What I'm Dreaming Of
A Tale of Hilda and Cheren
A BLISTERING GALE rattled the windows of Hilda's attic room, tearing her away from sleep. Her head shot up from her pillow to get a better look at her surroundings, trying to pinpoint the sound. The entire room was bathed in a pale, gray light. Strange. The dawn had passed nearly an hour ago. Instead of sunlight and winter songbirds, her room was filled with a cold, dim nothing. The sound of a raging, whistling wind sent a shiver down her spine, and the thirteen-year-old retreated into her blankets. Head beneath the covers, she fumbled around her nightstand for the television remote. If the weather was this bad, there was a very, very good chance that school would be delayed, and that she'd have an excuse to sleep into oblivion.
"Good morning, Unova!" a cheery voice called from the screen. "Once again, today's top story is the aggressive winter storm that has taken the region by the toe. Even fairly warm places in southern Unova are experiencing heavy winds, slush, and snow. Businesses and schools all across the region are being closed. For a list of closings, let's go to Jun."
"Thank you, Stacey," a new voice began. Hilda felt her heart begin to race despite her drowsiness. There hadn't been a school closing in Nuvema since she was a kindergartener. "School districts affected by the closing include Striaton, Castelia North, Castelia South, Undella, Nimbasa East, Nimbasa West, Nacrene, Accumula, Nuvema Academy..."
She felt a surge of elation, followed by an overwhelming urge to fall back into the throes of sleep. No, that was something that needed to be resisted. The opportunity to skip school without being considered a delinquent was not one to be wasted. Before sleep could take her, she pushed herself out of bed and fumbled around in the darkness for a set of warm clothes. Once Hilda pulled herself into a pair of jeans and threw a sweatshirt over her shoulders, she ran downstairs and put on a jacket, mumbling a quick farewell to her mother as she stumbled out the door and into the cold, gray, winter morning.
Her boots crunching in the snow, she jogged down the street to meet her best friend, Bianca. It hadn't taken her long to travel the pleasant, house-lined street to her friend's, but her hair was already filled with snowflakes, and her nose was already cherry red. Bianca's father ushered her in quickly, not wanting the thin, lanky thirteen year old to freeze through in the cold. He motioned her to the kitchen, where Hilda saw the last person she wanted to see that day.
Cheren Balakov. Bianca's other best friend. Though they had once been good friends themselves, this changed once middle school started. They naturally grew apart, but they never grew into other groups. Other children hated Hilda's abrasiveness, while Cheren was disliked for being a know-it-all. Hilda sympathized with her classmates, feeling the cold stare of his eyes as she entered Bianca's kitchen.
On the other hand, Bianca looked as cheery as ever, smiling at her friend as she clutched a cup of hot cocoa in her hands. Unlike her two friends, everyone liked Bianca, especially the boys. She was sunny and helpful, and she made the turnaround from little girl to young woman before Hilda could say the words "training bra." Bianca set her cup down to hug her friend. "Oh, Hilda! I didn't think you'd be up so early."
"I suppose hell has frozen over along with Unova," Cheren snarked, his little black eyes still glaring at Hilda.
"Oh damnit, it's too early to deal with you right now," she grumbled, turning to Bianca and ignoring him. "So what are you doing today- apart from eating breakfast with shorty over here?"
Cheren interrupted. "For your information, Bianca and I have had plans to go Pokémon watching for over a week now, until it snowed of course."
"What's stopping you Cheren?" Hilda quipped. His mere presence irritated her. "I thought you were such a poke-freak that a little snow couldn't stop you." He remained unflustered by his tone. He kept his voice and his demeanor cool.
"It's not the snow it's-"
"It's my dad," Bianca finished. Hilda immediately felt hot with embarrassment as she realized what had happened. Though he had always been protective of Bianca, her father was growing more strict as the years went on. "They keep saying on the news that the blizzard is going to get worse, so he doesn't want me going out and getting caught in it. He's really worried about it."
"It would be different if we were staying near town, but we had other plans," Cheren explained. "There's a pod of Wailord making their winter trip south, but the only place to get a clear view of them is on Route 17. Her dad is right to be worried. It would take us too long to get over there and back before the weather breaks."
The disappointed look on Bianca's face told her all she needed to know. As much as Hilda hated Cheren, if Bianca wanted to have fun with him, she wouldn't say no. However, unlike Cheren, she had little respect for authority. She wasn't about to let her friend's good time be spoiled by something as trivial as a doting father. She bit her lip and began to think aloud.
"The weather can't get that bad. Besides, if you two want to be Pokémon trainers some day, you'll need to learn how to survive in all kinds of weather conditions. If we start getting ready now, we can be there and back before three."
"That's crazy, Hilda," Cheren objected. "If the weather does get bad, then what'll we do?"
"Don't tell me you're scared of a few flurries Cheren," Hilda teased. He pouted, unamused. She turned to Bianca instead. "C'mon Bianca, it'll be fine. I know how much you want to see the Wailords, and we can be home before your dad even notices." Unsure of whom to listen to, Bianca's eyes darted between the stoic Cheren and the grinning Hilda. After a protracted silence, she made up her mind.
"We shouldn't waste this day," she decided. "It'll be fine Cheren. Let's go on an adventure"
Cheren put his palm on his forehead and sighed. "So how are we going to pull this off Hilda?"
"Simple," she began. "My dad has a boat he uses for fishing stored away in the backyard. We can walk it up Route 1 and through the gatehouse to the landing. From there, we can paddle out a little bit and get a clear view of the Pokémon. We watch them pass, then go home, drink cocoa, and no one is the wiser." She turned to Bianca. "Just tell your dad that you're going with us to Route 1 to build snowmen or something, and be sure to promise him you'll come home if the weather gets bad."
"You want her to lie to her dad?" Cheren asked, his eyes narrowing.
"It's not like I haven't done it before..." Bianca admitted.
"And we will build a snowman on Route 1, so it isn't completely lying..." Hilda added.
Cheren let out another heavy sigh. "Why do I hang out with you girls...?"
Bianca grinned and wrapped her arms around Cheren. "Because we are cute and adventurous!" His pale face ran red. Looking for any opportunity to make him squirm, Hilda hugged the both of them. Cheren looked like a scarlet balloon ready to pop.
Hilda shivered a bit as she stood behind a shed in her backyard. It was half past noon, and Bianca and Cheren should have been there by now. She felt useless as she stood there idly, and each second without her companions felt as if someone were pricking her with a needle. This is exactly what she wanted to avoid that day - wasting time. Sighing, she looked up at the rack which secured her father's fishing boats to the garage. Hilda decided that she wouldn't need help pulling one down and began to tug at the largest boat. Losing her grip on the iced over front end, it slipped and fell into the snow at her feet, causing the back end to slam into the shed with a deafening roar. Swiftly, she tried to steady the vibrating metal before the sound drew the attention of her mother, or worse her dad.
"Smooth move," a voice like ashes called out to her. Slowly, Cheren trudged towards the snow towards Hilda. He was alone, accompanied only by a self-congratulating smile and an arrogant glare.
"Where's Bianca?" Hilda demanded, pulling the back end of the boat away from the shed. "Her father grounded her for the day," he replied, leaning against the corner of the shed. "The moment you walked through his door, he knew that there would be trouble today. That is your middle name after all."
"My middle name is Snowe you sneaky little bastard," she mumbled, avoiding his gaze as she flipped over the boat, checking it to be sure there was no lasting damage from dropping it and banging it around. "So why are you here? I don't want to hang out with you."
"I didn't think you'd pass up a day of adventure, even if you had to deal with me."
"Yeah, you know I'm not really interested in Pokémon-watching. I was only going because Bianca wanted to." Cheren continued to stare at her. Hilda felt the back of her neck grow warm. "Why the hell are you still here?"
"Because I didn't think you'd chicken out," he answered. The heat moved from Hilda's neck to her face.
"I'm not a chicken."
"That must be it," he continued. "Hilda's afraid of a little snowstorm and some water, but that's okay. I'll always be around to be Bianca's exciting friend."
Hilda glared at him, then pulled one end of the boat up.
"Take the other side," she ordered. "We're going."
Cheren complied, picking up his end with gusto. The teenagers made a b-line for the alleyway which would lead to the woods surrounding Nuvema Town. However, just as they reached the street, Hilda stopped, told Cheren she'd be right back, then ran back to her house. Her mother was in the kitchen, cleaning out the fridge, tossing out leftovers and scrubbing away stains. Hilda crept right past and ran up the stairs to her parent's bedroom. On her mother's nightstand sat a small bowl, the inside containing six white premier balls. Hilda rifled through them, then clutched a single one in her hand, one marked with a simple raindrop on the bottom. She shoved it into the pocket of her jacket before heading back out to Cheren.
The first sign that this journey would be more difficult than imagined was the water. Getting the boat into the ocean was no easy task. The wind had picked up, causing the waves to rise and fall ferociously. By some stroke of luck, Cheren and Hilda managed to get in and push off, staying close to sandbars as to not get swept into the sea. The salty sea occasionally found its way into the boat, soaking the youths' feet. All the while, Cheren kept the same expression of conceit plastered across his face. He dared her to do this, and that challenge pushed every second thought out of Hilda's mind. She was the adventurous friend, and he wouldn't take that away from her just because he had dreams of becoming the Champion. Hilda didn't need to like Pokémon to be stronger and braver than him because she actually had the nerve that he so sorely lacked in her opinion.
The boat came ashore on what seemed to be the final sandbar before a great stretch of sea. The two got off, then pulled the boat from the water, surveying their surroundings.
"I don't think we can make it," Cheren remarked, sticking his oar into the sand. Hilda's eyes flashed over the waves, then settled on an island obscured by the snowfall.
"That's the perfect place to look at the Wailords from," she said, pointing in the island's direction. "The wind is dying down. It'll be a breeze to get over there."
"Are you sure about that?" Cheren asked. For the first time that day, he showed an emotion other than sheer confidence. He bit his lip, unsure if he could trust the girl's words.
"Why? You chicken?"
It was her turn to do the daring. Abruptly, he pulled the oar from the sand and got back into the boat.
"Let's go," he mumbled. "They'll be here soon."
They kept on paddling, even though the sea fought them more savagely than ever before. The wind blew harder, and the snow fell faster, compelling the ocean to grow more turbulent the farther from shore they got. At one point, the water swallowed Cheren's oar, floating it just out of reach of the boy. Finally, Hilda's strength drained from her, replaced by an intense fear. What had she gotten herself into? Why did she let him bait her like that? Desprate to regain control, she reached her own oar out to Cheren's, trying to pull it from the waves. A gust throttled the boat, pushing her out. She fell to the sea, and it encompassed her in a cold embrace. She sunk, tossed beneath the waves, grasping desperately for her pockets. In the boat, Cheren called her name, scanning the white-tops for any sign of the girl. Another gust made short work of the boat, capsizing it. Cheren joined her in the water. Hilda, who had drifted far from him, got her hand around the Poké Ball in her pocket. A flash of light lit the dark sea, and she felt something rough slide against her hand. She took a hold of it and felt herself shoot towards the surface.
They met with the cold air, and Hilda found herself on the back of her mother's Carracosta, bobbing atop the waves. She found their boat tipped, Cheren missing. She called out for him, but there was no reply. Swiftly, she put her hand on Carracosta's neck as if to command him, but soon realized that she didn't know what to do. Before she could find that command, the Pokémon dove beneath the water again, searching for her lost companion. He quickly found Cheren struggling, nearly out of air. Carracosta grabbed Cheren's jacket in his jaws and swam upwards once more. Once they reached the surface, Hilda pulled Cheren onto its shell.
"Where did this Pokémon come from?" he asked breathlessly.
"I-I took him before I left," she replied, trying to fill her own lungs. "He's my mom's. Just in case."
"Good thinking," he breathed, trying to sit up. The two decided to remain silent as the Pokémon ferried them towards the nearby island. Talking would only wear them out further. When the Pokémon pulled itself onto the sand and let the weary companions off, Cheren pulled out his cell phone, doing his best to urge it to turn on.
"It's dead," he muttered. He began to shiver, his clothes soaking him to the bone. Hilda echoed the action, but was too weary to reply. Instead, she looked at her feet, admonishing herself for getting them into this situation. Cheren, on the other hand, thought aloud, "We'll have to start a fire and warm up before we go back out there. Carracosta don't do well in the cold, so he'll need to take a rest before we have him ferry us back."
Silently, Hilda reacted, puling the premier ball out and recalling the Pokémon. Cheren began to head towards the trees that bordered the beach. He stopped and turned, waiting for Hilda. She looked out to the ocean, back towards home, before silently following his lead.
Less than an hour later, Cheren had a makeshift campsite set up. If Hilda admired one thing about Cheren, it was his encyclopedic knowledge of survival. Whether he would grow to be strong enough to handle it on his own was another question, but he surely knew in his head how to cake care of himself. It was natural; he wanted to be a Pokémon trainer since he was a boy. He'd been reading about it since he could pick up a book. Hilda was glad for it as she watched him stoke a freshly made fire, lit by nothing but a little manpower and two dry sticks. Cheren's waterproof jacket had already dried beside the fire, and he tossed it over to the shivering girl. She pulled her damp jacket off, then slipped his over her shoulders before finding a seat on a relatively dry log.
"Nice fire," she mumbled. "Wanna make some smores while we're at it?" This was clearly not the right thing to say. Cheren stopped admiring his own fire and turned to Hilda, his brow contorted with frustration.
"Damnit, Hilda," he began, his voice tense. Hilda wondered if he even could yell. "Why do you constantly feel the need to push my buttons? You know, if it wasn't for your recklessness, we wouldn't be stranded on this island." He said the last part matter-of-factly, the one tone that could drive Hilda up the wall.
"My recklessness?" she countered, her voice much more thunderous than his. "You're the one who egged me on! You pressed my buttons in the first place! How mature is that?"
"About as much as teenage girl who is so insecure that she needs to hog the attention of her best friend," he replied, his voice still remaining level. "Besides, I wanted to see the Pokémon. It's not my fault you're too bullheaded and immature to get a simple task done."
"You- you tricked me into coming here so you could look at some damn fish!" she roared. "I'm tired and I'm freezing and I'm hungry all because of you!"
"Sorry, it takes two to tango," he said. "So stop being so antagonistic towards me. It does nothing right now but drive us apart, and at home it really hurts Bianca's feelings. Just stop, Hilda." Boy she felt like a fool. She realized it when she looked out at the ocean. If Bianca had been there, she would have put her best friend in danger. Hilda and Cheren could have frozen out there for all she cared, but Bianca was a ray of sunshine to both of them. How could she continue to be so stupid? Cheren, despite what her gut told her, was right. She needed to grow up and let her enmity for Cheren go, both to get through this sorry situation and for Bianca.
Hilda stopped yelling. "You're kind of right, but you're going to have to mature up a little bit too if you're going to run around with Pokémon for the rest of his life." This was the best Cheren was going to get. Thinking himself the better man, he accepted this casual apology.
"I don't just want to go on a journey with Pokémon. I want to become the champion," he replied quietly. "I want to become stronger - stronger than anyone else out there."
"That's a lofty goal," Hilda remarked. "Lots of kids want to become the champion."
"I'm not a kid anymore." Cheren threw a branch into the fire, sending an eruption of embers into the air. "In just two years I'll be able to graduate early and get my license. Then I'll leave Nuvema Town and make a name for myself." Slowly, he turned his gaze from the fire to her. The flames danced across the lenses of his glasses, hiding the cold glare behind them. "And what about you, Hilda? Do you give any thought to your future?"
"Not really," she answered, still doing her damnedest to suppress her shivering. "I'm thirteen. I'm not planning on rushing out of school like you. There's still plenty of time to decide what I'm going to do."
"I always just assumed you'd be a trainer like your mom," Cheren remarked, breaking his gaze. He took a seat on the bare patch of earth beside her and crossed his legs. "I'm sure you know she was an all-star. She even travelled with Champion Alder when they got their start."
"That's her career, not mine." Hilda shied away from him, pulling his jacket closer to her chest. "Besides, I don't know anything about Pokémon, and even if I started now, I doubt I'd be good at it." She took a deep breath. "I'm not good at anything."
Cheren went quiet for a moment, allowing the cracking fire to fill the silence. He had little to say. In one way, she was right. He had known her to be a jack-of-all-trades, yet a master of none. Since they were toddlers, he had seen her excel whenever she put her mind to something and fail when disinterest got the best of her. Maybe she just needed encouragement. The silence had to be filled with something more than embers. He cleared his throat, composing himself.
"Well, once again, you're flat out wrong," he replied, turning away in case she decided to slap him for his remark. "You seem to connect with Pokémon on an instinctual level. For example, even though you've never commanded a Pokémon before, your mom's Carracosta knew exactly what you wanted it to do, and he protected you even though you aren't his master. And it's not just that. I've seen you feeding Swanna during lunch at school. Even when they know they won't be fed, they still come to you. I'm actually jealous. It will probably take me years before I can make a single Pokémon trust me implicitly. You can do it in moments. It's a natural gift."
She looked over at Cheren. His face was blank in the firelight, as if he didn't want to give her the satisfaction of knowing that he could be anything more than calculating. Cheren was good at hiding it, but Hilda knew better. He wouldn't have complimented her unless he knew it to be true. Slowly, she stood up and stepped towards him, her shoes crunching in the snow. Before he knew it, Hilda dropped down beside him and took his arms up in a bear hug. Cheren's cheeks burned with the same fierce red of the fire.
"Thank you," she mumbled, "for being nice for once."
"Well, we might die out here if we don't get help," he deflected, trying to shy away from her. Her grip refused to relent. Cheren's voice became swift and tight. "It's not a big deal anyway. I'm just being honest. I think you'd make a great-"
A low howl, like a mournful cry, fluttered across their island, through the trees, and into their campsite. Hilda let go of Cheren, her ears enamored by the mysterious sound. It sent a ray of warmth into her chest which was quickly chilled by mystery. The sound of it caused Cheren to stand. His eyes glistened; he recognized that sound.
"Wailord," he said, his lips tightening into a smile. Hilda mimicked the action and stood. The hollow cry echoed across the island again, and before it could dissipate she grabbed Cheren by the wrist and began to pull him towards the sea. Together, they fought the trees and snow in their way before reaching the sand and the sea just beyond.
It looked as if someone had taken a string of holiday lights and floated them out on the sea. The enormous round outlines of Wailord and Wailmer were surrounded by the yellow glow of a group of Chinchou and the red points of a school of Staryu. The lights flickered in and out as the waves rose and fell. To Hilda and Cheren, it seemed as if the night sky had fallen amongst the sea. Occasionally, a Wailord would spray its brine into the snowy air, letting the frozen mist fall back onto the waters. As she watched the school of Pokémon travel, filling the ocean all the way out to the horizon, she felt very small. Yet, this did not bother her. No, for the first time, she felt as if she were in the right place, and though she was small, she was an essential part of what was going on around her, for it wouldn't be the same without her or Cheren to see it. Her gaze darted over to him. His face was so unlike the Cheren she knew from school, or even the Cheren that just tried to comfort her. His mouth was wrenched open, teeth bared, by an ecstatic smile, one that they together shared on that cold winter night.
Though the pod only took a quarter-hour tops to disappear beyond their sight, the two felt was if they had spent a lifetime on the sand before noticing an orange glow just to their left on the far end of the beach. Their smiles changed from ones of wonder and awe to relief and joy. It was a cabin, a cabin with someone who could help them inside. Cheren mumbled an utterance of relief. Hilda ignored him for the moment, still focused on the last few silhouettes of Pokémon on the horizon.
"I'm going to do it," she remarked. "I want to travel this world with Pokémon."
"You think so?"
She nodded. "I've never felt so...at peace as I do now. I think I see why my mom did it, and I think I know why you want to too."
"It is beautiful, isn't it?" he agreed, placing a shoulder around her. The two youth's watched as the last Pokémon dipped beyond the horizon, disappearing into a murky, gray sea.
"It's like something out of a dream."
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