Hello there! This is the drabble prizefic for Time Signature, who requested some Steven and Cynthia :). This is also for the General Prompt Challenge on the Pokemon Fanfiction Challenge Forums, using prompt 65 - piano.
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Or a piano. Or a piano Pokemon. There should be a piano Pokemon.
Etude to Passion
"Love is friendship set to music." -E. Joseph Crossman
The encounters were brief, but they echoed in Steven's mind like notes stroked on a piano. Perhaps that was appropriate, because he knew Cynthia loved the piano. She could not play it, though she wanted to. But she, like any Champion, had to dedicate her time to battles in Pokemon and politics alike. There was no time for solace. Steven knew that all too well, being a fellow Champion himself,
But piano music always drifted after Cynthia. Steven was not even being poetic: she almost always had an app set to piano music, blasting it like a youngster might blast rap. It amused Steven endlessly, partially because Cynthia was oblivious to others' taste in music. When you were with Cynthia, you listened to piano. End of story.
Steven actually wasn't fond of piano. Years of being forced to practice it while he was young gave him a distaste of even the sound of it. But being with Cynthia gave him a new appreciation of it. Some pieces on her playlist were slow and dramatic like a building storm, others were light and delicate like dancing droplets, still others were quick and thunderous like lightning, and yet more had the piano prancing side by side with electric guitars or organs. It was amazing, hearing all the ways a piano could be used, instead of the basic classics he had repeated over and over.
Being Champions, they saw each other time and again, but most of those encounters were controlled by their duties. They would face off against each other in high-caliber tournaments, or in political debates and negotiations involving their regions. But those little times when they could rest under the shade of trees, or dig through ruins for rare stones and artifacts, or even just hearing her ramble on about her latest theories on ancient lore, were so revitalizing.
They kept their private ties a secret, of course. Nothing ruined a good relationship like the media swarms. Sometimes that saddened Steven, because it meant they couldn't do simple things like holding hands in public. But that too, was a price for fame, and it was easy enough to work around. Both knew places where no paparazzi would follow. If only they weren't both so busy…
But life rushed on. Until Steven was defeated and dethroned.
The crown of Champion status now claimed by another, Steven abruptly found himself free to do what he pleased. He wasn't sure what to do with it at first, as he wandered the world in search of exceptional pebbles and gems. Yet, precious as each treasure was, it was all golden sand that meant little piled together. Cynthia, still a Champion, still regarded him as an equal, but it was getting harder to get even glimpses of her without his own Champion rank. It made those fleeting moments more valuable than jewels.
Steven noticed the piano for sale while passing by a music store. He bought it, along with several sheets of music and practice books, and had it shipped to his home in Hoenn. As headed back to his region, he knew would take him a while to get good at it. Even with his practice in childhood he had never excelled at it. But it had just been the pointless chore of a rich boy then. But now he had plenty of time and passion to perfect playing the ivories.
To orchestrate a piano melody worthy of Cynthia…how sweet it would be, to bring her the same joy she had brought him.
IIIIII
Took me a little while to figure out how to do this fic, since CynthiaSteven is not usually a pairing I write. But once I actually started writing in, it all fell into place :).
Well, hope you liked it! Feel free to let me know what you think!