Author's Note:

This is it, gang. The FINAL CHAPTER. Right after I post this, I'm gonna navigate over to the "Manage Stories" page and change "Hybrid"'s status to "COMPLETE". I'm very excited for everyone to read this chapter. I want to know what you think! Be kind... REVIEW! (Don't rewind).

Brisenberg: Jiggly. Puff, Jigglypuff.

StarWriterWG: Expect the unexpected! No, wait... don't! Then it would be expected! Expect the expected! Do you ever read a word so many times it loses its meaning and seems ridiculous to you? Expect, expect, expect... haha. Sorry.

Dilectus: No. That was not "it". This is "it"!

This is the end. Enjoy!

~TheFrogFromHell

Chapter 22

Back at home, Misty had the strange feeling of déjà vu. She had showered, dressed, and come downstairs to speak to Mewtwo, who, now in human form, sat on the couch awaiting her.

It reminded her too much of when Ash had left nine years ago, a memory she'd rather forget. The only difference now was that Cameron had remained in Saffron City with Fin and Sabrina for the night so that Misty could have some private time with Mewtwo.

Not wanting the events of nine years ago to become a horrible, painful pattern, Misty said when she reached the bottom of the staircase, "Can we… maybe talk outside?"

Not only did they go outside, but they decided to settle in Mewtwo's favorite place—the roof. It was a beautiful evening, and Misty could see all the vibrant hues of the sunset from their perch. She and Mewtwo just sat quietly for a few minutes, admiring the deep shades of pink, magenta, and violet that streaked the sky.

Finally, knowing that what was coming was inevitable, Misty asked, "So… what did you need to talk about tonight?"

Mewtwo took a deep breath and, never one to soften the truth, answered straightforwardly, "You and I. I am… concerned about our relationship."

Misty had thought as much from their brief exchange in the woods outside Saffron, but it was still shocking to learn straight from Mewtwo that she was correct.

She nodded, deciding to let Mewtwo open the conversation.

"When I saw you with… Brock," he continued, "and those other humans today, I saw something I had been denying you, selfishly, for years."

This intrigued Misty; she had not realized that seeing her with Brock had affected Mewtwo at all. He'd seemed so… mechanical.

"Misty, you are a human. Naturally, you belong with others of your kind. Over the course of our relationship, I have kept you isolated from them. This was not my intention, but… I suppose I am still uncomfortable with other humans, and I try to avoid them when possible. It is because I am not truly human, and not wholly a pokemon anymore either. I was created to be somewhere between the two, which is a difficult… and unnatural… state to exist in."

"But… Mewtwo…" Misty protested weakly, though she knew he was right. "I love you. And I wanted to spend those years with you."

"I am still deeply in love with you also," Mewtwo said, "but, simultaneously, I realize that you have life requirements I cannot fulfill."

Misty gasped and felt tears spring to her eyes. As if I need more waterworks today, she thought sarcastically, but Mewtwo's words were true, and she had known they were for quite some time, but was only just now admitting that to herself.

"I have missed my friends," Misty admitted. "But… this isn't all about me. I would stay with you forever if I thought you'd be completely happy… but you're not, are you?"

Mewtwo's peered at her with his deep violet eyes. After pausing for a moment, he responded, "No, I am not."

Misty's tears escaped her eyes and rolled down her face.

"Although it was a sacrifice I was willing to make to be with you, I feel… trapped; uncomfortable in this form. I was never meant to manipulate my body in such a way, and, in doing so, I feel I have lost some of my identity." Looking at her sadly, he finished, "I… do not want to do this anymore."

"Mewtwo," Misty said, touching his arm gently and feeling a terrible sense of loss, yet knowing by now that honesty was always the best path. "I… understand. Well, not really; I've never been in your position, but… what happened on New Island…"

"Was never meant to happen," Mewtwo interrupted, finishing the thought.

"I can't imagine how you must have felt, all these years, being in a different body…" Misty shuddered. She had always taken it for granted that Mewtwo could shape shift at will, but she had never considered that the process might cause him such emotional and physical discomfort.

"I believe… that change must occur in order for us to find true contentment," said Mewtwo, and Misty thought she heard his tone falter. When she looked into his amethyst eyes, she saw the sunset reflected in his budding tears, and she realized that she had never before seen him cry.

"But… where will you go, if not here? What will you do now?" Misty asked. Earlier, Officer Jenny had offered Mewtwo the position of being a one-man (or one-pokemon) specialized unit in the Kanto police force, designed to detect and arrest the most dangerous of criminals, but he had been unsure whether or not he would accept the job.

"I will do what I have done for most of my life. I will wander, exploring the land and discovering new things I have not known before. But now… now I will do so with an objective."

"So, you're going to take that job?" Misty inquired.

"I believe so," Mewtwo answered, his tone growing more resolved and confident as he gazed contemplatively at the colorful horizon. "I have spent so much of my life in the shadows, but perhaps… perhaps I can be of use in the light. Perhaps I have found my purpose."

Misty remained quiet, processing his words. On one hand, they made her feel very happy for Mewtwo, but, on the other hand, it was awful to think of their relationship ending. For the last nine years, and for much of Cameron's upbringing, Mewtwo had been with Misty every day. How would she handle it when he was no longer by her side?

Turning back to Misty, Mewtwo questioned, "What about you? What will you do? Will you remain here?"

Alone, Misty thought, hearing the obvious implication in Mewtwo's inquiry.

It was a valid question; would she really be happy living in solidarity in this huge house that Ash's Elite Four earnings had bought for them fifteen years ago? Cameron would either be training with Sabrina in Saffron or, eventually, continuing with her pokemon journey, so Misty wouldn't even have her daughter's company regularly.

Then, having never thought about it before, and surprising herself with her own words, Misty answered, "No. I'm not going to stay here." An idea came to her, and, automatically, she continued, "When Ash and I got married and Cameron was born, my pokemon journey ended. I never got to finish it. I never got to catch more water pokemon, or defeat any gym leaders, or… anything. It was just over."

Mewtwo was watching her in silence, and Misty wondered what he was thinking. His blank expression made her somewhat anxious. Oh well, Misty decided, this is my life. I don't care what he thinks about this plan. It feels right, so I'm going to do it. Never mind that she hadn't even spoken to Ash and Brock, her preferred traveling companions, about this idea yet. But I have a feeling they'll feel exactly the same way I do, especially after that battle today, she thought.

"So I'm going to finish it with my friends," Misty concluded. "I want to go to a place I've never been before— like the Orange Islands, or even the Johto region! I want to become an even better, stronger trainer, so that, with my pokemon, I can protect myself from now on!"

Once again, Mewtwo did not verbally respond, so Misty was left to guess what he was thinking. He probably won't want me to go, she thought, her excitement fading a little.

Surprisingly, Mewtwo's response wasn't what she had expected.

"Perhaps that is your path," he said, "perhaps… that is your destiny."

Silent once again, the two watched as the last sliver of the sun disappeared behind the horizon and the sky gradually darkened to a deep shade of violet.

As the first of the stars made an appearance in the vast night sky, Misty said, "I love you, Mewtwo."

"And I love you," he replied.

Misty gasped as his human body began to transform; his limbs elongated, his slim hips grew into powerful haunches, and the black hair on his head shortened and lightened, becoming a fine, white fur coat.

"Goodbye, Misty," he said, "we will cross paths again… I am certain of it."

"Goodbye," Misty replied, catching a sob in the back of her throat.

Mewtwo pushed off the roof, propelling himself up into the air. Then, giving Misty one last glance, he flew quickly and gracefully towards the horizon, his white form becoming smaller and smaller until he was completely out of sight.

Always one to leave on the spur-of-the-moment, Misty thought, smiling and crying at the same time.

The last of the evening sky's violet hue gave way to the deep blackness of the night, speckled with bright, gleaming stars. Misty counted as many of them as she could before falling into a deep sleep.

…

As the last rays of the sun waned, Cameron and Fin lay in the grass behind Saffron Gym. Figuring that the morning's battle had been training enough for one day, they had spent the day catching up on some much needed sleep and healing their pokemon. Cameron's pokemon were all still resting except for Mew, who had insisted on joining her and Fin outside.

"Mew! Mew, Mew!" Cameron groaned; how could Mew have so much energy? It had a lot of nerve telling her to get up and get ready for bed.

"I'm too tired to go to bed," she complained lazily.

"You've been sleeping all day," said Fin. "You should be feeling a little more rested by now."

"Nope."

"I fought the same battle as you, and I'm feeling just fine," Mew commented in Pokemon speech, and Cameron chose to ignore it.

It wasn't actually that she was too tired to go inside; she could if she wanted to. But she was enjoying this moment, lying here in the cool, soft grass with Fin, looking up at the intricate patterns of stars in the night sky. Honestly, she was really happy that he'd been with her throughout the last twenty-four hours. They'd been some of the most challenging of her life, both mentally and physically, and he'd been a comfort to her.

And since she understood him more now, he didn't annoy her… as much.

Cameron gasped as she felt a warm touch on her palm, and she looked over to see Fin's fingers interlacing themselves with her own. Her violet eyes met his green ones for a moment, and her face flushed as she quickly looked away. She thought she heard Fin chuckle softly, and she turned a brighter shade of red.

"Cameron, Fin, look!" Mew called, pointing to the stars.

The two peered upwards and saw a white figure overhead, flying past them at an incredible speed. It was so high up that it was difficult to make out what it was, but, to Cameron and Fin, it was obvious.

"Is that…"

"Mewtwo," Cameron confirmed.

"Wow," Fin said breathlessly.

Cameron rolled her eyes.

"What?" Fin questioned innocently, "I just think your dad's really amazing!"

"Way to compliment a girl, Fin," Cameron retaliated sardonically, "'Your dad's amazing'."

To Cameron's annoyance, Fin laughed at that. "Would it be totally cheesy if I said you were even more amazing?"

Cameron blushed again, trying to appear unaffected by the comment. "Yes. Completely. Don't even try it."

"I don't know… I think I'm going to try it," Fin taunted.

"No! It's stup—"

Cameron widened her eyes in shock as Fin leaned in and captured her lips with his own. She'd never been kissed before, and she wasn't sure how to respond at first until she felt the pleasant warmth of his body and the softness of his parted lips.

Tentatively, she rested her hands on his shoulders and returned the kiss, her heart turning over in her chest. Fin was kind and undemanding, kissing her lightly and waiting for an invitation to do anything more. He must have felt her respond (or read her thoughts), for he brought his hands to her waist and gently held her to him.

Cameron relaxed a little more, allowing her lips to part and enjoying the kiss. After about a minute, she began to feel short of breath. How am I supposed to breath like this? she wondered, and she finally broke away, gasping for air.

Fin looked perplexed at first, then burst out laughing. Breath through your nose, silly, he projected teasingly.

Her face flushed, and she retaliated, Shut up! It's not like I have a lot of experience with this!

Like I do?

Well… I don't know. Cameron didn't really want to think about that now, right after their first kiss… it didn't seem right somehow.

Speaking aloud, Fin softened and said, "Well, for your first time, you were pretty good."

Right now, Cameron wished she could be like her father, hard to read, instead of turning bright red after every single one of Fin's comments. Giving up on trying to hide her blush, she said awkwardly, "Thanks."

Maybe, since I'm staying and training here, we'll have some more opportunities to practice, Cameron hoped. As punishment for crashing the party at the club the night before her birthday, Mewtwo and Misty had sentenced her to another month of training with Sabrina and Fin. But even if they hadn't made her, she'd probably have wanted to stay longer anyway.

"I hope so too," said Fin.

"Hey!" Cameron protested, and Fin laughed again.

"Like you're one to talk," he said, "you do that to me all the time!"

"Yeah… I guess I do," Cameron admitted.

They kissed again, this time deeper and longer, and Cameron had a strange feeling come over her body that she'd never experienced before. It was… different, but she decided she liked it.

When they broke the kiss, Fin said, "so… there is something I have to ask you."

"Yeah?" said Cameron. She felt a lot less uncomfortable after their second kiss.

"It's about your dad."

"God, what is it with you and my dad?" Cameron questioned exasperatedly. "And by the way, you have great timing."

"Sorry," Fin replied a little more earnestly. "It's just… I've been thinking about it all day. I can't get it off my mind."

"You're forgiven," Cameron said, smirking at him. "What is it?"

"Well, you said Mewtwo is your dad, but… today Ash said he was your dad, and honestly, you look more like him than Mewtwo. But you have psychic powers. So… I'm totally confused."

"It is confusing," Cameron admitted. "Well, I'm not positive about this— my mom said this morning that she'd tell me everything soon— but, you know, my dad can shape shift into a human, right?"

"Right," Fin confirmed.

"So… maybe he turned into Ash. Maybe that's why he and my mom… you know. She and Ash did used to be married; I thought he was my real dad until I was eight. So… I guess, in a way, Ash really is my dad. At least… partially."

"Wow," Fin said, furrowing his brow. "That's… really weird."

"Yeah."

Looking at her and shaking his head, Fin said, "let's not talk about your dad anymore. It doesn't matter who your parents are; it matters who you are. And I have to say, you're a different girl than the Cameron I met the night before your birthday." Playing with a lock of her hair, he added, "and I think I like this Cameron a lot better."

"I can tell," she replied playfully.

Cameron heard a door swing open somewhere nearby.

"Fin? Cameron? It's time to come inside."

It was Sabrina's voice.

We'd better go to bed, Fin communicated telepathically. It's getting late.

I guess so, Cameron replied, wishing she could stay out here with him all night.

"Fin?" Sabrina called again.

"Coming," Fin answered back. Giving Cameron one last quick kiss, he said, "I'm going inside. I'll see you tomorrow… for your training."

She snorted at his subtle wink and scoffed, "Whatever." But she smiled to herself and felt her heart flutter again as she followed him inside the building.

…

As he glided silently across the night sky, Mewtwo wondered if he'd made the right decision.

Relishing the familiar sensation of the chill wind whipping around him and feeling the elation he could only experience while in his pokemon form, flying high above civilization under the lustrous moon, he knew the answer. This… is my purpose, he decided as he listened for any prominent human thoughts below, my destiny. He would no longer be seen among these people as a monster lurking in the dark, but a hero— one who resides in the light.

Even if he could not entirely purge the world of wicked, selfish deeds, he could play a part in combating the same human nature that had scarred him and plagued him for so many years. He could prevent other pokemon, and even humans, from suffering the same cruel mistreatment he had suffered.

His mind returning to the conversation he'd had with Misty earlier, he thought, I was wrong about something. He'd told Misty that what had occurred on New Island should not have happened, but that was incorrect. If it hadn't been for Misty, he remembered, I never would have changed… I never would have become what I am now.

He felt regret tugging at his heels, but he continued to fly onward, hoping it would be lost in his tailwind.

His path from this point on would not be perfect; his largest concern was that Giovanni's body had never been found at Silph Co, which he knew from speaking with Officer Jenny earlier that day. Mewtwo was fairly certain that the ex Team Rocket leader was, in fact, deceased, but he knew that the woman who had assisted him had managed to escape and was still at large. But perhaps, Mewtwo thought, I will be the one to find her… to erase the legacy of Giovanni's evil once and for all.

Now with a goal in mind, Mewtwo accelerated even faster, feeling the sharp, cold wind ruffling his fur, and leaving Cerulean City— and Kanto— behind.

...

AFTERWORD:

Whew... I can't believe "Hybrid" is done. This was a BIG job, guys, and I enjoyed every moment of it. I've never written anything this long before, so this feels like a huge accomplishment. I'd like to thank all my reviewers, particularly StarWriterWG, Brisenberg, PikaMewGirl, and Dilectus for reviewing regularly. Also, thank you to everyone who favorited this story and its predecessors!

By the way, if you hadn't figured it out already, the titles of the chapters of this fic are the names of Pokemon cards, all from Base Set 1 through Gym Challenge (if you're scratching your head and saying, "huh"? then please disregard this information).

The "Monster" and "Hybrid" playlists will be posted soon, but after those, I'm done with everything related to this series...

...Sort of.

I am in the process of outlining a NEW Pokemon fic, which will probably be posted sometime within the next six months. It will have a much different feel than this trilogy. The title is still TBD, but it will take place in Johto. The main characters will be Clair and Lance (and a few other surprises, which are going to stay surprises until it is posted).

Anyway... Until next time...

~TheFrogFromHell

P.S. Ehem... review! Last chance!