.

"Good...and between you and me..." Norman leaned forward toward the screen and whispered, "If you make her cry or if she comes back home miserable, you'll be very very sorry, hear me?"

"Y-yes sir."

"Glad that's settled." Norman smiled, leaning back and chuckling in a good natured way. "I'm sure you'll be a good boyfriend. Or else." he added before saying goodbye to May and hanging up.

"Ready to go?" May asked, trying not to laugh at Ash's somewhat horrified expression.

"R-right. Since Brock went home to visit his family, we just need for Max to be ready to leave."

"Hey Max, time to go!" May called, turning around and spotting Max, who's hand quickly withdrew from a drawer nearby.

"Yep, let's go!" he said cheerfully as Delia was saying goodbye to Ash. May raised an eyebrow.

"What were you looking for?"

"Uh...batteries! For the Poke'nav." he said, holding it up and showing how it was low on energy.

"Alright then." May said before turning to Ash, who was examining his new jacket and cap his mother had given him. "What do you think, May?" he asked, holding it up for her to see.

She looked it over, seeing that it was similar to his current jacket, except for it having a yellow stripe. "Looks good to me. I got a new outfit too, but I'm not going to change until we get to Sinnoh."

"Can't wait to see it. I bet it looks great." Ash grinned, causing May to blush. They soon left, waving goodbye to Ash's mother before heading on their way to the next town over where they would catch the ferry to Sinnoh. As they walked, May's hand snaked into Ash's, causing both of them to blush and Max to pretend to vomit behind their backs.

Meanwhile, back home, Delia was puzzled as she searched her kitchen drawer.

"That's odd...I could of sworn I had a pair of scissors in here..."

Little did she know that her pair of large, red-handled kitchen scissors were jangling soundlessly in Max's backpack.