I'm back! Well, I've been busy with examinations at first and then I was immersed in the world of DragonNest and my other fiction inspired by MMORPGs. I guess I simply can't promise regular updates... :S

Thank you TUS and krystalanimeheart for your encouraging reviews 3 I'm always glad to see follows and reviews~

I'm giving up on grammar since I'm just writing for leisure and there's no point stressing myself out for that (I'm not bothering about beta-ing either *shrugs*). So if you see any grammar errors please just ignore them, unless they are as huge as the sky ;)

All characters' actions and speech are my own interpretations and speculations, the only thing I own is the plot; if any of the description or personality depiction doesn't suit your taste, do not read on. No Flames Please.


Chapter 3

"Could we talk?"

He could practically see the fluster and bewilderment in those auburn eyes as he asked the question, but as long as it wasn't discomfort, or reluctance, he had a good idea what was going on in the boy's head – probably having a hard time finding a way to express his thoughts.

N couldn't stop a little chuckle from escaping his lips; despite the changes in his appearance, it was the same old Touya that N had first met two years ago.

But this made the boy really hesitant in words: when they met in the past, Touya kept quiet most of the time, only speaking few but impactful words at the end. So he had to take the initiative, N guessed.

"Come on in." He grabbed Touya's wrist and turned towards Room 419, not giving the boy any time to refuse.

After settling down the boy on the edge of the bed, N pulled himself another chair across the room intending for a good face-to-face talk.

"Touya." N paused for a while, thinking how best to put his thoughts into speech, before sighing softly, "For these two years, your dream… I dreamed your dream."

"N-san…?" Touya looked up, surprised.

N simply smiled and continued, "Do you remember? Our battle at the Castle… you said you had a dream – a dream that Pokemon could live alongside humans, and that they do not suffer mistreatment, but share a bond with humans, like friends and siblings. I was cynical towards the idea… because I thought to capture them with Pokeballs, to study and attempt to classify them was just self-gratification.

"But as I was travelling these two years, I realised… your dream was not a dream. It was your truth. Everywhere I went, people and Pokemon were living together harmoniously, humans loved their Pokemon and the Pokemon loved them back. Trainers who battled with their Pokemon celebrated over their victory and cried over their injuries, they grew alongside their Pokemon, they trained together, and when they battled, they were one with their Pokemon."

"The world you envisioned, Touya, it was wonderful," N looked deeply into those auburn orbs, "It became my dream as well… and for that, I want to thank you."

"… there's no need to…" Touya fumbled for the correct words, "Well, I didn't make it come true… it was just…"

N placed a finger to his lips, "Touya. It was you who told me that this was possible. And now, I believe in it."

Touya stared at N for a while, apparently lost for words, and finally gave a little smile, "That's... great, N-san."

"And you have something you wanted to tell me, don't you?" N was so certain, his tone soft yet undeniable.

"Er…" Touya flushed in embarrassment; he wasn't aware that he had all his emotions spelled over his face. "I thought about what you said before… so I left the League, retraced my path in Unova, and aligned my route along the forests and caves… I wanted to know… was it better for Pokemon to live in the wild, without human interference?"

N nodded understandingly, and supposed that Touya had vanished from the contactable world since then.

"Pokemon in the wild was indeed living more naturally and could freely roam around, but I still can't understand… Perhaps my Pokemon could have been better without being on my team, was it that their natural instincts were suppressed without me knowing? Even so… I can't bear to part with them."

Upon hearing his words, N frowned slightly – he didn't intend for Touya to feel at loss because of whatever he said before.

"In the end, Reshiram gave me the wake-up call," Touya let loose a little chortle, "Reshiram told me that he didn't choose me for being stupid – It was the first time I saw Reshiram absolutely fuming."

While Reshiram was a fire- and dragon-type Pokemon, it was a beautiful and sober creature, always calm and mild, very much opposite of what is expected of a fire-type Pokemon, often being rather aggressive and easily excited in nature.

"He told me that I had to live with what I believed in, so I spent the rest of my time in the two years observing wild Pokemon and how people dealt with Pokemon. I changed my training style to fit their wild nature, I helped out with some Trainer schools, getting them to train and learn in the wild… before I decided to come back."

"So what did you intend to do when you came back?"

"I…" Touya stopped mid-sentence, staring at N who was looking at him expectantly. How was he supposed to say that it was to look for the very person sitting right in front of him now!

N could easily guess from his expression that the boy had the exact same intent as him, but decided not to push further, "Are you going back to the League?"

"No," Touya shook his head fervently; he didn't like being the centre of the spotlight. "I was just going to visit… and start another adventure."

"Where to?"

Touya thought for a while, "I haven't decided, but perhaps the other regions might be interesting."

"Oh…" N was immersed in his thoughts for a split second and smiled, "Then would you mind some company?"

"Company? You mean… N-san?" Touya was quite surprised. To see N with Ash and company was out of ordinary, since he was always traveling alone with some Pokemon; and now he meant to travel with him?

N gently smiled, "I don't have a destination in mind yet; and … I actually kind of like you."

He has seemed to understand his feelings towards the Trainer a little; it is beyond that of the friendship-type of "like," something far more complicated and stronger than that… yet upon seeing the blush upon Touya's face as he ended the sentence, it is probably better to delay that expression for a later date – at least until Touya isn't that reserved around him.

That reminds him of the other boy Cheren. The two friends seem to be exceptionally close, so close that they don't feel uncomfortable or apprehensive around each other. They were probably friends that wouldn't mind saying that they love each other – in a brotherly fashion – and that does make him a little envious.

"Of course I wouldn't mind, we are friends!" Touya exclaimed, although his cheeks remained slightly reddened after hearing N's words.

N merely smiled; he had been smiling more than ever before since he met Touya on this journey. Rising from his seat, "I assume you would want to return to your room to clear some things before going to the carnival?"

"Sure," Touya started towards the door, giving N a big smile before closing the door behind him, "I'll see you in a while, N-san."

After the talk with N, Touya felt as though the burden upon his shoulders have been removed, and his emotions came out a lot easier than before, the result being his bright smile leaving N dumbfounded in turn.


N went down to the counter earlier than the agreed time to gather, finding Touya already at the counter, talking to Nurse Joy with a Xtransceiver in his hand.

"Touya-kun, your Xtransceiver would take quite a while to fix, why don't you take this one with you instead? I'll switch the memory cards so that you get all your contacts ready in the new one," Nurse Joy is as helpful as ever.

"Oh, Okay," Touya looked a little reluctant, but accepted it anyway, "Thank you, Nurse Joy."

"My pleasure. Have a good day!" Nurse Joy kept the broken Xtransceiver away and greeted N, "Good afternoon! Touya-kun, I think your friend is here?"

"Huh?" Touya was busy switching on the new Xtransceiver, before looking up to see the man with tea green hair approaching him, "N-san!"

"You got a new Xtransceiver?"

N came up to get a closer look when the Xtransceiver suddenly rang, only to give Touya a great shock, leaving the Xtransceiver to slip from his fingers, which N caught just in time.

"I haven't been using it for a while…" Touya lowered his head as his actions caught the attention of a few Trainers nearby. Without looking at the name on the screen, he accepted the contact request, receiving a second shock in return.

"T-O-U-Y-A! WHAT ARE YOU THINKING! TWO YEARS GONE WITHOUT EVEN A MESSAGE? DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW WORRIED WE WERE? WHERE ARE YOU NOW!" Elesa's voice came booming through the speaker.

"I should have known…" Touya could feel all those gazes full of curiosity boring right through him.

"WHAT?"

"Elesa-san…" Touya was hoping that Elesa could lower her volume.

"DON'T YOU –SAN ME! WE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO CALL YOU FOR TWO YEARS! AND WHY ARE YOU NOT AT THE LEAGUE RIGHT NOW?"

Her voice instantly caught Cilan's attention, who was just coming down the stairs with Ash and Iris. Taking a few quick steps towards Touya, he took the Xtransceiver out of Touya's hand, earning a thankful gaze from the boy.

"Elesa, calm down."

"WHAT DO YOU MEA- Oh, Cilan? ...Wait a minute, you are with Touya?" Elesa's volume level went down but her anger level seems unchanged.

"Don't get all flared up right now, I've just met him today," Cilan was cool in reply, "Perhaps you would too, if you head down to the carnival in Aspertia..."

"…Meet me at the centre," Elesa hung up immediately after the needed information.

Cilan returned the Xtransceiver with an enormous smile, "Touya-kun, she's really fond of you, you know." Elesa is the only gym leader that could make even the ex-ex-Champion Alder listen to her in obedience, not to mention ex-Champion Touya.

"…Am I supposed to be thrilled to hear that?" Touya strapped the Xtransceiver to his wrist with a sigh.

"Well, she wouldn't be happy if we wandered off to the carnival first," Cilan shrugged, but the wide grin made Touya feel as if he has just been spoofed. "Why don't we go for a little training? Ash said that you wanted to give your Pokemon some conditioning before a battle."

Touya thought for a while before agreeing, "I guess that's fine."

As they were heading for the training grounds next to the Pokemon centre, N stalled to walk beside Touya, "What is it?"

"What is what?" Touya had no idea what N was asking.

"You were looking at me every time you mentioned battle or training," N couldn't help but noticing that.

"Oh," Touya murmured something softly before getting a raised brow from N, "I remembered that N-san didn't fancy the idea of Pokemon battles; it seems fine now but I just wanted to check..."

N gripped Touya's shoulders lightly, "Even if I didn't like battles, I wouldn't mind yours – your Pokemon enjoy it, don't they?"

Touya stared at N for a while, "You seem to have changed, N-san."

"I'm trying to see your dream, your world," N lifted his head to look at the sky, "… so it's probably a change for the better. Don't you think so?"

Touya's lips curved into a delicate smile as he studied N's expression, "I guess so." At least N looks a lot livelier than before, when Ghetsis was controlling his life.

When they came to the training ground, Ash and Iris had already released their Pokemon – some running around excitedly, a few lazing around, and some engaged in a fierce glaring competition.

Cilan released his own Pokemon and turned to Touya, "Touya, which Pokemon are you having now?"

Retrieving his Pokeballs from his belt, he went into his battle mode, full with pride and confidence, "My team has always remained the same."


Chapter 3 done!

My impression of Touya is that he is more on the quiet side, but much more composed than Ash, probably because he looks older. So it may seem that Touya doesn't speak much, but that's just my take on our protagonist - quiet, reserved, not good with words but may be slightly more talkative (or could have more exclamation marks in his speech) when he is excited or uneasy, and always with a little smile on his face.

And I took some of the speech from the game/anime as well... That's why only the plot is mine (´ε` )