*~~*Chapter Six: A Lousy Tourguide: Kotone's Viewpoint*~~*
I bit my lip as I held my damaged arm closer to my, utterly horrified by the nurse's lack of anesthesia before stitching my arm up. That...was terrible! I never want to come back to this floor again! Still, Silver had no obligations to bring me to the Team Rocket Medical Wing, so that was something to be thankful for.
"Thank you." I looked to my right to find him flinching and turning towards me with a frown.
"For what?!"
I shook my head and hugged my right arm tighter. "For letting me get my arm stitched up. You didn't have to do that, but you still did... So, thank you." His eyes grew wide with what seemed like curiosity before he shook his head and looked away.
"You cry like a baby, you know that? Team Rocket members don't cry when they get their arms sown up." He looked down at his shoes before continuing, "I expect you to remember that, apprentice."
The doors slid open before I could answer, revealing a long hallway made of metal. Silver casually stepped out and started walking ahead, leaving me to scramble after him yet again.
"This," He held out his right hand as voice bounced off of the walls. "Is the tenth floor, home of most of the rooms necessary for your training." He stopped at a bronze door and pressed his finger on a scanner with a frown. The device glowed green and quickly opened the door. We slipped inside quietly, barely making it inside before the door shut behind me.
Inside was a large field, complete with a track looping around the fake grass. Blue benches were spread out alongside the paths, providing a place for grunts to rest. I watched as a faraway grunt took a step towards the track just as hurdles suddenly sprung up from the ground in even intervals. The grunt watched as a younger figure started to make their way across the course, jumping over the obstacles with ease. My mouth dropped open as I stared at the russet track, shocked that a field could be found inside of the base.
"I'm going to train on that?!" I snapped to face him as he let out a laugh and shook his head, slapping me with the still-wet ends of his hair.
"Just for now." He seemed to be amused by my awe, his metallic eyes shimmering in the stadium lights. "The construction on my own training field is still in progress, but once it's finished you'll use mine instead."
I nodded and glanced back to the now recognizably-male grunt as he jumped on another hurdle. "This place is huge! How can you fit a stadium in here?!"
"Years of careful digging, planning and construction. Also, it helps that most of the base was hollowed out from a crater impact in the ancient times." I turned back to him to find a proud smirk on his face, his eyes now closed as he gave a short nod. "Well, we still have more rooms to cover. I'll let you come back tomorrow morning." I nodded and followed him out of the door with a small smile, enjoying his pleasant mood.
We walked down the hall for a while, our footsteps growing louder as I found myself walking in sync with my mentor. The hall seemed to stretch on for miles, as if never ended. Finally after what felt like hours, Silver stopped in front of another bronze door, pressed his thumb to the screen and waited for the scan.
He slowly looked over his shoulder and frowned. "You'll be able to access these doors eventually, so don't expect me to lead you by the hand to your destinations, got it?" I gave him a firm nod just as the door popped open. He let out a heavy breath and walked inside.
Right away, I was smacked with the heavy stench of sweat and body odor. I scrunched up my face and grabbed my nose, hoping to block out the horrible smell. The room was quite a bit smaller than the field and by the generous spread of excercise equipment, the stench was from the uncountable amount of people who used this room on a daily basis. I scanned the room, finding weights, benchpresses, treadmills and various unrecognizable pieces of equipment. Silver seemed to be looking for something, shifting his head from side to side and glancing around restlessly.
I let out a squeal as I felt someone grabbing my shoulder. Startled and honestly uncomfortable, I spun around to find the teal-haired man from the crowd back when Silver was naming me as his apprentice. I searched my brain frantically for his name, but found it impossible to think over the now-unblocked stench. He flashed me a toothy grin before turning to Silver with a serious expression.
"Ah, sir. It's a pleasant surprise to see you in the Training Room. Tell me, are you giving our newest member a tour, hm?" I backed closer to Silver as he looked back down and smiled again. His cold, grey eyes seemed to be swirling with an unknown emotion, leaving me feeling uneasy. I looked over my shoulder to see Silver frowning at him, clearly unhappy with the older man.
"Proton? Just what are you doing here?" He seemed only moments away from snapping at the man, a heavy weight of tension starting to press down on me. I looked back to the man to find him smirking.
"Oh, I'm just training for my next mission, sir. You know, just in case..." Proton narrowed his eyes, making my mentor step a bit closer to my side. His smirk grew as his eyes darted to me for a few moments before dashing back to my mentor.
"Well," He placed a hand on my shoulder, the gesture somehow both easing the pressure and sending off warning bells in my mind. Something's not right here... Silver seems uneasy around this man...but why? He's the leader of Team Rocket, so why does he act this way around one of his own?
I shook my head slightly, trying to clear my thoughts. "I think you've seen enough of the Training Room for now. Come along," He gave me a slight shove towards the door, making Proton raise an unkempt eyebrow. "We have rooms to see yet."
"But, sir..." I looked over my shoulder with a frown as Silver grabbed my shoulders and moved me forward around the taller man. "We just got here..."
Silver let out a small hiss, as if he was trying to make me stay quiet. I took a quick peek over my shoulder to find his eyes narrowed and his gaze clouded, as if he was lost in his thoughts.
"Sir, if you don't mind..." Proton lowered his right arm in front of me, preventing me from passing him. "I could take her on the rest of the tour; I'm sure a great leader like you has more important things to do than lead such a little girl around the base..." His voice drifted off as he stared down at us, smirking madly. I'm not a little girl! I bit my lip though, preventing myself from spitting my thoughts at the strange man.
"No!" I felt Silver's hands tighten on my shoulders before he cleared his throat and tried again in a calmer voice, "No. I can handle my own apprentice, Proton. Why don't you train like you claimed you were doing in here."
I felt a small smile flash on my face at Silver's stinging comment, his words wiping the grin straight off of Proton's face. The young man clenched his teeth and back away from us hesitantly, lifting his arm out of my way slowly.
"Yes...of course, sir. Please excuse my boldness." I took a quick glance at his face to find not a single trace of sincerity to back up his words, making a new wave of unease sweep over me. I let out a small squeak as Silver yet again started to lead me to the door.
We hurried out without another sound, the uneven pace making me fumble over my own feet. Silver slowly started to release my shoulders and head to my right, shooting nervous glances back towards the door every few moments. I let out a squeak as I found him grabbing my right arm tightly, pulling me closer to his side.
After the door had faded from our sight, he let out long sigh and shook his head. His pace was still a slight rush, as if he still expected Proton to follow us. Finally, he looked back towards me and frowned.
"...Watch yourself around him." His voice was barely a whisper, making me turn towards him with a frown.
"What?" I found my own voice quiet as well, even though I wasn't trying to whisper. "What do you mean?"
"Proton," He began hesitantly, as if he was unsure if he wanted to speak to me at all. "Has been known to be violent and experience...strange switches in his moods. I want you to stay away from him at all times, got it?" His eyes hardened as he finished, a odd mix of worry and nervous energy churning in his metallic eyes.
"...Y-Yes, sir. I-I will..." His words honestly struck a stake of fear into my heart, making me even more unsettled by the oddly-terrifying man. I took a few deep breaths just as his grip on my arm loosened, his hand now falling back to his side with a small grunt.
It was only after we had walked far away from the Training Room that I finally found the word to describe the emotion that turned in Proton's grey eyes.
Hunger. His eyes had been swirling with a raw greed that had made my stomach churn. I let out a shudder as we kept walking on, silently hoping I never found out what the reason behind his eager look.
I hurried along the hall, nearly pulling my mentor behind me as he let out a shocked grunt.
Author's Note: Hurray for the appearance of insane Proton! I have a headcanon where Proton is emotionally unstable, sadistic and pretty much insane. I mean, the dude was chopping off Slowpoke tails like it was chopping carrots! That, my friends, is why I find him horribly insane. Headcanon that Silver and Proton never get along, no matter what universe they're in. They have a rivalry in my normal gameverse and altered gameverse...but in Rocket AUs, Proton is a threat to his job and is just a butthead who likes to tick Silver off.
(Wow, two chapters in one day? I'm trying to upload three so I can focus on "SoulSilver—Blast Off!". I'm almost at the climax in my writing for it and I'm only just at when Silver goes in Rocket HQ...in other words...very behind. Not to advertise, but you guys might like that one if you guys like Silver being in denial, sassy Weaviles, adorable Ralts and strange occurrences. Oh, and Proton. He's there too.)
