(glances around) It's 12:37 am here, so technically it's Glace's b-day by my time standards, and I may be very busy later today. So...
Hi, welcome to Glace's b-day fic! :D. I hope that she, and the rest of you, enjoy this silly little thing XP. This is a bit of a splice of the anime and game worlds, btw. This is also an entry to the General Prompt Challenge, but I'll leave the prompt word unstated for now.
Disclaimer: If I owned Pokemon, Alakazam could just teleport me to Japan!...As you can see, I'm still here.
Cross That Line!
"Life is what happens to you while you're making other plans." -Anonymous
It all started with an mindless, innocuous comment.
"You know Falkner, Scyther is the perfect Pokemon for both of us," said Bugsy, as the two Gym Leaders were hanging out in Ecruteak City.
Falkner lazily glanced over to the smaller and younger Gym Leader. "Huh? Why's that?"
Bugsy smiled. "Because it's a Bug-Flying type. I'm the Bug-type Gym Leader, and you're the Flying-type Gym Leader. So Scyther works well for the both of us."
Falkner turned away. "I don't think so."
"What?" asked Bugsy, a bit hurt. "Why not?"
"I don't use just any Flying-type Pokemon. I use Bird-type Pokemon," Falkner explained. "Scyther isn't a bird."
"So? Scyther flies just as well as any bird Pokemon," Bugsy argued. "It's even been proven by my field studies!"
"Those were just wild Pokemon," Falkner said with a tinge of condescendence. "They weren't my bird Pokemon, specially bred and trained by me and my father. My bird Pokemon can outfly any bug."
Bugsy scowled. How dare this greenhorn Gym Leader insult his type! "Well my Scyther can outfly your bird Pokemon any day!"
Falkner glared back, folding his arms. "You seriously think your bugs can beat my birds?"
"Yeah!" Bugsy declared, pointing to Falkner. "Because I challenge you to a race, right here and now!"
Falkner smirked. "Bring it on."
So that was how both Bugsy and Falkner ended up just outside the Burnt Tower, ready to race. Bugsy was on his Scyther, and Falkner was on his Pidgeot. Ghost-type Gym Leader Morty had been dragged out to judge the race. He also determined the race course: it would be an oval-shaped path, going from Route 38, to Route 39, turning east just before Olivine City to go over a large span of water, to National Park, then to Route 37 before re-entering Ecruteak City to cross the line at Burnt Tower. There would be three laps. The winner would get a free show to see the very pretty Kimono Girls and, more importantly, bragging rights. It was a beautiful day for a race, with the fresh scent of recent rain in the summer air.
"Ready, set…" Morty began, raising one hand into the air. "Go!"
Morty's Gengar shot a Shadow Ball up into the air, signaling the start of the competition.
Both Bugsy and Falkner shot off like rockets, quickly leaving Ecruteak City behind. The woody sights of Route 38 whizzed by like a movie set on fast-forward. The sheer speed Scyther soared at sent Bugsy's semi-short purple hair flying behind him and made his eyes water. Though his somewhat blurry vision he saw many Trainers on the road below, including a scarlet-haired boy in dark clothes with Pokemon mail in hand. Wait, wasn't that the kid who nearly burned down his Gym with his Quilava…?
More importantly, Falkner was pulling ahead, so Bugsy ordered Scyther to go faster. With a loud hiss Scyther obliged, and the world outside the race became a blurry mess. The air howled in his ears like one of the legendary beasts on a rampage. Bugsy flew over and past Falkner, taking the lead as they left the forest of Route 38 and entered the farmlands of Route 39.
"Thought you'd be more of a challenge than this!" Bugsy taunted with a big grin. He had to shout to even be heard over the wind.
"Please!" Falkner hollered back with a smirk. "I'm just holding back because you're a little kid! Wouldn't be honorable or fun if I crushed you outright!"
"You keep telling yourself that, birdbrain!"
Route 39 was little more than white fenceposts and gently-rolling grasslands populated by grazing Miltalk and Tauros. But that was fine with Bugsy, who wasn't here for the sights. He maneuvered his Scyther to stay in front of Falkner's Pidgeot, to make it harder for the large bird Pokemon to pass.
Olivine City came up abruptly on the horizon. Both Bugsy and Falkner had to turn east sharply and raise altitude quickly to avoid barreling into the city streets. During the turn Falkner got past Bugsy and took the lead. They zipped over a small isolated beach, where a black-haired kid with a baseball cap was fishing. He jumped and cried out when the Gym Leaders zipped overhead, startled out of his daydreams. His Pikachu jolted awake too, accidentally shocking its Trainer.
Bugsy and Falkner slowed down and ended up flying side-by-side while making their way over the ocean expanse. They were more focused on using their Pokegear to arrive at the right location than directing competing at the moment. The race would be nothing if they ended up in Goldenrod City or Ilex Forest instead of National Park.
But the reached the next shoreline soon enough, and Bugsy and Falkner immediately focused back on racing. They shot over the Pokeathlon building, and then found themselves in the flowery fields of National Park, framed by a thick circle of trees, and with a large fountain in the middle. It was a favorite place of Bugsy's, since he used to participate in the Bug-Catching Contest there all the time, but today it was just another place between him and the finish line. He shot through the park so fast, he barely noticed the green-haired boy in the waiter's outfit picking some of many blossoms.
After exiting the National Park, Bugsy and Falkner delved into the Route 37, another densely-wooded area. It was a relatively simple route, until they saw all the Pokemon gathered ahead. They were of all types and species, some of them rare, and some of them not even local to Johto. All of them spooked at Bugsy's and Falkner's sudden arrival, and both Gym Leaders were forced to weave their way around all the fleeing Pokemon. During all this there was a boy with long jade-colored hair, calling for his friends to be calm. So all these Pokemon were his…?
By the time Bugsy and Falkner finally emerged from the woods and back into Ecruteak City, they were neck-and-neck. But as they completed the first lap Falkner beat Bugsy by a beak, and the second lap started with Falkner in the lead.
Not good. I gotta catch up! thought Bugsy, emitting a growl of frustration. As they went on Route 38, he ordered his Scyther to speed up, and with an eager cry Scyther obeyed. The buzzing of its wings grew much louder, and the praying mantis Pokemon went so fast Bugsy could barely hold on. This time, Scyther stuck close to the ground and passed under Falkner's Pidgeot, before rising up again. Pidgeot then dove down to copy what Scyther just did. But Scyther went down too, and buzzed by several muddy puddles as it took the lead again. The resulting spray soaked everyone with mud, including the scarlet-haired boy who had been in the middle of writing some now-ruined mail.
Bugsy spat out some filthy water and began rubbing the muck out of his eyes. Maybe that wasn't such a good idea, Scyther… Then Bugsy glanced behind him to see a much muddier Falkner glaring at him. Bugsy turned back around and smiled. Nah, it was totally worth it.
Bugsy spent much of his time on Route 38 and 39 being chased by the ticked-off Falkner. Bugsy had fun as Scyther twisted through the air and cast Double Team decoys to make Falkner's pursuit more difficult.
"What's the matter?" Bugsy shouted back. "All that dirt weighing you down?"
Falkner smirked. "The girls like me dirty."
"Then I'll have to play dirty too," said Bugsy.
"That's what she said."
Now Bugsy was confused. "Who's she?"
But Bugsy didn't have time to think about it, because he nearly plowed into Olivine City again. He turned at a near right angle, rushed forward, and nearly shot himself into the mouth of a bellowing Gyarados. The great water serpent was thrashing about, obviously enraged.
Hastily Bugsy ordered Scyther to use Night Slash. The praying mantis Pokemon's bladed arms gave off a dark energy, and it swiftly sliced an X-pattern on the Gyarados's belly. It roared in pain, but it did not go down. Bugsy thought he was going to get eaten when Falkner's glowing Pidgeot zoomed in, nailing the Gyarados with a Sky Attack. Only then did the might water serpent fall back into the sea with a enormous splash.
"You okay?" asked Falkner, gliding over to Bugsy.
"Yeah," answered Bugsy, still a bit shell-shocked. "Thanks. I'm no coward, but I don't want to die in this race either."
"Same here."
Both Gym Leaders soon hurried off to continue their race. They didn't notice the very soaked, very angry black-haired boy with a broken fishing rod. His Pikachu was in equally sour spirits.
The race slowed down once more as Bugsy and Falkner focused on navigating over the ocean again. It was a welcome breather from the intense pace of the rest of the course. Bugsy didn't want to admit it, but his Scyther seemed to be tiring faster than Falkner's Pidgeot. Scyther was known for power and speed, not stamina. Then again, Pidgeot was the same way.
As soon as they reached National Park, the pace picked up again. As Bugsy shot through, he noticed the green-haired waiter boy from before, now boxed in by two other boys in almost identical outfits. One had bright-red hair styled like fire, while the other had blue dreadlocks. Both of them wore sly, knowing smiles. The green-haired waiter boy, who looked very surprised and flustered, was trying to hide a bouquet of flowers behind his back. He was blabbering on about appearances being deceiving, unsavory timing, chili and tress and something about pancakes. Bugsy didn't hear anything else, because Falkner whooshed by close to them as he passed Bugsy from below. The bouquet of flowers was torn apart by the fierce wind of Falkner's speed. After that Bugsy was too busy chasing after Falkner to see what else happened with the three similar-yet-different boys.
By the time Bugsy and Falkner were halfway through Route 37's forest, Bugsy was back in the lead again, though barely. While fighting to stay ahead, Bugsy raced past a girl with a pink-and-white baseball cap and a large brown ponytail, reading a textbook. A moment later Falkner rushed past her too, and the girl lost both her baseball cap and the magazine that had been tucked away in the textbook. Bugsy heard some rather foul language afterward.
"Is she that mad I interrupted her stories?" asked Bugsy.
Falkner snorted. "She wasn't studying. At least not for school. Not with that kind of magazine in her textbook, anyway."
"What do you…" Bugsy began, before it clicked. "…Oh…Never mind…"
They burst out of the woods, finished the second lap, and this time Bugsy was in the lead. But he knew he couldn't let his guard down, because Falkner wasn't far behind. Scyther was definitely wearing out faster than Pidgeot, and that worried Bugsy. At this rate, Scyther wouldn't last the final lap, much less win the race.
The Bug-type Gym Leader's fears were further realized when Falkner zoomed by Bugsy -
- And right past the scarlet-haired boy, who was now sitting high up in a tree, probably trying to avoid them. The mail he was about to stuff into an envelope and give to his little Cyndaquil got blown away.
In fact, it flew straight into Bugsy's face, briefly blinding him. In irritation Bugsy tore it away, and was about to discard it when he caught a few of the words. This is -
Bugsy glanced back to see a furious scarlet-haired kid riding on his Typhlosion after him. Scyther, now motivated by its natural fear of fire, sped up considerably. Soon it was able to both outrun the Typholsion and catch up with Falkner.
"Took you long enough," said Falkner. "You sure you don't want to just quit now?"
Bugsy was reading the mail more thoroughly, and was laughing.
Falkner appeared both puzzled and annoyed. "What's so funny? And what is that anyway?"
It took awhile for Bugsy to regain control of himself. "Take a look. It's from the mean redhead back there." He flew beside Falkner, who had slowed down, and handed him the mail.
Falkner took the mail, and began reading it aloud. "Roses are red. So is your favorite long-sleeved shirt. I've never been the one who could flirt. But will this work?" It took Falkner exactly two seconds to erupt into uncontrollable laughter. "Oh Arceus, that's the worse love poem I've ever read!"
"I know, right?" Bugsy said, also laughing. "But more than anything, I can't believe someone like that kid could-"
There was an angry roaring and growling behind them. They turned to see said scarlet-haired boy and his Typholsion quickly gaining on them. His face was a red mask of pure rage and shame, and his gray eyes radiated murderous intentions. Suddenly both Gym Leaders went much faster, with more than a race and pride on the line.
The scarlet-haired boy hunted them through the rest of Route 38, and all throughout Route 39. Bugsy and Falkner were so anxious to get away that they cut right through Olivine City, scaring many citizens. Bugsy's Scyther in particular terrified a certain orange-haired girl who a certain black-haired boy was trying to talk to. The orange-haired girl was so traumatized by the huge Bug-type Pokemon nearly hitting her that she ran away screaming. The black-haired boy stood there in a mute daze, a Pokeball wrapped up with a pink ribbon still in his hand.
Ironically, the scarlet-haired boy hadn't followed the two Gym Leaders into the city. As he reached the city limits he was greeted by a girl with a large round cap and a red long-sleeved shirt. He stopped, looked at her, hurriedly gave her the Cyndaquil, and then retreated back onto Route 39 without a word.
Once Bugsy and Falkner finally reached the sea part of the route, they slowed considerably.
"That…was scary," admitted Bugsy. His Scyther gave a wheeze of agreement.
"No kidding," answered Falkner. His Pidgeot let out a breathless chortle.
Both Gym Leaders were silent for a while, as their Pokemon flew at a Snorlax's pace. They no longer needed to use their Pokegears: they remembered the scant landmarks enough to find their own way.
"…You know, maybe a three-lap race was a bit much," Falkner said.
"Yeah," agreed Bugsy. "We should have had a shorter course at least."
More silence. Neither Pokemon nor Gym Leader seemed eager to speed up again. The quiet lasted for a few more minutes, until Pidgeot drifted too close and bumped into Scyther.
The slight nudge was enough to surprise Scyther, and in its brief confusion Bugsy nearly fell off. "Hey! You did that on purpose!"
"No I didn't," said Falkner tiredly. A moment later he tapped Pidgeot's shoulder, and Pidgeot gave Scyther a more forceful shove. "Now that I did on purpose."
Bugsy snarled. The nerve of this guy! "Oh yeah? Scyther!"
Scyther hissed and rammed Pidgeot back, causing Pidgeot to squawk. Pidgeot tried to swat Scyther with one of its wings, but Scyther dodged and bit one of Pidgeot's legs instead. Pidgeot screeched, and in its fury swiped at Scyther with its talons. The claws raked Scyther's face, so it retaliated by slashing at Pidgeot. Pidgeot evaded the swipe and flew upward, so Scyther pursued it. The fight-and-flight carried on for the rest of the ocean trip, the bug and bird Pokemon more interested in beating the crap out of each other than crossing a finish line.
By the time they reached National Park their blows had evolved from petty strikes to full-blown Pokemon moves. Scyther launched several Slash attacks, which were parried by Pidgeot's own Steel Wing attacks. Wings and scythes clanged together like swords, though Pidgeot's moves were limited by its own need to fly. Then Scyther switched to a Night Slash attack, but the Pidgeot countered with Mirror Move, which copied the Night Slash and cancelled it out. Then Pidgeot unleashed an Air Slash, which Scyther evaded, and which subsequently cut a tree branch that fell and squished the heart-shaped berry arrangement that the three waiter boys had been making. They then had to dodge more plummeting branches as the race-battle waged above.
As the fight-and-run finally left the park, a purple-haired, dark-skinned girl dashed into the park and to the green-haired waiter boy, asking if he was alright. He merely nodded, gave a weak smile, and then turned and began to walk, and then run, away. The red-haired waiter boy ran after the green-haired one, while the blue-haired one was talking crossly into his Xtransceiver.
As the Scyther and Pidgeot fought on Route 37, the battle started to ebb. It was more from lack of energy than lack of warrior spirit. Now Bugsy and Falkner began to race again, because it was the only thing their Pokemon had strength left for.
As they rushed (or tried to rush) toward Ecruteak City, two people stood in the middle of the road, hugging each other. Bugsy recognized them as the jade-haired boy and the brown-haired girl from earlier laps. They as if they were trying to kiss, but weren't quite sure how to do it.
What's with all the love confessions today? thought Bugsy in annoyance. You'd think it was Valentine's Day or something stupid like that…Freaking mushy people…
Said mushy people were denied their sappy moment when Falkner's Pidgeot drooped too low and crashed into them. It was a low-speed collision, so Bugsy knew they would be fine. More importantly, the Burnt Tower - !
Bugsy's Scyther dragged itself through the town, but there was little hurry. Falkner's Pidgeot had knocked itself out in the lovey-dovey accident, and Falkner was only now walking out of the woods. The local people, even Morty, stared at them. Bugsy wasn't surprised: they had looked like they had come back from a war, covered in mud, leaves, and scratches. It was not with a nose-to-nose struggle, but with a feeble flutter over the finish line, that Bugsy won the race. Scyther gratefully sank onto the ground, panting. Bugsy somewhat guiltily recalled Scyther into its Pokeball, telling it what an excellent job it did.
Bugsy turned to the arriving Falkner with a tired by proud grin. "See, told you Scyther was faster."
"Alright, alright, I give," Falkner answered casually, waving his hand in defeat. He smiled and held out his hand. "Great race."
Bugsy's grin grew wider, and he shook Falkner's hand. "You too." The rivalry was dissolved.
But before either could go to the Pokemon Center, they heard loud sirens. Seconds later, Officer Jenny arrived on her motorcycle.
"Both of you are under arrest!" she declared.
The Gym Leaders gaped at Officer Jenny.
"Why?" asked Bugsy in disbelief.
Officer Jenny growled. "Do you have any idea how many people have called in to complain about you? How much destruction you two have caused? Not to mention all the Pokemon and people you could have hurt!"
"We were just racing!" Falkner protested. "And we're Gym Leaders! You can't just arrest us!"
"Yeah!" added Bugsy.
"That doesn't make you above the law!" Officer Jenny shouted.
This frustrated Bugsy more than anything. The reason that Gym Leaders usually didn't get arrested was because their role in their assigned towns and cities was too important. A jailed Gym Leader created endless complication in the League, economy, and public opinion. So arrests only happened when the Gym Leader did something really bad like murder. This Jenny didn't seem to get that, though.
Then they all heard two loud cries from above. Moments later two huge dragon Pokemon, one black and one white, landed behind Officer Jenny. Even the blue-haired cop seemed shocked by their sudden appearance. Riding these dragons were the jade-haired boy and the brown-haired girl from before, each wearing an almost-friendly smile on their face as they leered at the Gym Leaders below.
Bugsy stared dumbly. Are those…legendaries? Wait, it couldn't be those legendaries, could it, the ones from Unova? And those two kids…Those couldn't be…
"Don't worry officer," said the girl, still grinning. "I'm sure that if they won't come with you, then we can have a little talk with them instead."
"Yes," said the boy, also still grinning. "We have many friends that can talk to them as well. Many, many friends, including the ones that are with us now. I believe they would like to talk to them first, actually."
Both dragons roared and howled together.
There was an incredibly painful silence. Bugsy and Falkner exchanged anxious looks.
"…Take us in officer," they both said.
IIIIII
Bugsy knew they wouldn't be in jail long. No one was really hurt after all, and soon enough the League, one of their rich Trainer friends, or even another Gym Leader would pay their bail. But being in jail was still kind of scary, even if it was a tiny local one like this. Still, he supposed he and Falkner did get a bit carried away…He knew Falkner was sulking a few cells down, glaring at anyone that got too close.
Oh well, at least there was this cute brunette in the cell next to him. She wore a shirt with a Glaceon on it, and seemed both hyper and shy at the same time. Apparently she was here because she had brought in some strange thing called Fire Emblem, and the authorities weren't sure what to make of it. But she was a nice enough girl, and also a big fan of his. In fact she had come to Johto just to meet him in person, though she hadn't expected to meet him while they were both incarcerated.
So, maybe the wait wouldn't be so bad after all…
IIIIII
Prompt word: confessions XP
So yay, I was able to include everyone! (besides OoldRival, which I just know nothing at all about). It took me awhile to think of what to do, but once I did, it came together very quickly. Did everyone understand who was who and the pairings, despite the vague descriptions? Did you expect the results? Most importantly, what do you think of it Glace?
Cya!