A/N: Well... I know I haven't updated my other story in forever... BUT, today is the birthday of Guriburu Fan, one of my first EVER reader/reviewers! They're totally awesome, and I hope they had a rockin' birthday, and a great year so far! Love ya, dude! And I hope you enjoy this fic! (And I hope you see it, to, since you don't get notifs and stuff. Also, it's my first attempt at Ambershipping so... QwQ) Enjoy! :D
Disclaimer: I do not own the Pokémon Special/Adventures manga
Yellow trekked up the winding, pathless steeps of Mt. Silver, her breath blossoming out in little puffs of smoke as the air gradually grew colder. She enjoyed the mountain and all its bleak beauty, though the frosted, dead grass and shifting slate was so different and foreign after the soft greens of the Viridian forest. The view almost made it worth the climb, however. Almost. Despite the undeniable beauty of the sun glinting off of the ocean and staining the clouds in a sky that seemed close enough to touch, Yellow might have forgone the hike if it weren't for the two atop the peak. They'd run right to the top to train as soon as the battle with Pryce was over, and hadn't been down a single time since. They hadn't even stopped to grab supplies before going up, and that, Yellow grumbled to herself, was the purpose of her little trip. Seeing as it was impossible to fly to the summit of Mt. Silver, it was necessary for anyone desiring to get to the top to walk, and be able to hold their own against the tough wild pokémon inhabiting the area. Gold had been the one to call her, after he and Red had realized their mistake, and she was secretly quite proud to have made a lasting impression on her hyper junior. And to the point where he acknowledged that she was a strong fighter, when push came to shove. She didn't like battling - she hated seeing pokémon get hurt, no matter the situation - but she also appreciated it when people didn't underestimate her.
Yellow took a small breather, marveling how the air could be so sharp and cold, when it had been the heavy, humid start to a hot day at the bottom of the mountain. Chuchu squeaked lightly from her place on Yellow's right shoulder. A shout met her ears, and she looked up seeing two boys with caps settled on their black hair running towards her.
"Hey! Straw-hat gal! Ya made it!" Gold grinned, stopping right in front of her and giving her a hearty pat on the back.
"Hi, Yellow! Glad you could make it, and sorry for all the trouble!" Red rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"Don't worry about it! It was no trouble!" Yellow said breathlessly, slinging the pack of food she was carrying down from her shoulder. Chuchu jumped down as well to greet the other pikachu on Red's shoulder, and nuzzled him happily.
"No trouble? You just climbed a mountain crawling with dangerous Pokémon to get us some grub! That's pretty hardcore." Gold snorted.
"R-really, it was nothing!" Yellow insisted, going a bit red in the face.
"Thanks again for this, Yellow!" Red said excitedly, opening the pack and sorting through it.
"Ooh, what'd she bring us, Red?" Gold gasped eagerly, looking over the older boy's shoulder.
"I called your mom and made sure to grab your favorites, Gold. So I hope you both like them!" Yellow said, shivering slightly in the wind now that she had stopped moving. She gazed around their base camp, wondering how on earth they had stayed warm enough, before glancing over at Gold's typhlosion who had come bounding after the two boys. It was a stark spot, just a clearing in the scraggly forest of stunted trees. To their left, a sheer cliff fell abruptly downwards, a few stray rocks skittering down as she stared. In front of her was a small cave bored into the side of the mountain, a sputtering fire in mouth. She could see sleeping bags and blankets piled further inside. To her right was another sloping bit of forest, and the sun hanging low in the sky. A thin layer of snow was sprinkled on the ground, whorls of it being kicked into the air with the gusts of wind that ripped across the clearing. What patches of grass there were crunched beneath her feet.
"Here, you look cold." Gold said around a mouthful of chips, tossing Yellow his coat.
"Th-thanks, Gold." She said through chattering teeth, slipping it over her shoulders. Red looked up bashfully.
"Well.. uh.. It feels kinda wrong to just ask you to come up here and then send you back down right away…" He mumbled.
"Oh no, don't worry abou-" Yellow began.
"Well, why don't you stay up here for the night? We can finally have a big hot dinner 'n stuff. It'll be fun! And then you can go back down in the morning or something." Gold interrupted thoughtfully, looking up with hopeful eyes.
"That's a great idea, Gold!" Red said enthusiastically.
"Well, if you guys are really okay with that, I'd love to! I don't want to interrupt your special training or anything…" Yellow smiled.
"Pfff, nah, we weren't doing anything special today anyway. Hard to do any training when you're cold and have an empty stomach." Gold snorted, waving her uncertainty away, "Thanks again for all this, by the way, you got everything I wanted!"
"Oh good, I was afraid I'd miss something!" Yellow said, "And it looks like your fire needs a bit of help over there before we can cook anything on it."
"No need, that's what Explotaro's for, am I right?" Gold winked, before yelping in surprise as the big typhlosion bowled him over. Yellow laughed aloud at that. A small bright yellow streak zoomed over to dive on top of Gold as well, and the Healer gasped.
"Is this the little fellow that was born from Pika and Chuchu's egg? It's only been a few days since I saw him last.. he's grown so big!" She happily scooped the little pichu up, ruffling his curious shock of fur affectionately. He squeaked and flexed his tiny muscles proudly.
"Yeah, he's much bigger, and stronger too. We've been training with him, and you know how well he did against Pryce." Gold grunted, pulling himself to his feet and dusting snow from the seat of his pants, which he had worn in favor of shorts.
"Well I'm gonna go start getting things set up, if you two want to catch up a little more!" Red offered, picking up the food pack and wandering back towards the cave. Gold and Yellow grinned at his retreating back.
"Oh by the way, sorry for all the confusion about... forcing you to take your hat off and everything. I-I... didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable." Gold mumbled, scuffing his feet in the snow.
"Don't worry about it. I mean, it was bound to happen sooner or later. And it was the only way to save you! That was way more important than keeping my hat on. Everyone would have found out eventually anyway. And really, I should be thanking you! I've been trying to muster up the courage to tell everyone the truth for a while."
"No kidding? Well, in that case, you're welcome, I guess." Gold looked up, and they shared a laugh.
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"Pass the chili powder!" Red cried, gesturing frantically behind him. Gold obliged, and then sank back into the pile of blankets inside the cave. He looked a bit like a caterpie, so tightly wrapped in his sleeping bag. Yellow Chuchu and wriggled closer to Gold and Explotaro.
"Are you sure you don't want help?" She called to Red.
"He's fine. It's his turn to cook, anyway." Gold reassured her.
"I'm protecting all our tastebuds." Red grumbled, "I wouldn't trust you to cook for us after last night…"
"W-well it sounds like you two are k-keeping yourselves entertained up h-here." Yellow laughed shakily, shivering as a breeze ripped through the cave, causing the fire to nearly extinguish, before it leapt back, hissing and spitting. Red yelped, and Gold and Yellow withdrew even further.
"Hardly." Gold grumbled, "Only whatever snacks were in our bags to eat, this lovely weather, and Red's training regime-"
"You were the one who wanted to train with me!" Red yelled.
"Aw c'mon, you gotta let me complain a little bit! That's the best part!" Gold replied, earning another shivery spurt of laughter from Yellow. "By the way, how much longer with the food, Red?"
"Just about done! Can you grab us some plates and spoons, Gold?" Red shot over his shoulder, and Gold groaned dramatically, throwing off his blankets, and rolling over to the bag Yellow had brought, removing three tin plates. He tossed them to Red like frisbees, and Red snagged them with ease, scooping the contents of the pot he had been slaving over onto each one. Pika, Chuchu, and little Pibu bounced around, handing their respective trainers their dinner and spoons, and waiting eagerly for their own. Red obliged, and they gobbled it down quickly before retreating back under the blankets to shiver and cuddle together as a family. Yellow blew on the food gingerly, identifying it as vegetarian chili. She burned her tongue on the first bite, but swallowed it down with gusto, eyes watering from the heat. The three young trainers ate in silence, wanting to finish as quickly as possible so the chili wouldn't go cold.
"So.. are we missing anything exciting?" Gold said around a mouthful of food, his plate already impossibly clean.
"Not really. Crys has become Prof. Oak's new assistant, Green went back to his gym, Blue is trying to track down her parents, and I think Silver's helping her… and Indigo Plateau's being rebuilt after the attack. I'm not sure what happened to the other Masked Children, and Pryce hasn't come out of the shrine yet, so I think it's safe to assume he's gone for good…" A shiver went through the group at the mention of the ex-gym leader, "Oh yeah! And I heard that Prof. Oak might be giving pokédexes out to some kids out in Hoenn! Which means you'll finally have some juniors, Gold!" Yellow finished, smiling at how Gold's face lit up at the word 'juniors.'
"No kidding? Aw, sweet! Some more newbies! I'll finally get some well-deserved respect!" Gold said, fist pumping.
"Yeah, sure, until they realize what you're like." Red quipped dryly.
"Oh, shaddap, Red, you buzzkill." Gold glared at his senior.
"Reminds me of that time you thought I was younger than you…" Yellow said with a sly smile.
"Oh be quiet!" Gold burrowed his head in his sleeping bag in protest, clapping his hands over his ears as Red and Yellow laughed.
"Sorry, Gold. Here, I'll make it up to you by helping you with the dishes." Yellow offered, taking sympathy on the younger boy.
"You mean it?" He poked his head out again, shooting her a crooked grin as she nodded.
"Speaking of, why don't we go now before it gets too dark to see anything? The light's going pretty fast." The Healer mused, reluctantly crawling from the warmth of her blankets. Gold let out a prolonged sigh, and then followed Yellow's example, scooping up his and Red's plates as he went.
"I might be asleep by the time you two get back, so try not to make too much noise when you do." Red mumbled sleepily, "I mean it, Gold. I'll make training especially tough tomorrow if you do."
"Bring it, senpai." Gold teased, ducking as Red chucked a spoon at him.
"Don't forget to wash that!" Red yelled as Gold and Yellow scrambled from the cave, laughing. They now stood outside, where the sky had turned from pale blue to dark purple, ribbons of orange tinging the sky to their left as the sun slowly slipped beneath the horizon. To their right, the moon was akin to a pale, gold coin, the snow glowing under its weak beams. Yellow took in a sharp breath, the cold air stinging her lungs after the smoky warmth of the cave.
"S-so…" She shivered, "Do we just use out water pokémon and get this over with quickly?"
"Well… normally, yes, but… there's something… I wanna show ya." Gold muttered.
"H-huh?"
"It'll only take a minute, "Gold insisted, "and if you've never been up here before.. Trust me, it's worth it. A-are you.. are you game?" Yellow could barely make out his face in the feeble light, but it looked like… was he blushing?
"Um.. sure! Let's just make it quick."
"Alright!" He whooped, taking hold of her hand in his, and tucking the dirty plates he was carrying under his other arm. He led her around the cave, and up a small slope, and back into the stunted forest of Mt Silver. There was a winding path here, that Yellow hadn't noticed in her initial observations, and it seemed like it led even further up the mountain. After a few minutes, Gold took a sharp left, and she followed, now violently shivering and almost wishing she had refused his request and gone back to the cave. Then she gasped.
They had come to another clearing, but in this one, a pool of water met her gaze. Steam curled off the surface like the smoke of signal fires, blurring her view of the moon. The water itself wasn't still, the surface rippling in the wind and sending shattered reflections of the moonlight bouncing into Yellow's wide eyes, like pieces of fractured sunlight. The sky replicated the small pool, the stars emerging to shimmer like countless precious jewels woven into a cloth of deep purples and blacks.
"The hot springs…" Yellow whispered, almost reverently. She had forgotten all about the water said to be at the top of the great mountain that reared its head above the Johto and Kanto regions.
"Yeah.. you kinda struck me as the type who… liked natural beauty… and stuff." Gold mumbled, sounding almost embarrassed.
"It's beautiful…" Yellow said, keeping her voice low as if in fear of disturbing some greater force, "Thank you, Gold." Gold nodded silently, taking a seat and pulling off his shoes and socks. He slowly dipped them into the spring, taking a sharp intake of breath, and then sighing in content. He brushed the snow next to him aside, and patted the ground, inviting Yellow to sit. She obliged, thoughts of the cave banished from her mind. She followed Gold's example, stripping off her socks and footwear, and submerging her feet into the hot water. It felt wonderful, vim and vigor seeming to flood up through her legs, and an indescribable warm feeling bubbling up in her chest. But her top half was still cold, despite the fire that had ignited inside, and she shivered again. All of a sudden, she felt warm arms wrap around her. She turned to look at Gold in shock, and realized in the dim light that he was blushing madly and averting his gaze. She smiled, and leaned into the embrace, all traces of her shivering gone, and every bit of her feeling warm.
They stayed that way for a long while.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed it! And Happy Birthday once again, friendo!
Reviews are greatly appreciated, as always! :D