Hello friends! I'm back :) Making promises of updating more regularly and hoping to keep these promises but most likely failing at them. Really, I do hope that I can write more regularly. I want to get this story done because I have so much love for it. This chapter is kind of short but I have an outline written for the next few chapters, so I'm hoping that keeping a strong outline going will help me to update more regularly.

-Gallade


Chapter 12: Cyllage City

Frogadier soared through the air with such precision and so aerodynamically that Sakura wondered how it wasn't part flying type. Its powerful legs launched it so quickly that it almost seemed to disappear at times.

Sakura smiled to herself as she walked along the beach and recalled the events of the battles she'd just fought. Her Pokémon had come so very far since she first met each one.

After her fiery battle with Genevieve, that fisherman had challenged her next with his crew of Tentacool. She and Espurr defeated him with ease, which only made more challengers come her way.

She brushed a stray strand of pink hair behind her ear and sighed softly. Another fisherman came to battle next, and Bulbasaur had gained some valuable experience against his Shellder and Staryu.

And then there was the battle against a swimmer and her Masquerain, where Frogadier was the shining star. There was such a noticeable difference in its fighting ability since evolving back in the glittering cave by Ambrette.

As she continued on toward Cyllage city, she thought about that for a moment. It was kind of weird to her how she had been hopping from town to town with each passing day. She supposed it was because of the proximity of the coastal towns, but it still struck her as odd - she never imagined she'd be traveling so far or so quickly, especially in a region as huge as Kalos.

In the distance, the pinkette saw buildings and realized that it must be Cyllage! Her stomach did a nervous flip. What kind of gym leader would she face here? Would they be kind of mysterious like Shino?

Wow... her battle with Shino felt like so long ago.

She came up to the edge of the city and realized that it was divided into levels. The bottom level was the beach, with the sand replacing roads and water lapping at the west side of town. A short step up gave another tier of town, where grass and pavement had replaced the beach sand. She looked up at the cliffs and saw more of the town there.

It seemed like people really built settlement here around natural features instead of clearing the land.

There was one clearly worn-down path stretching in front of her, along with a sign next to the road. Sakura eagerly approached it for more information.

It was a map, showing the path twisting and winding through town, along the beach, and up around the cliffs. There was a little graphic of a bike next to the path on the map.

"This place must be very sporty," Sakura muttered to herself, looking at the map one more time before bending down to sweep the sand off of her feet and put on her shoes.

The Pokémon center was pretty much a straight shot from where she was currently. That would be a logical first stop before exploring the rest of town and resting for the night.

...

"Welcome to the Cyllage City Pokémon center," the pink-haired nurse greeted cheerfully.

"Hello," Sakura replied sweetly, digging in her bag for her three pokéballs. "I'd like these guys healed up for me, please."

She handed her Pokémon to the nurse, who accepted them and put the balls into the slots on the machine behind her.

There was a rack of pamphlets on the desk, so she took one and put it in the front pocket of her bag. She planned to read it in a bit to see just what was in this city.

"Thank you for waiting! Your Pokémon are all healed," the nurse chirped, handing Sakura's pokéballs back on a tray.

"Thank you so much," Sakura said, taking the balls and putting them in her bag. "Have a good evening."

She walked over to an arm chair in the lobby area of the Pokémon center and sat down, grabbing the Cyllage City guide pamphlet from her bag.

Right on the front inside page was information about the Cyllage City hotel, which got her thinking. There was a hotel back in Camphrier, too, and while she thought about staying in it back then, she never got to. It wouldn't be too bad to splurge on herself a little now! She'd saved up quite a bit of prize money from the various battles she'd won, so why not?

The last few days had been very hectic and Sakura had been doing nothing but hiking around, fighting bad guys, and running errands. When was the last time she did something for herself?

With a little more purpose, she tucked the pamphlet back into her bag and set out for the hotel.

...

The pinkette sat down on the hotel bed, the mattress springing pleasantly under her weight. She let her bag drop to the floor and flopped onto her back, feeling the soft plush blankets hugging her in.

"Ahh..." she sighed contently. This bed was just so comfy! She felt herself getting heavier as the urge to fall asleep right then and there took over.

The pinkette's eyes shot straight open as a surge of panic shot through her body, jolting her into a sitting position. It was way too early to fall asleep yet!

She looked over at the window and saw that it was just barely getting darker outside, so it was still just early evening. She had a whole night ahead of her!

Though it wouldn't be a crime to take it easy, she conceded. She'd already done so much with her day, traveling all the way from Ambrette and fighting those battles out on the beach.

She sat on the edge of the bed and grabbed her bag, pulling out the pamphlet she had gotten from the Pokémon center earlier. Flipping through it, she saw that there were a bunch of shops near the Pokémon center, so that was worth checking out!

Tonight's situation almost reminded her of the excitement she felt when exploring Lumiose city at night with her friends. They had a positive experience with meeting the professor, telling him about their goals and journeys, had a refreshing battle, and then set out to do their own thing! This was when she took a chance and went to a café with Neji, meeting Gaara along the way.

The thought, though happy and nostalgic, also made her a tiny bit sad. It would be nice to have a friend with her to go shopping. This would be the perfect time for Ino to make one of her characteristic timely appearances.

Pausing for a moment, Sakura's eyes widened. She dug through her bag and pulled out her Holo Caster, punching in Ino's number. The blonde just had to be somewhere close to Cyllage by now, right?

The Holo Caster rang and rang, but Ino did not pick up. Sakura deflated a little. It wasn't late, so it was unlikely Ino was asleep yet. She was probably just out having fun.

The pinkette didn't really feel like trying for another friend. Choji and Shikamaru would likely find shopping to be too much of a drag – if they were even close to Cyllage, that is – and there was no way she'd ask Neji even if he was here in town. Not after the way he'd been so rude to her in the Glittering Cave. It would take a miracle for her to trust any friendliness from the hot-and-cold trainer.

Leaning forward on the bed to put her shoes on, the pinkette sighed resolutely. She'd have to go by herself.

...

Earlier on the beach, Sakura had just been thinking about how much she could use a pair of flip flop sandals in this climate, and once she entered the clothing store, she was faced with a whole array of beachy attire to match.

She found herself standing by the rack of swimsuits, gazing at the sporty and fashionable selections in her hands longingly. If she was going to be on the coast for a little while, she might as well enjoy the water, right?

"Do you need help with something?" a female voice chirped.

Sakura turned toward the sound in surprise and saw a brunette with twin buns in her hair standing by the swimsuit rack.

She looked between the clothes hangers in her hands and frowned lightly – she was having trouble deciding. One swimsuit was a simple red bikini with some cute beading designs while the other was a blue and white two piece set with a sporty halter top and shorts on the bottom.

"Actually, I am having trouble deciding," Sakura said in agreement. The girl in front of her smiled and scanned Sakura's choices with her large brown eyes.

"I like the blue," she said with a nod. "It would be a pretty contrast to the color of your hair, you know? Like cotton candy."

Sakura smiled and nodded, putting the red bikini back on the clothing rack. "You're right; I'll go try this on."

Sakura emerged from the dressing room with a huge smile on her face – the swimsuit fit so perfectly and complimented her lean figure really well.

The brunette, who had been patiently waiting for Sakura to come out, brightened at the sight of the pinkette. "I knew it!" She said. "It looks so good!"

"Right? It's so pretty!" Sakura agreed. "Normally I'd go with red because that's my signature color, but this is such a nice change of pace."

The brunette stuck out a hand. "I'm Tenten, by the way," she said.

"Sakura," the pinkette responded, accepting Tenten's handshake.

Tenten chuckled. "I'm sorry for jumping in before, but I could just tell that you're a nice person! I should get going now, but do you have a Holo Caster?"

Sakura nodded, pulling out the device and opening it up to the contacts menu. Tenten entered her name and number in Sakura's contacts.

"Are you up to anything tomorrow?" Tenten continued. "I've got a beach volleyball game to play and I need a partner."

"That sounds like fun!" Sakura agreed. "What time?"

"Around noon?" Tenten said.

"Perfect!" Sakura said.

"See you then!" Tenten said, leaving the clothing shop.

Sakura sighed, feeling the air rush out of her lungs in an erratic stream. She just made a friend.

She could tell from the start that Tenten was a friendly, genuine person, though to be honest, Sakura thought that Tenten worked here or something and that's why she offered her help. Though the brunette wasn't nearly as forward as Ino was, Tenten was still a kind, outgoing person and the pinkette was grateful that she'd been the one to initiate a friendship. Plus, Sakura wasn't the most athletic person out there, but she wasn't terrible either, and beach volleyball sounded like a lot of fun.

The next morning, Sakura left the hotel dressed in her new swimsuit with a towel wrapped around her waist. Her flip flops slapped against the pavement rhythmically as she walked towards the beach, her bag lightly bouncing against her leg.

Though it was a beautiful day, she had a slight frown on her face.

"I should have stayed back in the hotel," she worried to herself. "I should have called Tenten and cancelled." The Butterfree in her stomach were crawling into her chest and threatening to burst forward. There would likely be other people there to watch the match or play against her – Tenten's friends, who she was already close to, no doubt – and it was nerve-wracking to meet new people.

The only thing carrying her forward was the fact that she hadn't canceled, that this was a new experience, that she knew Tenten would be kind and inviting. How else would she experience anything in this world if she didn't give it a try first?

"Backing out is something the old timid Sakura would do," the Kanto-native told herself as she stepped down onto the beach tier of the city. "Kalosian Sakura is bold and outgoing!"

As she reached the beach, there was a bit of a crowd gathering. It was noon and the day was warm and sunny, so the amount of people came as no surprise, but she noticed a volleyball net among the crowd and felt her stomach knot up. They were here to watch the game.

She made her way to the net, clutching her bag strap with one hand and her towel with the other, keeping it around her waist as she slinked through the crowd.

"Did you hear? Tenten will be here!" A female voice cried from the crowd of people.

"She's going to kill it like always," a male voice agreed.

Sakura swallowed the lump in her throat, feeling eyes watching her as she made her way to the clearing around the beach volleyball court and set her bag down on the sidelines. She crouched down to her bag and pulled a hair tie off of the handle of her hairbrush and stood up. Pulling her hair off of her neck and into a short, high ponytail, she took a moment to think. Was Tenten some kind of local celebrity here? The people in the crowd seemed to be here just to watch her and they knew her by name. Maybe she was a professional athlete.

"Sakura! You made it!"

The pink-haired trainer turned her head and saw Tenten walking onto the volleyball court. The brunette's hair was down in twin shoulder-length braids and she wore a burgundy-colored two piece swimsuit. A volleyball was held at her hip.

The brunette walked over to Sakura with a huge smile on her face. "I'm so glad you came!" she said. "Are you ready to play some volleyball?"

Sakura swallowed again. "I guess so," she said, unwrapping the towel from her waist and setting it on top of her bag. She kicked off her sandals and left them with her things as well. "But I have to confess, I'm not exactly good at this and you seem to have quite the following... I don't want to drag you down."

Tenten flashed Sakura a confident grin. "No need to worry! We're here to have fun."

A buzzer sounded loudly.

"And that's it, folks! That's the game! Tenten and Sakura are our winners!" The referee shouted through his megaphone.

Sakura leaned over with her hands on her knees, breathing heavily, before wiping the sheen of sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand.

She looked over to her side and saw her volleyball partner over on the other side of the net, shaking hands with their competitors. As the brunette turned around, she had a confident smile on her face. Sakura stood up straight and walked over to meet her. Tenten's smile grew and she high-fived the pink-haired trainer enthusiastically. "We did it!" she cried. "I knew we could."

"You were incredible," Sakura praised her new friend.

"So were you," the brunette said. "Are you a Pokémon trainer?"

Sakura nodded eagerly. "I am!"

Tenten's smile faded to a knowing smirk. "I have to get going now, but you should definitely visit the Cyllage City gym. I think you're up for the challenge. I'll catch you later, okay?"

Tenten turned and walked away before the pinkette could say anything else. She stood there, feeling puzzled by Tenten's slight but sudden shift in demeanor. With Tenten's departure, the crowd dissipated and Sakura suddenly felt out of place on the volleyball court.

She went over to the sideline and bent down to retrieve her things in hopes of retreating silently. When she stood up with her towel not yet around her waist, she felt a pair of eyes burning a hole in her head. She looked up and saw a stoic coffee-haired trainer on the court sidelines, his arms crossed and his glare focused on her. Her heart dropped into her stomach.

Neji.

He walked toward Sakura and she knew it was too late to hide.

"So, you've managed to become friends with the gym leader, huh?" he asked, his voice dripping with contempt. "Are you trying to suck up to her? Do you think she'll go easy on you?"

"Tenten is the gym leader? I had no idea," Sakura said in shock. Her face then became hot, her temper flaring as she leaned in. "And what's with all of the accusation? Do you really think I'd do something like that, you prick?"

"Well, seeing the way your first gym battle went…" Neji said, not flinching as Sakura got in his face. He had a teasing smirk on his face.

"Watch it, Hyuga," Sakura snarled, her narrowed emerald eyes boring into his pale, pearly ones. "That first gym battle doesn't say anything about how I'll do this time."

"Hn."

Sakura's face was burning with heat as she continued to glare at her rival. His confident, cheeky grin was so infuriating! Why did he have to constantly push her buttons like this? Did his need for a strong rivalry really call for him following her and getting in her business like this?

She gasped softly, eyes widening as she realized she could feel his breath on her face. That's how close their faces were.

She backed away in a nervous panic, tightening her towel around her waist. "I'll show you," she said, hoping that her slightly wavering voice didn't show just how rattled she was by this encounter.

She turned and walked away, not waiting for a response from the brunette.

She was thankful for the hotel reservation Neji knew nothing about.


See? Short chapter, but I think this was the best way to break up the chapters to keep them from getting too long.

Let me know what you think! Until next time - Gallade