PART 3

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Gold, against all stereotypes, did not wake up with his head pounding. Instead he woke up groggily to find dried drool on his face and red hair in his mouth. He groaned and tried to roll onto his back, only to find it was impossible. Silver had a vice grip on his torso and, even while asleep, he didn't seem willing to let go. Gold smiled and thought back on the previous night. In the end everything had been so easy, had gone so well, he almost couldn't believe it to be true.

His happiness was short lived as a loud knock on his bedroom door cut through his thoughts. Gold had about three seconds to panic, while Silver stirred in his arms and lifted his head, bleary with sleep, before Grace Himawari burst into the room.

She did not look happy.

"Gold Ethan Himawari!" The woman bellowed. "On your feet, this instant!"

Gold scrambled up from Silver's grip. "Mom," he said. Now that he opened his mouth he realized he was thirsty like never before. His mouth was parched. "You're back early."

"None of that young man, you'll follow me," his mother snapped, leaving no room for arguing.

Gold sighed and followed the woman to the kitchen where the incriminating evidence from last night's events waited―empty bottles and bowls on every available surface.

"Does this look like what we agreed on, to you?" She asked, voice silent with anger. "Is this how you think you're allowed to behave when you get your way on one thing?" She fixed him a piercing look. "Is this how you repay my trust?"

Gold swallowed, suddenly tired and sad and ashamed, staring at the floor. "No, mom," he mumbled quietly. "This isn't how it was supposed to be." He raised his eyes, meeting her head on. "I'm sorry."

His mother's expression softened. "Well… I'm glad to hear that," she allowed. "As am I glad, that nothing bad happened. But you can well believe that there won't be any more parties under my roof, am I clear?"

"Crystal," Gold sighed.

"Now, I don't want to be the bad guy and I can sort of sympathize… It was New Years Eve and I remember what it was like being young," she paused, to let the words seep in, "but that still doesn't excuse this kind of behavior after you explicitly promised you would be good. So let's just say that there won't be any otoshidama money this year, and you will think about what you've done and why exactly it was stupid, and we're even."

The boy nodded. The loss of the money, traditionally given on New Year's Day, was more symbolic than anything else. It wasn't like Gold was short on the stuff. However, the other part of the promise would mean having an even longer discussion with his mother maybe that night or the following day. "Sure, mom."

The woman released a breath, the stressed expression finally leaving her face. "Good… I'm glad that's over with," she said, smiling a bit. "Now, it seemed to me like you might want to tell me something about what kind of a friend that Silver boy really is to you," Gold felt his blood run cold, "but I think that can wait until evening. It's the first day of the new year. You'd better go wake your friends if we want to make it to the shrine during daylight. I'll clean up and get started on breakfast."

Gold nodded, turning on his heels.

"Oh, and Gold?" His mom called after him, her tone light and teasing. "The aspirin is in the bathroom cupboard, in case anyone needs it."

Gold laughed. "Thanks, mom."

He marched back upstairs, first knocking on the girls' door and poking his head in after receiving permission. Kris was already dressed, which was hardly surprising, but Leaf had propped her head on the girl's lap, blocking her escape. Lyra was still underneath the blankets, groaning. Gold informed them of the plan and where they could find some relief for their apparent pains, returning to his own room.

When he stepped in Red was folding the futons he and Green had slept on, while Green himself had apparently stepped into the bathroom. Silver was sitting on his bed, dressed save for his missing socks, and brushing his hair. He offered Gold a small, tight smile―one that was more in his eyes than on his lips.

Gold felt himself relax. "Hey," he said.

"Hey," Silver repeated. "Everything okay?"

Gold ran his hand through his hair, messing up the black spikes. "Not exactly," he said, wincing. "But could be worse. She's not mad, really. More like disappointed."

"I'm sorry," Red said then. Both Gold and Silver blinked, looking up at the older boy in surprise. "I should've done something."

"No, no," Gold hurried to deny. "This is not your fault. Really, you hardly even drank anything and―"

"All the more reason why I should've watched over the rest of you," Red cut through. He gave a determined nod. "I'll talk to her."

And before Gold could do anything to stop him, the boy had brushed past him into the hallway, soon disappearing down the stairs. Gold stared at the empty spot he'd been standing in, baffled. He raised his eyes to Silver's. The redhead just shrugged.

"It's not like it could make thing worse," he grumbled, pushing himself up from the bed with a low groan.

"Headache?" Gold asked sympathetically. His own state was pretty good, he'd say. Hardly any pains besides a slight dizziness and tiredness that felt a bit worse than after simply sleeping badly.

"A bit," Silver admitted. "Do you―"

"In the bathroom cupboard," Gold answered the question before he'd finished. "You can get some as soon as Green comes out."

Silver grunted as thanks. Then, as if on a whim, he padded closer and wormed his arms around Gold, propping his head on the taller boy's shoulder. Gold chuckled and responded to the embrace, snaking his own arms around Silver's waist.

"Happy?" He asked. They were communicating in short sentences that morning, it seemed.

Silver just hummed.

They stayed like that until Green finally returned from the bathroom. Silver got his pills, swallowing them dry. The boys then headed downstairs, following the delicious scent of freshly baked bacon and eggs.

Once they got into the kitchen, Red was sitting in the table, already with a plate in front of him. Gold's mother was humming along to some tune as she cooked. She barely spared them a glance as they arrived.

"Take a seat," she instructed kindly. "This will take a minute at most, and you need to finish eating before the girls arrive, since we won't all fit around the table."

Soon they were gulping down a delicious omelet with a side of crispy bacon. Once finished, they cleared the room for the girls, who had by then luckily managed to put on clothes and wash up. Gold and Silver did the dishes in comfortable silence, listening to the girls chattering about something or other that didn't really interest either of them. Everything seemed so plain, so normal, and yet whenever Silver's hand brushed his while handing him plates for drying, Gold's heart rate would pick up and the redhead would give him a knowing look.

After everyone had eaten breakfast, Gold's mother gathered them all in the living room to give them collectively a piece of her mind. Upon receiving seven identical apologies, she laughed and waved her hand to say that the matter was now discussed and over with.

They all left after that, deciding to take the bus to Violet instead of the original plan of walking since it was already late in the morning. Lyra's parents joined the group at the bus stop, and the girl received a second scolding, but otherwise things were fine. Even the short ride to the Sprout Tower was uneventful, Silver sitting by Gold's side, leaning his head against his shoulder. He was surprisingly okay with physical contact, more so than Gold would've thought. But then again, he never really had skirted away from Gold's touch, not really. The pleasant surprise had been how much more freely Silver himself seemed to be initiating contact, now that he was allowed to do so.

Sprout Tower was right as Gold remembered it, tall and old and slightly crooked. The whole city was bustling with life, people from the nearby towns making their annual visit to the shrine. Even amongst all that crowd their group received some attention, people recognizing Red and Green and Gold with wide eyes and hushed murmurs. None of them dared to approach though, the position of champion being revered―especially so in the case of Red.

Only when a young boy carrying a mareep had the guts to come over and ask the silent man if he really was the lost champion and, upon receiving an affirmative response, nearly floored him with questions, did people finally start getting over their shyness. Every now and then one of them would be approached by fans and well-wishers alike. Gold remembered Red's discomfort with being the center of attention, but fortunately the trainer seemed to be holding it together well, chatting quietly with people and sometimes even smiling. Either Green or, to Gold's surprise, Silver was constantly by his side, ready to defend him if needed.

Gold smiled, and concentrated on his own fans. Silver and Red would grow to be very close indeed.

The shrine visit itself passed smoothly enough and afterwards the group was standing to the side of the Violet City square, next to the gym, discussing what they were going to do next. The Kantonese trainers were thinking of leaving already, saying that they'd like to get back to Pallet before nightfall. Leaf, though, seemed strangely more hesitant than the two boys, sending tentative glances at Kris' direction. The younger girl was, strangely enough, ignoring the looks and choosing to divert her gaze towards anything other than Leaf.

There was a story of its own to their behavior, but Gold decided it probably was better to let them figure it out on their own without meddling. After all, that seemed to have worked just fine with him and Silver, too.

Speaking of the redhead, he was almost glued to Gold's side, silent throughout the conversation. They would be returning to New Bark together along Gold's mother. Then, that evening, they would have to explain everything to the woman. He'd revealed as much to Silver in hushed whispers during the bus drive, and while the boy had cringed he hadn't seemed particularly afraid or regretful. It was a good sign. They would get through anything, together.

His hand found Silver's and squeezed it tightly for comfort. Silver looked up to him questioningly.

"Hey," Gold said. The others went on with their conversation, no one particularly paying attention to the private moment between the two trainers. "After we go home, after everything is cleared, I was thinking… maybe we should head out. Go somewhere new."

Silver's eyes widened. Gold could practically see how his thoughts flitted back to that one moment they'd shared on the peak of Mt. Silver, the promise to find some place just for themselves.

"I wanna see Unova," Gold continued. "And Hoenn and Sinnoh too, maybe even Kalos."

He turned to Silver, eyes sparkling.

"And I wanna see them with you."

Silver's breath hitched.

"Stupid," he mumbled, an embarrassed flush on his cheeks. "Not like I could get rid of you, even if I tried."

Gold laughed. "True."

"But," Silver struggled with his words, "I feel the same. I really wanna find―" Peace, supplied Gold's mind as he watched the boy search for a suitable word. You deserve peace. "―some place I can call my own. Some place… we can call our own."

A grin broke on Gold's face, honest and wide. Silver looked at him and returned the gesture, smaller but just as real. Around them the conversation bubbled back and forth. Red appeared by Silver's side, a knowing look in his eyes. Green was laughing loudly at something Leaf had said, while the woman kept making wildly exaggerated hand gestures. Next to her Lyra was hopping from feet to feet. Even Kris was grinning, watching the scene with interest. A bit further away Gold's mother was chatting with Lyra's mother and father. In the middle of her sentence she suddenly turned her head, meeting Gold's gaze across the distance, and smiled.

Gold shuddered and squeezed Silver's hand even tighter.

Come what may, for now everything was good.

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END

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A/N: Aaaand done! As it usually goes, I may have set myself up for writing yet another sequel. But whether I actually have the time and energy to map out the relationship between Leaf and Kris… well, that remains to be seen. For now, I'd like to thank all of you for reading. Please leave a note if you enjoyed, it would mean the world to me! See you next time!