Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon.
Touko's POV
I don't think about Cheren all the time.
I'm not right now, either. Battling can do that to you: steal away the abandonment issues and make you focus on what matters, like protecting your Oshawott from a constant onslaught of Patrats. And trainers. And Bianca.
"Touko!" she chirps, waving like an overexcited pageant queen. "Where have you been? You'll never guess who I saw!"
"Touya."
"Tou—wait . . . aww! Did you see him too?" She deflates and tugs her cap over her ears. Why does everyone have these nervous twitches except me? "I saw Cheren about an hour ago. He told me to watch out for you, but I was gonna anyway!"
My head pounds at the mention of Cheren. It was throbbing before that, with my adrenaline level crashing. I need another battle before I fall asleep right here at the end of Route 2.
"Thanks!" I offer her my biggest, I-want-something-from-you smile, tossing my ponytail around in the way that always works on boys. "Hey, how about another battle? I bet you've leveled Tepig up sky-high, right?"
Bianca shuffles things in her bag, which is no doubt still overflowing with useless crap like old gum wrappers. She fishes out two Pokéballs and holds them out to the sky in victory, blinding me in the process. "I even caught a new Pokémon while waiting for you!"
Her new friend turns out to be a Lillipup, and a really under-leveled one at that. I can see Tepig's growth in the way it handles itself—they've both clearly improved. But I've been on this damn route for two hours training Osha, then rushing him to the Pokémon Center, then training him some more. The easy win proves I overdid it for both of us, because I feel like my brain is swimming in its own juices, and Osha has gotten so used to winning he doesn't even react.
Thank Arceus for Mom bringing me my forgotten Running Shoes. I have to call her back sometime, definitely leaving out the part where I almost passed out in the Striaton City streets before finding the Center.
It takes all my debating expertise—earned after years of dealing with Cheren—to convince Nurse Joy I don't need an escort to my room and no I'm not drunk. Or high. Where does one even find weed in Unova?
Osha was reluctant to return to his ball. That's my own fault, I know, and I should get him used to whatever's inside those things. Having a Pokémon at my side is my personal way of reminding myself that this creature is the reason I can adventure and live my dream after all this time.
Nurse Joy assures me (not for the first time) that she will take very good care of my Pokémon as I walk away. I didn't doubt her in the first place, but it doesn't stop me from sending her a suspicious glance over my shoulder.
Finding my room snatches ten minutes of possible sleeping/showering time. By the time I find the correct floor, I'm whispering a constant flow of curses under my breath. At least, enough to make a passing middle-aged woman cover her child's ears.
I check my key again. I'd seen the number, 145, before. Back down the hall. I turn around with the deepest sigh I can manage, wishing I had someone to catch me when I pass out in the middle of this labyrinth.
It takes me four tries to get the key into the lock and both hands to turn it. The door swings open without any more effort from me. It bounces off the inside wall; I check up and down the hall to make sure no one witnessed my heart attack.
I press the door back into place with my back, not paying any attention to the layout of my room or the location of the bathroom. I don't quite make it to the bed, because apparently the floor looked much more comfortable to my face.
Well, that was the best sleep of my life. Forget kindergarten naptime.
I search the room with my eyes for the noise that woke me up. Sleep-dreariness keeps me from realizing my door is literally vibrating for a few minutes too long. I stand after two failed attempts, using the bed as a prop.
The peephole offers no one; that stirs a small fear in my stomach, as if an axe murder is pawing at my door from a crouch. I open it nevertheless, clenching my fist and ready to punch.
Oshawott beams up at me with a muffin in hand. I squat to rub his cheeks, not even doubting the situation. "Osha, did you break out of the back?" That's where I think they keep the Pokémon, anyway . . .
He nods cheerily, practically shoving the treat in my mouth. I taste Oran Berries and almost choke, swallowing for his sake only. "Was this made for Pokémon?" The water-type ignores me. Welcoming himself into my room, he goes straight to my bed, jumping at it from the floor.
I take another bite of the muffin, not thinking or caring at this point. My stomach doesn't either, apparently, because I don't feel the immediate urge to hurl. Just as I go to lift him up, Osha uses to quilt neatly dressed on the bed to grapple himself up.
I shake my head, telling him as nicely as I can to stay there while I shower. I'm pretty sure I left a crumb trail of some sort to the bathroom—maybe it was too much temptation for the poor little guy to bear.
Let's just say, when I pulled back the curtain, he was there. I'm not sure how Pokémon typically react to naked humans (or if they do at all), but Osha didn't stare. He did hand me a towel, though. Maybe telling me to hurry and cover all that up.
I tie the towel at the top and pull my hair up wet, far too impatient to bother drying it. My mom's voice recites in my head, "Touko! You're going to catch a cold!" Ignoring it, my heavy gaze in the mirror wanders to the two thick sections at the front, standing straight up for the sole sake of pissing off gravity.
No amount of hairspray can hold those two back, I swear to Arceus. I lean against the sink, eyeing my bag back in the main room. There's a weird urge to go get the makeup Mom forced on me last second.
I brush my teeth instead. That doesn't distract me from the few bumps popping up along my forehead, probably from all yesterday's sweat. I'm so done with myself. I go get the bag with Osha on my tail.
He watches me without shame as I dot concealer across my brow and nose. I wrinkle it at him, muttering, "Be glad you're not a girl." He nods.
Makeup always took too much time for me to bother with as a kid. I wasn't one of those experimental types, but I let Bianca use me as a doll during our sleepovers. As long as she let me play with her Pokémon plushies. Looking down at Oshawott, he reminds me of that particular plushie, always my favorite.
I smile at the memory of our fake battles with them. Back then, Cheren always won because he read all the adventuring books. And he dared to say I had more experience!
"What do you say to exploring the city today, Osha?" I can never quite tell if he understands me or likes nodding a lot. "Let's get that Gym badge, okay?"
"Osha!"
Turns out, I'm going to need another Pokémon to get that Gym badge.
"Are you sure you can't learn Ice-type moves?" I ask Oshawott on our way to the Dreamyard. We'd breezed through the two trainers who dared block the path to the Leader. I could tell Cheren hadn't been there yet. He would be offended on a personal level with the nonexistent difficulty of the puzzles. (That's how I think he would put it, anyway. Smart terms, ya know?)
I hadn't explored the rest of Striaton City before I hit the gym. Honestly, I was ready to get out of here as soon as possible. I needed to put distance between myself and my hometown, before my clothes got dirty enough to give into my urge to head back home. Maybe once I can I use Fly.
I also want to leave the Dreamyard as soon as I set foot on the crunchy grass. All the Trainers within turn in my direction, their smiles eerie from their positions conveniently placed in my way. "I just wanted a Pansear!" I yell at them, pinching the bridge of my nose.
Oshawott dives into both battles, seemingly as anxious as I am to get out of here. I try to steer away from the ruins—they look too unstable for even me. That's my goal until I see Bianca up ahead, in the direct center of them.
I rush to her after I get my Pansear from a nice lady. I let the creature out immediately, announcing her name to be Ashes. "Hey, Bianca!" I start waving even before she turns around. I still feel like I owe her some quality time, or another conversation after leaving in such a rush yesterday.
I stop waving once I see her tears. "What's up?" Ashes and Osha run along at my side dedicatedly, chatting in their language of chopped-up versions of their names. Bianca gives them a little smile.
"Tou-Touko! I-I really wanted to find a Munna, y-ya know? So I came out here to find one, b-but then I saw two people kicking one over there!" I duck around the pillar to check where she's pointing, and see exactly what she's talking about. Two unidentifiable people have their backs to us, wearing shapeless uniforms. "I-I tried to battle them, I really did! But they teamed up against me, and knocked out Tepig and Lillipup!" Anger drives away her stutter eventually, and I realize I've never seen her this angry before.
She opens her mouth to start again, but I interrupt her with a hug. She breathes in even spasms beside my ear. "Head straight to the Pokémon Center, 'kay, B? Wait for me there!" Bianca doesn't doubt me for a second, nodding gratefully and smiling against her wet cheeks.
I wait until she's out of hearing distance to step out from the pillar.
"Hey, you!" Osha and Ashes yell with me, like they know what's happening, too. I hope they didn't see the Munna . . .
I recognize the uniforms from Accumula Town a second after they face me. "Ugh, another one?" the left one, a red-headed male, spits at me. "Can't you hormonal teenagers control yourselves for two seconds?"
"I didn't come here for you, dumbass. How about a battle?" My team runs forward, taking their battle stances. I'm a little nervous about this being Ashes's first battle, but what better practice than standing up for helpless Pokémon?
The other, a female bearing the same unnatural hair color, calls me several mean things. They back up together, removing Pokéballs from their belts. The battle that follows is short and sweet, but I do notice Ashes relying on Osha to make the fainting hit.
I reward them both with encouraging hugs. Both grunts curl their lips at me in disgust; the man gives the Munna one last kick. I rise to my feet too quickly, shooting stars across my vision. A strange man appears behind the two, and I think it's my imagination until they gasp. "M-Master Ghetsis!" the woman stammers, rushing to curtsy at him.
"You simpletons can't even manage to catch a simple Munna?" he barks. I flinch from my position five feet away. But I don't feel sympathy for them. Osha's tiny arms around my knee is the sole thing keeping me planted, too far from that poor Munna.
"S-Sir," the male says, bowing in a rush, "it won't give up the Dream Mist!" I have no idea what that means. I can't see the creature behind their conjoined bodies, and there's no way to get around them without risking injury.
Not that I'm unwilling to risk injury. Osha gives me a hurt look when I shake him off, but I try my best to ignore it. None of the three Grunts notice me when I dive at the Munna, wrapping it up in bandages my mom insisted I pack. It chirps at me weakly, and I'm panicking deep down, completely unsure what to do.
On a whim, I pull out a Pokéball and tap it against the Psychic-type's forehead lightly. I don't hear what brought the trio to leaving; next time I turn around they're gone, and a Musharna is approaching me at the side.
"You saw all that?" Once again, I just start talking to a Pokémon whether it understands or not. All I can think is I hope it doesn't think I beat Munna up to catch it, oh Arceus what if it attacks me?
Instead it smiles at me, I swear. I stand and return Osha and Ashes. Neither of them argues, thankfully. Just as I'm steeling myself to sprint to the Center, a figure appears to my left, scaring the absolute shit out of me.
"You're not the girl I asked to retrieve the Dream Mist," the smart-looking lady comments, adjusting her glasses like Cheren always does.
I gawk at her, cradling Munna's ball for a second before tucking it into my bag. "Are you with Team Plasma?" I step back a lot. Osha and Ashes couldn't handle another battle without me using my last two Potions, and even then I'd be concerned. Plus, Munna needs immediate Nurse Joy attention.
"I have no idea what you're going on about, girl, but there's no need to be scared. I'm Fennel, local scientist and researcher." She sticks out her hand with a wrinkled nose. Like she's going to whip out some disinfectant as soon as I let go.
"Okay nice to meet you bye!" I'm assuming the wind carried my voice back to her, maybe even the hollow air of the ruins. All I know is I'm ready to crawl my way back to Striaton if that's what it takes, because another few seconds in this place is enough to make me shiver.
This Nurse Joy is not impressed by my appearance, either. I have to answer a few questions to the police while she heals the Munna, for "security reasons." The only security breach here is when they had to pat me down.
Eventually they trust I didn't beat up a poor, helpless animal and let me have it back. Bianca steps out of the elevator, no longer sniffing or mini seizure-ing. I've just gotten Munna's Pokéball from Nurse Joy. I toss it to her for the sake of watching her fumble it.
"What's this?" Her face tells me she already knows what it is and is barely containing her excitement.
"Your very own Munna, B. Do I still owe you that birthday present?"
"I'll never ask for anything again!" She comes at me, nuzzling my cheeks with her long blonde bangs. "Thank you so much, Tutu!"
I release her, gawking. "You've met with Touya." She blushes, which cues the obsessive double giggling. "And you talked about me? No, no, no, B, that's not what you do on dates!"
"It wasn't a date, silly," she mumbles, pulling her hat down.
"But you wish it was-s-s!" I sing the last words, pulling her out of the Pokémon Center by the wrists. The occupants were starting to glare. "Where'd you go? Where is he now?"
"He's off challenging the League again . . . and we had lunch in the gym earlier, before I went out the Dreamyard for Ms. Fennel . . ."
I'd forgotten about the gym. "That's right, I have to go challenge Cilan! See ya, Bianca!" Bianca waves sheepishly.
All the trainers glare at me once I enter, either disappointed that I'm back or that they can't battle me again. I return the gesture when I pass them, stomping up the steps to the three leaders.
Osha's already out before Cilan can start talking. He grins at me, releasing his Lillipup. I've seen too many of those things lately. I try not to feel too bad for putting mine in the box. "Arceus, you're exactly like the last challenger!" Cilan shouts from his side of the field.
I focus myself on knocking out his Lillipup. The Pansage is another matter for Ashes—we win, but not without him getting in a few hits. I accept my badge and TM quickly, thanking him and running back out.
I dedicate the rest of my day to visiting everything else in this place, even the Trainer School. Not that I need any more training, because that had nothing to offer me. For some reason, I thought Cheren might be here.
"Let's hope Route 3 has more to offer," I say to Osha as we exit the entryway.
A/N: A Checkmateshipping story, including the longest chapter yet, without Cheren? I feel like I broke some kind of space-time continuum. Sorry about this, guys. But there is some Touko, and some Team Plasma, and some heroics and story-twisting! Ya-a-a-a-ay.
Thanks to everyone who's reviewed at all—it's you that keep me going! I'm catching myself writing every night, which wouldn't have happened if I hadn't received the encouragement you sent, convincing me to take back up this particular story.
Why are my Author's Notes always so long and boring?
