Author's note: I was inspired by an OTP prompt on Person A and Person B visiting an antique store together. Of course, with Gold and Crystal, just a simple trip to an antique store can be quite eventful, no? Told from third person POV, sometimes through the eyes of the antique store shopkeeper, and can be interpreted as slightly implied ChosenShipping. Set after the HeartGold SoulSilver arc. Hope readers enjoy, please read and review!
The shop bell clangs. A girl with dark gravity-defying hair tied into pigtails and a boy with an explosive hairstyle steps in.
The young shopkeeper stares for a while before greeting them with a smile. She has to concede- they make a curious pair.
"Remind me why we're here again?" The boy with the explosive hairstyle whines the moment the girl approaches one of the racks.
"To get a gift for Professor Oak," The girl replies, not even bothering to deviate her concentration from the antique phone she was observing.
Professor Oak? The shopkeeper's ears pricks up. She wonders what connection the unusual pair currently browsing in the antique store had, with the renowned Pokemon Researcher- Professor Oak.
"Why antiques?"
"Because I think Professor Oak would appreciate its value and beauty,"
"You mean it's cos' he's old, right?"
"Gold!"
Well, they certainly didn't sound like his fans.
1. Vases.
The girl holds up a light blue vase with violet floral patterns.
"Do you think Professor Oak would like this?" Instead of asking for her companion's opinion, she merely seems to be voicing her thoughts aloud, given how said companion was trying to balance another empty vase on his billard cue.
"A vase?" The boy, Gold, chortles, catching the wobbling vase with his right hand and setting it on the table once again (the shopkeeper heaves a soft sigh of relief).
"You can get Daisy that, but not Uncle Oak. Remember how he left a vase of lilies without water for a month and only threw it out because he realised they stunk- literally?"
"That was because he told you to water them, and you forgot!"
Nevertheless, the girl places the vase back in its position and moves on.
2. Plates
"Crystal, antiques are boorrrinnnnggg!" The whining is back.
"Gold, keep quiet!" The girl now moves on to the next row- this time, an impressive cupboard of cherry-dotted china plates.
"This looks nice, but it's definitely heavy," Crystal muses. "I don't think even Explotaro could lift it, and Professor Oak probably wouldn't bear to use them-"
"Is that a challenge I hear?" Gold's namesake eyes sparkle with a sudden confident glint. Crystal catches the warning sign in his change of tone and turns to him in a hurry.
"Gold, don't you dare-" Too late. Gold plucks out a poke ball from his belt and releases it in a flash of white.
"Explotaro! Lift this cupboard!"
Crystal's request for Gold to stop falls on deaf ears as the fiery starter pokemon makes his entrance in the antique store, and proceeds to lift up the cupboard of antique plates.
"See? Explotaro can do it, no sweat!" There is a note of pride evident in Gold's voice. Said pokemon grins happily at the compliment and flexes his arms somewhat narcissistically (where he learnt that from, the shopkeeper guesses, is from his brash owner).
"Try it with one hand now!" The Typlosion obediently places his left arm behind him and raises the cupboard with his right claw- like a trophy. The shopkeeper gulps and attempts to intervene when the delicate china plates start to wobble dangerously.
"Gold! Make Explotaro put that dow-" Crystal's words are once again cut-off when Explotaro's arm strains and he starts to falter- releasing his grip on the cupboard. The wooden cupboard promptly falls as Crystal frantically steps forward to slow it's assent, right hand reaching for her belt to release Mega for help. There is a loud thump when the furniture makes contact with a ground- its doors swing open loudly and the plates rain down.
"NO!"
3. Clocks
"Hey, it's a good thing Ataro was there to help, right, Crys?" Gold is frantic in attempting to lighten the dark atmosphere now. The shopkeeper lingers nearby- just in case. After the boy's Ambipom and the girl's Meganium had managed to catch all the runaway plates with their tails and vines respectively, the latter had apologised profusely and attempted to speed up the process of choosing a gift for the Professor. The boy seems oblivious as he continues a flow of light-hearted chatter, desperately trying to make amends. The shopkeeper can tell that it is not working; the girl's crystal eyes are as hard as stone.
"Crys-"
"Maybe I should have brought Silver along instead, at least he has the patience and taste for this," Crystal sighs exasperatedly. Gold shoots her a look, an emotion almost akin to hurt prominent in his eyes.
"Hey! Are you trying to say Silver is better than me?" His tone is accusatory.
"At least he would have kept quiet!" Her voice is sharp.
"That's not true! I'll prove it to you that I am better company!" Gold turns away to sulk loudly. Crystal looks a little taken aback at his violent reaction. Her crystal eyes soften.
"Gol-"
"You've already spent most of your time with him when we were battling the Rocket Admins, so now you prefer his company more?" Gold muttered grumpily. "He should just stick to Blue and leave you to me…" He mutters. The shopkeeper edges over a little to catch his words (her curiosity is too overpowering).
The girl, on the other hand, turns bright red.
"G-Gold? Are you… jealous?" Her voice is tentative and… hopeful?
"OF COURSE I AM! HOW DO YOU THINK IT FEELS KNOWING HE GOT TO SPEND MOST OF HIS TIME WITH YOU WHEN WE WERE KICKING ROCKET ADMIN BUTT, BUT I DIDN'T?!" His shout, uncannily similar to a mini Exploud, makes the shopkeeper jump out of her skin and shocks Crystal into stuffing her fingers into her ears. Flustered, the latter steps back hastily and knocks into a table. An antique table clock tips over from the impact and Crystal's hands fumbles to catch it.
"Geez… You're so clumsy," Gold complains (The shopkeeper breaks into a series of snorts disguised as coughs at the irony). He reaches his hands out and wraps them over Crystal's smaller ones. Her face starts to turn the same shade as the cherry dots on the china plates from earlier.
"M-Miss! May I take this?!" The girl is unusually flustered as she grabs the clock from Gold's hands and half-yells at the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper blinks, a little startled, and nods. She wraps it up without asking them and hands the blushing female the package within seconds. Said female dumps a fistful of notes onto the counter surface and runs out of the store, pigtails flying. Gold trails after her and stops before the doors, looking a little disgruntled.
"Sheesh, she could have shown a better reaction." Nevertheless, there is a small spark in his namesake eyes that may or may not have to do with the girl that had just barged out of the store.
"Erm… Excuse me… Sir?"
"Huh? Who? Me?" Gold swivels his head left and right hastily to ensure that the shopkeeper is addressing him (being called 'sir' was a considerably rare happening for him after all).
"The clock she has chosen was a Tower Clock. It was said that the original owners confessed after the lady accidentally knocked it over, and the man helped her to catch it. It depicts the carvings of Ho-Oh and Lugia, along with the Three Legendary Beasts and the Three Legendary Birds." The shopkeeper has no idea why she is telling the boisterous teenager this; but seeing the duo's way of dancing around each other shyly (well, shyly on the girl's part, at least) has somewhat compelled her to step in and play matchmaker.
"They were buying it for the lady's grandfather... But they ended up deciding to keep the clock afterwards, as a memento of their feelings."
Gold's smile melds into his usual reckless grin.
"Thanks. Good to know."
(Needless to say, the clock never makes it into Professor Oak's hands.)