Hey everyone! I've been suffering from some serious writers block for the past few months, so to those of you who read my other stories, I'm very sorry, I'll get back to them asap! My writing curse was finally broken when I was replaying Pokemon Alpha Sapphire. Steven has always been my favorite champion, and the remakes did him so much justice. This is just going to be a short 2-3 chapter story. Hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or any of the characters, except for Melanie.
Melanie stared out of the office window, looking down upon the bustling streets of Rustboro. Her fingers drummed impatiently along her desk. She had long lost focus on her work, her computer screen now black after having timed out. She stole a quick glance at her Pokenav and sighed. She was already late by an hour.
"Melanie." She jumped, startled by the voice. Immediately, she straightened up and adjusted the glasses that had slid down her nose. She looked up and was met by the kind gaze of her boss.
"Oh, sir! I finished the reports on the new Pokenav application. I can-"
"Didn't you have somewhere to go today?" With a smile, she nodded. He let out a genuine, hearty laugh.
"Then what are you still doing here? Get going, and tell that boy not to be such a stranger!" She bolted up from her desk and hurried to the stairs with a laugh.
"Of course sir! Thank you!" She descended quickly through the building, waving to any fellow co-workers that happened to pass by. Once she was outside of the Devon Corporation building, she took off her glasses, putting them safely inside one of the pockets of her bag, then pulled out a small red and white sphere. As she tapped the center button, the ball grew to fit into her hand before bursting open with a flash of light. When the light faded, before her stood a large green creature. It had angular eyes hidden behind red protective covers. Two long antennae trailed from the back of its head, and a long powerful tail, tipped by three rhomboidal protrusions, lashed excitedly. It flapped its oddly shaped wings eagerly as it let out a joyful cry. Melanie laughed rubbing the side of the pokemon's head affectionately. "Hey Flygon," she cooed. "Ready to head for Mossdeep city?" To show his approval, Flygon turned, spreading his wings to allow Melanie to climb onto his back. Once she was in a secure position, Flygon kicked off of the ground, using his strong wings to get them into the air. What would usually be a trip lasting a few days was reduced to a little more than thirty minutes thanks to Flygon's skillful flying. As the island city, home to a large space station, came into view below them, Melanie tapped Flygon's side to indicate to him that they needed to land. In response, Flygon began to dive downwards. Melanie leapt from her winged creature's back while they were still a couple of feet off of the ground. She landed, stumbling slightly, and took off after returning Flygon to his pokeball with a quick thank you. Within a few minutes she arrived at her destination. It was a small house right on the edge of the city, overlooking the sea. She quickly ran her hands through her now tangled mahogany hair, then knocked on the door, but there was no answer. "Steven?" she asked, knocking again. There was still no response. "I'm coming in!" she announced, before hurriedly entering. "I'm so sorry I'm late. I had to..." She gave a small chuckle before she had the chance to go into her rushed explanation. She noticed that a young man was at the desk in the corner of the room, asleep, his head resting on his arms. He wore black pants and a white dress shirt. The first couple of buttons were undone and a red tie hung, untied, around his neck. A pair of magnification glasses rested on top of his head, and one of his hands was inches from a stone he must have been examining. She realized that he must have worked himself to the point of exhaustion with his research again. Quietly, she took his black and purple coat from the coat hanger and laid it over him like a blanket. Then, to keep it from getting damaged, carefully pushed his stone to the back of his desk. Melanie then sat in a chair on the other side of the room, resting her head in her hand. A soft smile settled on her lips as she watched his chest rise and fall rhythmically. She and Steven had been close friends since childhood, leading her to take a job under his father, and to frequently assist him with his own studies, usually over the phone or by mail. Though she didn't share his adoration for the stones he finds, she always found enjoyment in their cavern explorations and the time spent discussing his findings, though recently, they hadn't the chance to do those things. She was pulled from her thoughts as a small, blue creature flew into the room. It's stone like body was formed by two segments, resembling a ball and socket. From the small spherical portion, a single red eye stared at her. Melanie grinned. "Hey Beldum!" The pokemon let out a cheerful, metallic cry as it danced around her head. With the peaceful silence broken, Steven slowly began to stir. Noticing this, Beldum rushed to its trainer, hovering around him excitedly. His pale, steel blue eyes blinked open, still heavy with fatigue.
"Beldum?" he murmured, lifting his head. "What is it?" he questioned as he stretched. Melanie let out a soft laugh, and Steven whipped around to face her, startled.
"Why, good morning sleepyhead," she teased, getting to her feet. "You did say you wanted to see me, didn't you?" He quickly stood, running his hand through his mussed blue-grey hair, removing his glasses in the process.
"Melanie!" he exclaimed. He began to fix his disheveled clothing, buttoning his shirt and tying his tie. He was clearly flustered. Melanie laughed, and walked over to pick up the jacket that had fallen from his shoulders to the ground. "I'm so terribly sorry, I-I just-"
"I know, I know. You're a busy guy. Between your duties as champion and your research, it's no surprise you're tired." As she spoke, Melanie helped him to get the jacket on. He straightened it and adjusted the silver cuffs to his liking.
"Yes, well…" His cheeks flushed a pale pink and he looked away for a moment, clearing his throat. Generally, Steven was a very well put together person; however, occasionally she would catch him in a disorderly, and rather endearing state.
"So, what is that stone you were looking at?" Melanie asked, looking up at him with large, inquisitive green eyes. Beldum took the stone off of the desk, using the three steel claws on the end of its body, and dropped it in Steven's hand. He shook his head.
"This? This is nothing. I just thought the colors were intriguing." He held it up so Melanie could see the number of colors that flitted across its iridescent surface. His eyes lit up as he stared at the little gem. After a moment, he pulled his gaze away, resting it instead on Melanie. "This certainly isn't why I invited you here."
"Oh?" One of her eyebrows quirked. Steven gave a small smirk, and disappeared into another room momentarily. When he returned, he was holding a folded piece of of paper.
"This is why I asked you to come visit," he explained, unfolding the paper and laying it out on his desk. She realized that what he had was a map of the Hoenn region. Several small islands near Sootopolis and Pacifidlog were circled, and notes were scrawled here and there. Melanie pulled out her glasses and put them on to examine the notes more carefully. "These islands have yet to be explored thoroughly, as I'm sure you know." She nodded, knitting her brow. "After doing some research, it seems that there may be some connections to ancient times to be found on them. I've found carvings similar to those in Granite cave lining the entrances of the cave systems." Melanie nodded, removing her glasses.
"You must be thrilled Steven. Who knows what kind of stones you'll be able to find down there," she said, excited for her friend. He looked at her, an eyebrow raised. She blinked, holding his gaze for a moment. Then she sighed. "You know I can't. Your father has given me a lot of responsibility at the company, I can't just take a break whenever I please anymore." Steven rolled his eyes.
"Come on Mel, you know I can just talk to him. He'd understand," he argued. "I'm not going on this trip alone."
"Why not bring Wallace? You two are great friends, he'll have your back," Melanie suggested. Steven shook his head, then sighed.
"I don't doubt that he would, but there's no one I trust more than you. I want you to be the one that goes with me." His tone was serious and his eyes were pleading. Melanie bit her lip. She had always had a hard time saying no to him, even more so in the past couple of years. It seemed to her, that the more time she spent with him, the more she noticed his charm. She glanced at Beldum, who stared at her, wearing the same pleading look as its trainer. With a sigh and a small smile, she gave in.
"Fine, I'll go." Steven let out a pleased laugh and pulled her to him, ruffling her hair. His sudden action took Melanie by surprise, causing her to flush brightly. On an impulse, she pushed him away and grabbed Beldum. "I'm doing it for Beldum," she joked, hiding her red face behind the pokemon. It gave a few thrilled cries.
"Whatever your reason, I'm glad you're joining me." Beldum freed itself from her hug, forcing Melanie to look down to hide her face.
"What else are friends for," she mumbled. "When do we leave?" He stroked his chin for a moment as he thought.
"We should be prepared to leave the day after tomorrow," he finally decided with a small nod. "You go start preparations while I contact my father to discuss your days off." He then gave Beldum an affectionate pat. "You go help her out."
