propinquity
"she'd keep trying until she got an answer from him."
It was a large, dark hallway. Wide enough for her and Meganium to walk freely across it, yet the few lights on the walls made it seem much smaller. If it wasn't for Meganium, who with a soft push encouraged her to go on, she would have gone back. She felt intimidated, yet she wouldn't let down her companions.
And so, she walked forward, and after a while she entefred the first room. Theref stood Will, the first member of the lite Four she'll have to face. But he was no match for the bond between her and her pokemon. Nervousness faded to be replaced by joy, and soon she was hugging dearly her Meganium. Then Will instructed her to continue, promising next time he'd be stronger.
Next was Koga, a middle aged man dressed in ninja attire, who claimed an unbeatable strategy. Thankfully Ninetales' flames managed to burn through his techniques, and Lapras froze their enemies before they had a chance to shot their poison. After his defeat, he excitedly praised her skills, and thanked her for the exhilarating battle; which in return made her blush in embarrassment.
Yet Bruno proved to be far more excited than Koga about a battle. Even at disadvantage he proved to have a never-yielding fighting spirit, yet Espeon overpowered him with ease. Bruno honourably admitted his defeat, told her his wished to battle again, and encouraged her to move on.
When Karen's turn came, she felt herself falter after seeing her willpower and magnificence. With confidence, Karen invited her to battle. Casting a look at the pokeballs attached to her waist, she renewed her self-confidence, and gladly accepted. Karen was undoubfully the toughest one, with powerful tactics and equally powerful pokemon. In the end it was a battle between her Espeon and Karen's Umbreon, which she barely won after Espeon used its high speed to overpower Umbreon. With Karen's recognition of her power, she entered the final room: the Champion's room.
This time her mouth opened in awe when she entered the room. Big, strong pillars of gold at both sides of the room, walls that rose with magnificent decorations and patterns, worth of a King's palace. Marble floor, gold statues of pokemon, and a red carpet at her feet. For all she knew she could be at Heaven's doors, yet she remembered where she was and what she was there for.
The magnificent room gave her spirits a push, and she promised to give her best. Whoever the Champion was would experience the power that defeated the Elite Four and would fall in defeat.
Hurriedly, she made her way up to the stage with her Ampharos trailing shortly behind. Her excitement faded, she was astonished: the Champion was none other than Lance.
Lance, whose strength alone would have been enough to defeat Team Rocket. Whose dragon pokemon looked strong enough to lift mountains and move seas. The one Clair talked so much about, the one that made her heart beat faster in excitement. Her stomach would fill with butterflies at the sight of him, her legs would lose their strength and her head would feel so light she could swear she was floating.
She was not infatuated, but in love. Ironically, she only knew that after Lance departed. After defeating Clair from Blackthorn, she waited for three weeks his appearance in said city. Every day she would go to Dragon's Den, sit on the cold, damp wooden floor of the shrine, and wait. Yet he never came. The cave was as dark as a Houndoom's mouth, and as much scared as she was, she stayed there, waiting for a man that wouldn't come.
A man that now stood a few metres away from her. With his dazzling smile, honest eyes and righteous pose worthy of a King.
"I've been waiting for you."
'And I've been searching you', was what she wished she had the courage to say. She locked her eyes on his, mesmerized by his hazel coloured eyes. She couldn't take her eyes from his, and he didn't move or talk either. He just stood there, looking at her, and she doubted of herself.
She knew this was the last battle, yet she also knew his strength. She wouldn't stand a chance, that is, if she was brave enough to battle against him. Her promise of giving her all seemed impossible now. If only it had been someone else.
He smiled at her, tenderly. Something snapped inside of her, and she shifted her gaze to the ground. He must be thinking she was retarded, staring at him for Arceus knows how long.
"We will battle to determine who is the stronger of us. I, Lance the dragon master, accept your challenge"
There was no exit now. Anything else would disappoint him, she had to battle.
He chose Gyarados, she chose Ampharos. He irradiated confidence, she was drowning in nerves. Even with the natural advantage, her Ampharos was defeated quick enough. Feeling intimidated by the water pokemon, she failed to give good commands. She knew she wasn't doing her best, she was doing her worst.
Ninetales fell, and she looked at Lance. Arms crossed, disappoint clear in his eyes. She froze. She was failing her pokemon, Lance, and herself. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and searched inside her for strengh. She would not fail.
Then it all came down to her Espeon, and Lance's Dragonite. She smiled and commanded Espeon to attack, soon enough Dragonite fell, overpowered by Espeon's psiquic powers.
Looking at Lance's face once again, she saw him smiling. He walked to his Dragonite and after a gentle pat; he returned the pokemon to its pokeball. While she hugged dearly her Espeon, giving it words of praise and stroking its soft fur, Lance made his way to her.
"Your pokemon have responded to your strong and upstanding nature. I feel happy that I witnessed the rise of a new Champion"
And again, she couldn't help but stare at him, speechless. Lance did the same: he stared at her, barely blinking, focused on the girl's eyes. She felt the time pass by, yet she didn't care, she wanted to stay like that for as long as possible. She felt closer to Lance than ever.
The door behind her opening took her out of her daze, and Lance stepped back immediately. DJ Mary appeared running towards her, Professor Oak trailing behind.
Professor Oak complimented her bond with her pokemon, and Mary requested an interview with the new and old Champions.
Lance sighed. "I apologize, but the new Champion has a few more things to do. Lyra, could you come with me?"
Once in the other room, Lance closed its door, and sighed again.
"A bit too noisy for my liking."
Compared with the previous room, this one was as dark as a cave. Espeon by her side gave her a little push, as if saying 'its ok, go on'.
Lance, by her side, was looking at her and she felt her cheeks warm in embarrassment. After a while though, he motioned her to follow him, eventually reaching a more lighted part of the room, and a machine of sorts. Lance stared at the machine for a while, and then he smiled with a far-away look, as if remembering old times.
"It's been a long time since I last came here. Here, Champions and their courageous pokemon are commemorated for all eternity."
He was proud of her, she could tell by looking at his eyes. Minutes of silence passed, and she hoped for something to happen. She hoped for Lance to come closer to her, she wanted to know if he felt the same as her. And as time passed, she was sure he would step closer to her. Her intuition said it, his eyes said, his body said it. But then he averted his gaze, and took a step backwards.
"You need to put your pokeball's in the slots, and press with your hand on the screen."
And her world fell, crushing into tiny pieces. She felt like a wave had washed away her hopes, leaving her with disappointment and a pain in her chest. With trembling hands, she returned her Espeon back to its pokeball and did as told. She was sure she was about to cry. Eventually, the machine displayed her pokemon's images on a big screen, and with a beep it turned off.
/-0-/-0-/-0-/
The cave was dark, as always. Thankfully not dark enough to need a pokemon to light the way, yet dark places tended to nerve her. She had made the habit to come to this cave, every day, though she didn't know why yet. She just fell pulled to this place.
Eventually she reached the underground lake, in the lighter zone of the cave. As always, she admired the beauty of the lake for at least half an hour. It was hypnotising, staring at the lake and the pokemon that often appeared on the surface. Many Dratinis and the very rare Dragonairs. Today she would visit the head sage: he had given her a Dratini a long time ago, and she wanted to show him the progress they'd made. With a soft smile on her face, she made her way to the shrine.
While Lapras carried her on its back, she noticed an unusual light at the shrine. Once on wooden floor, she walked closer, and was surprised to discover the reason for the strange light: it was Silver, and his Typhlosion, training. She didn't know if she should go meet him or just go meet the head sage, but her problem got solved once Typhlosion noticed her presence and alerted its trainer. Silver, surprised at first, asked Lyra her reasons for her presence at the Dragon's Den. She told him she was there to talk to the head sage, and he looked even more surprised. Then he told her how that same person wouldn't help him on his training, and that he decided to train in the cave. She was proud of him. He had gone through a long way, and she was happy he was learning to trust his pokemon, to care for them.
Their talk was interrupted when Typhlosion alerted them that somebody was approaching. Soon, it revealed to be Clair, followed by... Lance. Clair looked happy and sprinted towards Lyra and Silver.
"See? I told you they were here."
And strangely, Clair blinked at Lance, who in return just nodded.
"Hi Lyra, and... you."
Lyra was confused, and had no idea as to what she should do. It had been a year since she last saw Lance at... the League. Her heart still hurt in disappointment when she remembered what had happened; reason enough to avoid thinking of that. She couldn't take her eyes off Lance, who was also staring at her.
"You! Where have you been all this time? Now, prepare to lose to me. I challenge you!"
Silver's words got Lance's attention, and Lance walked closer to them.
"Sorry for that, I was in a bit of a hurry back then. I always welcome challengers so, how about a double battle?"
That got Lyra's attention too, when did she got involved in all this? But she guessed her visit could wait a little, Lance was here after all, and she wanted to see if this time... something would happen. If not, she'd be crushed, but she had to try.
"Ha! So you can't beat me one-on-one, can you?"
"I believe a double battle would prove to be quite interesting. Lyra, you'll be on my side."
As soon as she heard Lance, Lyra felt like fainting from the surprise. Lance wanted to fight alongside her. This had to be what she'd been waiting for, this was her chance. Maybe Lance had reconsidered, and now he was returning her feelings?
Clair wasn't very surprised from Lance's choice. She knew him well and had seen the change in him. "Then you, boy, will be my partner."
Lyra was walking closer to Lance, when Silver grabbed her arm. "You must be kidding. The embarrassing one in the weird costume, teaming with me? No way will I battle with her. Lyra, be on my side. We'll beat Lance together!"
Lyra froze on the spot. She couldn't battle with Silver! Not when Lance wanted to fight with her. Not when her chance had finally shown up! But Lance, seeing as Lyra staid by Silver's side, sighed in defeat and declared that it was all set. Lyra couldn't feel any more disappointed. She wanted to tell Lance her true intentions, but somehow she couldn't bring herself to speak, and now it was too late. She fixed her eyes on the ground, and trembling, she pulled her arm from Silver's grasp. It was too late now for anything, and she fought to contain the tears that threatened to appear on her eyes.
Lance and Clair sent out their pokemon, and Lyra nodded at Silver. Once again, Lyra saw Lance's Gyarados and Clair's Dragonair. She sent her Lapras, and Silver his Typhlosion.
Silver focused on attacking Lance's pokemon, so she went against Clair. In a matter of seconds Clair's Dragonair fell, it was no match for Lapras' ice beam. Minutes later, Clair's Dragonite also fell down, and she noticed Silver was in trouble, his Crobat barely avoiding the flames that Lance's Charizard threw. She commanded Lapras to help Crobat, but before it could send a water pulse to Charizard, it managed to burn Crobat, causing it to faint.
Silver kept his sight to the ground, ashamed of himself. He had lost terribly against the man he'd been chasing for months! "I'm out of pokemon"
Lyra couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She'd seen his efforts at getting better, she'd seen him try to understand better his pokemon. She knew he wasn't ready to face Lance, but that was something he had to find out himself, yet it still hurt her to see his frustration.
But now, she had to focus on Clair's Kingdra and Lance's Charizard. She switched for Ampharos, and defeated both Kingdra and Charizard using discharge. When Lance released his Dragonite, she felt a deja vu. So, to spice things a little; switched again, this time for Espeon. She smiled when Lance looked surprised, and both smirked. She had wanted to team with Lance, but she had to do what she could with what she had. Eventually she won, very few pokemon were a match for her Espeon, and Dragonite surely wasn't.
Lance smiled brightly, as if he had won. "Did you see that, Clair?"
"Yes, I did." Clair was smiling brightly too, both her and Lance looking at Lyra.
Now Lance looked at Silver. "Going solo is one way to aim for the top, but that's not all there is to pokemon battles. See you, Lyra and Silver, another time!"
"See you too around, Lyra, and wise boy."
And with that, both dragon tamers walked away. Lyra walked to Silver, and patted his back trying to comfort him.
"Just keep going, try harder. Don't let a little set back discourage you. I've seen you change, and I know that you can become much stronger."
"I've done everything I could. I wanted to prove myself but after all this time I'm not any closer! How can you say that?"
"Stick to your dreams. Don't give up. Do your best and when that doesn't work, you keep trying. Well, that's what I believe, I hope you can trust me, Silver."
"I wanted to fight with Lance. When he said he wanted to team with me, I swear I was about to faint. It was my chance to get closer to him, and see if he feels... what I feel for him. But he ended teaming with Clair and I lost my chance. But even now... I won't give up. I'll try again... Silver, promise me you'll keep trying."
When the other teen said nothing, Lyra put her hands on his shoulders, and looked straight at his eyes. "What do you say?"
"...Ok. I promise I'll... keep trying."
"Now that's how I like it. Then Silver, off you go. See you around!"
She flashed him a last smile, and walked away. Somehow, giving Silver advice encouraged her to keep trying, until she got an answer from Lance.
"Let's go visit the sage, Lapras."
/-0-/-0-/-0-/
Today, she was trying again. It was hard for her to make her mind, it's always easier to step aside rather than taking action. But she promised herself she wouldn't back away from any situation, and she would keep that promise. With a last look at the building in front of her, and at the beautiful flowers at both sides of the road, she entered the League Headquarters.
There wasn't need for her pokemon to be healed, they were strong and healthy, and crossing the cave had been a park walk for them. Eventually, she stood outside the same hallway she had crossed two years before, when she took the League challenge for the first time. The first step is always the hardest, and Lyra hesitated. Something felt wrong.
She felt insecure, overwhelmed by the possibilities. She almost jumped when her pokegear started to sound, she had a call. Without checking the I.D of the caller, she answered hurriedly.
"Lyra."
It was Silver. Last time she'd seen him, he was training at Dragon's Den. He'd made a wonderful improvement.
"Good morning Silver."
Somehow she was happy for the interruption, she was glad for having something else to focus on.
"Thanks."
What was he talking about? The last time she saw him was about... seven months ago.
"That time when we battled with Lance and Clair, what you said to me... it's been my motivation. Thanks."
"Oh, Silver, there's nothing you need to thank me for. You-"
"Stop. I also want to give you a little advice in return: don't be afraid because it might go wrong, be afraid that you may end up doing nothing about. Now, I must go. See you around."
And the communication went off. She was speechless. Silver's words, he was right. Nothing good would come out of doing nothing. But how did he...? And she spun around, something told her that he might be closer than what she thought. She checked the hall, and found him at the main door, leaving the building.
"I won't disappoint you, Silver."
With that, she entered the hallway, ready to face anything that came in her way.
This time, she noticed how Will had gotten stronger. Yet so had she, and Will soon found himself losing.
Koga was deadly as ever, but she didn't falter.
Bruno was fierce, but her bond stronger.
Karen was the last, and the strongest of them, but no trick of hers would beat Lyra.
And once again, she was at the golden room. She realized that it didn't matter how many times she went there, she wouldn't get used to the beauty of the room. Nor the beauty and elegance of its owner.
She realized that Lance was waiting, so she hurried to the stage, eager to see him again. Mesmerized by his beauty, she stopped her advance once she entered the stage. None of them attempted to start a talk, they were too busy staring at each other. After what seemed like hours, Lance broke the stare and cleared his throat.
"Welcome back, Lyra. Let's start, shall we?"
"Sure, Lance."
This time, Lance was surely stronger. He had also changed his team, but this time she would surely give her best. Both had a different strategy, and half an hour later the battle neared its end. It went down to Lance's Dragonite, and Lyra's Espeon. Lance laughted when he realized the irony of the situation, and Lyra couldn't help but smile as well.
Now it was the third time that Espeon beat him.
"Good battle, Lyra."
If that smile of his didn't dazzle her, she may have come up with a good answer.
"Thanks Lance, the same for you."
But she loved that smile of his. She'd rather stay speechless in front of him, embarrassing herself, but with his smile to look at.
And again, D.J Mary and Professor Oak entered the room, disappointed for missing the battle. The professor praised her work, her bond and her trust in pokemon; while Mary asked Lance some questions for her interview.
"I'm sorry but there's some things needed to be done still."
This time, for Lance's surprise, it was Lyra the one who spoke. She didn't want to sound rude, but she needed to be alone with Lance. It was now or never, and she'd rather have it now. Oak smiled, proud of her, and convinced Mary to leave for now; Lyra could always go to Goldenrod for an interview. Before going though, Oak winked at her.
This left Lyra speechless again. He couldn't mean anything else but... yet, how? How could he possibly know? The only other person that knew was Silver, and not even he knew the extent of her feelings. The last time she'd seen Oak had been when she first defeated Lance.
"Then, as you said Lyra, there are things to be done."
She could feel her cheeks getting red from the embarrassment; she must have looked funny while staring into empty space.
Both trainers proceeded to enter the next room, and when Lance closed the door, she got nervous all of the sudden. This is it, the moment of the truth. The only problem, tiny problem; was that she had no idea of what to do, or what to wait for. The goal was to get there, and curiously enough, she never gave much thought to what could happen once in there. And as they approached the recording machine, panic arose. What to do?
Lance stopped his tracks, and focused his eyes on hers. She stopped in front of him; barely one step from his tall, lean body. One could say that and eye is just an eye, but for Lyra, Lance's eyes are the most precious jewels she's ever come across with. Eyes are the doors to the soul, the windows to one's emotions. She could look at his eyes for a whole day and still want more time. The joy of being with Lance was worth all the worries, all the insecurities.
Somehow, she felt this was their most intimate moment; and somehow... she expected him to do something. She didn't want last time to repeat, she didn't want to leave with a broken heart again.
Then she realized that maybe it was up to her to do something. Maybe she shouldn't wait for this to happen, but to make them happen. She was unsure, but if she didn't act it all may end in nothing. That would devastate her. If this failed she was left with nothing. But what could she do? Blurt out her feelings? Ask him for his? She'd never gone through this before, so she was helpless in the matter.
In the midst of her worries, she noticed Lance raising his hand; he was going to touch her face. Yet, he stopped when his hand was only millimetres away. The man lowered his gaze, as in trouble. This did nothing but confuse Lyra even more, but the girl held Lance's hand with one of her own and moved it, softly, to her face. She closed her eyes in delight and leaned towards the touch.
She opened her eyes, she'd made a decision.
"Lance, I like you"
"Lyra..."
"To me, nothing else matters. I like you."
She slowly closed the distance between them and embraced him. She buried her face on his chest, enjoying his body's warmth. She sensed Lance tense his muscles and unwilling to miss her chance, she tighted a bit her hold on him: she wouldn't let go. Lyra didn't know how much time had passed; but when Lance relaxed and, with a sigh, embraced her back, she felt in peace.
"I like you too."
- End.
A.N.: Once in a millennia I gather enough will to write something. Usually I leave it at the middle, unable to continue or losing interest, but here we are. I know it's not good or anything but it feels good. :D. I hope that whoever reads this likes it :) Thanks to Hikari Urania and Aly-lei. Without knowing, you two girls encouraged me to write AND FINISH this. May I dedicate this piece of garbage to you two?
People! Go read Hikari Urania and Aly-lei's fanfics. They're awesome.
Also, that random Oak thing... I don't know what I was high on. Just wanted to give it a twist (along with the Espeon vs Dragonite thing. Little twists that make us happy?)
Pleaase, if you find any mistakes (as I know there are) just tell me, I'll appreciate that and any constructive critisism.
Thanks for reading, Kaori.