A/N: I'm sorry updating this fic has been so slow, but thanks so much to those who are being patient. Unfortunately, expect slow updates from now on. College is my top priority, no matter how much I would love to spend my day working on my fics. On the upside, I'm not going to college in the summer so once my spring term is over, I should have a lot of time to update. Until then, updates will be slow at best; I really should be doing homework now, but I need a break after working on it for so long. Now, enough of my rambling. I do not own Pokémon. Enjoy!

Chapter 5

I was not, in any way, shape, or form, smiling now. The grassy hill I had awoken on had abruptly given way to dry, rocky, and barren ground after very little exploring. The change of scenery dampened my mood and made me wonder yet again where I was. If this was all some sort of sick, twisted nightmare, then I wanted to wake up; now. If it was real however, then I wanted to get off this desolate rock before I snapped.

Vaguely, I wondered which would happen first. "And just think," I muttered to myself. "If I do get of this rock, I still have to back to Canalave and stay until I beat Byron." The idea was unappealing, but not so much as the look Empoleon was giving me; in fact, he was looking at me as if I had gone off the deep end. He also looked like he would laugh fi he could.

Seriously, I love my pal, but there are times I'd love to hurt him, and this was one of them. Since I can't hurt him though, I decided to do the next best thing. "Return," I ordered flatly. His protesting screeches were cut short as he was returned to his ball. I looked down at it for a moment before latching it back on to my belt. Maybe now I could have peace while I talked to myself.

For almost half an hour I traveled on, unnerved by the lack of life. There were no Pokémon anywhere, and there were certainly no people. How had I ended up here? Where was here anyway? Just as the idea of turning back popped into my head, the landscape changed again. The lifeless path I had been treading suddenly gave way to a huge, lush cliff. The grass that waved in a gentle sea breeze was emerald green; dotted here and there by flowers every color of a rainbow.

It was a nice change in scenery, but not nice enough to distract me from my new problem. There was nowhere else to go; it was just the cliff, the sea below, and the cliff wall. There was going to be no more pressing on, and climbing didn't look like an option either. "Wonderful, just wonderful." I stormed over to the edge looked down at the waves below. "Now what? Now what am I supposed to do?"

It came without warning. "Lilly." The gentle sea breeze might as well have been a frigid gale; I swore ice was travelling up my spine at what I thought was a voice. I had to be imagining things, hearing things. There was no way I had just heard someone call my name. "Lilly," came the 'voice' once more, now sounding as if it were coming from behind me.

I whirled around, and my jaw could have hit the ground. Set in the cliff wall, lined with dark green ivy was a cave entrance. I rubbed my eye, blinked rapidly, and counted to three with my eyes closed. When I opened them, the cave was still there. If I was a cartoon, this would be the moment where my eye would be twitching comically, but this was real life, and only one thing went through my mind.

Crazy; I was going crazy. I know for a fact that was not there a few minutes ago, or at least I thought I knew. Either something was wrong with me or something was wrong with this island, but to me it all boiled down to one thing; I had to get off this rock. Forget what Empoleon had said, I'd make that bird surf me off this rock no matter what it took, and if I died out at sea, it would be better than going mad.

I only made two steps back the way I had come before it happened again. "Lilly." As I froze, I suddenly recalled the same thing happening in Canalave, which resulted in me being lead to the Inn, which in turn somehow wound me up here. Logic told me if following the voice brought me trouble once, then following it a second time would only lead me into more trouble. But at the same time, if the voice brought me here, could it bring me out?

And what are my other options. I can't go anywhere else from here, and there were no other routes at my starting point. "Lilly." I jumped as the voice hit me again, now sounding as if it was coming from the cave.

"Yes? What do you want?" I asked tentatively, wondering if it could say something other than my name.

"Lilly, come." Well, that answered that question, and wasn't it such a comforting suggestion? I took a step forward, and then another until I was right at the cave entrance. It got pitch black not that far in which caused knots to form in my stomach. Don't do it, don't be dumb. Walk away, just walk away. "Lilly."

I entered and began walking, the darkness soon swallowing me up. The voice sounded again. "Yes? Who's there? Who are you?" I demanded as I picked up speed, suddenly wanting to be out of this darkness.

"I've been waiting." I was going as fast as possible now. The cave seemed to be long and narrow, and I began to feel as if I couldn't breathe. Suddenly, a dim light could be seen up ahead and I made a mad dash for it, eager to escape the suffocating darkness. I burst into the light, only to discover it was a vast cavern of sorts, with trees surrounding it, thus forming a thick, leafy canopy above. It was a beautiful sight, but it crushed my heart to see no other way to go. About that time, it happened again. "Lilly."

"WHAT?!" I exploded, all my patience gone. I looked all over for my caller, but stopped when I noticed a small, shallow, perfectly circular pool in the center of the cavern floor. "Hello?" I called, stepping forward. "Umm, sorry I yelled?"

No response; no voice.

"Hello? Who's there? Is anyone here?" kneeling at the pool's edge, I took a deep breath and looked in. my reflection stared back at me. For a moment, my reflection and I stared at each other before I stood and turned away, disgusted with myself. Really, what had I expected to see in water that would probably only come up to my knees? A person, a Pokémon?

"Lilly, you're losing it," I muttered.

"Lilly." I froze, my heart hammering immediately. The voice sounded closer than ever, and more… real. As if my feet had a mind of their own, I turned back around and looked down into the watery mirror once again. My heart moved to my throat as my lungs shut down.

I was looking at something… it just wasn't my reflection.

A/N: I know; I'm cruel to leave you with a cliffie. Anyway, thanks to:

StormRaven333: Thanks for reviewing!

StattStatt: Thanks for all the kind words; they mean a lot to me. I'm sorry a Croagunk never showed up for you. I remember it took almost an hour for one to show up for me, and I still didn't catch it! Thanks for the review!

Gejen: Thanks for the review, and I'm glad I could surprise you. Thanks again!

Gordan freeman: Thanks for the review!

Well, until next time. Later!

~Moon White Rose