Push The World Away

"Green knew that he wouldn't be coming back. And without him, all Green wanted to do was push the world away."

To me, stories of Red/Green are best read when listening to the sea of Undella Town.

Might be a bit confusing, or even AU. Implied Originalshipping.

Daily Routine: Green

Viridian City was never the pinnacle of peacefulness, but after three years spent there as its gym leader, Green never seemed to mind it that much. His days were comprised of daily routines: wake up a little before noon, swearing that he'll never pull an all nighter again, drag himself into the shower, grab something to eat and watch all his trainers, who had filed into the gym in a single line as he unlocked the door with a click; glancing at him with puzzled yet respectful looks as they all said "good morning" as they walked past.

They knew that Green was never a morning person, but to be late opening every day? The challengers from afar had been told by other leaders and understood; they never got to Viridian until the late afternoon anyway. But for the trainers who lived in Viridian, they seemed it to not be fair. Yes, it's true that they usually defeated the challengers with a single pokemon, but they felt as if they didn't get enough time to train on a daily basis. So they tried to stay longer, since the gym opened later, but Green told them to leave at the normal closing time. And so they did just that.

When the last trainer had left, the leader once again locked the doors and returned to his room in the gym. The place was small, only enough for a bed, dresser and desk, but Green preferred it to his room at his house. His apartment in Viridian had been neglected for months, and since Green rarely returned to that place, empty. He had originally bought it because he had always wanted a large place for himself, but realized that it was too large to live in alone. The longer he stayed there, the more painful it got, so he eventually picked up all his belongings and moved into the gym.

Piles of books and notes sat on his desk; the small room illuminated only by the lamp on the table. Green pulled out the chair and sat down, eyes scanning the books, pen tapping against the lined paper. He didn't necessarily like to help his grandfather with his research, but still did everything to keep himself busy; to keep himself from thinking of him. Drowning himself in work was the only way Green could find peace now. After all, Green knew that he wouldn't be coming back. And without him, all Green wanted to do was push the world away.

Blinking to get the sleep out of his eyes, he flipped the page and glanced at the clock. Four-thirty AM. Had it been that late already? He put down his pen, not noticing that he had written nothing for the amount he had done that night, clicked off the light and went to bed.

The next morning was the exact same; waking up late, cursing his work, then rushing to get his gym opened before noon. And the cycle begins again, that is, until that night.

A young boy with a gold-and-black cap now stood before him, the first challenger to finally reach him in months. Green could see the spark in his eyes; the energy; the dedication to fight. The boy reminded Green that he was now just a mere shadow of his past – he couldn't remember how long it had been since he had lost his own spark.

And when they battled, Green lost. He watched as his Eevee rush towards his wounded Arcanine, and could see on the opposite side that the boy had begun helping his Typhlosion back up to its feet. He stood in shock for a moment, not believing that he had lost. How long had it been since he had been defeated this way? He recollected himself as he walked towards the victor, hands shoved in his pockets; a small smile on his face.

"Congratulations," he said, offering out a hand. "Here, take this – it's the Earth Badge." The metal piece in his palm sparkled under the light as the boy cautiously picked it up and placed it in his case, beaming widely.

"What will you do now?" Green asked the challenger. "Challenge the Elite Four?" The boy nodded with excitement and vigour. "And then I'll become the champion!"

"Champion," thought the emerald-eyed leader. "never thought I'd hear that word ever again." Flickering memories of him returned, but he pushed back those memories, smiled again and said, "Good luck." The boy grinned widely, and with a quick, yet loud "Thank You!" dashed out the door, to the pokemon center, no doubt.

Still surprised that he, and all his trainers, had been defeated, Green sent them home and closed the gym early. He skipped on his research that night, and for the first time in God-knows-how-long, went to bed early and had a good night's sleep.

The clock read seven A.M when he woke the next morning. The emerald-eyed leader did his morning routine, once again cursing himself as he did so, but for the first time in years, opened the gym on time. To his surprise, the trainers were already waiting for him to open the doors, and filed in one at a time with smiles on their faces.

For the first time in months, Green joined in on the training. That night, the gym stayed open late. The trainers all left at nine, thanking the leader for his time. Green couldn't remember the last time they had said that so sincerely.

The research on his desk was once again ignored that night as Green once again went to bed early, and for the first time since he had left, Green dreamed.

The gym opened on time again the next morning, and for the next couple of days. The trainers stayed late every one of those days, leaving each night all wondering what that last challenger had done to make Green change so much, so soon.

But it didn't last. There were suddenly days in which the gym didn't open at all. Disappointed trainers and challengers alike were often faced with a locked gym with no warnings at all. When Green was at the gym, he seemed distant. Questions of when and why the gym was closed randomly for random periods of time were ignored. They wondered if their leader even knew what he was doing.

Of course he knew what he was doing, Green thought, as he took a lengthy trip to Pallet Town. A trip that would have only taken him a couple hours took him an entire day, as he wandered through the path, stopping every so often to stare at the trees, or lie on the grass to stare at the fluffy white clouds that drifted through the sky. What was it like up there? Was he still seeing the same sky, wherever he was?

It was nearly dusk when he arrived at Pallet Town, and headed directly to his grandfather's lab. He was quickly ushered in by the professor, who sat him down and offered him a hot cup of tea. His Eevee jumped down silently from his shoulder, curling up on Green's lap, worried eyes staring up at her master.

Green's fingers curled around the cup, letting the steam gently waft over his face like a soft cloud. He stayed silent as the professor lectured him on his neglecting duties as a gym leader. His grandfather lectured him even more as Green handed him the research he had done, which, as the professor quickly flipped through the pages, had ranged from detailed notes, to fragmented sentences, to unintelligible words.

Green let the words pass through him the same way he would have if he were in this position, his eyes staring into his reflection in the tea with a look of indifference, which simply infuriated the professor, but said nothing more.

A gentle knock on the door caused the teen to look up slowly. A woman he recognized to be his mother stood by the frame, smiling warmly. Green couldn't bring himself to look at her as she stepped into the room and sat down herself. She mumbled her thanks as the professor brought her a cup and she poured herself a cup of tea from the pot that sat between the three of them on the table.

"It's been a while, hasn't it, Green?" She asked kindly. "It's been quiet here since you two have left. You should come back and visit more often." The teen glanced at her for a brief moment before returning his eyes back to his reflection. "I..." He paused, unsure if he should continue the question, already knowing the answer. "He… hasn't returned then?"

The woman smiled gently. "I know my son, he'll return someday. Maybe today; maybe tomorrow; but wherever he is now, I know he's alright."

Green shrank into his seat at her response. "I'm sorry I couldn't stop him from leaving," he said quietly. She shook her head. "No one would have been able to stop him," she laughed. "That's just how he is."

"No, you're supposed to be angry at me!" Green shouted inwardy at himself. "He's been gone for three years! You're supposed to hate me for not being able to make him stay!" But he buried his head in his hands, pushed back the chair and, with a "Please excuse me", walked out the door, Eevee jumping off his lap and trailing silently after her master. He needed to get out of there, fast.

He called on his Pidgeot to take him somewhere, anywhere. He couldn't stand Pallet town; the lecturing of his grandfather, or the gentle voice of the woman who pretended that everything was all right. He didn't want to return to Viridian City: to his big empty apartment or the gym; a place, he now remembered, he only took over because he had been defeated by him, and only took up because he had rejected the position as its leader. And now, he, as its leader, had been defeated as well... Where was he to go?

All Green wanted to do was push the world away.

The air was chilly as the wind whipped around him, tousling his already unkempt hair. It was late autumn already, but Green had never noticed. It was hard to tell the seasons in his city of evergreens, and since it never snowed, Green only really paid notice to the seasons by what the trainers and challengers wore as they entered the gym. For the last three years, Green had rarely ventured outside, that is, until now.

His hands dug deeper into the feathers around Pidgeot's neck as he leaned down into the bird's back and closed his eyes, letting his pokemon soar into the starry sky.


Neverending Winter: Red

"Alone in the cave atop Mt. Silver; on top of the world, Red watched the snow fall heavily outside. Isolated from everyone, and everything, to him, it was how he pushed the world away."