"Let's just keep going." Valerie suggested and guided the two young trainers to either side of her, as she started walking again. She wasn't sure what had gotten into her partner, but she vowed not to let these children get affected by whatever mood Mick was in.
Mick saw how she manoeuvred the children, but didn't say anything about it. He chose to glance at the sky instead. "Hey, kids." He said and they turned to look at him, Valerie watching him like a hawk. "The news said it's gonna be raining pretty heavily for the next few days. Feel free to stay in Viridian for as long as you need to. I'm sure the Gyms can wait."
Red's eyes widened as he remembered the news saying that last night. Imari scowled at the sky above her. If she had known that, she would have begged her father to take them to Viridian himself. But, as it was right now, they were already on the road.
She sighed.
Red seemed to come back to his senses after recalling what the news had said. He looked directly at Mick. "Actually, they can't, sir. While the League season has been newly extended to two years, we still need all the chances we can get to train our Pokémon. It's important to us that we develop and further strong bonds with our Pokémon. Not unlike you Rangers."
Mick hadn't heard of the sweeping change the League had put in place and stared back at the boy with surprise written all over his face. "Good god," he breathed. "When did they enforce this?"
Imari couldn't help but laugh. "At the start of the year."
He blinked. "Right, gotcha."
"Anyway, everyone..." Valerie trailed off as they walked past the boundary gates for Viridian, the children not even realizing because of their conversation with Mick. "This is Viridian City. Welcome to the home of the Viridian Gym Leader. Although, I wouldn't recommend battling him straight up. He's more of a final boss. Take your time getting to him; he's very tough to defeat."
The friends nodded.
The childhood friends gazed around at the city in awe. There were so many things to see and do in Viridian City.
"This is amazing." Red and Imari spoke in unison. They couldn't believe their eyes at how big the city was. Valerie hugged the children briefly, before setting them straight for the Centre.
"It's best to rest up there for the night. You're likely both exhausted and you'll need a good sleep for tomorrow."
Red and Imari turned to look at Valerie as she smiled at them. "We need to head to Jenny's office, but we might see you again later on."
The friends glanced at each other, before nodding at the woman. Valerie headed over to where Mick was standing. "Seeya, you two."
Red and Imari wearily headed to the Pokémon Centre, their feet dragging as they took the journey step by step. What would tomorrow hold indeed?