Be advised, this is coming from MY OWN OPINION. Feel free to argue or agree, because this is my own perspective I'm writing about.
Here, in this story, I am attempting to draw the line between the two suffixes.
And this story might be useful for writing English...
Defence versus Defense: what is the difference?
"The Hoenn and Sinnoh Pokémon Leagues, in association with and sponsored by the Hoenn and Sinnoh Banking Corporation, would like to recognize the problematic situation regarding the differences in a particular circumstance of language and grammar," Elite Four and HSBC president Lucian read out his speech. "The joint courtesy of former Hoenn Champion Steven, and Sinnoh Champion Cynthia, puts in the spotlight that the two people of interest requests the undivided attention of those gathered here, of all those whom it may concern to bring their ears to the question and to allow the process to go ahead uninterrupted, what is the difference in the spellings of words defence and defense?"
The International Conference in question is where, at the Indigo Plateau, the meeting took place. Of course the conference was not a summit, but Steven and Cynthia felt the need to address the complicated situation of this kind of writing.
Months earlier... It merely started when Steven wrote a friendly letter to Cynthia regarding plans to hold their usual League Championships. However, when Steven included in his writing the words 'defence', Cynthia wrote a furious reply that it was written as 'defense'.
And so started the language battle.
Later, the letters became weapons of war.
Days later, Steven and Cynthia declared war on each other by attaching tens of points of proof that their completely separate ways of spelling was the 'right' way.
The linguistic war engaged between the two Champions waged for two months.
After the first exhausting month, Steven and Cynthia agree to terms of diplomacy and agreed to meet each other once a week in the Sinnoh Region. Often, the two Champions would stop by at Route 210 for a cup of tea, and they severely felt outplaced when each time they went they would bring an overloaded and bulging folder full of papers, each complete with many more numerous points, proofs, and opinions to support their respective theses.
Therefore, the diplomatic mission had utterly failed.
To make the matter even more serious, their works and written papers went internationally public. Newspapers began publishing articles every weekend and distributed them to every known region in the world, be it Fiore, Orre, and all the way to a world known simply as 'The Mystery Dungeon'. The TV media would scramble whatever coverage they could get about the issue live. And journalists wanted to do what they could to suggest a romantic relationship between the two.
By the time the second month was midway, they each knew that nothing was going to change, nor were their hardwired minds.
Eventually, the decision came to be that they would engage each other once more. But this time they would bring the issue into an all-out debate at Goldenrod City. Crowds came to listen to the conference, but there was no progress. In fact, during the Goldenrod Conference, the crowds mainly listened to insults rather than genuine arguments.
"I ask you, why the word 'silence' is spelled with a '-ce' and never an '-se'," Steven shouted across to Cynthia. "Likewise, Cynthia, there is no reason you should speak. So… silence!"
"Ha ha, very funny, Mr. Steven," Cynthia tried hard to hold back her anger. "I need not remind you that when it comes to a word like decision, it has its counterpart decisive, also spelt with the effective utilisation of the letters '-se'. I honestly have never met someone else whose knowledge of the English language was so mundane."
Near the end of the second month, Cynthia and Steven met each other once more. But this time, they met to agree to an honest diplomacy, and hoped for one that was much more productive than that of the previous one.
So, over a casual dinner, they agreed to privately work together to find a compromise between the two endings/suffixes.
Steven and Cynthia later arranged for the Kanto Region to grant them use of the Indigo Plateau for the International Conference, where they would be sponsored by HSBC, the primary banking corporation of the world of Pokémon.
At the Indigo Plateau, where thousands of people had gathered inside and outside of the building (those who sat outside watched the conference on multiple TV screens), the conference replied to Lucian's opening speech with a round of polite applause. Lucian nodded and welcomed the people of the night: Steven and Cynthia.
The first eye-catching moment was that, in the interest of the journalists, they were holding hands. The second eye-catching moment was that they took seats, and while it was internationally known that they were opponents, Steven and Cynthia sat in seats beside each other.
"The time has come to address the issue," Steven said into his microphone, positioned on the table. His reaction to the cheers and applause was modest, and he merely smiled.
The conference opened with Steven and Cynthia announcing how they had brought the argument to surface and what they had done for the previous two months. For the next half hour that followed, it later progressed to put Steven in the spotlight.
"For the past two months, my lovely friend Cynthia and I had argued often for our independent opinions. In the final week, when the both of us were completely tired, we decided to work together in secret to find a good balance between the two words, which is the purpose why we are all here," Steven said, and then stopping to take a drink of water.
Cynthia took the next step up by presenting a number of words she had compiled. Words like "suspense", "sense", "defiance", "lease", "suffice", were among the many. Cynthia went on explaining for thirty minutes how each word retains their independence.
Respected people like Red, Ruby, Diamond, Black, and White were among those who had gotten front seats near the stage. Although learning the details of the English language wasn't entirely in their best interest, the topic itself was at the very least thought-provoking enough to keep them awake.
After Cynthia had finished her lecture, the other MC (Lance) allowed everyone to have a half-hour intermission to refresh themselves. Steven and Cynthia, meanwhile, ordered a take-out to be delivered straight to them.
The phone call took a while.
"No way! These are Champions Steven and Cynthia ordering food from us?!" said the voice on the other end was exaggerated.
"Uh… yeah?" Steven asked with a lowered tone.
"WELL THEN YOU'VE CALLED THE RIGHT MAN!" said the voice. "Don't worry, just let me know what you want and I'll get it to you right in front of your faces!"
Steven quietly asked what Cynthia wanted, and then he placed his orders.
I just wonder how he'll get it to us 'in front of our faces, Steven thought. He'd have to go through security and not to mention catch the attention of the thousands of people outside. Plus, bringing a complete meal would catch some attention too!
Fifteen minutes later, Steven stood corrected.
A miniature parachute landed on the table in front of him, and even more puzzling was that a second parachute landed in front of Cynthia. Attached to each parachute was a heavy package wrapped in foil, though hers came with a drink of milk tea.
Cynthia was first to unwrap her package and found within the foil a tightly wrapped tortilla. She opened the tortilla to find a hot meal of grilled tomatoes and grilled carrots sprinkled with feta cheese and leaflets of salad, served with a side of potatoes and a slice of cake.
Steven unwrapped his tortilla to find a welcoming meal of pasta filled with molten cheese with oregano and mushrooms. A miniature cup of chocolate mousse accompanied the meal. As for a drink, Steven ordered the attendants at the Indigo Plateau for a cup of coffee.
"Enjoy the meal," Steven warmly said, gesturing at her food. "And don't worry about the bill. I've already paid for yours, Cynthia."
Cynthia brushed her long hair away to say something, but she held against it.
"What is it?" Steven asked, looking at Cynthia as if he knew something was wrong. "Did you change your mind about what you wanted to eat?"
"Oh, no, no…" Cynthia quickly replied before Steven could add more to his words. "It's just that I find it gallant of you to pay for my meal."
Steven felt his cheeks warm a little bit, but soon passed when he looked at the time.
"Oh! We only have ten minutes? Let's eat," he picked up his fork, and Cynthia did the same.
With the meal cleaned up and properly discarded, and Steven ordering another coffee, Lance and Lucian resumed the conference when the majority of the audience had taken their seats once more.
Steven brought up his case, as opposed to Cynthia's, which involved the spelling of words that represented similar spellings and the virtual same meaning.
By using a projection screen, Steven outlined words like "licence", "license", "offense", "offence", "practice", "practise", and his arguments of the likelihood that a pure misconception that they had the same meaning existed.
Steven would have like to continue his lecture, but he couldn't speak at all when, after he finished his argument, thousands of murmurs sparked into life in the stadium around him. The lecture lasted until the allotted time he had planned earlier was used up: half an hour.
For the final half-hour, Steven and Cynthia decided that it was time to bring out the big guns, and prepared for announcing their conclusion together.
"Therefore, friends," Cynthia began, "it is the only sense available that words ending in '-ce' and '-se' are never the same, in spite of those people who use it mindlessly. Be careful about what you are writing whether it's a story or a business letter!"
"To prove our point," Steven added, "Cynthia and I, on our one-week joint study, found that two words in particular showed similar spelling, but like most words we have mentioned before they are both written with the '-ce' and '-se' endings. But consider the following: these are words that we use frequently in our daily lives, yet when written they are entirely different in meaning!"
Now, it was Cynthia's turn to talk. "The words 'advice' and 'advise' are one of the perfect examples we can use, mainly because of the fact that they fit the image of the words we have previously used, but are different in the fact that they are said and pronounced differently. Furthermore, with that respect, the other perfect examples we can provide are the words 'device' and 'devise'. Like 'advice' and 'advise', they retain the same qualities of the previous example. Therefore, we must establish that the former with the '-ce' ending is indeed a noun, whereas the latter ending with '-se' is none other than a verb!"
"So if we apply that concept into words like 'defence' and 'defense', the one ending with '-ce' is the noun, whereas the one ending in '-se' is the verb. So if we say a word like 'defensive', it should be spelt with an 's' to be an action and never a 'c'," Cynthia added her concluding points. "Remember that a word like 'defensively', while being an adverb, is also related to the verb 'defense', spelled with an 's'. We can only presuppose that 'defence' with a 'c' is the only sense to be a noun on its own! Likewise, words like 'practice' and 'practise' have nearly identical meanings but are used in different cases. Therefore, as a past tense verb we never write 'practiced' with a 'c', but rather write 'practised' with an 's'. However, exceptions exist such as the word 'response' which is directly a noun and never ever spelt with a 'c', so how can that be?"
"Has anyone ever considered that point of view?" Steven openly challenged. "If not, I suggest you start now, because it's time people start writing the 'right' way, and that way is only bound by distinguishing what is the difference between a noun and a verb! May we as people write while free from pressures, differences, and preferences! Let us now start writing with our minds fuelled and empowered solely by intelligence and common sense!"
The entire interiors and exteriors of the Indigo Plateau erupted in cheers, screams, and applause. Other parts of the Indigo Plateau jeered at the opinions. From regular citizens, to Trainers, to present Pokémon Champions that were all accounted for.
Steven and Cynthia got up, bowed, and then looked at each other with satisfaction. Finally, the argument they brought up, and the war, could be laid to rest. Full of joy, Cynthia let it out by throwing Steven in a bone-crushing hug, which Steven hugged back.
At least now the world could understand and see there was a difference in the words.
A/N: being a Canadian who sees, uses, and writes both ways of similar/like words with'-se' and '-ce', I felt the need to write this. I also credit my math/chemistry teacher for raising the point as well. The previous content above is STRICTLY my own opinion, but it should be at the least valid.
I also think this is a topic worth reviewing.