Author's Note: I do apologize if I go a bit overboard with all the food descriptions. If anything else, writing these chapters has made me a much more frequent visitor to my city's local international grocery store. I had no idea some of these Russian snacks were so delicious! I'd never thought to try them before!
I also wanted to give a special shout-out to my lovely friend Seiauton who happily translated the tourists' dialog into German for me. I know we have yet to see a Germany-based Pokémon region, but we got a small teaser that it might exist in Pokémon Y, as one random NPC does talk to you in German.
…
Cyrus had been right. A Pokémon battle just before bed was exactly what his Eevee needed to sleep. As soon as the Pokémon's body touched Cynthia's comforter, he curled into a tight ball and didn't budge. Occasionally, Cynthia heard the faint whistling sound of Eevee snoring through his nose.
She eased herself into bed, trying not to wake the little Pokémon up. As tempting as it was to watch another documentary on the Kinzonian Heritage Channel, she didn't have the energy for it. She could barely keep her eyes open.
Her Eevee made a nest close to her shoulder and didn't move. So long as she didn't breathe on him or try to pet him in her sleep, he'd stay put and give her no trouble. Once she was comfortable, she nestled part of her head in the Pokémon's scruff. One of the last things she registered before falling asleep was a warm and tiny tongue licking her cheek.
Most of her worries were resolved now. Cyrus was no longer on death's door. He'd be out of the hospital by the end of the week. Nurse Yulia confiscated all of Cooper's Pokémon, so Guano Lisa hadn't die in vain. Most of her friends from Plumbum City made it safely to Kalium City. Now she even had confirmation that Campanella was alright.
Each one of those worries had been an emotional millstone on her heart. Tonight was the first peaceful sleep she'd had since the bombing, not to mention the first dream that didn't involve Cyrus dying from medical complications.
Instead, she dreamed about last New Year's Eve. Eager to celebrate her victory against the Castelia City Gym Leader, her parents asked around to see if they could find a place that served Sinnoh-style tonkatsu.
As they ate, her father told her about the ruins he and her mother planned to study in Undella Bay. Nobody they knew had a Dive HM, so their next best option involved taking scuba diving lessons and waiting for the regional government to green-light the expedition. Unova had plenty of amazing ruins, but the Abyssal Ruins were all that remained of a dead civilization long thought to be a myth. Only a handful of historians in the world could decipher the hieroglyphs on the building's walls, but the Shironas met someone at a local university.
After dinner, the family explored Mode Street until it was time for the fireworks. Her mother had tried to find an art museum, but she misread the map and got them lost. Instead, they watched the fireworks from a seedy little café named Café Sonata. On the café's stage, a foreign musician sang something in ancient Kalosian. Other than the occasional boom of exploding gunpowder, the music was the only sound in the entire venue.
People were mesmerized by the past just as much as they were in awe of the future. Cynthia approached the singer with a tip, eager to tell him what a great job he did…but then she felt a warm paw touch her cheek.
"Vee?" her Eevee chuffed. Most Eevees she met had high-pitched, coo-like voices. Hers was deeper, even a bit husky. "Vee Eevee."
"No, Eevee," Cynthia murmured, rolling over in the bed. She burrowed her face under the covers, trying to make it impossible for the Pokémon to touch her a second time. "Five more minutes."
But Eevee wasn't having any of it. He bit the top of the comforter and gently peeled it away like the skin of a Nanab Berry. As soon as Cyrus's Eevee woke up and saw what Cynthia's Eevee was doing, he decided to join in on the "fun" and wriggled around in Cynthia's lap.
"You little stinkers…" Cynthia sat up and stretched. A big, long yawn escaped her lips. "I haven't slept that well since—oh no..."
The numbers on the analog clock flashed on and off, deceptively insisting that it was only 7:55 AM. As much as Cynthia wished that were true, it was too bright outside and too loud downstairs for her to believe it. She rubbed her eyes, trying to get some of the crusty sleep out. 'I guess we lost power last night. I know it's later than 8:00, but what time is it?'
Analog clocks were easy to reset. All she needed to do was get the correct time from another clock, her watch, or the TV. Zed installed a wall clock close to the bathroom, but it was too far away from the bed to read without getting up. It was so cold in the room that she didn't want to leave the bed, but it couldn't be helped.
As she tried to get up, Cyrus's Eevee pushed his paws down in a desperate attempt to make his body too heavy for Cynthia to move. "That's not gonna work on me, mister. You're wasting your time." She scooped the Eevee up, trying her best not to laugh when his claws grabbed the blanket and yanked it completely off the bed. When she put the Pokémon on the cold floor, he sulked.
To cheer the Eevee up and show there were no hard feelings, she scratched behind his ear and reached in her bag to give him a treat. That caught her Eevee's attention, as well as Spiritomb and Golbat's. When all four Pokémon were distracted by their snack, Cynthia turned on the TV to find out what time it was.
It was 11:38 AM.
Not only had she slept for twelve straight hours, but she'd completely missed the morning visiting hours at the hospital. There wouldn't be time to stop by in the afternoon, either. She'd already promised Eric and Isaac that she'd join them for their day trip to the beach. They'd probably be out there until curfew.
All she could think about was poor Cyrus sitting by himself in that run-down hospital room, aimlessly watching public access TV because there was nothing else to do. He'd probably already finished those primers she picked up at the library.
'Poor guy. He probably thought I flaked…not that I'd blame him if he did. I literally told him I'd visit every day until he got out!' Cynthia seldom swore, but a "shit" still slipped out of her lips as she paced around the room. As she did so, the Eevees did figure 8s around her legs and nearly knocked her over. 'Should I call and let him know I can't come by today? I told him he could call me, but he's never actually done it. And he's been really lethargic. Chances are I'd be interrupting a nap if I picked up the phone.'
She chewed on her thumbnail until she'd gnawed off a thin crescent moon. 'Should I even tell him what I'm doing today? Would it depress him? What if—'
"Hey! Sleeping Beauty!" Eric rapped his knuckles on the door. The noise startled her, only because she didn't expect it. Neither did her Eevee. He jumped about a foot in the air. Every hair on his body stood up until he resembled a brown Cottonee. "You gonna be ready soon? We're all packed up and ready to go!"
"Sorry, Eric! I just need ten more minutes!"
Most of that would involve brushing her hair. Freshening up wouldn't take long, nor would throwing together an outfit. Like most other girls she knew, she usually took her time picking something out. Cynthia didn't have that luxury today. Instead, she reached for the first shirt in her dresser and matched them with some black jeans. She hurriedly put herself together and scrambled out the door.
When she rushed down the stairs, she could see Eric and his friends waiting as a group on the ground floor. In fact, a whole crowd was down there. She knew she'd only be going to the beach with the Kanto trainers; but the Beridze siblings, Zed, Campanella, and several others were huddled around something and talking excitedly. As she approached, she could finally tell what all the hubbub was about.
"These are the best damn cookies I've ever had, ma'am!" Campanella called out, laughing. "It's awful sweet of you to share!"
Renata's friendly voice floated over the crowd as a gentle chuckle. "Oh, it's nothing. The recipe makes so many, and there's no way he'll eat all of these. I don't even know if the poor dear has a sweet tooth! Things like baked goods are best shared among friends. Wouldn't you agree?"
"Yeah!" Tamari piped up happily. Her Dunsparce insistently bumped his head into her leg, making pitiful noises the whole time. "No, Dunderhead. Those are cookies, not poffins." He wiggled his tiny wings insistently and whined again. "I mean it! They're people food! You'd just choke on it."
Cynthia had never seen such a dejected-looking Pokémon in all her life. She tried her best to hold in a laugh, but it came out anyway. Renata heard her and happily waved her over. "Good morning, Cynthia! Would you like to try a Kinzonian varenye cookie?"
Considering she missed Zed's breakfast run, Cynthia didn't even hesitate to nod her head. "I could smell them from the top of the stairs. They look good."
"Good's an understatement. They're amazing!" Tamari insisted. She cupped the sides of her mouth with her hands and loudly whispered something in Cynthia's ear. "Don't tell my brother, but Renata's three times better at making desserts than he is."
Cynthia would have promised to keep her mouth shut, but she didn't have to. Grigol was still close enough to be within earshot and heard the whole thing. Everyone did. His already pink cheeks turned red as Eric laughed and heartily thumped his back in reassurance.
"Relax, Grigol." Eric teased. "I'm sure your food doesn't completely suck!" The poor boy covered his crimson face with his hands and groaned.
Cynthia put the cookie in her mouth and instantly fell in love with the taste. She'd had shortbread before, but never this flavor of jam. It was a cool taste—like mint—but more woody. "This is delicious! What all's in it?"
Renata seemed nothing short of tickled that Cynthia liked the snack. "Oh, nothing special: just traditional shortbread ingredients and varenye. Well, that and a Chansey egg, which Grigol graciously provided. They have amazing health benefits."
"I've heard that! This is actually my first time trying a Chansey egg." Her grandmother never cooked with them because she thought their slightly sweet taste was weird and off-putting. Cynthia could understand not wanting to use them in something savory like an omelet or quiche, but this was the best cookie she'd ever had. "I never would have thought to bake cookies with one."
The old woman's smile was warm and proud: clearly flattered to receive so much praise for her hard work and effort. "Back when my children were little, I'd cook with Chansey eggs whenever I could. Not only do they put you in a better mood, but you recover a little faster when you eat them. I figured our poor friend in the hospital could use a little pick-me-up."
"Oh! These are for Cyrus?" Cynthia felt her heart flutter. That was so very sweet! "I'm so glad he has a friend like you, Renata. He could really use one right now."
"Yes, well…" Renata closed the cookie tin and stuffed it into her bag. "I was hoping to pay him a visit today and deliver these in person. Have you had a chance to speak with his family about adding me as an approved visitor?"
"No, I…" Now that she was more awake, Cynthia didn't feel guilty about oversleeping anymore. It wasn't her fault that the power went off and her clock lost track of the time. This, however, she felt bad about.
Since the bombing, Renata Cordova had taken it upon herself to be everyone's guardian angel. She showed Cynthia how to report Cooper and made sure her Pokémon were healed while she handled the paperwork. Even after that, she'd occasionally stopped by Cynthia's room to see if she was feeling lonely.
That friendliness wasn't reserved for only her, either. Yesterday, Grigol was studying for a Pokémon Medicine exam in the lobby. Renata sat on the other side of the couch and quizzed him until he felt confident enough to take the virtual test. More than once, Cynthia saw the old lady slip extra change into the washing machines and dryers so it wouldn't cost as much for the next person.
And now she'd made these special cookies just for Cyrus.
Cynthia felt like a horrible friend. She'd been so caught up in her own problems that she never stopped to think that Cyrus's other friends would want to see him too. "I'm so sorry. I've been so tired lately that I forgot you asked me that."
"That's alright. Just give me the number and I'll ask the Akagis myself."
"You're sure you want to do that?"
Cynthia was hesitant to give the number to Renata until she'd at least warned her about Cyrus's parents. When she called the Akagis to notify them of Cyrus's injury, she was trembling all over. Cyrus had nothing good to say about Alexander or Nichole. There was no telling what sort of cruel things they'd say to a total stranger—a Kinzonian stranger, no less.
"Yes, I am." Renata sounded confident: like absolutely nothing could go wrong. Cynthia admired that optimism. "You aren't the only person in this Lodge who's worried about Cyrus, dear."
"I know that, but…" Not that far away, Cynthia heard Eric impatiently tap one of his massive clodhopper feet against the hardwood floor. The longer this went on, the more likely they were to leave without her.
Cynthia touched Renata's shoulder and pulled her a bit closer, hoping to whisper something in her ear. "Before I give you his home phone number, there's something you need to know. Cyrus doesn't come from a happy home and his parents aren't nice people. I've never met Mrs. Akagi, but I've heard things."
She'd never forgive Nichole Akagi for cutting off Cyrus's debit card. What sort of lunatic mother thought leaving her child broke in a foreign country was a good idea? What purpose did it even serve?!
And on top of that, she'd taken other important things from him in the past. If her own mother had done even half the stuff Nichole had done to Cyrus, Cynthia would have cut her out of her life a long time ago. The fact Cyrus hadn't done so meant that some part of him probably still (beyond all logic and reason) loved her. That made it even worse. It meant he'd keep trying to impress Nichole, only to feel crushing defeat each and every time he failed to deliver.
"And Mr. Akagi has a temper. He yells."
When Cynthia called, Alexander raised his voice a couple of times. Although he restrained himself before his shouts became too loud, Cynthia couldn't shake the feeling he was making a conscious effort to hold back for her sake. Somehow, she doubted he extended that same courtesy to his son.
Renata tilted her head a bit, both eyebrows raised. "Oh? Is that all?" Cynthia opened her mouth, ready to tell her more, but Renata simply shrugged her shoulders. "Some men bark, honey. It's not that big of a deal."
Maybe Renata didn't understand, or perhaps she thought herself brave enough to handle this. Cynthia still didn't feel comfortable enough to surrender that number. Alexander had apologized for raising his voice to her, but he'd still done it. That conversation was enough to paint a very vivid picture of Cyrus's home life, and what Cynthia saw made her very uncomfortable.
She wished she could rescue him and take him home with her. He'd love her family. Her grandmother in particular would love him back. It was just a shame the world didn't work that way.
Yet Renata was undeterred. She smirked, held out her hand, and refused to lower her arm. "I grew up in north Kinzo—during the revolution, no less. How much do you know about that?"
"Um…"
It felt like there was a miniature Poliwag in Cynthia's throat, jumping up and making it hard to swallow. The truth was she knew very little about Kinzonian history. What little she'd picked up through television had interested her, but her knowledge was woefully limited.
Back at the airport, the woman she'd chatted with told her that Kinzo used to be a penal colony. In Plumbum City, Officer Kuznetsov told her that Kinzo's former prime minister was a violent, paranoid man and that this was why they had a curfew. That was pretty much all she knew.
"I don't know that much, Renata. I've just watched bits and pieces from the Heritage Channel."
No part of that seemed to surprise the old lady. Without even skipping a beat, Renata jumped into what she was about to say. "I'll spare you the details, but Kinzo's been subjected to more than a few military coups since the '40s. The worst and first successful one was Comrade Vasiliev in '55."
That name kept coming up. Officer Kuznetsov talked about him, too. The Kinzonian Heritage Channel mentioned him briefly before delving into the tale of Rurik the Wrathful, the King of Kalos, and the Ultimate Weapon. And now Renata was bringing him up, too.
"You want to talk about a man who could yell? Vasiliev could yell. No offense to Cyrus's father, but I'm pretty sure he's nothing by comparison. He doesn't scare me."
In that context, Cyrus's dad probably wasn't anything to worry about. Cynthia hesitantly scribbled down the number and handed the note to Renata. "Okay. If you say so. But don't say I didn't warn you."
Renata pocketed the note and was about to say something, but Eric's voice blasted over her. "Cynthiaaaaa! Come on! We're wasting daylight!"
Renata chuckled and gave the girl a hearty pat on the back. "I'm not worried. He can't be that much older than my son; and I don't let Aldo talk to me like that, either. Have fun at the harbor, dear. I'll be fine." She looked toward the group of Kanto trainers and tossed them each one more cookie. "Boys? You'll take good care of Cynthia, won't you?"
Lulu's cookie accidentally went down the front of her coat and Eric completely missed his. The only one who successfully caught the treat was Isaac. He gave his handsomest smile to Renata and took off his cap just long enough to properly bow. "Yes, ma'am! Of course we will!"
Eric rolled his eyes and thumped the back of Isaac's head with his hat. "Kinzonians don't bow, you dumbass."
"Ha ha. Right. What was I thinking? Ahem!" Isaac cleared his throat, straightened up his posture, and gave Renata a mock salute instead. "Tell Zed we'll be back by curfew! Cynthia, are you ready? The rental bikes are outside."
"Yeah!" She grabbed her bag and hurried out. "Thanks again for inviting me, guys."
"Hey, no problem! We wanted you to come!" Isaac's smile was infectious. The more he did it, the easier she found it to smile, too. "Ever since Cyrus got hurt, you've done nothing but go back and forth from the hospital. We figured you could use a distraction, at least for one afternoon."
They truly were a nice group of people. Cynthia couldn't help but wonder if she'd run into other people as generous as Isaac's gang if she did a Kanto journey after this. If so, it was very tempting to mark that as her next region to challenge. "I really do appreciate it."
Lulu also smiled. Even though there were dark bags under her eyes and other signs that she was severely sleep deprived, she seemed energized and enthusiastic about the beach trip. She held the door for everyone, expecting them to go through it before anyone else complained about the cold air. She also fidgeted a bit to free the cookie trapped between her lemon yellow coat and sweatshirt. Once it was out, she nearly swallowed it whole.
When it was Cynthia's turn to go through the door, she couldn't help but notice there were only two bikes. Upon closer inspection, she realized they were doubles. "I'm guessing two-seaters were cheaper? I've never ridden one of these."
Isaac laughed and positioned himself on one of the bikes. "You've got nothing to worry about. Two-seaters are easy! Eric thought we could each take a girl and race to the—"
"Dibs on Cynthia!" Eric called out, cackling when he saw the dejected look on his friend's face.
By now, Cynthia knew that Isaac had a crush on her. Not only had he been rather obvious about it, but Eric teased him about it every time Cynthia was in earshot. As flattering as it was to know a boy liked her, she didn't return Isaac's feelings. Sure, he was kind of cute and very nice; but she barely knew him. On top of that, he was almost four years older than her. For an adult, that wasn't a big deal. For teenagers, it meant they probably didn't have any shared interests outside of traveling and Pokémon battles.
That was probably why she didn't object to riding with Eric. Well…that and he had bigger, longer legs. She wanted to win the race. As she climbed onto the back of the bike, she tightly grasped the back handles and prepared to pedal her legs off. "Psssst. Eric. How fast do you pedal?"
"Like the wind—provided it's downhill!" For a brief moment, Eric waited for the other two to get ready on their bike. "Let me know when you're ready to go, losers!" he barked. "We're gonna leave you in our dust!"
Isaac grumbled something under his breath, but Lulu was a good sport about the whole thing. She made sure she wasn't going to fall and gave her racing partner the thumbs up to show she was good to go. Isaac grabbed the handles of his bike, poised himself to get ready for the race, and took a deep breath. "Alright. The Great Riviera Race begins in five…four…three…two—"
"NOW!" Eric roared and began pushing the bike pedals with all his might. Cynthia followed suit, trying to give him any extra power and stamina. As portly as Eric was, he'd proven to be a surprising powerhouse at this sport. True to his word, Isaac and Lulu were left behind in no time at all.
Cynthia's ponytail flapped behind her like a streamer. When she was little, her grandmother bought her a tricycle and put tassels on the handles. She used to pedal as fast as she could, just to get them to flap around. Her hair would be a tangled mess by the time this was over, but it would totally be worth it.
In less than a minute, she and Eric were going so fast that she couldn't read the street names. All of the concrete buildings seemed to blend together into an adrenaline-infused speed trip through Kalium City. Pedestrians hurriedly rushed into stores and onto benches to avoid being hit. Some stray Pokémon froze in terror, which meant Eric had to zigzag around them. It was a miracle he didn't hit one.
Eventually, the buildings began to look a bit grungier. There were dark streaks on the concrete and the painted bits were chipped and flaked. Some windows fogged up from the humidity. Cynthia had been to enough oceanfront towns to know this had little to do with the age or upkeep of the buildings. Sea air could age them like nothing else. That paint could have been as recent as six months ago. It wouldn't have made any difference.
After nearly half an hour of racing to the waterfront, they reached their destination: a periwinkle blue boardwalk covered in Kinzonian propaganda posters. A large wooden arch announced the location: Калиум Ривьера. Just beneath it in smaller font was the international translation: Kalium Riviera. The part beneath it, "Наслаждайся пляжем!" had no translation.
"This is it!" Cynthia called out, bumping the top of her forehead against Eric's back. "Any sign of—"
"Aaaaaaaagh! You're too fast!" Isaac slowly pedaled his way to the finish line, gasping for air the entire time. His face was nearly as red as his hair. When he put the kickstand down for the bike, he nearly fell off in the process.
At least Lulu looked alright, but that was because she propped her legs up and let Isaac do all the pedaling. "Good job, Eric. I had no idea you were such a speed demon."
"Are you kidding, Lulu? It might as well be my middle name!"
As much as Eric wanted to gloat and flaunt his victory over the other team, Cynthia didn't join in. It would only be a fair fight if everyone participated, but Lulu hadn't. She bumped Eric's fist in solidarity, but felt a bit embarrassed when her stomach loudly growled. "I guess I burned through Renata's cookie during the ride…"
"Is that seriously all you've had today?" Isaac asked. "That won't do! Let's see if there's any snack stands on the boardwalk. I'll treat you."
"You don't have to—"
"You're gonna treat me, too, right?" Eric batted his eyes and swished one of his thick hands. "You know, because we beat you?" Isaac grumbled something, but reached for his wallet all the same. "Aww! That's so sweet! Isn't that sweet, Cynthia?"
Sometimes, Cynthia was convinced Eric took pleasure in shutting down Isaac's advances. Every time he tried to do something suave—like buy her a snack, ride on the same bike, and so on—Eric threw himself into the scene and made things awkward. Cynthia wasn't sure why he was doing it, but she appreciated it all the same.
"It sure is," she teased, a little smirk coming out on her lips. "You're such a good friend, Isaac." That poor boy looked completely crestfallen!
As Isaac dejectedly searched for a place that served hot drinks and good-looking snacks, Cynthia was on the lookout for a place that served blini. It didn't appear to be an option anywhere, which wasn't too surprising. They were a breakfast food and it was early afternoon. The names of some of the other snacks being advertised weren't familiar, either. If she wanted to eat something, she'd probably have to ask the vendor what it was first. "I'm only seeing Kinzonian snacks. Have you tried any of these?"
"Not really," Isaac confessed. "We tend to stock up at international grocery stores to see if we can find something familiar. I don't know about Eric, but I know I feel less homesick when I can eat a little Kantonese food."
Cynthia could understand that. During her Unova trip, she'd looked for a few restaurants that purported to serve Sinnohese cuisine. It wasn't as good as it was at home, but there was still something comforting about eating it. She wasn't going to limit herself, though. Every place had its fair share of good dishes. Unova had the best ice cream she'd ever tasted. Kinzo had the best pancakes. If she wanted to eat Sinnohese food all the time, she'd never have left home.
"I don't think you're gonna find that here, pal," Eric grumbled. "Hey, Lulu?"
Lulu had been walking ahead of the group, seemingly lost in her own world. It wasn't until Eric called out her name that she realized she was part of this conversation. Until that moment, she probably thought she'd get ditched and be left to her own devices until it was time to go. She stopped, turned around, and stuffed her hands deep into the pockets of her oversized coat. "Yeah?"
"You tried some Kinzonian stuff, right?"
"Only those little mini-bagel things. One of the shops close to the Trainers Lodge sells them in big bags." Lulu squinted and peeked at the stores, looking to see if she could find what she was talking about: either to point them out or to buy some for herself. "I forgot what they're called. Have you tried those, Cynthia?"
Cynthia shook her head. "No, but they sound good. We'll probably want something with a little protein in it, though." With the amount of activity they were doing, they'd burn through carbohydrates way too quickly.
…
The group finally decided to have a junk food lunch inside the boardwalk's only indoor restaurant. It was more an excuse to sit down inside a warm building than anything else. Nothing on the menu looked familiar, but at least they had an impressive display window showcasing all the different kinds of breads and pastries they made.
Isaac paid for everyone's meal rather than simply for the victors. He figured it would be easier for the waiter to put everything on one check. Lulu offered to pay him back, but Isaac declined. "It's going to be cheap," he insisted. "Just let me have some of your bagel things when we get back to the Lodge and we'll call it even."
Eric ended up ordering the biggest, sweetest-looking thing in the display case: a mountain of hazelnut-sized fried donut balls covered in honey and dried fruit. Apparently, this was çäkçäk. Once he saw the size of the dish, he offered to share it with the rest of the table. Cynthia tried more than a few of them. They were quite addictive.
Lulu tried to describe the Kinzonian bread rings she'd eaten before to the waiter. They weren't on the menu, but at least she knew they were called sushki now. In the end, she declined to order anything other than a drink. She'd just make a full meal off Eric's sugary abomination.
Isaac took his time to order and finally decided on a vatrushka: some kind of sweet bread bowl with a soft cheese and fruit in the middle. Cynthia ended up ordering the same thing because the cheese would keep her fuller for longer. It wasn't as delicious as Eric's çäkçäk, but still fairly good.
The waiter recommended trying the house kissel as a drink: a sweet fruit juice thickened with potato starch. Everyone got a different berry flavor so they could taste and compare. Their only request was that it be brought out hot instead of cold.
Cynthia resisted the urge to slurp her Cheri kissel down with one sip. The thickened texture of the drink made its flavor even richer than standard juice. It lingered in her mouth. "How's the Sitrus one taste, Lulu?"
"Not bad." The girl pulled out a thick notebook and began jotting something down. "Okay, so I know that today's a vacation day for all of us; but I still want to go over Jet's stats again and see if we can find a way for Eric to beat him."
Eric took a huge gulp of his Mago kissel and gave Lulu a dirty look. "For real? We're doing this today? You couldn't leave that thing back at the Lodge?"
For once, Isaac wasn't the butt of the group's jokes. Lulu wasn't looking at his stat sheet. This was enough to embolden him at least enough to rib Eric a bit. It was long overdue. "I don't see why she would, Eric…considering how hard a time you had with Jet yesterday. Have you challenged him yet, Cynthia?"
"Hm?" She'd been paying more attention to Lulu's notebook. There were lists, tables, diagrams, and some parts that were near impossible to make out from the opposite side of the table. "Ah…no. I've been too caught up with taking care of Cyrus to even think about facing Jet." And every time she thought of Jet, her blood pressure climbed a bit. He'd seriously pissed her off. Kicking his ass in the arena would be quite gratifying. "Is he as tough as Simon?"
She somehow doubted it. Simon Morozov was one of the best strategists she'd ever faced in a Pokémon Gym. Sure, he was the first in the circuit; but he threw enough curveballs and dirty tricks to be an A-Grade challenge.
When Cynthia asked that question, Isaac still had some Pomeg kissel in his mouth. He swallowed it and laughed a little. "I didn't think so." It wasn't lost on Cynthia that Eric was giving his friend the evil eye. "My Baltoy packs quite a wallop, you know?"
"And you had a major type advantage," Lulu added. "On top of that, those items I told you to pick up at the Department Store certainly made things easier. The X-Defense made Jacob almost immune to Fighting moves, and the three X-Attacks paired with the held Twisted Spoon? It was almost overkill! In fact, while I'm thinking about it—Cynthia? Here. Take this."
Lulu reached over the table and placed a damaged piece of silverware in Cynthia's hands. "I know this doesn't look like much, but let Spiritomb hold this when you battle Jet. It will boost its Psychic moves by an additional 20%."
"Why do you carry that sort of shit around with you?" Eric grumbled. "Weird girl!"
"Look, Eric. Sometimes I like to let my Abra sit with me when we go out to eat. If she gets bored, she'll bend a spoon or two until the food arrives. You're just butthurt that Mr. Skitty and Ziggy couldn't even land a hit…which they would have, if you'd actually followed my game plan."
"Screw your plan, Lulu! Nobody in their right mind is going to read and memorize ten pages of notes just to fight a Gym Leader!" When Eric realized that people at the other tables were turning around to look at him, his face turned pink. He cleared his throat and tried to act like nothing was wrong. "Ahem! I'll just go back to the Department Store, look at the Psychic TMs, and see if there's something Mr. Skitty can learn."
Lulu's smile turned a bit wicked. "Good luck with that."
"Skittys can learn Psychic moves from TMs!" Eric hissed defensively.
"I'm not refuting that. They can." A bit of a cruel giggle came out with her words. "Your options are Calm Mind, Rest, and Dream Eater. None of those are going to help you." She pushed the notebook back over to him, grinning. "Read and learn, buddy. It's the only way you'll win."
Eric grumbled a few rude remarks under his breath, but did as he was told. As he read over the notes, cursing and swearing the whole time, Lulu's smile turned friendlier and back toward Cynthia. "I'd love to evaluate your team later, if you're up for it. I don't like to battle personally, but I get the biggest rush out of compiling strategy plans."
"Maybe later," Cynthia offered, playing with her straw. "I'm not exactly a newbie to this."
"Right." Lulu nodded her head. "Isaac said you challenged another league before."
"I've challenged two leagues, actually! Hold on. I want to show you something." Cynthia put her vatrushka down just long enough to pull her badge case out of her bag. The first page was covered in a complete set of eight Sinnoh badges. When she turned to the second page, eight Unova badges sparkled in the light. On the third page, her one and only Kinzo badge looked so lonely. There were seven empty spaces, all eager to be filled.
"Whoa!" Isaac's eyes were huge. "I knew you'd been to other regions. I had no idea you actually completed them! That's really impressive! You're probably the best trainer at this table, maybe even the whole restaurant."
Her face felt a bit warm from the praise. "That's nice of you to say, but I don't think that's true. Lots of trainers—"
"How many years did it take you to get that many badges?"
"Not that many," she admitted. "I'm only fifteen, so—"
"Wait…" She could see the color drain on Isaac's face. He stared at her as though she'd just grown a second head. "You're fifteen?"
As Cynthia nodded her head in confirmation, she heard a constipated laugh squeak out of Eric's mouth. His face was borscht red and he could barely contain his giggles. Realizing both girls were looking at him, he placed a drink menu in front of his face and burst out laughing. "Nice going, Isaac!" he jeered. "You've been creeping on a kid this whole time!"
"Dude, I didn't know!" Isaac looked positively mortified. "I'm so sorry! I…I thought you were my age! Honest!"
Cynthia kind of felt bad for Isaac. This whole time, he'd been flirting and carrying on with a clear interest in her. Isaac knew Cyrus was fifteen, so Cynthia had simply assumed he'd known she was fifteen, too. Apparently not. "It's okay. At least you know now, right?"
Isaac's face was buried in his hands. "Yeah, but I really owe you an apology. I must have come across as a major creep…"
"I wouldn't exactly say that." By this point, Cynthia felt a tiny bit bad about teasing Isaac. It was clear this revelation left him feeling quite embarrassed. "I'll only think it's creepy if you keep doing it."
"Oh my Mew. No way! You're a really cool girl, but that ship's sailed! I'd love to still hang out as friends, if that's okay, but—"
"Sure! I don't have any problems with that." Cynthia cleared her throat and held out her hand so they could shake on it. "Truce?"
Much to her relief, Isaac shook her hand.
…
After lunch, the group decided to explore the boardwalk and see what other shops were out there. Once they did a full walkthrough, they could take the stairs down to the waterfront and look at the beach. Considering the past few days had covered Kalium City in snow and ice, no one packed a bathing suit. They all knew it was way too cold to do much more than look around.
The boardwalk turned out to be a hodgepodge of carnival games and snack stands, but Cynthia also spotted an arcade and a battle arena. She briefly wondered if that was the location of the Kalium City Gym, but couldn't find the Kinzo Pokémon League logo anywhere. Besides, her friends had already challenged Jet. Isaac or Eric probably would have pointed it out if that was his gym.
"I might want to hit that arcade later," Lulu remarked. "I wonder if they have some of the same games the Mauville Game Corner does. I'm feeling a little homesick."
"Mauville?" Cynthia wanted to make sure she heard Lulu correctly. Mauville City was all the way in Hoenn, not Kanto! "I thought you said you live in Celadon City."
"I currently do," Lulu told her, "but my family moves a lot. I don't mind it, so long as there's a game corner or an arcade nearby. Does Sinnoh have something like that?"
"We do! It's in Veilstone City." Every time she went to Veilstone, Cynthia checked to see if the department store had any Rage Candy Bars. If she found any, she'd buy a box and surprise Professor Rowan with them the next time she visited Sandgem Town. "I never went in there, though. Gambling isn't really my thing. Was there a certain game you wanted to look for?"
Lulu shrugged her narrow shoulders, but she kept an upbeat skip in her step as she marched along. "I like Voltorb Flip more than the slot machines because it relies more on probability than luck. Did you know that a Kinzonian designed that game? When the company went bankrupt, they buried all the unused copies in a landfill and moved to Cuprum City."
So far, Cynthia had met two Kinzonians who called Cuprum City home: the lady at the airport who had family in Floaroma Town, and that cute little girl with the Cleffa. Both Titania and Trixie seemed very proud of their city and insisted it was a fun place to live. From what they'd told her, Cuprum City sounded like a perfect place for a retired arcade game developer to live and look for new work. "I'm guessing you'll want to meet your idol if the boys make it that far?"
"I…" Lulu flustered with her words and ended up having to clear her throat. "I never said the Voltorb Flip guy was my idol! I just like the game!"
Eric sniggered a bit at Lulu's expense: clearly pleased that he and Mr. Skitty were no longer the butt of a joke. He and Isaac pushed their rental bikes along the boardwalk, paying heed to the signs telling them not to ride them. "So, uh…do you think anyone's gonna be wearing a bathing suit down there?"
Isaac gave him a look. "I doubt it, dude. It's way too cold."
"Ever heard of the Beartic Club, Isaac? Some crazy people like to skinny-dip in cold water. I bet a frigid place like Kinzo has plenty of them. Why, for all we know, this could be a nude beach!"
"You don't want that," Lulu murmured. Judging from the grave expression on the older girl's haggard face, Cynthia had a sneaking suspicion she was saying this from first-hand experience. "I did a foundation survey in Kalos a couple of years ago. Cyllage City wanted to know if their ground was stable enough to support a new Pokémon Gym. They had a nude beach."
Cynthia was trying her best to hold in a laugh. The nudity wasn't the part kicking her into a giggle fit. It was Lulu's somber, deadpan delivery that made her suspect this was going to be comedy gold. "How did that go?"
"Well, I didn't want to go, but the guy I was traveling with did. I tried to warn him. It won't be filled with supermodels, I said. Normal people go to beaches too. But did he listen to me? No!
"We ended up going, and the first thing we saw…he mistook for a giant Ditto. There was this big, bald, flabby, sunburned old man lying on a towel next to his wife. Her boobs looked like a pair of deflated water balloons and she was so hairy. Like, really, really hairy. Then we saw an entire parade of naked little kids squirting each other with water guns. One of them had a heart-shaped strawberry birthmark on his butt and I could never get that mental image out of my head."
The boys both looked like their brains were breaking. So much for dreams of beautiful women sunbathing on the cold Kalium City shores! Lulu seemed to revel in destroying their dreams. She took a deep breath through her nose and lifted her head so her chin could jut out. Her hands patted the sides of her bony hips and she looked all too proud to be a killjoy.
"That's all that was out there, folks: families. Lots and lots and lots of families. So the next time you think a nude beach sounds sexy, let me remind you that it's not just pretty people who go out there. You're ten times more likely to see somebody's fat grandpa, wooly grandma, or little brother's birthmark-covered butt." Eric kept waiting for Lulu to take back what she said, but she never did.
Cynthia leaned over the edge of the boardwalk, just to confirm people were at least clad in bathing suits. She was pretty sure they were, but that had certainly grossed her out. Just as she expected, most people were either fully clothed or wearing wetsuits. Only a few people were sunbathing, but they had a Fire Pokémon nearby so they didn't freeze.
Aside from being cold, it was just a normal beach. A group of girls were even playing volleyball with a Hitmonchan and a very excited Meowth. When they realized a group of tourists were looking at them, they smiled and waved. "Hey!" a pretty auburn-haired girl called out to Cynthia. "Do you and your friends want to join our game?"
Before she could politely decline, Eric and Isaac bolted ahead with big, stupid grins on their faces. "Sure! I love volleyball!" Isaac insisted. "It's my favorite sport in my hometown."
"I'm more partial to dodgeball," Eric snorted, but it was clear he was gearing up to play too.
Although the women didn't exactly tell the boys to scram, it was clear that invitation had been girls-only. They continued to smile, but it was forced and a bit annoyed. Less than a minute into the new game, the Hitmonchan served the ball so hard that it brained Eric in the face and knocked him into the sand.
Lulu rolled her eyes and snorted out a short, indignant sigh. "Well, it looks like our guy friends have been captivated by seashore sirens in booty shorts. We might as well leave them to their fates and come back for them later." She pulled a couple of large beach towels and collapsible chairs out of her tote bag. "Honestly, I'm worn out from the ride over here. Let's decompress for a bit and enjoy the view, shall we?"
'You didn't even pedal,' Cynthia thought as she opened the cooler. Before their expedition, Isaac purchased enough Kantonese snacks for the entire group to share: cold sodas, canned lemonade, seaweed flavored potato chips, an assortment of arare, and what looked like red bean daifuku. Just curious, she checked to see if a Rage Candy Bar was in there. It wasn't, but that was fine. She was fairly sure those were a Johto snack, anyway.
The view was spectacular. Off in the distance, she could see the lights of another nearby city—or perhaps more of Kalium City. The sky was overcast and hazy: a cool bluish gray with serene, dark blue waters. A gentle breeze moved the small waves against the bone white sand. There were plenty of tourists; but judging from how much Kinzonian Cynthia heard in nearby conversations, most of them were probably local.
Some brave souls in wetsuits went into the water, but most were more content to eat snacks and watch the waves from their makeshift campsites. Kids played fetch with their Pokémon. Teenagers swapped stories and playful jokes. A group of older women leaned back in their chairs and caught up on their reading.
In seemingly no time at all, Lulu dozed off in her chair and began to lightly snore. Maybe she really was tired.
About five meters away, right where the tide waves sank into the damp earth, stood a paunchy middle-aged man in a brightly colored track suit. He'd hiked up his trouser legs so the only thing the waves touched were his insulated rain boots. Every couple of minutes, he cast a worn-out looking rod into the water. Any children playing at the beach steered clear of that area for fear of being smacked by bait on a fishing lure.
"Jetzt komm schon," he groaned, scratching the back of his blonde head. "Sei nicht schüchtern." Every once in a while, the rod twitched and moved around: proof that he'd caught a Pokémon. Sometimes he'd lift in time to see the smiling face of a hungry Magikarp staring back at him. Other times he'd wait too long and the bait would be gone. Either way, he wasn't happy. "Scheiße!"
Not too far away, one of the book-reading women put her novel down and waved at the man. "Was ist los, Martin?" Her voice indicated some type of western accent, but certainly not Kinzonian or Kalosian. "Beißen die Fische nicht?
"Das ist es nicht, Klaudia!" The man, Martin, replied. He looked so distressed. Es gibt nichts außer Karpador auf diesem scheiß Strand! Als Josef fischen gegangen ist hat er ein—"
"Barschwa gefangen. Ja, so sagt er." By this point, the woman looked just as done with this nonsense as her brother/boyfriend/husband/whatever-on-earth Martin was to her. "Und du weißt genauso gut wie ich dass mein Bruder ein dicker, fetter Lügner ist. Er hat das Ding vermutlich auf dem Fischmarkt gefangen, nur damit er sieht wie du dir die Eier abfrierst. Wie ein Vollidiot."
"Was für eine Angel benutzt du?" another woman piped up, throwing herself into the conversation. "Ich hab vorher eine Profiangel genommen und—"
"Es ist die gleiche scheiß Angel die ich die letzten 10 Jahre benutzt hab!" Martin looked positively dejected. "Ich glaub je öfter du die Angel nimmst, desto weniger Fische fängst du. Ich krieg bloß diese beknackten, wertlosen Karpador!"
In the background, some of the women urged him to come eat sandwiches with them. "Du kannst es immer später nochmal probieren, Martin. Iss was zu Mittag und beruhig dich."
"Ja, ja…" Dejected and defeated, he tossed his rod to the ground and gave it a hearty kick. "Ich komme schon…"
Thinking that the man might change his mind and want his rod back, Cynthia made her way over to the tide pool where he'd been attempting to fish and grabbed the rod before the wind carried it off. When she picked it up and began to walk back, she realized something was on the other end: something large.
"Sir? Um…you caught something! It's…hn…kind of heavy, actually!"
The group looked up from their sandwiches. Cynthia repeated what she said, expecting the man to get up and help her. Instead, he kept eating his snack. One of the women gestured at Cynthia, trying to get her male friend to get up and help her. Martin's mouth was stuffed with food. He seemed otherwise unperturbed.
'Fine! I'll do it myself, then! Some help you are!' Cynthia tugged on the rod, but the rod tugged back more aggressively than before. Whatever it was, it was far too big to be a Magikarp! She dug her feet into the sand and yanked the stick, doing all she could to reel the Pokémon in, but it was much too heavy.
For nearly five minutes, she played tug of war with the lure, wondering what was on the other side. Each time she thought she gained ground, the Pokémon pulled her closer to the water. After what felt like an hour, something splashed out of the tide pool: a bright red pincer half the size of a human head, all tangled up in fishing lure.
The fisherman and his friends gasped. They all reached for a Poké Ball: eager to see what this monstrosity would turn out to be. Whatever it was, there was going to be a battle.
Cynthia also reached for the liveliest Poké Ball in her party: Eevee. As much as he hated the cold, he loved to battle. "Steady," she told him. "Be prepared for anything. I have no idea what this thing's gonna be." Every hair on Eevee's body stood up. He crouched and hissed, claws drawn.
When the water surface broke again, a hideous Crawdaunt stomped toward the shore. Its eyes were cloudy, save for its pinprick-thin pupils and the bloodshot spots below. Several healed over pieces of broken shell were on its body: pink rather than brick red. Either this thing was old or it had seen a lifetime of abuse. Either way, it wasn't happy to see people and snapped the lure in two.
"Okay, Eevee!" Cynthia called out. "Let's hit it with a Quick Attack and—"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down, kid! You don't want to battle that Crawdaunt!"
Cynthia wasn't quite sure who was talking to her, so she looked around. A gorgeous blonde woman in a rhinestone-studded wetsuit hurried over to her, only to pant and catch her breath once she made it over there. She'd dyed pieces of her hair blue and pink to make herself resemble a human Milotic. Whoever this woman was, all Cynthia could think was that Eric and Isaac would be jealous they missed an opportunity to see her. Although there were other pretty people at the beach, this was the only one who looked like an actual model.
"I don't understand. Why don't I want to battle it?"
"For starters?" the woman huffed between breaths. "He isn't wild. I don't recommend fighting him unless you've beaten the Kalium Gym Leader." Once she caught her breath, she held out a hand for Cynthia to shake. Her other hand was preoccupied with getting that nasty-looking Crawdaunt back in his Net Ball. "I'm Kai: the Hydrargyrum Gym Leader. And this?" She held up the ball. "This is Ægir. He got loose when I was signing autographs a moment ago. Thanks for finding him!"
Cynthia had seen Crawdaunts before, but never one that looked that rough. "Is he sick? He didn't exactly look like a normal Crawdaunt when he came out of the water."
Aside from looking sick, Ægir had also looked angrier than any Pokémon she'd ever encountered. If Eevee had actually attacked it, that thing probably would have attempted to cut him in half. The very thought made her shiver.
"Well..." Kai sighed. "Ægir has a condition that makes him more aggressive, but I'm doing what I can for him. The government's aware. So...do you have that Potassium Badge or not? If you do..." She struck a pose and let loose a playful laugh. "I'd be more than happy to battle you right here, right now! How about it, kiddo? Want to get your Mercury Badge early? Hm?"
If she'd already beaten Jet, Cynthia would have jumped at the chance. Kai was probably a significant bit stronger—possibly too strong for Spiritomb and Eevee to face alone—but it would still be fun to challenge her. She seemed nice enough: maybe a bit airheaded and overly playful, but nice. "I'd love to, but I only have a Lead Badge. I haven't even battled Jet yet."
"Aww! How disappointing!" Although Kai let loose a groan, she didn't sound genuinely upset. She was just putting on a show to be dramatic. "I was all revved up and ready to go, too! Oh well. Here." She pulled a business card out of her bag and handed it to Cynthia. "Take this."
Cynthia looked for Kai's name, but it didn't appear anywhere on the card. Instead, it appeared to be for a water park/casino called Hurricane's Landing. "I'm guessing your gym is in this water park?"
"Да! Вот именно!" When she saw the confused look on the girl's face, Kai cleared her throat and went back to talking in the international language. "Sorry! Uh…there's an island in the middle of the wave pool. That's where I keep my arena. Once you beat Jet and you're ready to face me, tell my gym trainers that you're the girl who found my Crawdaunt. They'll let you pass to come right at me."
"That's so nice of you. Thanks!"
"Don't sweat it, comrade! It's my own weird way of saying thanks for finding Ægir. I'm sure you have a mischief-making problem child in your Pokémon party, too. But we love 'em anyway; don't we?"
Oh, absolutely! Gible had torn up every piece of furniture in her bedroom at least twice. And Spiritomb was such a bastard to the Plumbum City Pokémon Center staff that they refused to treat it until Cynthia could prove it wasn't wild anymore. And then there was Cyrus's persistently cuddly Eevee and his super-aggressive Golbat. The only Pokémon in their current posse who behaved almost all the time was her Eevee!
But before she could say anything else to Kai, the woman was already heading back to a large group of people with cameras.
…
The ride to the beach had been fast, easy, and speedy…but only because it was downhill. The trip back to the Trainers Lodge was almost entirely uphill, not to mention quiet.
On the ride over, Cynthia had ridden with Eric. Considering just how embarrassed Isaac obviously still was from earlier, she decided to cut the poor guy a little slack and offered to ride back with him. He went out of his way to act like everything was fine and mumbled profusely about how hot the volleyball players were, but Cynthia wasn't paying him much mind. He was probably just trying to save face.
She could hear Lulu and Eric pant and wheeze from exhaustion on their bike. To her surprise, Isaac had far more stamina than his friends. Slow and steady won the race, she supposed.
They took frequent stops, mostly so everyone could catch their breath and slow down their racing hearts. Between the four of them, they drank every single drink in the cooler and even stopped by a couple of vending machines to buy more. Cynthia preferred the latter because the vending machines offered hot options.
She was glad that everyone had a great time. Lulu and her Abra spent a lazy afternoon taking naps, building sand castles, and eating snacks. The boys spent almost the entire afternoon playing volleyball and throwing sand at each other. After Kai left, Cynthia spent a little time walking up and down the shore with Eevee in search of shells. She found a few, but most of them were broken or chipped: not really worthy of taking back to the Lodge and carrying in her bag.
It was a shame they couldn't stay at the beach long enough to watch the sunset touch the ocean, but she was afraid they wouldn't make it back to the Lodge in time. By the time they made it to the correct street, the black vans announcing the curfew time were on patrol. The group hurried inside and left the rental bikes outside for Isaac to return tomorrow morning.
They were just in time for dinner: some sort of Hoennese noodle soup. The only problem was they'd expected to grab a bite to eat on the way back and therefore didn't tell Zed what to order. Cynthia's stomach growled again, wanting more than just the cheesy bread pastry she'd had at lunch.
"It's okay," Isaac groaned. "I think Eric has some stuff in his locker."
"That's mine, asshole!" Eric snapped. "Eat your own damn food!"
"Now, now. That's enough." Lulu grabbed both boys by the ear and started dragging them off. She was a tiny, petite thing; but she could pinch as tight as a Pinsir. "Thanks again for joining us today, Cynthia. We had a blast." Cynthia could hear Isaac and Eric chime in that they agreed, but they were more concerned with their poor ears. All the way down the hall, she could hear a chorus of ow, ow, ow.
Hoping that Zed might have some leftover food from a guest who no-showed; Cynthia looked for him in the common area. She found him in the middle of a poker game with Campanella and some of his older guests. One of those guests, a very tall green-haired man with a handsome face, called Zed on his bluff and took over the entire game. Everyone else folded.
A few tables over, she could see the Beridze siblings challenging each other to a game of checkers. Grigol wasn't giving it too much of his attention, but he probably should have. Seven moves in, Tamari jumped all across the board and won the game.
It would be nice to hang out with some of her other friends, but taking a shower and going to sleep sounded even nicer. Cynthia was so tired that she could feel her legs twitching. Considering none of the Poké Balls in her bag were moving, she was pretty sure Eevee and Spiritomb were tired, too.
She placed her hand to the railing and began her ascent up the stairs. 'I'll call Cyrus's room at the hospital,' she decided. 'There's no way he'll be asleep just yet. It's not that late. I'll tell him why I didn't show up and—'
"Hey! Cynthia!" She stopped just outside her door, turned around, and saw Isaac was on the nearest landing with a big bag of snacks. She covered her mouth to hold in a laugh. He couldn't be serious! "There's no point in going to bed hungry. Catch!"
"Wait! I'm a bad shot. I'm not gonna be able to—"
But he threw the bag anyway. An entire rain shower of Kantonese chips, corn puffs, rice crackers, and soda flew out of the bag and landed everywhere. Cynthia heard a gasp somewhere from the common area and she couldn't hold it in. She fell over and laughed, trying to grab as many snacks as she could.
That redheaded boy looked completely sure of himself. He grinned impishly, head held high. "Have a good night!" he called out. "We're going to check out an arcade tomorrow. If you'd like to come with us—"
"Sure!" Cynthia agreed, holding up her bag to show her appreciation. "Thanks again, Isaac." She began unlocking the door, trying her best not to drop the bag. "I'll see you tomorrow for—huh?"
Of all the things she expected to see in her room, her roommate certainly wasn't it. "Cyrus!? What are you doing here!?"