Finding Roots Making Ties
Summary: Volker is a teen with more angst than most, Reina wants to go out on an adventure, and Alex just wants to know who he is. Three kids from different families, with completely different lives. But a chance encounter brings them together, and it turns out that they share a common trait. They all have a connection to one Ash Ketchum. Warnings: Future fic, slight adult themes & language.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon
Chapter 2
In a garden in Celadon city, two females wearing traditional Kimonos sat seiza style on a red cloth as the elder of the two seemed to be mixing something in the bowl. Once the woman seemed to be satisfied with the frothiness of the beverage, she slowly pushed the bowl to her companion who accepted it. The teen then turned the bowl around before gracefully bringing the bowl to her lips and drinking the green beverage. She had only set the bowl down once she had drunk all of its contents.
"How is the tea?" The elder woman asked. "It was lovely." Her companion answered before giving her a small formal bow. "Thank you for the tea." The older woman nodded as a small smile went to her lips. "Now that the formal tea ceremony is over, what did you want to ask me Reina?" She asked as the other girl went back to her previous sitting posture before answering. "I was wondering if you'll let me accompany Rika to Fuchsia city."
She said as the elder woman arched a delicate eyebrow. "Fuchia city? Why would your cousin want to go there?" She asked. "That is the location of the next contest, mother. Rika has been asking if she could go there to watch it live." The woman seemed to go deep in thought as she said that. "That's true, ever since she first saw the contest live at Celadon, she hasn't been as content with watching from the television screen. If you're willing to accompany her, Reina, then I'll allow both of you to go to Fuchsia."
The girl's eyes seem to light up at that. "Thank you very much, mother." She said as her mother gave her a small smile back. "Oh I almost forgot! But if it isn't too much trouble Reina, would you mind delivering something for me?" A medley of curiosity and surprise flickered through the teen's eyes before she answered. "I don't mind, but to whom will I be delivering it to?" She asked as her mother chuckled behind her Kimono sleeve. "It's to Janine. I just finished making her a special poison scented perfume."
"Lookie! Lookie Reina! We're leaving Celadon!" A little girl cried as she pointed to the quickly changing scenery in the window. "Yes, we are Rika. But you should sit down properly and put your seat belt on, or you might fall from your seat." She chided gently as the child changed her sitting arrangement, so she was no longer kneeling on her chair, before strapping on the seat belt. "I can't wait to get to Fuchsia and watch the contest. The Pokemon are always so pwetty and sparkly." She said as her cousin just nodded.
"They are, aren't they? But that's what contests are all about; it's to make your Pokemon shine brighter than the others." She explained as the child seemed to mull over her words. "Is that what auntie Erika also does in her gym?" The child asked as the older girl merely shook her head. "What mother does is a bit different from a contest battle." She says as the girl tilts her head to the side in confusion. "Why is it different, Reina?" She asked.
"Contest battles are for coordinators who aim to make their Pokemon stand out. While Gym battles are to measure the strength of both Pokemon and trainer." She answered as the girl seemed to think the words over. "I don't really get it. But one day that's what you're going to do too, right Reina? I heard grandma say that when she was chatting with her friends." She said as the older girl nodded. "That's right, just like how mother took over the gym after grandma retired, I'll take over Celadon's gym after her."
"Hmmm." The child hummed before returning to look outside the window when suddenly something caught her eye. "Hey Reina, who are those people?" She asked as the other girl turned to see what the little girl was pointing at. "Oh. They're Pokemon Trainers, Rika." She answered, but it seemed that the girl wasn't satisfied with that answer yet. "Why aren't they on the bus like us?" She asked and Reina merely patted her head before answering in a wistful tone, which the child didn't notice. "Because they're on their journey."
Reina was like any other Pokemon trainer in the world, she wanted to go out and have her own adventure. She's always dreamed of going to foreign lands and meeting new kinds of Pokemon and people. But unlike any other trainer, she didn't go on a journey when she was ten and probably wouldn't get the chance to. You see, she was the daughter of a gym leader. Reina was the daughter of Celadon city's gym leader, Erika, to be more exact.
While being a gym leader's child wouldn't automatically constitute to not being able to go on her own journey, it did make part of the reason why she couldn't. Ever since she had gotten her first Pokemon, her mother started on her training for the day that she inherits the gym from her. Add that to the lessons in etiquette and traditional arts and dances she's had since she was just a child, and presto, out comes a solid reason as to why she can't leave Celadon.
While it was true that she did finish studying all the strict disciplines that her family followed, ever since last year, it didn't mean that she didn't need to practice. Rather, it was the opposite. Even after you learn everything your teachers have to offer, there must be continuous practice, otherwise she would never improve and even worse, her skills might get rusty from disuse. But while it was possible for her to still practice even when she's out of her journey, she's sure her mother expects her to follow tradition.
In their family, they had a tradition of the gym leader's heir being mentored by their predecessor and as soon as the training is over, the predecessor will retire and the heir will run the gym from then on. That was how the succession in Celadon gym went. Reina's mother, grandmother, great grandmother and all the predecessors before her all went through the same rite of passage, which would have been fine with Reina. But none of them had ever gone on a Pokemon journey, like she wanted to.
It was understandable that with their new duties and responsibilities as a gym leader, none of them would have the time to go on a journey. So, all of her predecessors had spent most of their lives in Celadon, only occasionally going out on some business. But it was a far cry from being the same as a Pokemon journey. This meant that her only chance to go on a journey is if she goes on one before she finishes her training as the next gym leader of Celadon.
But she couldn't imagine her mother actually letting her stop with her training half way to let her travel for a year, or two, or three. That wasn't how things were done it their family. Not just that, she also knew that the only thing that gets to her mother as much as asking if she could leave Celadon for an extended period of time for any reason less than life and death, was when she asked questions about her father. Now, her father was another point of interest in her life, as she has never met him and has absolutely no idea who he is.
All she knew about him was that before she had even been born, her mother threw him out of the house and then proceeded to file for a divorce. Her mother had been awarded with sole custody for her unborn child and her father just left Celadon city entirely. The only other things she knew about him, she heard from her mother, which weren't anywhere close to anything positive. So far, the only things she got from her mother were that her father had been a philanderer, gambler and all in all, a worthless man.
Her house, could be described as a house full of women. The people who lived in their rather large traditional styled house were her grandmother, grandaunts, mother, aunts, Rika and herself. Not only that, but any household helpers they had were all women as well. There wasn't even one man who lived under the same roof as them. Her grandfather had a falling out with his grandmother and left, her other grandaunts and aunts were unmarried, while Rika's father had died in an accident when she was a baby.
As soon as the doors opened, Reina let out a small sigh of relief. While she did think of Fuchsia city's gym leader as a friend, the older female was too much to handle at times. Beside her, Rika was beaming as she had gotten to play with Janine's Ariados. But as they begun their walk back to the Pokemon center, the younger girl suddenly demanded a race before sprinting ahead of her cousin. Unfortunately, the girl didn't look where she was going and literally ran into someone.
The girl fell back on her butt and Reina immediately ran over to her fallen cousin. "Sorry! I wasn't looking." The other person said as Reina helped the child up. "No, it's ok. We're half responsible for the collision that took place." She said as she looked up to see the person, Rika had bumped into. Her eyes widened in surprise as she recognized the person in front of her. "Reina?!" The other man squawked as he rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
"Rob, it is you! It's been a while." Reina greeted as the man now known as Rob nodded. "Yeah, it's been a couple of years." He said as his companion stared at the two of them interact before clearing his throat. "Oh sorry about that, Reina and Rika meet my old friend from Unova, Eric." He said before continuing. "Eric, this is Reina and her cousin Rika. I met them when I went to Celadon when I was on an errand for my aunts." He said and this time it was Eric's eyes that widened.
"Reina, as in that Reina, the one you keep talking abou-" He wasn't able to finish his sentence as Rob had chose to take that time to elbow his friend rather painfully. "Ow, that hurts. But if you elbowed me that hard, then she's definitely that Reina." He said before standing up straight again and going closer to both ladies. "Mademoiselle Reina, Mademoiselle Rika, it's a pleasure to meet both of you." He told them before taking Reina's hand and kissing the back of it, which prompted a glare from Rob.
Then he went down on one knee and did the same thing to Rika, who giggled in response. "Please, the pleasure is all ours." Reina answered before continuing. "So what are you two doing here in Fuchsia city?" She asked as Rob begun scratching the back of his head. "Well, we're actually on our way to Saffron city and we decided to stop over for some supplies here. How about the two of you, what are you doing in Fuchsia?" He asked.
"I'm here to chaperon Rika since she said that she wanted to go here to watch the Pokemon contest today, live." She answered before adding. "But we also just delivered something from my mother just now." She said as Rob nodded his head and Eric checked the time on his watch. "Well you have two hours before the contest starts, what do you guys want to do?" He asked as the group thought about it. But it was the youngest of the group who answered first. "Let's go to the park!"
A few minutes later and the group found themselves at the park. Rika was playing on the swing set as Rob pushed her from behind. While both Reina and Eric sat down on a park bench, that overlooked the swing set. "So you've known Rob since you were children?" Reina asked as the other teen nodded. "That's right. His parents and my parents are old friends, so the two of us are more like siblings than anything." He replied before adding. "But right now, I'm just here in Kanto for a visit."
He then leaned in to her ear, and begun to whisper almost conspiratorially. "But then he goes and drags me here while I was chilling at his house in Cerulean." Reina chuckled a little at that. "Sounds like you have it rough. But did I hear right when he said your mother is a gym leader in Unova?" She asked and he nodded in confirmation. "But then don't you have to undergo any training for the day you take over the gym?" She asked as Eric laughed. "No, no that is in my younger sister's department, not mine."
"My dream is to be a connoisseur as great and reliable as my dad. What about you, Reina?" He asked which caused Reina to look at him with a confused expression. "What about me?" She asked as Eric explained it further. "My apologies, I was being too vague. But I was asking what your dream was." He told her. "You don't have to apologize, Eric. But my dream? Well I do want to take over the gym one day…" She said, but as she said that her eyes started to gain a distant look in them.
"But do you have any other dream other than that?" He asked her as Reina seemed to want to say something, but decided against it. "Don't worry, I won't laugh. I promise. Unless its something too personal to share, then I understand if you don't want to…" He trailed of but Reina only shook her head. "No, it's not that. It's just, can you consider something a dream if you know that it will most probably never come true?" She asked and Eric seemed to be at a loss at that for a second before he spoke up again.
"Of course it is. But my dad always tells me that it's working towards your dream that will make it come true, and as long as you keep on working on it, no one can say with absolute certainty that it will never come true." He said which made Reina smile a bit. "Those are nice words, your dad sounds like a wonderful person." She said and Eric mirrored her smile. "He is, but I'm sure your dad is just as wonderful a person as mine is." He told her and was surprised when she shook her head.
"In all honesty, I don't know what kind of person he is because I've never met him." She said and Eric seemed to pale slightly. "I'm sorry; it seems I said something quite insensitive to you." He apologized, but Reina only waved him of. "It's fine, I'm actually used to it by now. Besides, it's not like you knew about it." She said before continuing. "But as for my other dream, it's nothing extravagant, I just want to travel around the world and have adventures."
"Then why don't you?" Eric asked, confusion lacing his words. "If that's what you really want, then what's stopping you?" Reina sighed at that. "It's kind of complicated, but it has something to do with my family's traditions." She answered before adding. "But it's ok. I've kind of already accepted it." He frowned at that. "Why give up on your dream, and why not just fight for it? I don't know about your family's traditions, but I don't think anyone should have to give up on their dreams."
Later on that night, Reina found herself tossing and turning in bed, unable to fall asleep. On the bed next to her, Rika was sound asleep with a small smile of her face. The girl had immediately crashed as soon as she got to their room from all the excitement that had come from traveling to Fuchsia city, playing at the park, and watching the Pokemon contest. But it seemed that no sleep was forthcoming for the older girl. In her mind, Eric's words were ringing over and over again.
"Why give up on your dream, and why not just fight for it?" She sighed, if only it was that simple. "I don't know about your family's traditions…" But then again, why wouldn't it be that simple? "But I don't think anyone should have to give up on their dreams." Maybe she could try, what did she have to lose? As things stand, her dream was slowly slipping from her fingers. Having that final thought in mind, sleep finally stopped eluding her and brought her to the world of dreams.
"Well it was nice seeing you two again." Rob said to both Rika and Reina. "Yes, I do hope we see each other again one day." She replied before turning to Eric and extending her hand to him. "Hopefully by the next time we see each other, we'll have gotten a bit closer to the realization of our dreams." She told him as Eric gave her a contagious grin which she returned. "Yeah. Remember when there's a will there will always be a way. As long as you never give up on your dream-"
"Then no one can say with absolute certainty that it's impossible for it to be realized, right?" She finished as her eyes seemed to have a determined glint in her eyes, that wasn't there yesterday. Eric laughed at that. "Yup, you've gotten our family motto down, pat." They then said their parting words before the group had split up, with the two boys heading towards Saffron city while the two girls headed back to Celadon city.
"Mother." Reina greeted as she gave the older woman a small formal bow. "Reina, so you and Rika have returned. So where is your cousin?" She asked. "She is currently resting in her room; the travel back seems to have exhausted her." She explained, to which Erika nodded. "I see, then what of Janine?" She asked as Reina brought forward what seemed to be a letter. "She seemed very pleased when I gave it to her, and she had asked me to give you this letter."
Erica said nothing as she took the letter, before opening it and reading the contents. A small smile graced her features as she folded the letter before returning it into its envelope. "It was a thank you letter from her, and at the end of the letter, she asks me to make her a perfume using Grimer's scent." She says as Reina cracks a small smile at that. "Even after all the times I told her that it was impossible, she still insists that I try it. But perhaps I will attempt it this time." She said which surprised Reina.
"You will, mother?" She asks as Erika gives her a nod. "It is something that I have never attempted, not even once. But perhaps this will yield interesting results. As the saying goes, one never knows until she tries." She said before looking at Reina who now seemed to have a barely noticeable, nervous expression on her face. "Is there something wrong Reina? Or is there something else you want to ask me?" She asked as her daughter just gave a small nod. "Then don't hesitate to speak what is on your mind, Reina."
"I was wondering, if I could go on a Pokemon journey..." Reina started and Erika blinked. "What was that you said, Reina? I think I misheard you." She told her as her daughter repeated what she said which proved to Erika that her ears had not failed her. "But why are you suddenly bringing this up?" Reina seemed to fidget slightly from where she sat across her mother before answering. "I've always wanted to go out and to see the world, and so I implore you to postpone my training and to let me journey for some time."
Erika frowned at that. "Do you not want to become the next gym leader anymore, Reina?" But her daughter quickly shook her head at that. "No, of course not. But before taking up that role, I would like to do some traveling for a while." She answered. "If to travel somewhere is all you want, then I can arrange a vacation for you somewhere." She said, but her daughter was quick to reply. "No, that's not it! What I want is to go out and have an adventure."
"Then you can have all the adventures you want on your vacation." Her mother countered. "Like I said that isn't it!" She said, her voice sounding exasperated. "Then what exactly is it, Reina? Because I really don't understand why you suddenly want to go on a Pokemon journey. When it comes to opportunities to getting stronger, then you already have it here. So why do you suddenly want to leave, is there something lacking in Celadon city?" She asked as her eyes widened.
"This isn't about that man is it?" She asked her voice barely louder than a whisper as Reina sighed. "Mother, you should stop referring to your ex-husband; and my father as that man." She said before adding. "And no, this is not about him." An unreadable seemed to appear in Erika's eyes for a moment before it disappeared. "But if you could, would you meet with him? If for example, you found out that he was in the area while you were out on your journey, would you attempt to see him or to visit him?"
Reina seemed to be taken by surprise by the question as her next few words came out rushed. "I don't know, maybe?" She said and Erika sighed. "Then that's one more reason not to let you go. I'm sure I've already told you this, but that man is no good. Nothing good will come out from the two of you meeting." She told her as Reina stood up. "But that isn't fair! You're not letting me go just because I might accidentally see father?"
"It's not just because of that, Reina! Think about your other obligations, your lessons, your practice and most importantly, your training!" Erika told her. "I have thought of them, and I won't be abandoning them! I'll just take break from them, but I will return to them one day. As for father, even if he's only going to disappoint me I still want to see him even once in my life, because he is still my father!" She replied which made Erika sigh again.
"This is what I was afraid of; you blindly searching for that man. I had purposely made sure that you know as little about your father as possible because you will just be severely disappointed when you find out the truth about him. But it seems my plan has backfired." She said as she closed both of her eyes and after a few moments spoke again. "If I knew this was going to happen, then I would have rather you go out seeking your biological father instead."
Erika didn't need to open her eyes to know her daughter was more than a little surprised at what she said, and instead gestured back to the cushion across from her. "Reina, you should sit down. We have much to discuss." She said without opening her eyes, but judging from the sound of shuffling cloth, knew that her daughter had decided to follow her suggestion. When she finally opened her eyes, her daughter now sat across from her like a little while ago, albeit, looking much paler compared to before.
"Reina, you know this right? That you weren't exactly made in the natural way…" She trailed off as Reina nodded. "Yeah, I'm a test tube baby. You told me about it when I was ten." She said as Erika gave her a curt nod. "That's right, but what I didn't tell you is that, you and that man share no relation in blood. In the first place, it was because of him that I had to resort to using the artificial method. He couldn't have any children, so we had to resort to modern day technology just so I could have a child."
"But the one who helped me sire a child was an old friend of mine, who donated his, well you know…" She said looking uncomfortable with finishing her sentence. "Anyways, that friend of mine is your real father. So there is absolutely no reason for you to go looking for that man who I had been married to once." She summarized before standing up. "That will be all for tonight, Reina. I have already given you enough to think about for tonight." She said as she gracefully glided to the doorway. "But regarding you going on a Pokemon journey, I will not permit it!"
"She's too much like you."
"Well, hello to you too Erika. But who's too much like me?"
"Reina, who else could it be?"
"Alright, but why do you sound so upset then? Did you two get into a fight?"
"…You could say that…"
"About what?"
"About her going on a Pokemon journey."
"…What's so bad about that?"
"What's bad is that she wants to postpone her training, not to mention her skills might get unpracticed. She'll also be breaking the family tradition."
"Then let her break it."
"Excuse me?!"
"For her skills, while it might be improbable, it's not impossible that she practices while on her journey, and she might even learn a thing or two on the road that will help her improve."
"Not to mention, Erika you're way too young to need a successor. Look at Drayden, he was Gym leader for fifty years. Besides, isn't your own daughter's happiness more important than some traditions?"
"…"
"…Erika you still there?"
"I'm here; I just hate how you make me feel like a petulant child…"
"Well, someone needs to do it. But now all you need to do is tell her to stay clear of your ex-husband and you can let her go."
"That probably won't be an issue anymore."
"Oh? Why, did you tell her the kind of man he really is?"
"No, I told her about how you were her real father, Ash."
"You what?!"
"Well I didn't give away your identity. But I did tell her that she wasn't that man's child in all sense of the word."
"Ah. But I thought you weren't going to tell her until she was eighteen."
"There was no choice; she might have kept on wanting to meet him if I didn't."
"Good for you, then! Now you've finally got that out of the way. So with this, will you finally let her go on her Pokemon journey?"
"No."
"Why not, Erika? I know you're not an unreasonable person, so you must have a reason to say that."
"Because…"
"….M….Af….D"
"What was that, Erika? I didn't hear you just now."
"I said that I was afraid."
"…"
"…"
"Well, I didn't expect that."
"…"
"But what are you afraid of, that she'll get hurt? Erika, all parents feel this that way when their children are about to go on their respective Pokem-"
"That's not it. Of course as a parent, I'm also worried about that. But that's not what I'm afraid of."
"Then what are you afraid of then?"
"…"
"Erika?"
"I'm afraid that she won't come back."
"…"
"…"
"Erika, I say this with all the love in the world. You're being ridiculous."
"!?"
"There is no way that she won't come back, Celadon is her home."
"For now, but I'm afraid that once she gets a taste of freedom, when she sees what the world can offer her, Celadon won't be enough for her."
"…Even if that did come true, she'll still come back for the sole reason that you're there. You're her mother, wherever you are, that's where her home will be."
"Listen, you told me she was too much like me. While it is true that I did leave home and travel a lot, if she's even anything like me then she'll also return back home after her journey. There's a saying, isn't there? Even the mighty Pigeot will return to its nest to rest its tired wings. You have nothing to worry about."
"Was I just being silly then?"
"A bit, but that's fine. Though if I could give my humble opinion, I think you should give her more room to grow, and let her make her own choices in life. Otherwise, you'll be unintentionally clipping her wings and if she's as much like me as you say, I wouldn't be surprised if she would run away from home. "
"Please, she's not that much like you. But first thing tomorrow morning, I'll apologize to her for being so irrational, and I'll allow her to go on her Pokemon journey."
"That would probably be for the best."
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