Chapter 11

-N-

I step out into the lobby of my castle, scanning the area before starting towards the door. Nobody appears to be around, so my footsteps echo quite a bit.

"N! Where do you think you're going?!" A female shouts. I turn. It's Hallie.

"Nimbasa City, why?" I ask, avoiding her glare.

"Because I'm going with you," she announces, staring up at me. I can't help but flinch back at her blazing green eyes.

"Well, you're going to have to get your own way of traveling there, because I'm definitely not letting you on Zekrom," I reply, suddenly angry at her. I don't wish to speak to the person who has caused much pain in me.

"Fine," she replies, flicking a strand of hair away from her face. It quickly replaces itself near her ear.

I take a step outside, flinching when the first burst of freezing air hits me. When did it turn to night?

I grab Zekrom's pokeball from my pocket, and examine it. The fine lines of use have worked their way onto the ball, giving it personality. I run my finger over the button used to open it, and then toss it forward. The small red and white sphere opens mid-flight, releasing my faithful Zekrom, and quickly returns to my hand. I take one last look at the precious ball, and shove it into my pocket. I flick my eyes to Hallie and back, checking to see if she has decided to stay.

Shivers begin to run through me as I climb onto Zekrom. I wrap my arms around myself and pat my pokémon on the head.

"N, I don't have my flying pokémon with me," Hallie announces, dismayed.

"Well I told you that you had to find your own way to get there," I answer, rolling my eyes as I turn to her. She hesitates, and her mouth twitches into a smile.

"Well I told you that you had to find your own way to get there," she mimics, laughing. I glare at her.

"Stop that!" I command.

"Stop that!" She shouts in reply, a now devious smile perched upon her mouth. I cross my arms and stick my tongue out at her. Hallie copies me, yet again.

"I won't take you if you don't stop!" I threaten. Her smile quickly fades, but she doesn't speak. She makes a move towards Zekrom, and I stop her," you can't be bothersome, and you have to promise not to get mad at me."

"I promise," she agrees, rolling her eyes. I give her a firm nod, and she climbs on behind me. "N, shouldn't we tell someone where we're going?"

I ponder that statement for a bit, and then turn to her,"I guess."

"Okay, I'll be right back," She says, jumping to the ground. I follow her with my eyes until she disappears into the castle. Maybe her anger was false?

My eyes begin to float from object to object, examining their details and shape. I've never realized it before, but the lamps outside of my castle are stunningly beautiful; their light shining through the translucent cover, gleaming black metal encasing it. The ground contrasts greatly in terms of appeal. Splotches of dusty brown dirt are scattered among the dead yellowing grass. The path leading from the edge of the island to the castle is wonderful though. The oddly shaped stones with grass poking through the uncovered cracks create the perfect pathway up to the door.

My eyes follow the trail, eventually meeting the door. I focus on what's behind the glass, and I see Hallie approaching it. Her short step-lengths come to an abrupt halt as she stops to open the door. With a quick tug, a stumble backwards, and a skip out the door, Hallie continues towards me. I quickly shift my focus to the ocean ahead of me.

"Okay N, I told some of the scientists, so we can go now," She announces, jumping on to Zekrom's back.

I glance back at her, nod with a small smile, and reply," great."

-Touko-

"What pokémon did you catch?" I ask, avoiding his eyes. A small smile can't keep itself off of my face.

"A Pidgey and a Weedle," he replies, his words short.

"No Caterpies?" I ask, peering at him out of the corner of my eye, smiling deviously. He jokingly glares down at me, a playful smile dancing across his face.

"Let's not bring mention of that, Miss Touko," he says, laughing quietly. I glance up, and the vendors are back in my view.

"Can we get a ribbon now?" I ask, jumping excitedly in place.

"Sure," he agrees, leading me to the ribbon stand. The vendor standing behind the table looks up as we approach.

"Welcome, I sell ribbons," he greets, smiling.

"What colors do you have?" I ask.

"We have... Wait a moment, let me see," he replies, shuffling some things beneath the table,"I have blue, green, yellow, pink, and white."

"Ooh there are so many colors," I say, repeating the short list of ribbons in my head,"Red you choose."

"Touko, I'm not good at making decisions for other people," Red admits, smiling apologetically.

"But I can't choose."

"Why?" He gives me a curious look.

"I want too many of them."

"But we can always buy more then one, I have plenty of poké for that," he replies, laughing lightly.

"But then it won't be as special," I reply, partially whining.

"Well," he hesitates,"okay." I smile, bouncing happily. "I'd like a white ribbon please," he declares, beginning to dig a wallet out of his bag. The man behind the stand returns to moving things about under the table, quickly producing a white ribbon.

"That be fifty poké," the man holds out his hand. Red nods, pulling the money out, quickly handing it to the vendor. He receives the ribbon in return.

"Thank you," the man says as we walk away.

"Why'd you choose white?" I ask, looking up at Red. He hands me the ribbon, brushing his hand against mine for a brief second.

"Something about the color appeals to me, but I'm not quite sure why," Red explains, shrugging. I nod to myself, examining the new memento. We walk in silence for a few moments, before he clears his throat.

"So I guess we'll go back to Cianwood now?" He asks, peering down at me. I nod, my focus still on the souvenir in my hands. "Cool," he replies, turning towards the exit. As we pass under the sign, I smile.

"Thanks Red," I say, playfully bumping into him.

A/N

So, it was a short chapter, but I like it. Hehehehehe Red bought the ribbon because he likes the color. Yet (unknown to the characters) Touko can also be called White. Muahahaha IM A MAD GENIOUS! Today, I planned out the rest of the story, which could last quite a bit longer (I'm not going to say exactly how long because I don't want to limit myself) depending on if I add or change things. Umm, I don't know if I ever described them in the story before this chapter, but Hallie's eyes are green (if they were another color, too bad, they're green now). Thanks for reading, and have a great day!

-Twilit Lady of Majesty