Chapter 3! Btw thx for the reviews! Sorry for being reallllllllyyyyy late on the updates!And thank you Rat2rrj, I tried to make that last chapter rather humorous, glad you liked it! As for Blazengirl410, very good guess there. You'll see if you are right in either this chapter or the next! Oh and be prepared for attraction to bloom, as well as more of Cilan's "Connoisseur Speak"! Lol read on! :3
I forgot to do one in the last chapter (if I still need to do them), so this is for this chapter and the last! Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon at all. I own jack shiz, except for my own ideas.
Chapter 3
For some reason, it took Iris a short while to comprehend this idea…..no, it was a fact. A fact that, unfortunately for her, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't shake. After blushing and trying in vain to convince herself that, though she did like him, it was only as a friend, she still failed. Eventually, she came to terms with herself about this. But, the mere fact that she accepted it, that didn't mean that she couldn't whine about it. She sat down and drew her knees up to her chest.
'Ohhhh, really? Why? Why do I have to like him, of all people? I mean, he's not annoying or unpleasant to be around at all, and he's kind and all that, but…why him? Why one of my travelling companions? Oh, I'm so confused. I feel all mixed up.' Iris had already started to whine internally.
Meanwhile, Cilan thought he felt something- or someone- staring at him. He turned slightly to look at Ash, but the younger trainer was occupied with watching his Pikachu play a game with Axew and Pansage. The Connoisseur turned and surveyed the trees around the clearing, but he didn't see anything, and none of their Pokémon was acting strangely in any way. He noticed that the staring he felt was gone. Still, he chanced a look at Iris out of the corner of his eye. Iris was sitting on her sleeping bag, her knees pulled up to her chest, and looking like she was having an argument with herself…..and losing, if that was possible. Her expression kept shifting, and, though his better judgment tugged at him, Cilan found it quite amusing to watch her.
"Iris?" He ventured.
The dragon trainer tensed reflexively as she was forced out of her thoughts, until she discovered that it was Cilan who had spoken. Still, she relaxed only very slightly. She turned to look at him and smiled. "Yeah, Cilan? What's up?"
"Well, you just seemed distressed, that's all. You were making all sorts of faces, too."
"I was?" Iris got very red.
"Yes. I was beginning to worry about you. Now you're all tense. What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Iris yawned slightly and relaxed a little more. Her blush disappeared. "I was just thinking about stuff."
"Hm? Like what kind of stuff?"
"Like…you." Iris said without really thinking. She then realized what she had just said. A red tinge crept over both trainers' faces. "Uhh….not in that way, I mean, but just like….I want to know more about you."
Cilan inclined his head slightly, and a puzzled expression came over his face. "How so? We've been travelling together for a while. I'm a Pokémon Connoisseur, I love cooking and I specialize in grass types. What more is there really to know?"
"Umm..well…can I talk to you after we eat? I'm pretty hungry and it's hard to think right now," Iris said. And, as if on cue, her belly growled audibly. Cilan laughed after hearing it.
"I think that's a good idea. I'm almost done with cooking. You should be able to eat in a few minutes or so."
"That's great. I'm starving!" Both trainers were noticeably startled as Ash unwelcomely cut into the conversation.
Iris became slightly irritated. "Ash, have you been listening to our ENTIRE conversation?"
"Uhhh…. nope, only heard something about being able to eat in a few minutes," Ash said as he scratched his head.
Iris was about ready to slap Ash right now, 1. He startled her, and 2. He was thinking about only food, yet again. (As you can see, Ash is kind of an idiot and he will mostly be like that, sorry. He will be greatly counted upon in some cases, though!)
"I just can't believe you sometimes, you know that! I really can't!," She blew up at him.
"Wh-whoa there, Iris! I said I didn't hear any other part of the conversation! What did I do this time?" Ash protested as he slowly inched away from Iris. ('Cause an angry girl is very dangerous to be around XD)
"Is that all you ever think about? 'Cause if it isn't it sure seems like it!"
"Hey, hey, let's not fight now," Cilan intruded on Ash and Iris' little tiff (they seem to get into a lot of those, don't they?), waving his hands back and forth in front of the two.
"WHY?" They both demanded in unison.
"Well, because you should eat now. I finished cooking."
Ash and Iris forgot immediately about their argument and went over to the table.
Cilan sighed and smiled. 'Huhhh…for some reason, I hope dinner ends quickly,'
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A/N Okay, I admit, I thought about ending the chapter here, but I promised you all in the last chapter that Iris would come up with some excuse to make Ash go away, and Cilan and Iris would talk to each other, so I shall continue!
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Cilan got his wish, dinner did end quickly. (Yes this is me being lazy because I didn't really want to delay the conversation any longer than I needed to to make sense).
"Hey Ash," Iris asked sweetly; she needed to make him go away somehow.
"Huh? What is it, Iris?" Ash inquired.
"Could you go find some berries for dessert? I could make something really wonderful if I had the right berries."
"Uhh, can't you do that yourself? Besides, I don't know what kind of berries you need."
"No, I can't do that myself, I'm really tired. Whereas you always seem to be full of energy after a meal." She yawned a little to cement her point. "As for the types of berries, I'll need Lansat, Starf, Chilan, Nutpea, Ginema, Durin, and Topo, and an Apricorn to use as a bowl.
"Holy crap, Iris! You can't be serious! Where am I supposed to get all those?" Ash whined.
Iris waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "Oh I've been through this forest plenty of times. Pretty much every type of berry grows here. You shouldn't have too much trouble finding them." And that was true; she didn't want poor Ash to be out in the forest all night looking for nonexistent berries.
"…..Fine." Ash finally agreed, though slightly skeptical. "Come on, Pikachu, let's go." He walked out of the "camp" as he was quickly joined by the Electric Mouse Pokémon.
"Alright, now I can talk to you, Cilan," Iris said as she went over to sit in her sleeping bag. She then noticed CIlan looking at her oddly. "Oh, sorry about that. It just makes me a lot more comfortable to talk to people when he's not around. He kind of annoys me sometimes," she explained briefly.
Cilan looked at her skeptically, then shrugged his shoulders and went to sit where he could speak to her. "So…what exactly do you want to know?"
"Well, you know…um…basic stuff." Iris said, having a slightly difficult time finding her words.
The grass trainer just shrugged again. "What kind of stuff? Like I said before, there isn't much to know, really."
"No, I know. Other stuff, like…..why do you always dress like that?" She poked him in the chest. "It isn't exactly the best thing for travelling, you know."
"Well, I'm a Connoisseur. I have been educated to look and dress professionally and tastefully, no matter what, even if I'm travelling!" He answered firmly.
Iris looked at Cilan for a moment, as if she wasn't completely satisfied with this answer. The she continued her "interrogation".
"Hmm…okay, what's your objection to eating berries and other fruits? Without cooking them, I mean?"
Cilan scratched his head and directed his eyes skyward as he thought. "Hmm…well, I don't exactly have an objection, per say….it's more like an instinct. Well, not really, but it's hard to explain it any other way. It comes from my love of cooking, I guess."
"Alright….hmm, what else do I wanna know…oh, I know! Cilan, what was your life like when you were little?"
"Well, when I was little, I of course was growing up with my two brothers," He began.
"Of course," Iris agreed.
"My childhood was rather uneventful. I remember it, of course, but one of the only things that was truly memorable was when I went with my mother and brothers to the Celestial Tower. We had gone many times, of course, to ring the tower's bell for our family's Swanna, but this time we had gone on a different day than we usually did." Before Cilan could continue, he was interrupted by a question from Iris.
"But what made the visit so memorable?" Iris asked with an air of impatience.
The grass trainer paid little attention to the dragon trainer's impatient aura. "We climbed the tower hand in hand, as we normally did. However, the notion was quickly forgotten by the sight that greeted us when we got to the top."
"But what happened?" Iris prompted."C'mon, tell me!"
"Nothing happened, really. But what we saw was a different story. We saw the Legendary Pokemon Keldeo."
Iris' eyes widened in awe. "But why would Keldeo be at the Celestial Tower?"
Cilan shrugged. "Good question. None of us knew, at the time. None of us do now, actually. The only one of the four of us who could offer a reasonable explanation was our mother. She suggested that it had come to honor the spirits of all of the Pokemon who had perished in the forest fire that took its home."
"That makes sense," Iris said while nodding slowly. "The legend does say that it lived in a forest, which was destroyed in a fire."
Cilan nodded in agreement. "Yes. A very well known legend, it seems. You know, the legend also says that Keldeo crosses the entire world, whil running on the surface of oceans and rivers. Anyway, we still rang the bell and prayed for Swanna as well as the other Pokemon who rested eternally in the tower. We prayed, too, that Keldeo's presence had perhaps soothed their spirits."
"Wow…that's amazing. I wish I could have been there." Iris' words were interrupted by a huge yawn coming from her mouth. "I'm getting sleepy. Hmm…maybe I can dream of Keldeo instead." Her eyelids were already closing.
Cilan laughed lightly. "You might want to get into your sleeping bag before you fall asleep! Otherwise, you'll most likely be very cold when you wake up," he said, while embodying the action himself.
"Mmmpphh….good idea." Iris was half asleep as she crawled into her sleeping bag. She was practically asleep before her head hit the pillow. But, before sleep had fully claimed her, she managed to mumble the words, "Good night, Cilan."
Cilan smiled softly at the now-asleep girl. "Good night, Iris."
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Finally done! I had so many ideas for this chapter and too little time to get it done soon! Sorry for the wait, once again! Please keep on reading and reviewing! Thanks chinchillas!
