(A/N): What is this? An update has appeared? ... I'll let myself out now. In all honesty, I had completely forgotten about this story, and have not been on my fanfiction account for nearly two months. I only checked just yesterday, and saw that my PM box was chockful of messages! One of them, sent actually an entire month ago, asked about the next chapter of this story. I gasped! How could I have forgotten about this story? When I checked my flashdrive, there was chapter four, sure enough, sitting half done and untouched. I immediately went to finish this chapter for you guys. I truly am sorry for not having updated in so long! I wouldn't blame you if you're mad at me. Thank you so much, Shadow Rosealine, for you are the one who reminded me about this story! Though I actually didn't see your message until after a month you had sent it...ha ha ha... Anywho, please enjoy the story!
Standard Disclaimers apply.
Now that he was here in front of her, he really did not know what to do. He had expected for months to go by before he finally found her- not this, this odd and quick meeting after several years. He watched her walk in front of him, half in a trance, lost in thought as he marveled at how her blue hair sparkled in the sunlight. He half hoped this wasn't some twisted, delightful dream. He found himself pulled out of his thoughts when Dawn waved her hand in his face to get his attention. Such lovely hands.
"Paul, are you listening to me?"
"Uh…yes. I am."
She eyed him dubiously, "Then what did I say?"
Paul chuckled nervously, avoiding eye contact with her for several long minutes. Why did human interaction have to be so hard? Dawn shook her head in annoyance.
"Geez, you're even more antisocial than the last we met."
"Sorry, I—"
"I was asking you about how your travels are going? Oh, and Brock asked us to meet him over in Cerulean City. Maybe we could travel there together?"
Dawn was sure to seize all opportunities presented to her, like an eager glameow, it seemed to Paul, and she waited for his answer. Paul fell into a trance again, so she grabbed ahold of his attention by snapping her fingers. Paul gasped with a start.
"Yes! Yes, I'd like to travel with you."
Dawn smiled contently, taking ahold of his arm and dragging him along with her, flustering him to no end. He probably should have thought about this more, but he just met her, and did not want to let her pass him by again so soon. He sighed to himself; he was an awkward mess who just could not seem to sort himself out at all. Maybe when they stopped for the night and set up a small camp, he could take some time for himself to just properly process everything.
The two wandered on through the simple streets of Pewter, Dawn blabbering on about the nearby contest that she wanted to attend. Paul listened half-heartily, checking the town map for the best route through Mount Moon to Cerulean City. It was a fairly straight laced path, and they could be in Cerulean by the next week depending on how long they stayed in the small town for that Pokémon contest Dawn wanted to attend. Silence passed between them pleasantly as they began the trek from Pewter to their next destination.
"Hey, Paul…"
"Yes, Dawn?"
"This may be silly, but…one does not usually find a wartortle in the wild, right?"
Paul frowned, "No, I don't believe so."
Dawn went silent, then pointed to a wartortle that fretted further down the path, "I think I found a rare find, then."
Then went over to the wartortle, who seemed to shrink back as they approached, but it relaxed when it recognized Dawn. It happily launched itself at Dawn, hugging her tight, crying out in relief. Dawn giggled nervously, unsure what to do, barely managing to catch the heavy Pokémon as it threw her off balance.
"War, wartortle, waar!"
"Uh, do you recognize this wartortle? It sure seems to know you."
"No, I don't think…," she shook her head, then gasped, "oh, I do! Are you May's wartortle, by any chance?"
The lost Pokémon nodded fervently, gesturing to the path. Paul watched on questioningly while Dawn set him down and the Pokémon set to work pantomiming how he had gotten lost. He was trailing behind his trainer when they stopped to check their progress, and have lunch. Having finished the food set out, wartortle saw a butterfly and wandered after it. Soon enough, wartortle found himself very far from his trainer, and very lost. Paul could not help but snort. Dawn scowled at him.
"Don't worry, wartortle! We'll be sure to help you find May," she squinted at Paul for emphasis, but he was already walking down the path, searching himself.
"I think they might have went this way, if the nearby campfire and meandering wartortle footprints are any indication," he looked back at her, and she seemed surprised by his actions. Paul frowned. He could be nice without being forced. Dawn shook her head and followed, holding wartortle in her arms so the Pokémon couldn't wander off again. Piplup complained the whole while about having to walk beside his trainer. After twenty minutes of searching the route and the meandering paths connected to it, they heard trainers calling out in the distance. Wartortle squirmed in excitement, calling out to them. Soon enough, a familiar face emerged out of some nearby bushes, soon followed by a young man. She looked incredibly relieved.
"Wartortle! Dawn, too! Thanks so much for finding him, we were looking for him all over!"
"No prob! It's great to see you, May! What brings you to Kanto?"
"I've decided to take up the Kanto circuit again, for kicks. You?"
"I'm taking up the contest circuit too," the two friends giggled. Paul awkwardly shuffled while Wartortle rejoined May and Drew cleared his throat. The guy had gotten a lot taller than from when Dawn had last seen him, and May's looks had changed too.
"Oh, nice to see you again too, Drew! I see you're still accompanying May everywhere." Drew nodded with a proud smirk.
"Of course. I can't leave June wandering around all by herself. She'd probably get lost or run out of food in a day." Paul snickered and Drew winced in pain while May stomped on his foot. Dawn couldn't help but giggle herself, but she elbowed Paul for snickering. He scowled at her.
Drew looked at them curiously, vaguely remembering see Paul on TV for a Sinnoh league something or other a couple years back.
"So, who's this travelling companion of yours, Dawn?"
"Ah, I can't believe I didn't introduce you to Paul! This is because you're too quiet," Paul quirked an eyebrow at her, but she continued, "This is Paul, a friend from Sinnoh. He used to be rivals with Ash. As you guessed, we're travelling together. Paul recently won the Pewter City gym badge, actually." Paul did not recall if their friendship had ever truly began or was, but he was more than happy to be considered her friend. Paul nodded to May and Drew, and as he shook hands with Drew, a silent message seemed to pass between them. Drew's eyes seem to say coldly: You mess with my friend and I'll kill you. Paul made a mental note to stay on Drew's good side. Definitely stay on his good side.
"I have a wonderful idea!"
"What is it, May?"
"Why don't we all go together to the next contest, since that's where we're going?"
Dawn squealed in delight, looking to Paul, as if to ask permission. He shrugged. They were already on the way there.
"Sure, why not. We're all going to the same place and are on the same path."
Drew nodded his agreement, wandering back through the bushes to where he and May had set up their own camp spot before meeting with Dawn and Paul. May and Dawn gushed and gossiped with each other, catching up from when they had last met, and occasionally they would glance at Paul and whisper. Sighing, Paul looked up at the sky to watch the clouds float by. A few pidgeys passed overhead. Maybe if he kept it up like this, socializing wouldn't be so hard.
Paul wanted to take it back. Travelling with Dawn and May was the most horrible decision of his entire life. The two girls would not stop talking. They just went on and on, no end in sight. Paul wanted to grind his head into the ground and stuff his ears with cotton. Drew sent him occasional sympathetic glances, as if he had known to expect this from May. Paul felt his eye twitch in annoyance.
Soon they reached the out of the way town where the contest was being held. Paul doubted it was even listed on the Kanto official town map. He was correct when he checked. He and his companions entered the tiny Pokémon center, checking in for the contest that was to start in two days' time. The small building was already full of trainers staying for the contest, so they had to stay at the local motel. That was small too, but they managed to get a room with four beds for a discounted price. Dawn excitedly set her things down and ran off with May to practice and plan their tactics for the upcoming contest. Paul found himself alone with Drew. Drew's staring was unnerving.
"So…you and Dawn, huh?"
"…what about us?"
"You two together?"
"No. We're just friends," Drew seemed doubtful of that. "Do you like her or something?"
Drew laughed, "Not any more than a guy would like his little sister, no. Dawn is practically May's best friend. I don't want any guy to hurt her, just as I wouldn't want anyone to hurt May."
"I don't want to hurt Dawn or have anyone hurt Dawn either," Paul mumbled, frowning. Drew nodded in approval before responding, "I approve of you so far. But tread lightly, man. Also…I think you're kinda cool. Let's battle sometime." Paul nodded in agreement, looking out the window at Dawn and May training. He suspected that he would become friends with Drew and May, whether he wanted to or not, but as he watched Dawn direct her Pokémon with excitement, he found himself not minding the prospect of new friends.
Dawn was glad things were going her way so soon. She was travelling with Paul, was attending a contest for a new ribbon, and she even got to meet with May and Drew again, as unlikely as that was. She sat in the cool grass with her Pokémon, giving them water as they took a break from their practice and exercise. May soon joined her, smiling.
"It really is great to see you again." Dawn giggled in agreement, sharing her water with May. May heartily took a large swig from the bottle, sighing in satisfaction and laying back before looking up at Dawn. She hummed in thought.
"What're you thinking about, May?"
"Nothing. Just you and Paul."
The reply was nonchalant, but Dawn felt her cheeks warm at the topic. She hoped she wasn't blushing. From May's smile, she most likely was. Dammit.
"Oooh, do I sense some Paul and Dawn sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g, in the future?" Dawn flushed, frantically shaking her in denial, causing May to laugh. "I'm just teasing you, Dawn. But it's kinda obvious that you both like each other."
Dawn smiled wobbily, "Really? Ah, did you say 'like each other'?"
When May nodded, Dawn found herself self-conscious and doubting just a little. But there was no need to doubt, was there? She had a tattoo for Paul as her soulmate, and it was pink. Dawn could not help her doubt, however, as an old memory tingled at the back of her mind. May propped herself up on her elbows, turning to lay on her belly as she pet Piplup. The penguin Pokémon chirped contently.
"How come you two aren't dating?"
"Well, uh, we haven't seen each other in the past three years. There's also the fact that we sorta didn't get along much three years ago," she murmured while May hummed in response, "Paul used to be quite a jerk. From what I've seen the past few days, though, he's actually quite nice now. He's still just as quiet as he used to be, though, and tends to space out a lot."
"Are you two soulmates?"
Dawn started at the sudden question, then nodded. Then hesitated.
"Yes. Well, we should be. I have a tattoo for him on my back, and it's pink."
May nodded, "Then you two are surely mutual soulmates. So, why not just head straight into dating?"
Dawn frowned at her friend.
"May, I and Paul haven't seen each other in three years until, like, four days ago. We used to not be friends. I used to judge him a lot, and was quick to criticize him. He would call me 'troublesome' as a nickname, and we did not get along. I don't want to be a frivolous idiot who just jumps into their soulmate's arms even if they previously hated one another just because they're soulmates like in those popular movies. I want to start over and have a proper friendship with Paul this time. Fall in love with him in a slow, proper way." She could not help but blush at how sappy her words sounded to her own ears. She caught May smiling at her.
"Good. Brock told me all about you and Paul after you guys left Pewter City, actually. I was going to knock some sense into you if your reply was something different." Dawn scowled and playfully shoved May, the two girls giggling. They soon got up and resumed their practice session for the upcoming contest. They could both feel that it was going to be lots of fun. Glancing back, Dawn noticed Paul watching her train from the motel window. She smiled and waved to him, and he seemed to fluster and hide. She giggled. Dawn felt that this was going to be her best contest circuit yet, especially with Paul by her side
I apologize for the shortness of the chapter. I'll try to make it up to you dear readers soon, but I can't really guarantee when I'll update next. Sorry for being such a lousy author. Did you enjoy this update? May and Drew have joined our friends, albeit temporarily! The next chapter is sure to be full of excitement. I'm actually excited to write out the contest battle scenes. Anyone knows which episodes of Pokemon showcase how contests work in Kanto? I'd like to get it as accurate as possible, it's been quite a while since I've watched those episodes. Also, please give me feedback and write a review letting me know what you thought of the chapter! It would help out a lot. Try not to spoil things for other readers, though. Until next time!