I am still making some things up about the Pokémon world, as well as keeping to the actual origins, so clicking on a picture of Violet City will only confuse you. Here, Violet City is a bit like New York City (USA) in that apartment homes reside above shops and stores and businesses. There are some buildings that are solely for work; classic ones of cubicles and boring stuff (like the Game Freak building in the Black/White games), as well as the simple towns in the real game. So, yes, there are some major exaggerations! You have been warned! (And, I believe there will be some laughs throughout this chapter.)
That's all. Thanks!
~Third Person POV~
"What's the matter, Green?" Red asked his tall friend. They were aboard the plane; sitting in a row of three, and takeoff would start in about a minute. They'd already then the general safety announcement, and the plane was almost ready. Blue had been glumly slumped against her window seat; Red was turned towards the two from his aisle seat, and Green was in the middle. Red, who thought that the four hours on board the plane would be nothing much more than just that, found that Blue's depressed attitude and Green's oddness were throwing him off.
Blue glanced over. Green back was rigid, and his eyes were closed; hands gripping the armrests of the chair. She had noticed that he was unusually quiet (as in, no sarcastic comment when Red almost went up the wrong escalator; long story), but had only been worrying about Silver. Now she was curious as well.
"I'm fine," he said in a strained voice, opening his eyes. "Just waiting for this hunk of metal to take off already." Blue and Red looked at each other, not believing him in the slightest. Green glared at them. "What? Why are you staring?"
But he was interrupted. "Sorry for the delay, folks, but now we are all set for takeoff. Please note the sign above you and remain seated until it turns off. Thank you for flying with us, and we hope you enjoy the ride." The memorized speech came from overhead, and the plane started to move forward, gaining speed rapidly.
Neither Blue nor Red missed Green's sharp intake of breath, never mind how quiet it was. But they let it slide for a while, until the sign that declared it necessary to keep the seatbelt on turned off. Green had his eyes shut, but every few minutes, they would jolt open. Red looked at him uneasily. "Green-"
"I'm fine," he answered automatically.
"I don't think you are," Blue interrupted, and he looked at her. Almost a second later, he snapped his head back, eyes shut again. "Are you okay?" Blue asked quickly.
"Fine. But...could you shut the blind? Or...whatever that is," he requested in that same strained voice, referring to the window.
"Um...sure," Blue agreed, though she was quite confused. She did so with a little click, and Green gave a familiar nod of thanks. The seatbelt light flickered on.
Then the pilot's (or assistant, or whomever) voice came again: "Pardon the interruption, but there will be some turbulence during the ride. Please do not worry, as it is quite common. This is caused by the wind, not the plane. However, we ask for your co-operation in flight safety. Please remain seated or return immediately when the seatbelt light flashes, as tripping or falling is generally not something that most people find pleasant. Thank you." There was some laughter at the end from passengers, but none from Green or Red, the latter of which was closely watching the former. Just as the pilot had said, a bump soon rocked the plane. Nothing major.
However, it appeared that Green would not agree. His fingers clamped around the armrest and he actually cringed. Blue decided that it was time he answer them. She already had an idea of what was happening, but she would allow him a chance first.
"Green," she said sternly, and he jumped a bit. This unnerved Red as well, for Green had always been known as the most obedient/respectful/controlled of the three kids that romped around Pallet Town. He didn't respond to her. "Are you going to say anything, or let me do it?" Blue asked. Green was silent for a moment, then said, quietly, "I'd rather neither happen." Blue sighed, then brightened, then gestured for Red to speak, rather than herself or Green.
"You're afraid of heights."
By instinct, Green's eyes snapped open and he raised an eyebrow, forcing himself to try and calm down. But Red was looking just as determined as he himself tried to be, and Blue was mirroring his expression - on purpose, he knew. "What makes you say that?" But instead of his usual bland tone, the words were rushed.
Another turbulence bump hit the plane, and Green was distracted how fast his heart rate was racing. Eyes closed, he blocked off all thought except the ones telling him to slow his breathing.
A couple minutes passed before he could hear anything over his blood pounding, and he opened his eyes. Blue looked almost amused, and Green might have swallowed. That was not good. "Do you really need more proof?" she asked, a little sardonically. He settled for his usual response; a neutral half-shrug. But Blue took it as a positive answer, and tapped a finger against her chin. "Do you recall, Red, how Green never would go on the swings when we were younger?"
"I was older than you," Green said in a tired voice. "Too old for swings."
"Not always. And I was older than you, but I still went on the swings," Red countered. "In fact, I liked them quite a bit."
"Well, I didn't," Green said mildly. In truth, this discussion was making him extremely nervous; just talking about it made him acutely aware of exactly why he never went on the swings, even all those years ago. He was sure Blue knew it, and would continue until he admitted it. So Green weighted his options: resist what Blue was backing him into and prove his strength, but suffer (for lack of a better word, obviously) throughout; or give in and show weakness, but stop her from bringing those memories up even faster than they could show themselves.
Before he could come to a decision, Blue cut into his thoughts. "You never would climb trees, either. Well, you were like every other kid in racing us to one, but you would never actually climb one. You said it was because we looked like the monkeys we were, but I think there was another reason." Blue spoke slowly, not letting Green block her out.
"Pity," She continued, as if she were at a tea party. "You never did come up. It was always a great view. Remember when Red and I climbed up to the second-story roof so we could see the stars? It was fantastic. When we tried to get back down, though, Red slipped off the roof."
"I remember that," Red said. "Well, hard not too, I guess, because I twisted my ankle."
"Right. How did you describe it - falling - to me? Like being weightless yet having too much to pull you down?" Another spot of turbulence rocked the plane, and Green cringed again, this time a bit harder. "Plus-"
"Stop." He said it quietly, but Blue closed her mouth. Green pinched his nose as if exasperated, but he was really making himself slow his breathing. Again, several minutes passed before he was feeling sane enough to open his eyes.
Except that he didn't. In truth, Green knew that although Blue pretty much always had good motives, the path wasn't always so easy. And she definitely had a mischievous streak. Thus, he kept his eyes shut and tried not to appear as scared as he really was. He knew it was a pathetic move, but he would take it.
Unfortunately (or fortunately) for Green, he was being incredibly out of character, and as thus, he was as much an open book as Red generally was to them. Red and Blue were carrying on as best of a conversation they could with only using hand gestures and facial expressions.
It was probably for the best that the people on the other side of the plane in their row were taking a nap, so they failed to notice the extremities both were making to prove his/her own point.
Eventually, at the end of a series of long arguments, Red lost two games of rock-paper-scissors, and thus carefully tapped Green on the shoulder. The other jerked away, eyes opening wide, but Red put his hands out in a placating gesture, and Green made himself stop moving. "What?" he asked, then balked at how weak it sounded.
"Don't worry-" Green cut Blue off.
"Are you insane? You use my ridiculous ph-phobia against me like that, and then you tell me to calm down?" he demanded.
"Hush," Blue said, in a tone that was both a bit comforting yet told him very clearly that he ought to just let her talk. "Green, you know I generally have a reason, and I sure do right now. Listen, nothing helps a fear grow more than denial. Maybe you can tell right now, maybe you can't. But trust me when I tell you that what I just did was actually for the best - your best interest."
He wanted to growl at her, but found very soon that he was even more on-edge than before, even if he did have a slightly better handle on it. Not really of Blue, but of what she could do; it was quite clear that she was very well likely to escalate his already present fear. For good or for naught, he didn't care. He just needed that NOT to happen. And he knew very well that he was more than powerless when it came to this.
"Green," Red said forcefully. "Pay attention, now!" Green's eyes snapped to the oldest of the three, and he stilled. "Nothing's going to happen. Do you hear me? And Blue will NOT do that again," he added pointedly. Green nodded slowly in response to the question, and Blue sighed a bit.
"Oh, Green," she said. "I promise you that I won't do that again. I also won't ever hold it against you, so whether it's a grudge or taunt of prank, I won't use it against you."
"Appreciate it," he muttered, half-sarcastically, and she rolled her eyes.
"I'm not exactly in the best place right now, Green. And it you keep doing that, neither will you. While I refuse to use your acrophobia against, you, I've plenty more up my sleeve."
Good-naturedly yet with a sting embedded, Green asked, "And when are you the one with threats?" Blue didn't answer, only turned the other way to study the inside of the plane. She idly played with a strand of hair, thoughts drifting from Green to Silver.
"So much for a happy trip," Red muttered, and Green managed a half-smirk.
"Oh, was that what you were expecting?"
~Gold's POV~
"There you are!" I exclaimed, a bit exasperated. I'd been looking for Silver and Crys all day, and they only showed up now? It was, like, 1:00. "Where have you been? And have you seen Yellow?"
"I've been cleaning up," Crys said. Silver just shrugged, which was as good an answer as I was going to get. "And I have no idea where Yellow is; did you check her room? Because somehow, I doubt that lingering in the second floor is bound to find anyone."
"Er..." Well, no. "That might be a good place to look," I admitted. We mostly referred to the level with Green and Blue's rooms as he first floor, and so on, because the coffee shop wasn't much of a floor.
But Yellow wasn't home. "Maybe she had other plans," Crys mused. Where would she have gone? Not much to do in this city. But, whatever. My stomach rumbled; I haven't eaten all day.
"Who's up for lunch?"
~Yellow's POV~
My smile widened. Not that many could tell, because of my hat. I was wearing a slightly a-line black skirt, knee-high brown boots, a blue three-quarter, and a gray tank top. My hair was a let down in a long ponytail, but my most face was hidden by a large hat. (I know, the hat's weird. Just go with it for now.) See, for work, the uniform was all black, pants and long-sleeves (or rolled up), and I put my long, blonde hair into a bun, though I couldn't do much with my bangs. On regular days, I'd wear just jeans (normally blue), and still a long-sleeve, my hair in a loose bun.
I wasn't that creative with my wardrobe.
But that's because I was creative in other ways, with other things. Anyway, I was very happy then, and I probably looked like quite the sight leaving the room I was in. How I'd dreamed of going! And I'd managed it. Standing, right there, in that room. It was the stepping stone to what I'd always wanted.
And I absolutely loved it!
~Green's POV~
"I hate this."
I sensed more than saw Red looking over at me. "Hate what?" he asked. By this point, Blue had sort of (sort of) gotten out of her funk, and was writing in a notebook. I'd been telling Red more about Johto, and he about home.
But a spot of turbulence interrupted, and all the calm dissipated. "I hate this so much," I repeated, with more feeling than usual, and trying not to sound as rattled as I felt.
"Try getting some sleep," Blue advised smoothly, looking up for the first time in a while. She tapped the pen against her chin.
Did she think that was funny? "Again, I must ask: Are you insane?"
"Well, not right now," she answered cheekily, winking. I rolled my eyes. "But you really ought to try and relax. We've got about three hours left."
Three hours?! I groaned to myself. I'd been focusing on just running my mouth (for once) in order to basically stop thinking. It had worked, for a while, though I remembered practically nothing Red had told me, or what I'd said. Somehow, I had a feeling that he was feeding me nonsense as well. "Even if I wanted to, I highly doubt I could."
"Then let's talk about something trivial and stupid and bound to make you fall asleep in boredom."
"That's what we've been doing," Red pointed out. "While you're writing away in that fancy little notebook of yours." Blue snapped it shut and stuffed it into her bag. I raised an eyebrow but she only shrugged, not meeting our eyes.
"Well?" Blue asked pointedly, when no one said anything. "Say something dumb! But funny."
"I don't do dumb. Or funny," I deadpanned. Blue gave a grin.
"You just did." I groaned again, out loud this time. This was going to be a very long trip.
~Silver's POV~
I raised an eyebrow across the table. "Are you really paying for lunch?" That was very un-Gold-like. But he shrugged.
"Sure. You paid last time, didn't you?" Well, he had me there.
Crys frowned. "You don't have to, Gold. I-"
"Crys: it's fine." Gold got up and walked to the counter to pay. Crys still looked uncomfortable.
"What's wrong?" I asked her, though quietly. She blinked and shook her head. Fine. I changed the topic. Well, I was going to, but someone outside caught my attention. "Is that Yellow?"
Gold had rejoined us, and I looked out the window. Sure enough, the young woman was walked past the restaurant, a small suitcase in hand. "Let's go see," he said, then walked quickly out of the shop. "Hey, Yellow!"
She froze, then turned around. She smiled again when she saw us. "Hello." Yellow nodded to Crys and I. "How are you?"
"Heading back home," he replied. "Coming too?" Yellow nodded, and we all fell into step together. "So," Gold started, never one for silence, "...where have you been?"
~Yellow's POV~
Darn it. But honestly, I should have seen it coming. "Just checking out the city some more," I said.
"What about the suitcase?" I knew that Gold wasn't trying to be nosy; he was just curious by nature. As well as impatient.
But luckily for me, Crystal intervened with a light jab to her friend's ribs. "I'm sure she's got a reason," she scolded mildly, giving me an eye-roll and a wink.
Saved!
~Blue's POV~
It worked! Green fell asleep! It took about an hour, with a couple setbacks, but we did it. Now he was sleeping, arms folded across his chest. Red gave me a grin, and whispered, "Nice." We literally just droned on and on about whatever we could think about, even the weather. I yawned too. But at least he wasn't freaking out anymore. That was well worth it.
~Red's POV~
"There. That wasn't SO awful, was it?" I asked, though a small smirk danced at my lips. The plane had landed, and now we were at an airport in Kanto. Lucky us; we have an hour's drive back to Pallet Town. Well, okay, it wasn't that bad. I mean, if you walked, Violet City was about half an hour to go straight through it, and maybe an hour and a half (at a walk fast!) to make a full circle.
Picking up baggage was next on the to-do list. That's where we were headed next, and then we were out of here! Anyway, now Green was glaring at me, and Blue managed a small smile. She was still all thoughtful, but she said she would tell us later. "Funny, wasn't it?" he scowled.
"Just the fact that you weren't your grumpy, sullen-" He cut me off.
"I'd think before I finished that sentence, Red."
~Yellow's POV~
Finally, I was home, and I could start squealing in excitement. Okay, so I didn't squeal, but I was super, super excited. The thing is, Violet City is a neighboring city to Azalea City. Now, that's a bit of an exaggeration, and it took me the better part of the day to get there. But, there's a new building that's there; it was added when I was about seventeen, five years ago. The name isn't so creative, but that's alright. It's called Central de l'Art, which means 'Art Central' in the Kalosian-native tongue.
Central de l'Art is a small art museum, the only one in Johto. That's where I went, and, let me tell you: it's wonderful. Most of the art is centric to the towers of Johto: the Sprout Tower in Violet City, the Bell Tower, and the Burned Tower. Both towers were located in Ecruteak City, which was aptly called the "city that even now bears the marks of its history."
They were tall and beautiful, ten-stories, and all wooden. They were important landmarks, and the view was supposed to be incredible. They were important parts to history, but I was only interested at how beautiful they looked.
Central de l'Art has got connections all the way in Unova, in Castelia City and Nacrene City. See, Nacrene City's nickname is the "City of Art," and Castelia is home to one of the most famous artists in the world, who grew up in Nacrene himself. He goes by the name Burgh, and though he seems a bit eccentric, most of his work is really incredible.
There's a museum there, called Studio Castelia, and it displays artwork from all over Unova. It's the only real museum in Unova, and it's not very big, but it makes up for it by being great. It prides itself on only having paintings, which I don't mind either. It's a big deal to have your work there.
I've always wanted to go. When some other little girls looked up to singers and rock stars as their music idols, I looked at old paintings and drew whenever I could. I knew my mother loved to use watercolor, and that's my only connection to her. That and my appearance, anyway.
Oh, I hadn't explained my outfit, hat-included! Ah, well. I'll do that later, so remember!
Sheesh, all the excitement was making me lose track of what I'd been trying to say! So, to get your work into Studio Castelia, you have to talk to Burgh about your art. That's my dream. I'd always wanted to have something up in Studio Castelia. I've only been once, when I was about five-years-old. But now I'd like to go, to understand the art, and everything.
And guess who's just been invited?!
Wow. Who expected that? And please, tell me what you think is going to happen next! What about shippings? The only things I promise are:
-No slash.
-Nothing between Blue and Silver (sorry, ChosenShipping fans!).
But anything else is fair game. By the way, when I said 'Kalosian-native tongue,' I meant French. That is an accurate translation; I'm taking it in school, and was playing off the fact that I love the culture, as well as the Kalos-French thing.
Some feedback would be great!
Reviews and PMs are appreciated! :)
