Cold

Eusine hates cold nights.

They aren't all that uncommon in Johto, especially if you're traveling or camping near a large body of water, but Eusine hates them nonetheless. The icy breezes that roll through his campsite and chill him to the bone are simply the worst; they remind him that he is alone in his struggle. This sensation is an odd mix of frustration and satisfaction that he doesn't quite understand himself, though, but he supposes that it comforts him because he knows that he has no competition.

Haunter, Electrode and Drowzee aren't exactly much help. The three prefer to stay in their pokeballs on cold nights like this one, leaving their trainer alone in his tent with only a meager sleeping bag meant for summer and his usual clothes shielding him from the cold. It must be around two in the morning, he supposes, and he can't help but think about the fact that they had had no leads whatsoever in the past month on their quarry's was just days and days of walking, eating and camping and being cold. A man living on the shore of the Lake of Rage had warned him earlier that day that they were expecting snow, but he didn't care. What if Suicune showed up there that night and he wasn't there to witness it?

Even Morty, his best friend since childhood, tells him that his efforts are in vain, that he is chasing a ghost.

"Trying to capture the wind is pointless," he tells Eusine, but Eusine just gives him the finger and continues on his journey. Every time they leave Ecruteak, his pokemon seem less and less eager.

Just as the man said, snow begins to fall, but thankfully it is very light. Eusine puts an extra pair of socks on and eventually catches a few hours of fragmented sleep. The ground is hard and cold and he is frustrated and hungry, but to give up would not earn him any recognition from Suicune. He braves the cold like he always does, and he thinks to himself that this makes him a warrior. It's a fitting title for someone who is destined to tame the north wind.

He wakes up as soon as the first light of dawn becomes apparent on the side of his tent, and he tells the sun to go someplace as he tries in vain to get a few more minutes of sleep. It doesn't work, though his stomach reminds him that he hasn't eaten and that his pokemon are probably hungry too. So he forces himself out of the tent and lets his companions out of their pokeballs to finish off the last of the dehydrated food that he bought for the week. Eusine thinks he probably needs a shave, too, but snickers at the thought of wandering into Mahogany Town looking like a well-dressed Sasquatch and opts to just pack up his stuff and continue walking. When they reach town, Eusine takes a slightly-crumpled envelope from his bag and slips it into the mailbox outside of the rustic little general store as he enters.

Dear Morty,

I'm passing through Mahogany Town again. Still no sign of Suicune, unfortunately. It's damn cold here and my hands are so frozen I can barely write this. Oh well. Maybe I'll send you a souvenir from here next time I write, a little wooden Gyarados or something. Or one of those candy bars.

I'm still chasing the wind.

~E


I was reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets earlier today, and I was reminded of Eusine. I can see him being a lot like Gilderoy Lockheart... maybe it's the way they dress. xD I do kind of think of Eusine as being narcissistic and self-important, though.

Don't know where this came from, really. But w/e 8D