A Guide To Her Heart
Episode 21: The Great Mauville
"So, what'cha been up too, Listor?" Violet asked as she, the explorer and Drew made their way down the marshy, grass-covered slope south of the Weather Institute.
"Oh, nothing much!" the auburn-topped boy replied with a wry smile, his hands stuffed in his pockets. "Just this!" he added and pulled out a silver case. He pressed a button with his index finger and it flipped open to reveal five, bright-colored ribbons. The female Coordinator's eyes lit up in amazement and for a moment, Drew didn't hide his shock either.
"Wow! That was fast!" exclaimed Violet.
"Yeah. After meeting you guys, I got inspired," Listor chuckled.
"Hmph," Drew grunted. "Beginner's luck." He flicked his bangs and smirked at the other boy. "You can't really be intending to enter the National Grand Festival?"
"You better believe it!" he said defiantly. "Can't let you win without a challenge, now can I, mate?" The green-haired boy rolled his eyes and the sound of Violet giggling hit his ears.
"How'd you get them so fast?" she asked, looking at the red-clad boy intently.
"Let's just say I get around," Listor grinned. "Speaking of which, why are we walking?" He grabbed a poke'ball at his waist.
"Because some of us don't like to tire out our Poke'mon by having them carry us around," Drew retorted as a flash of white light from Listor's poke'ball signaled the arrival of his Salamence.
"Drew! Can we fly! Please? Please? Please?" begged the girl, bouncing up and down on her heels. Drew rolled his eyes but smiled in the back of his mind. How many times was she going to use that on him?
"I'm not going to make Flygon carry us both all the way to Mauville," he said calmly.
"No worries, mate," Listor said, tossing another poke'ball from which a Dragonite appeared. "She can ride on Dragonite." The mauve-haired girl's eyes glowed as she rushed over to the orange dragon and tried to give it a big hug, although it was much to large. Regardless, it let out a long roar and gently hugged her back. Drew's green eyes darted to the Poke'mon, Listor, and then Violet and he released Flygon from the poke'ball at his waist.
"Rrryyiieggh!" it cried, beating its wings.
"I don't want you riding on strange Poke'mon, Violet," he said in a matter-of-fact tone, walking over to Dragonite. "I'll ride on Dragonite. You take Flygon."
"But Dragonite isn't a strange Poke'mon! It's Listor's!" she giggled.
"Yeah, what's the matter, mate?" Listor chuckled. "Not jealous are ya?" His eyes narrowed challengingly and a small smirk curved his lips. Drew shot a glare in his friend's direction and clambered onto Dragonite's back without arguing with Violet.
"Drrrrraaaagooo," hummed the orange Poke'mon over its shoulder.
"Oh...fine," huffed Violet as she walked over to Flygon. The green dragon Poke'mon nudged her with its head before lowering its belly to the ground so she could get on. Drew watched as the other two Coordinators (if you wanted to call Listor a Coordinator now) heaved themselves onto their respective Poke'mon.
Flygon was the first to take off, sending Violet's hair into a ruffled mess with the gust of wind stirred up by its wings.
"Let's go, Salamence!" Listor encouraged, patting the aqua-colored neck of the great dragon. It let out a proud roar and with only a few thundering beats of its wings, it was airborne.
"Come on, Dragonite," Drew muttered, looking at the pumpkin dragon's snout from over its broad shoulder.
"Gao," it hummed curtly, looking away and crossing its massive arms. Drew grit his teeth as he watched the other two dragons zoom ahead.
"Why not?" he growled. Another low rumbling sound came from the back of the Dragonite's throat and the antennae-like structures on the top of its head twitched. The green-haired boy rolled his eyes. "Can we go, PLEASE?" he muttered through his teeth. A large grin spread across the Dragonite's face and a whinnying sound came from its nostrils as it lurched forward into the air, its aqua-colored wings flapped outward to expand to three times their original size. Drew was tossed forward, flat against the broad space between the orange dragon's wings. Quickly throwing his arms around its neck, he watched the ground get farther and farther away from him and the clouds get closer.
"Glad you could make it, mate," Listor smirked as Drew and Dragonite zoomed up to flank both Salamence and Flygon. The green-eyed boy rose an eyebrow and flashed his friend an exasperated look as if Listor already knew that his Poke'mon was so picky.
Dragonite's wings flexed up and down as it soared, creating even more winds than the natural ones that already were up here. Drew had to duck down, closer to the dragon's body, to keep the wind from stealing his breath right out of his lungs. It stirred up his hair, sending it into a wild fray, and he had to wince his eyes a little to keep them from stinging. He normally never flew this high with Flygon. Glancing sideways at his Poke'mon and Violet, he noticed that the elevation didn't seem to be bothering either of them even though Violet's head of mauve hair was blowing in her face and every other direction.
"Mauville city, right?" Violet called out over the beating of the dragons' wings. A wide grin was still on her face. "I'll race ya!"
"Don't tire out -" Drew was cut off. Flygon whistled happily and loudly and zoomed ahead, its steam-line body letting it cut through air like a hot knife cuts through butter. "...Flygon..." he finished under his breath and shook his head. He could just make out Listor chuckling over the sound of Dragonite's and Salamence's wings.
The three glided down into the city of Mauville in less than an hour and, naturally, Violet and Flygon touched down first.
"We won! We won!" the mauve-haired girl chirped happily, swinging her legs as she leapt off the green dragon. It whistled happily in response, craning its long neck around to look at her. Drew rolled his eyes as Dragonite landed loudly, not bothering to tell her that he and Dragonite weren't really trying and neither did Listor and Salamence more than likely. He watched as she grinned and stuck her tongue out playfully at him.
"Careful, Vi," chuckled the auburn-haired boy over the sound of Salamence's final flaps as it landed behind Dragonite. His body lurched forward the same way the dragon's did when it hit the ground. One could tell he was used to flying. "Be careful where you put that..." he trailed off, a good-natured but obviously mischief curve on his lips. The grass-haired boy turned as he hopped off Dragonite, shooting his friend a heated glare. He wasn't sure whether or not it was for the comment, or the fact that he was scolding his girlfriend - which was usually his job.
Violet withdrew her tongue, making a 'pop' sound, and turned her head to the side cutely, the way she always did when she was confused.
"Um..." she muttered, giving Listor a strange look.
"Ignore him, Violet," he grumbled as he walked past the amethyst-eyed girl, returning Flygon to its poke'ball as he did, and entered the Poke'mon center, leaving Listor to return his Poke'mon to their capsules.
Violet followed him inside, but quickly got distracted as her nose lifted a little and a warm smell reached her nostrils. She aimlessly wondered towards the smell. 'The food court, no doubt,' Drew thought to himself. He didn't worry because she always did that when they first entered a Poke'mon Center. Running a hand through his bangs, he made his way to the front counter and leaned against it slightly as he heard the double doors behind him slide open again as Listor trudged in.
"Room for two," he requested to Nurse Joy who flashed him a gentle smile and began typing away on a computer.
"Hey, don't you mean room for three, mate?" the Dragon owner asked quickly as he came up to Drew's side.
"I don't want you sleeping in the same room as Violet," he said bluntly. The average person would've just thought their opinion and said it with a bit more metaphorical sugar on top of it, but Drew was never like that.
"And what makes you any different?" Listor shot back, folding his arms and raising a red-brown eyebrow. A slight blush grazed Drew's cheeks but it quickly disappeared as he narrowed his eyes. The older boy's hands flew up in response to his friend's stare. "Chill out, mate. I wouldn't go near your girl!" Drew's eyes stayed constricted as he looked away and down at the counter he was leaning against, taking in a breath of air as he did. That's when Listor blinked a couple times, smirking slightly. "What? No denial?"
"I'm sorry, but we only have rooms for one available," Nurse Joy said suddenly, looking up from her computer. Drew exhaled in relief, although to anyone else it probably just looked like a frustrated sigh.
"That's fine," he said carelessly, eager to discard both conversations about rooms.
"One for me too," Listor said quickly.
Drew didn't wait for his friend. He got his room key and found his way to the back where the Poke'mon center's rooms were. Walking in, he glanced around for a moment and then dropped his knapsack down onto the single bed. He sat down next to it and pulled his Poke'Nav and a booklet from his bag. The little device made a slightly static-like sound as it flipped open. Drew looked at the digital map on the tiny screen and then sat down the small machine, flipping through the booklet. Not but a few moments later, he heard the door swing open and a happy Violet bounced in, dropping her bag onto the floor. Just then, a strange thought came into his head. He just realized that when they arrived at a Poke'mon Center, they hardly ever entered the room together, and Violet always found her way their afterwards. He never asked how she did it, but it was a thought he had nonetheless.
"Guess what?" she asked giddily, rocking back and forth on her heels.
"What?" he asked and raised an eyebrow just to amuse her, looking up from his handbook.
"Nurse Joy told me about the game corner! Can we go? Please? Please? Please? Plllleeeeeeeeaaaassssssee?" the grinning girl grinned, clasping her hands together, and making her eyes extra sparkly. For a moment, Drew wondered how she did that. He stood up, his arms folded.
"Fine," he huffed. He knew it was better not to argue with Violet and thinking wasn't exactly something he had to be in his room to do. She beamed brightly and gave him a tight hug. Just then, a flash of white light shot from her knapsack and then faded away to reveal the night-pelted fox-like creature with golden rings.
"'Bre!" it announced.
"Come on, Ghost!" Violet said excitedly, releasing her hold on Drew and charging out of the room, snatching up her bag on the way out.
"'Bre! 'Bre!" barked the Umbreon as it followed her out. A slightly entertained smile spread across Drew's lips and he shook his head, slowly following her out of the doorway. As he entered the hallway, the sounds of footsteps behind him stopped his own. The sound brought itself to an end as he turned on his heel to see Listor leaning against the hallway wall.
"You said yes to her, didn't you?" he smirked, looking at Drew between his long bangs. The green-haired boy rolled his eyes and turned to walk away.
"Mind your own business," he growled as he started walking away, but Listor quickly caught up with him. The older boy ignored his rudeness and shot another question at him.
"Have you kissed yet?" he asked suddenly.
"Mind your own business," Drew repeated in the same tone, as monotone as usual but secretly fighting back a blush. He wished a Donphan would roll right into the hallway and barrel his "friend" over. A memory tapped on his mind's door as he remembered having a similar thought towards contestants at the Lilycove Double's Contest. It was just then that he realized he had become a little more violent since he joined up with Violet.
Luckily, this time Listor dealt with the rejection and silently followed Drew and Violet to the game corner.
The boys sat at a round table in the corner of the large casino that was covered in warm-colored velvet from top to bottom. Violet sat a short distance away, starring intently at a slot machine. Drew was equally intrigued in the screen on his Poke'Nav while Listor had situated his chin in the palm of his hand, propped up on his elbow, and looked rather bored.
"Since when do you have a Poke'Nav, anyway?" the auburn-topped boy asked.
"Violet won it for me," Drew replied in his usual monotone, never looking away from the screen.
"Guess she's really good at games, huh?" the older boy smirked, looking up.
"No. Just lucky," the emerald-eyed Coordinator corrected in a matter-of-fact tone. Just then, a loud buzzer rung across the room and the sounds of coins gushing from a machine filled Drew's ears. He swiveled around in the maneuverable seat to look at Violet sitting at the slot machine that was indeed gushing coins.
"Um-bre'!" barked Ghost Ring triumphantly as it danced around in the shiny little discs at its owner's feet.
"See?" Drew added, now smirking himself as he turned back around. Listor watched the winning mauve-haired girl over Drew's shoulder for a moment before looking back at his friend.
"You never answered my questi-" He never got to finish. Drew cut him off and answered without looking up from his Poke'Nav.
"Yes. No. Happy?" he barked. Listor seemed to think for a minute.
"How'd you two end up traveling together anyway?" he asked curiously.
"I'm taking her to the National Grand Festival," the younger Coordinator explained, sighing a little at the relentless questions. He looked up to notice Listor's expression.
"You know that Slateport's just less than five miles away, right?" the Dragon owner said slowly, his face slightly distraught. A sudden realization hit Drew like a stampeding Tauros. The town that was holding the National Grand Festival, Slateport, was just a few miles south of here. He had basically gotten them there.
"I don't have all my ribbons yet," he said, folding up the Poke'Nav and shoving it in his pocket as he tried to hide the upcoming lump in his throat. He wasn't sure what it was from - or at least, he pretended he wasn't sure. It was as if he knew where this conversation was going.
"So... where are you going to go next?" asked Listor, the fact that he was pushing for answers being rather evident. Truthfully, Drew didn't know - hence his current research. "Better yet... Where's Violet going to go?" This time, Drew looked up at his friend as if he had whiplash. He probably looked rather surprised, but he knew this was coming. The only question was whether or not he was trying to fool Listor or himself.
"What do you mean?" he asked stupidly, still managing to look concerned and not quite worried yet.
"I mean... if you're just trying to get her to the Grand Festival, then you're practically there," Listor explained. "If you're not ready to go onto Slateport, what are you going to do with her?" The thought reared its ugly head in Drew's mind and he turned to look at his girlfriend over his shoulder.
"You can do it, Ghost!" Violet cheered. "Try it again!" Drew watched from his spot on the bed as the TM (Technical Movie) that Violet had bought with her prize coins played on the television in their Poke'mon Center room. She was dead ahead replaying the video, trying to get her Umbreon to learn Toxic. The green-eyed boy watched as the Ghost Ring's muscles tensed and its body shook slightly as it tried to make toxic gas pour out of the spores in its skin, to no avail of course. He sighed loudly, crossing his feet on the bed and averting his gaze to his light purple jacket that was tossed on the floor. He wore only his black sweater.
"Maybe you should take a break," he suggested quietly, not sure whether or not he was talking to Violet or Ghost Ring. She took a deep breath and flicked the 'power' button on the TV, turning it off.
"Guess so..." she muttered, looking down. Her Eevee-evolution looked up at her and tilted its head. "Take a break, Ghost," Violet grinned. It mewled happily and trotted away to Drew's back, rummaging around inside it. Normally this would've bugged the green-haired Coordinator, but his gaze was instead fixated on Violet as she started walking towards the bathroom.
"Where are you going?" he asked, watching her as she walked.
"I'm going to shower," she replied, her grin wide like usual.
"Can we talk first?" he asked, his voice cool despite the turmoil swirling around inside his head. He pulled one of his feet back and bent his knee, resting an arm on it. She cast him a strange glance but bounced over the bed and sat down in front of him.
"About what?" she chirped, turning her head curiously.
"Do you want to go to Slateport?" he questioned quickly, looking down slightly so he didn't have to quiet look into her eyes. Her confused look stayed the same. "That's where the National Grand Festival is being held," he explained.
"Oh," she chimed, her smile returning. "Of course I do, silly!" Drew knew she didn't understand the question at all, but his heart sunk anyway. In the back of his mind he growled at himself but for once he ignored his self-punishment.
"No... I mean... Do you want to go now?" he asked again. She brought a finger to her lips and looked down. Her mouth formed almost an 'o' shape and she seemed to think.
"But... You don't have all your ribbons," she said slowly.
"I know," Drew said. His voice still sounded too quick to the draw. Maybe he was speaking so quickly to hide his voice's shakiness. He mentally scolded himself for losing his cool and took a shallow breath to try and calm himself down again. "But Slateport is actually really close to Mauville... I'm asking if you want to go..." There he had asked it. He looked up and caught her gaze with his own. At first glimpse, her amethyst eyes were bright like usual, but then their dazzling quickly started to fade. Her mouth seemed to pout a little, looking almost like a rosebud. For a moment, it felt like Drew had been pricked in the heart with that very rose's thorn and he flinched inwardly. All at once his journey with Violet flooded his memory and thoughts reeled too quickly for him to register them all at once. So he just starred at her, waiting for an answer.