First Impressions
She thought it was a threat. Or was it lonely?
"There's a tea shop just across the street," Latios explained, beckoning them to follow him further into the streets. Camellia followed him without any hesitation, despite her fear, although Crusher trailed behind reluctantly. "Crusher... I understand your worry for Camellia, and for all of us, but now is not the time."
Psh, of course. Of course he'd be having trouble. Camellia inwardly snorted. It was the revelation that the excuse of "friends" never existed that probably impacted him so much. What a loser.
In her moment of mocking, Camellia turned around to glance at the hydreigon.
And her opinion completely flipped.
"...Crusher... you're okay?" she questioned, uneasily pawing the ground. Latios stopped to stare at them questioningly, while Crusher paused and blinked at Camellia in astonishment. "You can stay in Latios' house if you aren't. I mean, you don't have to come along. We'll be going back, after all."
"No, thanks..." Crusher almost struggled to speak. "You're both in danger and I know Latios is strong, but he needs back-up, too."
Back-up..? Huh. Loser. "So you're saying I'm not enough?"
"You're—"
"Forget it." Camellia shook her head and turned away. "Let's keep going, since you're bent on coming along with us. Latios, lead the way."
The legendary dragon analysed the situation for a moment, before nodding and turning away. Camellia didn't dare looking back at Crusher's face—would her thoughts suddenly jumble up like before? Make her actually think she needed to be friendly?
Wait, that was weird... was she angry at Crusher, at all?
Of course I'm mad at him...
For a valid reason?
Y-Yeah—
Not just spur-of-the-moment?
Where were these thoughts coming from?
Latios pushed open a wooden door, secluded from the main streets. Camellia and Crusher hurriedly followed in, and Latios closed the door after them. It was packed with shelves, and on those shelves were jars. It was too dark to see what the jars contained, but it was horribly dusty, because Camellia's nose acted up immediately. There wasn't a lot of space, but Latios headed forward anyway, with a worried expression on his face.
"Are you there..? Old Bulba..?"
Nothing moved.
No—something moved. Camellia could smell it. It was a slight movement, but there wasn't any wind to provoke it. Something else was in there... was it that "Old Bulba" Latios mentioned? A friend—no, no, no... an ally?
"Ah, Chrys." Latios sighed, sounding relieved. "Thank goodness... you're all right. How is your grandfather?"
Further in front, there were a few cardboard boxes, and a small, green shape crawled out of one of them. It looked like a frog—but not quite a frog. It had a gigantic bulb on its back, and Camellia immediately recognised it. A bulbasaur.
"I thought we were caught," the bulbasaur admitted. It jumped away from the cardboard box, towards Camellia and the others. "Caught"? So... definitely an ally. "Grandfather's okay, just a little mentally shocked, yeah. You need tea?"
Latios laughed. Camellia jumped just a little—he didn't sound the slightest disturbed, scared, anxious, whatever... how was that even achieved? Did he know the outcome of the entire fiasco?
"In the middle of a tragedy, unexpectedly, yes." Latios gestured to Camellia. "She says she needs some rowap tea... you have some, I presume?"
"You have the weirdest requests, but glad to see you're doing okay." The bulbasaur gestured to the back with its vines. "We have some at the back of the store. Knock yourself out."
"Thank you, Chrys."
"It's no big deal." The bulbasaur eyed them. "...I don't know who you are, but if Latios trusts you, then fine." It extended a vine. "I'm Chrysanthemum. Call my Chrys. Don't bother trying my full name."
"Camellia." The sylveon hesitantly shook the vine. Oh— "...We're both named after flowers."
"Yeah. Huh. Your mum has good taste." Camellia didn't correct her. Chrys tilted her head and turned to the hydreigon. "And you?"
"Crusher." He sounded dead. Gone. Camellia tried to ignore it.
Latios suddenly appeared with a teapot, accompanied with some floating teacups. Camellia stared. She'd always wondered how psychic pokemon worked. Did they just will it, and it happened? Or..?
"Thank you for this." Latios bowed his head towards the small bulbasaur. Chrys shook her head. "Where's Old Bulba? I need a word with him."
"Oh, no."
"No?"
"No," Chrys repeated, looking strangely uncomfortable. Camellia tilted her head—Latios mimicked her action. "I... he... um, no."
"Why?" Camellia asked for everyone in the room.
"The... um, the destruction war and stuff. I think everyone's kind of lost."
Don't you think so, too?
Camellia stumbled. Balked. Chrys turned to her with an odd look while Latios looked very very concerned. Crusher was—I don't want to think about him.
"Let's... go," Camellia said timidly.
"If you say so." Chrys waved goodbye with a vine. "Be careful out there."
Camellia hesitantly waved back at the young bulbasaur. Chrys' eyes seemed to be screaming, "Don't get lost, too."
The rowap tea let her relax significantly, and Camellia rested in the house while Crusher and Latios quietly whispered amongst themselves. Glances were stolen at the sylveon, but she honestly didn't care right then. Crusher seemed to get frustrated at some point, but Latios remained calm throughout.
Many times, she wanted to interrupt them and demand what they were talking about. All those times, she gave up on the thought and went back to her daydreaming.
What had happened before? Before all these days? Before she had to run for her life without knowledge of anything?
Who was that voice?
Something stirred within her.
"I thought you'd never ask."
Camellia's head snapped up, alert, alarmed. Nothing had changed. Just Crusher and Latios quietly talking amongst themselves, and they weren't stealing glances at her anymore.
"Who are you..?" she quietly muttered, softly. She hoped neither of the dragons on the other side of the room would hear.
It stirred again. Then, a surge through her entire being. A cool, soft, sensation, then a violent roar—
The sylveon didn't get a reply. When her eyes snapped open the next second, she was staring at wooden planks. She lay down, stomach flat against the ground, legs sprawled out, and noted two very large dragon-like shadows over her.
She heard nothing for a moment. Felt nothing. Did time freeze? It hadn't, had it?
Suddenly, Crusher's voice, "Camellia! What happened?! Here, let me—"
Paws pulled her up from her stiff position, throwing her somewhat uncaringly on the chair she always sat on. Her eyes squeezed shut, a short prayer, and when her eyes opened, Crusher and Latios were staring at her, with the concern they always had.
"You fell onto the ground suddenly," Latios said, distantly.
"Camellia, if anything's wrong—"
"Nothing's wrong." The words weren't hers. But in this condition, Camellia wasn't about to fight back. Then, on her own, she continued, "I'm just... kind of tired."
Latios quietly judged her. Analysed her.
I fell to the ground randomly. Camellia looked down, staring blankly. I spoke. But I didn't think of speaking. It wasn't me. A sick feeling overwhelmed her. Her vision blurred—Crusher was a blob and Latios had seemingly blended in with the other dragon.
Have I always been this wrong?
"Camellia! Wake—"
Suddenly, there was a loud crash, and her vision sharpened once more. Latios was charging some attack, and Crusher looked horrified.
The bat-dragon screeched at the door screeched.
I need to move!
Camellia leapt off the seat, landing shakily with a tat, her legs giving way slightly.
...I'm lost, too.
I suck I'm sorry.
Sorry there's no pairing in this chapter but... i need the plot to move on a bit more to work on it so!
