All We Are
By Besanii-Chan

Prologue
Paint the Picture

Having said goodbye to close friends before, I thought this one would be easy. It turned out it was harder. Harder than you can imagine.

I think it was because this friendship had been so hard to accomplish. With Ash and Brock, friendship was handed out freely, and it was hard to say goodbye to them because they were my rocks, the strength that had gotten me to where I am now.

With Paul, however, I had to use the strength I had gained in order to persist in being friendly with him.

Let's face it, he's not the most sociable of people.

No, but still. I had persisted. I'll start from the beginning. (Well, not the very beginning, we all know what happened there...) We spoke the day before his battle with Ash; civilly, to my surprise. He'd willingly told me things that I had never dreamt he would tell me, but maybe he was lonely. Maybe he'd been strong and alone for so long that I only had to say a few simple words and he was talking. Either way, that conversation ignited a bond I never thought would be possible.

I remember the battle, attack by attack. I remember being conflicted in my own mind, over who to support. Should I have supported Ash? He'd supported me since day one. Or Paul? He had very little in the way of support, and yet I watched the whole thing and believed he would win like he did every other time.

It was surprising when Ash came out the victor. Of course, I was estatic for him, he'd spent so long in Paul's shadow and finally came out on top. But it was inevitable that I would be torn after my internal conflict. My exterior was cheering for Ash, my heart was crying out for the crestfallen boy just across the arena. His ego severly beaten, he sighed and nodded in recognition to Ash and Infernape, even showing concern as the pokemon stumbled from weakness. As the two victors celebrated, I clapped absent-mindedly and watched Paul leave silently. I think I may have been the only person watching, as nobody else seemed to notice his departure, despite the incredible talent he'd shown in his previous battles. He deserved acknowledgement, at least. Perhaps that's the way things were in the training world, unless you're winning, you don't get the attention.

I made sure to consolidate him that night, and congratulating him for making it as far as he did. He shrugged it off like he usually did, but he didn't snap at me like I'd expected. I pushed my luck further, sitting next to him on the bench as he watched the torch burn brightly.

His words were; "Why aren't you celebrating with Ash?"

My answer was simple; "Because he has Brock."

"And you pity me?" He assumed.

"No." I was quick to reply, but I made sure my voice was soft and not defensive. "I'm here because... I know what it's like to lose to a rival."

He seemed genuinely shocked by my honesty, and perked an ever-furrowing brow as he peeked over to me. "I saw."

"You did?" It was my turn to raise my eyebrows in surprise.

He nodded back; "I don't understand coordinating, but you made a quick comeback."

I was a little confused by his words, but I realised he wasn't all that good with compliments (what with his lack of practice). This was his way of showing his was impressed. My face lit up; "Thanks."

He nodded again. Silence swept over us in that stealthy way, but I was not uncomfortable there. The torch was a great distraction, it crackled brilliantly against the orange-pink hued sky. We stayed in that companionable quietness until the street lamps flickered to life, and we began to walk for the dormitories after brief agreement to do so.

"Are you staying here until the end?" I asked.

He nodded; "I'd like to see how your friend does against that Darkrai."

I shuddered, I hadn't seen this Tobias battle yet, but from what Barry and Conway had told me, I knew he wasn't a pushover. Maybe Ash would have been better off losing to Paul. Surely there were rules against using legendary pokemon in the Sinnoh League...

"What do you plan to do after the League?"

The question had taken me off guard, seeing how I'd been distracted by the regulations of this tournament. I glanced over to Paul, who was waiting for my answer, and then looked at the floor.

"Truth be told, I have no idea." I chuckled. I could see him smirking in my peripherals.

"You and me both."

"Really?" My voice raised in pitch. He fliched away slightly at my feminine squeal. I was quick to explain myself (in a lower tone, of course). "You don't seem like the type of person to not have a plan."

"Neither do you, yet here we stand." As if to prove a point, he stopped at the fork in the path where I would head to my room down one, and I presumed his room was down the other.

My eyes roamed over the street lamps that circled us as I muttered; "Here we stand..." I smiled weakly at the irony as I looked him in the eyes, they twinkled with that humor too, and we chuckled together. The sound from me was light and tinkling, Paul's sounded foreign and unusual. Even he seemed a little surprised by it, as he coughed afterward.

"Well... Thanks for walking me back." I held a hand out as an offering; a test to see if I'd gotten anywhere. He eyed it curiously, and then looked back to my face.

For a moment I believed he was going to brush me off with a snide remark, I honestly believed that I had dreamt our conversation and that he was staring at me incredulously, wondering how on earth I had the audacity to even presume he'd escorted me anywhere. It wasn't until the warmth of his rough, worn-from-travelling skin came into contact with mine, his fingers brushing the bangle on my wrist. The heat from his hand rushed straight to my face, and I must have looked like Pikachu, because he smirked even wider.

"Thanks for keeping me company." He nodded, bemused by my blush. He let go of me, leaving a burning trail where his fingers hand lingered along my hand as he pulled away. It was like a pull neither of us were really willing to break, and I couldn't stop myself from staring at him, perhaps the shock of this new side of Paul had frozen me to the spot as I watched him in wonder.

"You're welcome." I blurted thoughtlessly. The words kept spewing from my mouth as my mind frantically tried to cover up the fact that I couldn't stop staring. "Perhaps we can do it again some time?"

He blinked at me, then turned away. He paused before walking, and I could hear his one word loud and clear. "Perhaps."

Once he had gone, a palm slapped at my forehead. How stupid was I?

It could have been worse though, and I revelled in that fact as I wandered back to the room I was sharing with Ash and Brock.

Whoaaa. Besanii Chan is starting a full fanfiction!
What is this witch-craft?

Well apparently, OneRepublic like to spark creativity in me. I created an AMV and my heart said; "This needs to go into words." So I obliged with my gut instinct and I think this is going to be a big'un.

The chapters are probably not going to be in first person, and will probably be more present-past tense rather than this way.

Reviews are amazing in my eyes, because I feel a sense of accomplishment, and it gives me more of an incentive to continue, so please please please let me know what you think! Even if it's a few words. Thank you!