PD: Giving the heads up in advance, this is a longer than usual chapter. Hope you enjoy!
Castelia City And Fai The Emolga
Mint stands in the checkpoint gate leading into Castelia City. He's finally made here after what almost felt like an eternity of running on the bridge. All that running has completely tuckered him out and he can barely walk anymore. All parts of his body ache and his breathing is ultra heavy and long but he holds a small smile on his face. He's made it and that's all that matters at this point. He holds his chest, the discomfort and pain of his lungs burning as he takes each deep and much deserved breath of air. He tries his best to ignore it and looks around. Unlike the checkpoint back at the forest, this one is significantly bigger and has quite a few people inside. There's also an electronic billboard and a couple TV's to alleviate boredom if one has to wait for someone or something.
From the corner of his eye, he sees that the snow has picked up outside through a nearby window. He lucked out and managed to avoid getting caught by the heavy snow. Now that he's in Castelia, he can relax for a little bit since the snow won't be causing him any problems now. He slowly walks across the room, his ears catching the TV news reporter talking about the weather. "As for the weather in our wonderful Castelia City, everyone is seeing snow, and lots of it is still to come! Expect a total of 8-12 inches of snow by the time this storm system moves out! Along the way, temperatures will continue to drop from the low 30's into the mid and upper 20's later today. Once the sun goes down, we'll be seeing frigid temperatures, with some places just outside of the city going into the single digits! Most of Castelia will be hovering around the 10-15 degree mark, so bundle up if you're going out later tonight! Stay warm and we'll keep you updated with any changes that this early winter storm might bring!"
Hearing that nearly a foot of snow is going to fall along with the rather cold temperatures doesn't phase Mint at all. He's actually happy to hear about the snow and the cold. His fur is more than enough to keep him warm, plus he has the scarf around his neck and since not many people and Pokemon like the cold, the city will be even easier to get around in due to less foot traffic. He can only think of all the great and wonderful things that await him once he passes through the opposite end of the gate. "Oh man… I hear that this place has everything you could ever want! Good food, excellent places to stay, many friendly faces, tons of jobs for people and Pokemon… there's just so much here that I can't even name it all! This is going to be one heck of a ride from here on out, and things can only go up from here!" he says to himself and his pendant starts to glow and sparkle.
Despite being super tired and worn out, he gets down on all fours and makes his way through the checkpoint and out into the city. He's officially here now and in front of him stands massive buildings that pierce the heavens. The streets are lined with people, Pokemon, cars, and buses. Through the snow, he can see the neon signs showing various stores and venues he can check out. LCD Screens bigger than those found in normal homes line some of the buildings and advertise shows, food, cars, and pretty much anything you can think of. Unlike the view from the Skyarrow bridge, he can no longer see the tops of the skyscrapers. The tops break through the seemingly unreachable ceiling of clouds and enter the realm of the sky, one that can only be reached by certain Pokemon.
The streets are starting to get covered with the pure white flakes that fall from the sky slowly and silently, painting the road a beautiful but dangerous white. Cars and Buses move at a slightly slower speed to avoid slipping but people and Pokemon walking on the sidewalks don't worry one bit. Their big, comfy coats and clothes keep them warm even when the chilly wind tries to steal it away. As for Mint, the wind simply blows the flakes into his face and most of them slide off thanks to the special oil that coats it, but some of them stick and melt away quickly since his body is quite warm. His fur waves and the very end of his scarf flutters as the wind tries to make him feel cold, but it only just makes him feel better.
"Wow… this… this place is sooo pretty! All the snow falling makes it even better!" he says as he starts walking on the sidewalk, admiring everything around him. While standing at the checkpoint entrance, he didn't notice it but he does now as he walks, the city is quite loud, and not a plain old loud, but more of an "in your face" loud. As he walks, there are open air markets with the owners yelling out to the crowds, trying to entice them into buying their merchandise. People who aren't that fortunate line some of the alleyways and even the sidewalks in an attempt to beg the rich into sharing their wealth.
As he looks to his left and notices the bridge and a nice view of the ocean in between the cars and buses, a random piece of trash flies at him and hits him in the face. Luckily for him, it's only just a loose page from a newspaper and he simply removes it from his face. He IMMEDIATELY realizes that as nice as this place is, it's also quite filthy at the same time and the urge to clean himself starts to burn within him, but without a place to do that, it would simply have to wait. He ignores it as best he can and continues to walk down the street.
A sign in front of him reads "Royal Unova: next block on the left! Use the crosswalk and safely cross to experience a cruise that can only be described as nothing less than kingly!" and true to what it says, through gaps in peoples legs, he can see a massive cruise ship sitting in the water in one of the docks exactly a block away. It seems that people are boarding the ship and it's getting ready to take off in a few minutes. The sign also has a few more things on it too, arrows showing different places in the city, like "Mode Street", "Narrow Street", and "Castelia Shopping District".
He can only look around in complete mesmeration and wonder. There's so much going on around him that he can barely get a grip on one thing before another, more interesting thing pops up in his face. "Whoa… There's so much to do here… W-where do I even begin? I can't decide where to go first!" he starts walking and looking around all over the place, not paying attention to where he's going.
He starts walking backwards to take a look at a billboard when he ends up bumping and crashing into another Pokemon who was standing around waiting for something. They both fall onto the concrete and the stranger immediately stands up, quite angry at Mint for what he did. They yell at him. "YO! Watch where you're fucking walking!"
He looks up at them and notices what he walked into, an Emolga with their hands on their hips, giving him quite a nasty stare. He doesn't know that he's looking at them in a somewhat dumbfounded way and this makes them yell at him again. "I'm talking to you, yeah that's right! You're the only barf green Pokemon I've seen all day and I can't possibly be talking to anyone else!"
Mint stands up, he doesn't like that this stranger is calling him that name but he's also a bit afraid to do anything about it. They get up in his face, almost spitting as they speak. "Are you gonna say you're sorry? You just fucking walked into me like I wasn't even there! You know how rude that is?"
He goes to speak but can only mutter useless sounds. "I… I... b… u… u…"
The Emolga's eyes become even more intense, thinking that he's not gonna apologize. They let loose little bolts of electricity from their cheek pouches and this makes him back up, a bit frightened and worried. He puts his paws up and shakes his head quickly, trying to tell them non-verbally to not attack. They stop the electricity and yell at him. "THEN SPEAK UP YOU FUCKING PUKE PUDDLE!"
He retracts back a little from their yelling. The yelling actually grabs the attention of another Pokemon nearby, someone who is quite familiar. The Emolga is clearly upset with how Mint is handling the situation and charges their cheek pouches again and yells once more. "I should teach you some manners you weirdo! I don't know where the fuck you came from or what you think gives you the fucking right to walk into other Pokemon, but I'm here to tell you that you ain't fucking doing that shit to me again! To hell with you!"
They prepare to attack and he turns around, covering his head in response, bracing himself for the hit but without warning, another Pokemon's voice is heard behind him. "HEY! DON'T START FIGHTING! STOP THE ATTACK!" the voice is familiar to him and he looks up to see who it is.
Coming in hot is Scott the Pikachu, he stops right in front of the Emolga, telling them off. "You're about to attack an innocent Pokemon! Don't do it!"
They yell at him now. "And why not? He fucking ran into me and didn't apologize! He deserves to be taught a lesson."
They shake their head in disagreement and put a hand on their shoulder. "C'mon Fai, it was just an accident… I'm sure he didn' mean anythin' by it. Besides, if I'm right, this Cinccino is actually a good kid and a good friend o' mine."
Mint is slightly surprised to hear this when Scott has no idea of his evolution. "H-he recognizes who I am…? But how?" he whispers.
Fai calms down a little, but is still a bit burnt up. She crosses her arms and looks away. "Alright fine, but you better get him to apologize. I don't like being walked into, even though it sorta happens here on a daily basis."
Scott smiles. "That's better! Now…" he turns around to face Mint. "She ain't gonna hurt ya, so please apologize for whatever it is that ya did."
Mint slowly walks up to her, tapping his paws together anxiously and tries his best to apologize, but since he's extremely nervous, it doesn't really come out that well. "I-I… I-I'm… S-sorry for… f-for hitt… hitting you." his cheeks begin to turn a deep shade of red and he looks away, unable to maintain eye contact.
Fai shakes her head in disappointment, she was expecting a somewhat better apology. "That's it? Not gonna say anything else like if I'm okay or if I was hurt?"
Scott steps in. "Lay off him, Fai. He's one of those socially awkward types don't you see?" She simply looks away with a 'hmph!'. He tries to explain it better. "Don't be like that. Look, this kid isn't a monster, he's got quite a big heart y'know. He's just got a confidence and social anxiety problem. Please be nice to him, he isn't someone who really needs more problems, he has enough to deal with already."
She turns to him. "Don't we all have enough problems? Being walked into counts as one of them, right?"
"Yeah, but that's nothing compared to what he's dealt with for most of his life. Cut him some slack, he didn't do it to hurt you or cause problems." he says, hoping to calm her further.
She uncrosses her arms and seems to loosen up a bit. She sighs and takes a somewhat deep breath before speaking. "Okay, maybe you've got a point. To be fair, I haven't seen a Cinccino with mint-green fur in this city before, and I've been living here for years. New folks come and go and he just might be a newbie so perhaps it was wrong of me to react in such a volatile manner." she then turns to Mint and bows. "I'm so sorry, my reaction was a bit harsh, wasn't it?"
Scott seems to be pleased. "Now THAT's better!" he turns to Mint. "Now, what're ya doin' in Castelia, Mint? I thought you had a fort to hold down back in the forest after what had happened."
He doesn't want to tell him what happened after the last time he saw him. Scott simply shrugs. "Oh well… the same silent treatment I always get. You're a pisser, you know that?"
He doesn't quite get it and continues to stay silent. He turns to Fai and gives her a couple gentle slaps on the back. "Well, I hate to leave on such a short notice, but I got shit to do! I didn't just come here to break up fights ya know. Fai and Mint, you two better get along nicely or else when I come back, we're gonna have problems." he says with a very aggressive tone, but then he lightens up instantly and laughs. "Just kidding! But really, I hope you two get along nicely, I don't want any street brawls." he then gives Fai a small peck on the cheek. "I'll see you around Fai, take care!"
She smiles at him. "Yeah yeah… get out of here you stupid goofy bastard." she seems to suck up this little kiss as if it was nothing. From this, Mint can tell they seem to know each other quite well and while he's interested in finding out more, he's too anxious and shy to ask.
Fai turns to him and tilts her head a bit. "Alright. I don't know about you, but I was gonna do some shopping. While most normal weirdos would get a beating out of me, you being a friend of Scott means you have a free pass to avoid it, but don't get any ideas!"
Mint says nothing and simply nods, trying to show that he understands. She smiles and puts her hands on her hips again. "You really are one of them, aren't you? Socially awkward, silent, mysterious… I kinda like that. I just might like you quite a bit after all, kid."
He blushes and a small smile comes from the little compliment she gave him. Now that she's not yelling or threatening to attack him, he's able to get a pretty good look at her. She's pretty much the same height as him and has large ears that are black with yellow and white on the inside, a tail that's black and almost resembles a lightning bolt, a white face with two yellow cheek pouches, somewhat large, black eyes, a white body, and finally, little yellow flaps that allow her to fly and glide in the wind. She's also pretty, but Mint isn't really affected by it that much, although she does notice that he's looking at her.
"What's up? Why are you looking at me like that?" she then thinks he's admiring her and her expression becomes smug. "Oh? Do you like what you see?" she then winks at him. While she is cute, Mint doesn't like her in that way.
He shakes his head and tries to speak up. "W-well… n-no…" he taps his paws together anxiously and tucks his feet in close to each other. He tries to continue as to not seem rude. "Y-you're pretty… b-but…"
She giggles. "I understand! You don't have to stress out! I know I'm pretty, and hell, you're kinda cute too." she then walks up to him and then pokes his nose, making him flinch. "C'mon, loosen up! I'm not gonna bite you, but I may zap you if you can't start talking in complete sentences." she then giggles. She does seem to have taken a liking to him, but it's confusing as all hell to him and he doesn't know what to make of it.
She turns around and slowly walks away. "Follow me, I can tell you're new to Castelia and since you're Scott's friend, I shall give you the Fai assured, top quality tour that newbies like you require in order to survive here!"
He's a bit reluctant to follow, he doesn't trust her and unlike Scott, she doesn't have that same trustworthy vibe coming from her. Despite it, he swallows down the doubt and walks up to her and they walk alongside each other. She notices that he's still quite tense so she tries to ease it up. "Alright, I'm gonna tell you a bit about myself before we start. First off, you should know my name by now, if not, most of my peers and friends call me 'Fai'. It's a shorter version of my real name but it sucks hard so I prefer that anyone who meets me for the first time stay with the program and just call me 'Fai'. I've been living here for about 9 years and I'm gonna warn you, there's some crazy shit that happens in this city. I've seen it all and most of it won't be anything you have to worry about, unless of course, another Pokemon comes up to you and pins you against a wall in an alleyway and demands you give them anything of value that you currently have." she then points to Mint's pendant. "Like that for example."
She then waves her hand around a bit. "Just stay with the flow of the city and most of the time you'll be fine. Anyway, that's enough about me, how about you?"
His eyes widen a bit and he seems to get even more nervous. She notices this and comments on it. "Oh c'mon! Did you really think I was gonna do all the talking? I told you who I am, now I wanna know who you are. It's better to know the Pokemon that's walking next to you because you never know…"
He sighs and while very nervous, he quietly speaks. "M-my name i-is M-Mint… I-I… I crossed… t-the Skyarrow b-bridge…" she stops him.
"Okay… hold up… I don't need to know about what you did, I can tell that you ran across that bridge, you aren't from around here. Everyone has a story for why they come here, so tell me that, Mint." she says.
He sighs. This story he has isn't one he's willing to tell just yet, not to mention, it only just reminds him of the terrible life he used to have. He's in the city of new beginnings, not old rememberings. He'd rather say he doesn't have a story to tell yet because he wanted to start over from scratch, but he can't even say that either because she seems to be the type of Pokemon that can see through it. He tries to make up something convincing but can't and opts to just stay silent. Fai notices that he's starting to shut out again and takes the conversation in a different direction.
"Nevermind that then…" she turns down one of the streets and Mint does the same. "Maybe tell me after we're done with the tour." she then runs ahead a bit and turns around, holding her hand out to stop him, which he does. "Alright Mint, since this is your first time in Castelia City, I'm going to show you the most important places here. You can explore the rest when we're done, but for now, stay close and listen up! The road we're standing on right now leads straight to the center of the city, and that's our first stop!" She starts running off and he follows close behind exactly like she said.
As they run, she starts explaining a few things. "First of all: Everyone knows Castelia is the largest city in Unova! Second: It's never a good idea to be in Castelia at night without a partner or a group of friends! Third: Getting lost, while difficult, is not something to get worried about! There's signs everywhere so get used to keeping your eyes peeled! Finally: Everything you could ever want is right here, so make sure you've got tons of money to spend otherwise you'll regret it!"
They run up to the center which reveals the city's famous "Cast Square", a massive district with many shops and businesses lining both sides of the street. Mint's mouth opens a little at the sheer amount of stuff he sees. There are massive screens with ads, tons of neon lit signs, billboards, stores, and lots of people and Pokemon. Of course, the snow is also mixed in with all of this and only adds to the extreme sensory stimulation that Cast Square gives off. Fai waves her hand in front of his face and he snaps out of this trance-like state the initial reveal put him in. She looks into his eyes.
"Earth to Minty boy! Don't space out on me here!" he notices this and shakes his head to disperse of the shock and she takes a few steps back, holding her hands out over her head. "This is Cast Square! The heart and soul of the city! Almost everything that involves business and money can be found here. Fine dining? Check! Shop till you drop? Bingo! Stock market and big bucks? Fuck yeah! Since you're new here, this place is probably not the best to start out with when it comes down to exploring but I can say that you should definitely visit at some point!"
She then runs up to him and grabs his left paw, causing him to become a bit surprised. "Now let's go! We got quite a few more places to get to!" he's given no time to say anything in response to her grabbing his paw as she leads him to the next area, running back the way they came and then taking a left into what looks like a smaller, older area of the city. Unlike Cast Square, this place has a slightly darker and more rustic feel to it. The buildings are made out of brick rather than the regular steel and reinforced concrete. Down the road is a familiar building, the Pokemon Center.
Fai points it out. "You see that building over there? It's probably the second most important place to know in this city! There's a few other Pokemon Centers here but because this is close to my home, I decided to show this one to you. If ANYTHING bad happens to you, like a fight or if someone decides to rob you or something and hurts you in the process, these places are what'll put you back onto your feet in no time!"
She turns to him and looks him deeply in the eyes. "Now I know what you're thinking, why a Pokemon Center in such an old looking place? Well come along with me and I'll show you." she lets go of his paw and starts walking down the street.
Mint follows and takes in his surroundings. There isn't anything that's really in your face here, but it feels nice, a somewhat slower paced location in such an action packed city. They continue to walk down the brick building laden path towards the Pokemon Center and even going past it. At the end of this block, they come out to a rather big fountain plaza that looks similar to the one at Mint's colony. Seeing this makes him shudder and a shadow falls over his face momentarily. Fai doesn't see this luckily otherwise she would definitely say something. The fountain plaza itself has quite a few benches for people and Pokemon to sit on, some water fountains to quench thirst, and of course, the giant fountain in the center spewing out copious amounts of water.
Mint tries his best to not let the plaza bring back memories of what recently happened and instead, focuses on Fai. She turns around to face him. "This is the fountain plaza. If you've had a long day of walking around in the city, this is a good place to stop and rest up. I know humans like to call their friends or lovers here sometimes, although I've never seen any Pokemon bring their lovers here… hehe."
She then walks up to him and pokes him in the nose once again. "Now, we have two or three more places left. Stay very close because this next place is almost always crowded to all hell and I don't want to lose you. Actually…" she grabs his left paw again. "We're going hand in hand this time!" she then starts to walk with him and although she doesn't see it, Mint is a bit embarrassed to be holding hands with her. His cheeks are bright red as he's never held hands with anyone in his life, let alone a girl.
They walk out of the old district and then make a left, heading down towards the gate to the Skyarrow bridge, but not going to it. They make another left and are greeted to a massive crowd of people and Pokemon. Fai tightens her grip on Mint's paw and even though he's embarrassed, he does the same. There's a reason she did that after all. She turns her head to face him. "You better keep that grip nice and tight because I'm gonna get us through this crowd. Our next destination is on the other side."
She takes a deep breath and then presses forwards. Mint gets right up behind her but leaves about 3 inches between him and her so that he doesn't walk into her if she has to stop. Fai starts pushing her way through the big group of people, pushing their legs apart slightly to allow both her and Mint through. The crowd is very big and this whole thing is extremely nerve wracking for Mint, but for Fai, it's just another day in the city. After what feels like almost 5 minutes, they get through and they both take a small breather.
Fai begins to laugh a little but Mint simply wipes his forehead of sweat with his right paw. They're still holding each other and they both realize it. Fai gets witty and smug about it. "You know, your holding my hand in a very tight manner. Are you suuure you realllly don't like what you see?"
Mint tries to compose himself and speak. "I-I don't l-like you that way… y-you said to keep a t-tight grip, remember?"
She smiles and nods. "I sure do, but this is a bit tighter than I thought. If you like me, just say it! Pokemon say they like me all the time, there's nothing wrong with it!"
He shakes his head and points forward, noting the entire block. "H-hey, is this a shopping district?"
She lets go of his paw and presents it to him. "You betchaa! Castelia City is known for the amazing shopping district… as well as the fucking giant crowds that always form here too. If you're looking for new clothes, a good toy or video game, whatever you can think of, they'll probably have it."
The whole block is stores, stores, more stores, and so many stores that it's impossible to count. Mint takes it all in. "W-well… I don't have m-money…"
The moment Fai hears this she gets up in his face. "Did I hear what I thought you just said…?"
He nods nervously. She giggles. "Wow… talk about an unprepared newbie. Forget the rest of the tour, looks like I'll be treating you for a few days since I guarantee you'll have to find a job or something."
He wants to know what the last location would be. "W-wait… w-what about the l-last place?"
"It's not that important. Just the subway station, which is underground. It gives you complete access to almost any place in the region, except for a few towns because of stupid reasons." she says. "Anyway, we're just gonna be going back to my house for a bit. Consider this also another treat from me since you're Scott's friend." she grabs his left paw yet again and leads him on.
As much as he liked Castelia city upon arriving, a small part of him is actually starting to have second thoughts. There's a whole lot going on in this place and it might take him weeks, even months to figure it all out and adapt to living here. The city is a completely different place compared to Pinwheel forest and the way of life here seems to be always on the move. If the crowds of people and Pokemon isn't anything to go by, this whole place is, in some ways, a bit more cracked up than what it turned out to be. Stories are stories after all, and not all of them tell the truth. As much as he appreciates being away from his terrible life, the new acquaintance, Fai the Emolga, is quite a handful for him. She seems to have a bit of a short temper but is also very nice and energetic at the same time. He isn't quite sure if he can trust her yet, so for now, his guard is still up. As she leads him to where her house is, he wonders if all of this is more than what he thought it would be, and that small part of him sticks out like a sore thumb in his mind and his doubts fester. For now, he can only see where this will lead him, after all, it is a new beginning...
PD: Mint's finally in Castelia City. He meets Fai the Emolga and they both have a nice little tour around the place thanks to her. She seems to have taken quite a liking to him, but what's with Mint's small doubts when he's finally escaped from the nightmare of yesterday? Find out in the next chapter! Seeya then!