From above the vast covering of cloud cover that obscured Winona from her view of the world below, she felt could be her most vulnerable. As a Gym Leader, and mentor to many of the children in the forested city that was her home, it was a relief to catch some respite in these brief moments to gather her thoughts and to feel. She preferred to do this from her vantage point so she could be away from the preying eyes of both the paparazzi and her team of trainers that helped her run her gym day to day. The last thing she needed was another story about her being unfit to be a Gym Leader doing it's rounds again.
Winona was new to her role of Gym Leader, having succeeded it from her father a couple of months prior. However, it had not been an easy transition, as there were so few female leaders, people were quick to try and discredit her, claiming that someone older, wiser, and male, would be a better candidate for the job. Doing her best to ignore this, Winona was quick to try and establish her presence as a formidable opponent. From training at all hours of the day, crushing any and all gym challenges, she felt as if she was doing quite well for herself. In her humble opinion, she was quite proud that she was able to live on in her father's legacy, defending the honour of the gym to such a high standard.
All of this though, would eventually weigh down on the flying specialist, and she found herself occasionally needing to escape from the world. To do this she would always rely on the help of her most trusted friend, her Altaria, whom she had raised from a newly hatched Swablu. The two were there for each other during all their hardships, so it was no wonder they were so closely bonded. That was how Winona found herself in this position today.
Absentmindedly stroking the cloud like feathers of her best friend, Winona's mind reeled back the events prior to her escape. She needed to deal with it before the next monthly meeting of the Gym Leaders, which would occur the following day, in order to maintain the level of professionalism to which she would hold herself during these events. After all, how would she look to the others if she couldn't compose and keep a handle of both herself and her emotions in a vital meeting? So that was how the young woman lived, at the expense of herself, believing it to be for the best. In her desire to be the best at her trade, she forgot what it was like to be human. Could she even remember the last time she laughed, or smiled genuinely? No, she couldn't.
Deep in thought, Winona didn't hear the motorised hum of a flying car growing louder until she was almost knocked of Altaria from the blaring noise of the horn. Throwing her arms up in the air in a "What do you think you're playing at?" motion, before cursing under her breath about the driver. She was too angry to get a proper look at the driver as they had sped off before she could gather her wits about her.
"Stupid flying cars!" she exclaimed to herself, "There's enough room in the sky for the both of us…"
After spending another few moments steading her breathing, making sure her anger had receded, the trainer decided it would be best for the two of them to land. Though as this was her domain, she was quite annoyed at the sheer stupidity (she believed anyway) demonstrated by the other.
"I'll take that as a sign to land, Taria, it is getting late after all", she murmured to her pokemon, before readjusting her flight goggles.
That was the last she had to say about it but she promised to herself that if she saw that car again she would be having some very stern words about flying etiquette. After all, she was a firm believer in flying being an art, to which she had mastered with elegant choreography. She believed that this mystery driver must be taught about such, just as she would instruct her students when teaching them how to battle.
Upon landing she quickly returned Altaria to her pokeball and made her way back to her home. No sooner was she in the door when her PokeNav started to ring. She huffed out a sigh, hoping to ignore the call and worry about it at a later date, she was still too riled up from the incident with the mysterious flying car. However, with one look at the caller ID she knew that it would be impossible to ignore. The Pokemon Association was calling her, and whenever they call it is always urgent. The Pokemon Association, or PA, were the most important people in a region. They are in charge of the hiring and firing of the Gym Leaders in any given region, so it was important to always be on their good sides.
Clearing her throat, she pressed the "accept call" button, before placing the device to her ear.
"Hello? Winona of Fortree speaking" the Leader spoke into the receiver, doing her best to sound as professional as possible.
"Winona, hello, Chairman Everleigh of the Pokemon Association speaking. You are on loud speaker with the other members of the board here in Lilycove. We would like to appoint you to the role of Supervisor. Your new role includes the supervision and integration of new Gym Leadesr, and to make sure all the gyms are running smoothly. Can we trust you with that?"
"I... I don't know what to say! Thank you! Of course, you can trust me!" Winona stammered, shocked at how quickly she was promoted. "But, do you think I have enough experience for the job?" she inquired, as she had only been appointed to her current rank a small time ago.
"We here believe that you show an un-paralleled dedication to your job, and your everyday life at Fortree. Your win-lose streak is practically flawless and quite frankly we couldn't think of anyone better for the job." The director spoke before continuing "Now, as you know you have the monthly gathering of the Leaders. Juan, of Sootopolis, has stepped down and has been replaced by a…"
There was a long pause here as Winona heard the shuffling of papers, before the voice of the director spoke again.
"….Ah yes, Wallace is his name. Quite a dab hand at contests if I do say so, have you seen any of his work?"
"Ah, no sir, I have not. Contests are not really my thing. I much prefer battling."
"Nevertheless, young Wallace will be attending the meeting tomorrow and I expect you to make him feel at home during this transition. That will be all for now, thank you Winona."
Before she could even utter a goodbye, she heard the sound of call being cut off in her ear. She was too elated to be annoyed at the dismissal, all of her hard work was finally paying off. If her father was still here she was sure he would be proud. Flipping her Nav shut, Winona set about making the proper arraignments for the following day. She would need to ensure that she had someone to supervise the gym, informing all challengers that she would be gone for the day and to come back in the morning. Following this she would need to make sure she is stocked up on medicinal items, given that she will have to deal with a back log of opponents. Not that she minded, of course, she did love a good challenge.
Once that was all organised and accounted for, Winona set about selecting an outfit for the meeting tomorrow. She wanted something refined and professional but would also convey to the new leader that she and the rest of her co-workers were friendly and supportive. Nothing seemed to work for her, and after several scowls of frustration, throwing items of clothing, she settled for her usual outfit for when she wasn't working or flying.
It was a simple outfit that accented her lavender hair, and the rest of her features perfectly. It was a white, long sleeved shirt with an open collar. Both of the arms were accented with a blue band on the upper arms, which she wore with white trousers and blue boots. She decided she would straighten her hair, to the best of her ability, however some of it still stood out like the wings of a bird type pokemon. There was nothing she could do about it, it was like that ever since she was a child.
It was difficult for her to resign herself to sleep that night. She kept tossing and turning, worrying about meeting the new member to the ranks of Gym Leader, if she would make a good first impression and how the others would react to her being appointed their supervisor, given some of them had much more experience. She tried not to let this deter her, but she was always combatting small doubts in her mind about her abilities in matters such as these. Putting the thoughts out of her mind, she tried to count Mareep in her head before slipping into a restless sleep.
Waking up long before her alarm Winona just knew she would look horrible today, which was just her luck she supposed. Doing her best to have a small breakfast, drinking more than she probably should of coffee, and eventually psyching herself up to get ready, Winona was soon on her way out of the door. She had quite a pair of bags under her eyes, indicators of her lack of sleep, which she did her best to cover with the minimum of make-up coverage.
"Passable…" she murmured, while applying the last of the foundation to her skin, dabbing it in gently with an applicator. Not too long later she was beginning the walk to Lilycove, opting not to fly as to not ruin her appearance by going through the moisture of the clouds. Plus, she enjoyed the occasional walk, so no harm done. She left her house in such good time, she arrived in the expansive city of Lilycove with time to spare before she was expected at the Pokemon Association building. Checking her Nav, she saw she had a half an hour before she would be considered fashionably early.
In a bid to waste time, Winona decided she would head to the beach and let her team enjoy the early morning. The city was still waking up so she had the whole beach to herself, something she was more than happy about. All she could hear was the crashing of the sea against the rocks, and the swash as it receded into the water again. This continued for a while, lulling her into a sense of calm. For Winona, the ocean was just as therapeutic as the sky was. The sounds of the crashing waves, the smell of the salt and the pinch of cold taking over her senses to the point it was all she could focus on. It helped her relax and release all the frustrations her body held onto before her meeting.
Perching herself onto a nearby rock, she watched her team stretching their wings. They seemed to be enjoying their day off, as they splashed experimentally into the water and squawking happily at their games. All to soon however Winona would have to call them back, as she would need to go. Giving both her team and herself an extra couple of minutes, she sucked in a deep breath feeling the anxiety bubble in her stomach. Shaking it away with her head, she let out one loud, sharp whistle. On this command every member of her team knew to return to her, which they did and in formation. Once they were all safely returned to their pokeballs, Winona set off to the Pokemon Association building.
The building used by the PA was a deceptively small building, in comparison to that of the department store. However, it was just the right size to house the association and their meetings. The building housed three floors, and a basement containing a library. The top floor held the office of the Director, the meeting room used by the board of the PA and the office of the Vice Director. The second floor held the meeting room used by the Gym Leaders during their monthly meetings, an emergency briefing room (should a catastrophe) occur, and a small canteen only to be used by those with access. The ground floor held the foyer, a waiting room and a larger canteen for both members and guests to use.
Once Winona had made her way back up from the city, she stopped still in her tracks. She could feel the annoyance and anger fill her from yesterday. She had spotted the car from yesterday, parked on the edge of the city. Her mystery driver was here, and she would have her chance to reprimand them.
She would have marched up to the car, had it not been drawing upon the hour for her meeting to start. Putting it out of her mind for now she entered the PA building and made her way to the second floor. This would be her fourth time coming here, once to be told she would be joining the ranks of the Gym Leaders, the other three times would be for meetings such as these. She knew her way, though even if she didn't all she would need to do it follow the booming laughter of Wattson and she would find the rest of the group.
"Hey Winona, what's up?" someone asked her, from behind. Turning around she saw that it was Brawley, followed up the stairs by her closest friend, Flannery.
"Brawley, Flannery, how are you both?" she addressed them, before capturing Flannery in a tight embrace. It felt like ages since she had seen her, plus she really needed a hug.
"I'm tired Win, I need coffee", Flannery just about managed, trying to stifle a yawn that made both Winona and Brawley yawn as well.
"Darn it Flan, look what you started!", Brawley chided her in mock horror before laughing with the other three.
Once the laughter had subsided, the three of them entered the meeting room where everyone else was already assembled. Doing a mental count in her head she noted that everyone was here. Roxanne was sitting beside Tate and Liza, with Wattson on her other side. Across the table sat Brawley and Flannery. Norman sat opposite the head of the table, which Winona was to take and that just left one other person, which Winona assumed was Wallace.
Clearing her throat, she waited for the room to silence before addressing everyone.
"Good morning everyone, I'm glad you all could make it. Don't worry, I'll try wrap this up quick so you can all get some coffee", Winona addressed the group, garnering a few chuckles around the table.
"Now onto the first matter of business." She began, before continuing, "Juan has retired, placing the gym into the hands of his protégé, which I assume must be you, Wallace?" she pointed the question to the young man sitting beside Wattson. He seemed like he was used to attention as his face didn't blush like Winona's when everyone in the room would turn to stare at him. In fact, he seemed to relish in it. His azure eyes twinkling, posture straightening.
"That would be correct, I am Wallace and I will be bringing the power of my aquatic illusions to the hallowed halls of Sootopolis Gym"
The meeting continued like this for the guts of two hours before Winona drew it to a close. She decided she didn't like the new addition, he was too sure of himself. He had a bravado that she didn't quite care for. Contest battling and gym battling are two very different things, and she believed he didn't respect the fine tradition of battling enough. Plus, she didn't like how he was able to compose himself so easily, and readily integrate into the folds when she had to fight tooth and nail to get where she was now. He made it look too easy, and she didn't like that. He continued to gel well with the group, which angered Winona more. She would only reply with curt remarks, or not at all, wishing for the group to finish their coffee so she could get away from this man.
Thankfully her wishes came true as not too long after this the group began to disperse. Perhaps Tate and Liza read her mind and knew she was wishing to leave, as they decided they would be the first to leave, teleporting away from the group. Next was Norman, mentioning something about helping a small boy catch his first pokemon. Soon it was just Winona, Wallace and Flannery. The three of them exited the building, feeling the fresh air on their skin. This refreshed Winona, as she had been cooped up too long in that building.
Wanting to keep up good composure, she made small talk with both Flannery and Wallace though she would rather be alone with her friend.
"So, how are you travelling back home?" she asked them both, hoping they would get the hint.
Flannery was the first to answer, "Well, Win, I was kind of hoping you could give me a lift back…?" as she rubbed the back of her neck and tilted her head slightly. Winona nodded, before replying,
"Of course, I can, I was hoping to see you anyway. It's been too long!" the lavender haired woman added, before turning to Wallace, "And you? How are you getting to Sootopolis? Diving?"
The two women stared at him, expecting him to tell them that he was going to surf, then dive at the entrance to Sootopolis. Instead there was a silence as he dug into his pockets, producing a set of keys.
"Well, actually, I have a flying car so it's not an... - ", Wallace replied, before being cut off by an angry Winona.
"Wait, you mean to say that that's YOUR flying car?!"