I'm really sorry for the delay, but there was nothing else I could do — unless I was going to end up posting a skeleton draft of a chapter written half in Japanese. I've really been swamped with my new job, which I had to get largely due to my grandmother threatening to disown me if I continued to work as a professional writer, which isn't something that worries me personally but would affect my brothers and parents negatively in ways that would make me feel awful for the rest of time, so I did it. Now, normally I would not divulge personal details like this, but seeing as I received emails to my business account actually threatening me if I didn't update right away, yeah, I kind of got freaked out. The combination of this and my psycho-bitch Nan didn't make me want to write fics ever again for a while. Then I realised I was being a pathetic baby and drank some Earl Grey, hoping to get a stiff upper lip.

Again. So sorry. Mai laifu just so stressu. (NOONECARESMAKEWITHTHEFIC.)

Let's get this happening. There's Ruby to be had.


Black was glad to be able to leave N in the care of Green Oak, even if it meant Green filling N's head with more ideas about gossip equalling reality. It gave Black the opportunity to slink over to Bianca and ask in a totally not whiny way, "Why does White hate me so much?"

"She doesn't hate you," Bianca insisted. "She's just angry that you called her a jealous bitch. Girls don't like being called jealous."

"I don't like her telling me to break up with N," Black retorted. "Why do I have to be punished when she's the one who started being an asshole first?"

Sweet, kind, caring Bianca rolled her eyes. "Cos White's the one punishing you."

"Does that mean I can punish her, too?"

Bianca shook her head. "It means you get to be grown up and deal with it until she stops being angry, then apologise."

Black huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't want to be grown up."

"Then stop dating a twenty-year-old."

"Wait, what?" Black cried. "HOW old?"

"You didn't kno— uh, never mind," Bianca hastily said. She patted Black reassuringly on the arm. "Just repeating rumours. Totally wasn't shown his birth certificate by Looker."

Black was so flabbergasted he could only make vague gagging noises. Twenty. N was four years older than him. Or, maybe not exactly four years, months could line up weirdly. Maybe N had been born in December; then he would pretty much be nineteen. Except if he was born in December and was already twenty enough to be referred to as twenty in July, he'd be turning twenty-one. Black definitely couldn't handle the idea of N being almost old enough to drink.

"I was wondering how you could possibly take him seriously, or you know, stand to look at him without laughing," Bianca said, snapping Black out of his shock/horror. "I guess you don't know his real name?"

Black was right back in his shock/horror. "His, his real name?"

"Aren't you worried that you don't know these things about him?" Bianca asked rather than explaining what N's real name was.

Irate, Black replied, "He's not a vegetarian and he thinks anyone who is one is stupid. He does that a lot, if you don't agree with him. He doesn't like other people being around when he plays with pokémon, don't smirk like that, it's because he's figuring out he's kind of weird! He just doesn't know how to handle everything. And he sleeps with his socks on. So no, I'm not worried that I haven't seen his birth certificate. He's exactly who he is no matter how old he is or how stupid his real name is. So there."

Bianca raised her eyebrows. "I was kind of meaning that it's sort of illegal for him to, uh, um, you know… be with you."

"Oh." Black pondered this. "Um. Okay, I guess maybe that might worry me a little bit… maybe…" If we'd done anything actually illegal, Black couldn't help but bitterly think. Or had they? He wasn't entirely sure, and he definitely didn't want to ask any legal experts.

"You'll handle it," Bianca said with utmost confidence. "I mean, you did kind of take out Plasma. And you got me a squirtle. Sure you can handle this too."

"Sure you're the only one who thinks so," Black muttered, glaring at White. "Why's everything gotta be so shit now, anyway?"

Bianca sighed. "Oh, Black. Everything's changed since we started our journeys. That doesn't mean it's all bad, we're just all still getting used to it. I mean, none of us turned out to be as good as we expected — for most of us, that was that we're worse, but for you? You're better than you expected."

"I just, don't get why I'd be the Hero of Truth," Black admitted.

Bianca shrugged. "Nobody else has any trouble believing it."

Black wasn't sure exactly what to say to that.

"Just, cut White some slack, okay?" Bianca softly said. "Yeah, she's jealous, but that doesn't mean she's not legitimately worried."

"N doesn't get relationships," Black muttered, "and neither do I. So we're learning together. And White's idea of a 'good relationship' isn't mine. So there."

"So tell her that instead of calling her a jealous bitch." Bianca ruffled his hair. "Honestly, the time I spend taking care of you idiots…"

"Shut up," Black groaned.

"Come on." Bianca leapt to her feet. "Let's go mingle with the rich, important and clearly very bored."

Gold quickly called Black over to where he was arguing with Crystal and asked, "Is ice cream inspired by Vanillish, or did Vanillish evolve to look like ice cream?"

"Uh…" Black looked to Bianca for help.

"Crystal's right," Bianca said.

Crystal smirked. "See? Pokémon are cleverer and more adaptable than we give them credit for."

"Why would a Pokémon want to look like something even vegetarians eat?"

"To blend in to cities! Even the people from Unova agree with me, so shut up, you're wrong."

Gold opened his mouth to protest further, but having grown up with him seemed to have Crystal a sixth sense; she clapped her hand over his mouth and shoved him away and into Silver, before turning to Black and Bianca like nothing had happened.

"So, I hear you have a Legendary Dragon," Crystal said.

"Um, yeah," Black awkwardly replied. "She likes scaring people."

"Right."

"She does."

Crystal fixed Black with a stern look. "Don't you think that you ought to release it?"

Black stared for a long moment as he tried to think of a respectful way to say 'Why the fuck would I do something that stupid?'

"I don't mean to be rude, but Reshiram chose for Black to catch it," Bianca replied, to a total stranger who was famous and in a position of great power, without the slightest hint of nerves. Clearly, the fierceness lessons with Elesa were paying off.

"Suicune chose me too, but I released it," Crystal replied. "Just like Gold released Ho-Oh, Silver released Lugia, Sapphire released —"

"I get the point," Black sighed. "Reshiram doesn't want to leave me, though."

"It's not just about you," Crystal insisted. "Legendaries aren't like other Pokémon. They're more powerful, obviously, but they can also effect the entire world."

"Gold said a lot of those myths aren't true," Black sceptically retorted.

"And a lot of them are. Suicune really does purify water whenever needed. That'd be a little difficult to do from a PokéBall, wouldn't it?"

"Yeah, well, but…" Black looked at Bianca for support. To his horror, she looked worried. "Look, I give her plenty of chances, but Reshiram always comes back. She's the one who always comes back to me."

The silence lasted for fifteen awkward seconds before Crystal asked, "You know Reshiram's genderless, right? Not a 'she'?"

"Yeah, I know my own Pokémon thanks," Black growled.

"Just saying," Crystal shrugged before walking over to Silver and Gold.

Black wasn't so sure that he liked Crystal anymore. What kind of Trainer would keep a Pokémon that wanted to be released? It didn't matter that Reshiram was a Legendary. She, or it, wanted to stay with Black, so it did. Just like any of Black's other Pokémon. Yet, Black still felt guilty. What if he was deluding himself? Seeing what was ideal rather than what was true? And what if Crystal was right with what she was implying, about the world suffering without Reshiram to help keep it in order? Black couldn't figure out how. Maybe Reshiram went around inspiring people to become scientists and teachers?

Black wanted to talk to N, but then he remembered that N was twenty and hadn't bothered mentioning, 'By the way every time we kiss it's probably a crime'. The worst thing was, maybe White had been right.

Black ended up settling for sitting against the rail hugging his audino, half-listening to Bianca talk about the Pokémon she wanted to see in Hoenn.

It took longer than Black had expected to get to Hoenn. World maps made Hoenn look so close to Johto that it had shocked him to hear it was a four hundred and fifty mile trip. When he exited the boat shed and emerged in Slateport City, the heat overwhelmed Black. The air was thick and heavy, keeping his shoulders slumped. Second, he noticed the green. There were plants all through the city, in lush, vibrant greens. He had a moment of worry about losing N in it all, but then N ran over and clung to his arm.

"What?" Black asked, trying not to sound exasperated.

"This place is very suspicious," N whispered. "I feel like I've seen it before…"

"It's also insanely hot." Black pulled at the collar of his jacket. "Lemme go?"

N shook his head. "I dreamt about this place. I can't remember exactly what I saw, but I feel like something bad is going to happen."

Black froze halfway through unzipping his jacket and looked up at N, frowning. "What're you talking about?"

"I see the future," N replied. "Didn't you realise?"

"…no. No I did not." It would probably be rude to ask why, if N could see the future, he hadn't realised what Ghetsis was really up to.

"It's never very clear, and there's never any point in fighting it," N tried to explain, but it just further convinced Black than N was completely insane. "But, there's something…"

The only conclusion Black could reach was that N experienced déjà vu so often that he had actually started believing that he really had seen everything before.

Waiting for them was a tall and lanky man dressed in red and black. If it weren't for the hat, the bizarre white pseudo-beanie hanging from a PokéBall themed headband, Black was sure he never would've recognised him as Ruby.

What was really amazing, however, was that N seemed to recognise him too. N's eyes widened and he started walking swiftly towards Ruby, who suddenly looked apprehensive rather than bored, and dragging Black along with him.

"R," N greeted. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"…aha, yeaaaah, you," Ruby lamely said. He scanned N slowly. Black felt a surge of rage at the way Ruby's eyes lingered on N's body until Ruby added, "You haven't changed your clothes."

"Not since you gave me my disguise," N said.

Ruby's eyes flickered up to N's face. "But your hair… now that is absolute genius! Where did you get it done?"

"A scyther in Ilex Forest did it," N proudly said.

Black facepalmed.

Ruby, however, gushed, "Absolute genius."

Black looked up and exchanged confused looks with Cheren, Bianca, and then White (who quickly turned away). The Kanto and Johto champions were still approaching. "Uh, how do you two know each other?" Black cautiously asked.

"I was in Unova last year," Ruby replied. "And I had to fix his clothes when we met in Accumula Town. They were simply awful."

Black looked at N. "That wasn't long before we met."

N shrugged. "I'm allowed to have other friends."

"…right, but I'm not…?"

Black was ignored.

"So." Ruby scanned Black over, then Cheren, then Bianca, and finally White. He nodded in approval. "I can tell you're all from Unova, from your clothes. They're not terrible. They're quite good. Far more glamorous than what you'd've found here ten years ago."

"Thanks?" Black wasn't sure. "I'm Black, this is Cheren, Bianca, and White."

"Pleasure to meet you," Ruby said. "I'm sure you all know perfectly well who I am, and if you don't, your life is pathetic and you need more glam in it."

Cheren blinked.

"Now then," Ruby brightly said. "As I understand it, we're looking for your," he pointed lazily at N, "father."

"Potential father," N corrected.

"You both have green hair," Cheren said, exasperated.

"That's not very uncommon here," Ruby said with a slight scowl. "My brutal boyfriend, her best friend has green hair. And a terrible shirt."

"Do you mean Sapphire?" White asked. "Why do you call her your boyfriend?"

With a sigh, Ruby pointed at Gold and Silver (who were arguing again) and then to Red and Green (who were standing very close to each other). "It's difficult, being the only hetero in this circle of celebs."

"Uh, hi?" Crystal said.

"Hi," Ruby replied. "So! Where should we be checking for this father of yours? What does he look like? And most important, what does he wear?"

"You've met him," N said. "Don't you remember? He was wearing that purple —"

"Oh my god," Ruby shrieked. "The one with that atrocious purple thing covered in eyes?"

N nodded.

Ruby's nostrils flared and he growled, "Not in my region."

That seemed to settle it. With a look of utmost loathing, Ruby turned away and started to stride towards the city before turning up to a path.

"R's a very passionate person," N informed Black.

"You don't say."

As N started to drag Black along after Ruby, Black wasn't sure he approved of N's taste in friends.


...chapter still so lame;;

The time to reach Slateport from Olivine is based on the distance between Nagasaki and Kobe, the cities they're respectively based on (according to Bulbapedia). I used the land distance cos shut up assuming the speed of the boat was at least 110 kmph, which a quick Google search assured me some of them do.

see, I'm dedicated! (Please believe me?)

This isn't originally where I wanted to leave this chapter but I figured I'd better take the opportunity and just update already. Again, I'm really sorry about the delay. I was just super freaked out.

I have a few days off work, so let's see how much I can get done. No promises about updates, except that they're coming ASAP. I want this story done.