A/N - Hello everyone! Hope you're all doing well and enjoying life. I know it took a while to get this chapter posted but I must say it was hard getting back into the groove of things after being away so long. And though I wanted to finish the rest of part 1 of this story before starting to post the remaining chapters soon within each other, I had barely finished writing this one. All of you have been waiting for a long time, some more patiently than others lol, and so I wanted to post this one up at least. I will say that I know the main plot points of what I'm going to write in the next chapters but the details are what's causing some issues so bear with me please. Moving on, some quick things before the chapter...
1. Taking a long time to post - As I mentioned, it's been hard getting back into the groove of things since I was gone for so long. It's hard enough to write even when you know what you're going to write. But when you have to remind yourself of what you were going for, having to go over notes, reread the story a few times yourself to remember the flow, going back to research some things, trying to find all the rough drafts of chapters or paragraphs that were written earlier on, and everything else...it's a lot of work to say at the very least and it takes time to get things done right. To those who understand and who waited patiently, thank you very much. To those who sent rude messages telling me to hurry up, I'm only going to say this; I'll post when I feel the chapter is good enough and ready.
2. Negative guest reviews/messages - I understand you don't like some of the things written. Harem, cliche stuff, earlier chapters being weak, too much drama, everything is about Ash, etc. All I have to say is this; you don't like it, oh well. I can't cater to everyone's expectations and I won't do that even if I could. This is MY fanfiction story and if you don't like it, don't read it. Or at least provide actual constructive criticism instead of just bullshit. Saying just, "This is cliche" or whatever does not mean anything. You do know that many movies, stories, shows, etc all have common things between them? That there are a lot of similarities and overused things in them all the time. So what? Who cares if it's been done a million times? As long as it's done well with its own spin of things, that is what should matter. And if you think you can do better, please go ahead and go for it. Then you'll see how hard it is to come up with something original. At the very least, you will understand how hard it is to write a story. To put your own spin on things even on common things. To keep everything connected. To build upon what was said before. To develop the characters and make them feel real. To explain things as the story goes on as to why certain things happened. To keep the reader guessing at certain points and surprising them every now and then while still keeping the story flowing well. Do all that, and then maybe I'll actually listen to your criticism and even then, only if it's constructive. Not bullshit.
3. Positive guest reviews/messages - Thank you for the kind words and praise. I'm glad that you all enjoyed the story and that you liked it. Also, thanks for being patient and I hope that you continue enjoying the story as you read.
4. Dropping the story - I've said this many times and I will only say it once more; I will not quit writing this story. Even if it takes me a while to post, I still will continue. All of you have to understand that I have a life and I do this as a hobby on my spare time. Though I am using it for experience towards an actual book one day, I can not forego my responsibilities in the real world to just to write. At least not at the moment. So stop asking if the story is dropped, or if I quit and such. If that day ever comes, I will let you all know myself.
5. Replies to some reviews;
FuckSilent - Read above as to why I can't just post chapters quickly.
Pokemon Fan - Thanks buddy!
Okay, with that out of the way, here is the next chapter of the story. Enjoy!
THE BLUE SPIRIT
CHAPTER 55 – THE NIGHT BEFORE
"Thank you for choosing Kalos Air. We deeply apologize for the inconvenience for the delay. There'll be an announcement over the PA once the plane is ready. Until then, please take these coupons for a free meal from any establishment here in this airport," said the airline official before he passed out coupons to each of the annoyed and disgruntled passengers. "Enjoy your stay here at the airport," he finished up saying after handing out the last coupon and walked away from the group of people, though several went after him while venting out their frustrations to him.
As the crowd of people dispersed with most of them deciding to find somewhere to eat, a group of six stayed together. Looking at one another, the two men and four women each let out a sigh over their predicament. One of them, the largest out of the six, then looked at the coupon and his eyes widened. "Oh damn, this will even work at the restaurant!" he remarked happily.
One of the females rolled her eyes at that. "Figures you'll get excited over that," she muttered yet it was heard by them all with no problem, making the man become embarrassed.
A sharp smack up the back of her head made her let out a cry of pain. "Do you ever stop Amelia?!"
"Oh shut up Shauna, it's just a joke," replied the black haired girl while rubbing the back of her head. "As a man, Tierno should be able to handle it," she finished saying while glaring at the brunette.
"It's alright, I can take a joke. Don't fight over it," interjected Tierno, trying to calm the two but they ignored him as they went off on one another.
Seeing the two go at it again, the red haired woman of the group let out a sigh before she decided to put a stop to things at once. "Alright that's enough," she told them while stepping between them, making them look at her. "I know we're all annoyed right now, especially since it's late but let's just calm down and relax until our plane is ready. Alright?"
The two didn't say anything but the fourth woman with blue hair spoke up then as she began walking away from the group. She had decided to find somewhere to eat and make the best of their situation instead of letting it get to her like the rest. "Aria's right. You two should just chill out. Let's go see what we can get with these coupons," she said, increasing the distance between them.
Knowing they were right, Shauna dropped the argument. "Yeah, you're both right. But Miette, hold up!" called out the brunette as she followed after her. Amelia looked at the others, mumbled an apology to Tierno who accepted it with a wave of his hand and they followed after the two. When the others caught up with the blunette, the six of them began walking together.
As they made their way, they were quiet for a bit, taking in the area around them. Sure, they were just in an airport and walking through the terminals, but they hadn't travelled outside of Kalos for a while. And they had never been to this particular place. Looking around them, the six were awed by the beautiful markings on the walls, the clean floors and the welcoming atmosphere of the place. Even the small stores and kiosks looked different in a good way. They were surprised that this particular airport was not dull and didn't have a plain appearance.
"I know it's just an airport, but this place is amazing," mentioned Aria after walking for a little while and the others nodded in agreement. Glancing to her side, she smiled at the other people doing their own investigation of the area before noticing one from their group being more quiet than usual. She noticed he had a look on his face that suggested he was in deep thought. "Trevor, you ok?"
Her question made them all stop and five of them looked at the sixth, waiting for him to answer. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine. Just wondering about the plane…"
"Yea, its weird isn't it?" asked Tierno after his friend trailed off.
"But it does happen once in a while," commented Aria, with four of the group agreeing with her.
Trevor however remained unconvinced and decided to share his thoughts with his friends. "Perhaps. But it just doesn't add up for us to randomly experience engine problems when we're only a few hours away from its destination." Nobody said anything and he continued on, expanding on his thoughts. "Most of the time, if something does happen to a plane, they usually experience problems during takeoff or landing. Almost nothing happens during midflight. But then we have problems on the best airline on one of their best planes? With no weird sounds coming from the plane? And with no turbulence either? How does that happen?" he asked them.
Again, nobody said anything but they did glance at one another as they began to wonder over what he said. "That does sound fishy," remarked Amelia for them all. "Unless maybe the airplane tech or mechanic might have missed something," she suggested after a moment.
Some words were spoken of it being possible along with some shrugs among the group. "Well, nothing we can do about it," stated Tierno after.
"That's true I guess," said Miette before she began walking again. "But at least we're alright and we can get a meal for free."
They followed after her again. "Someone likes to look at things half full huh?" remarked Shauna as she nudged her side.
Miette just shrugged while she replied back. "Eh, no point worrying about things I can't change. Plus…" She tilted her head towards one of the large story high windows and led the group to it. The six of them looked through it and saw the city nearby. "…since I've never been to the Kingdom of Rota before, it's a nice little pit stop." Taking in the sight of the architecture and landscape, with the almost full moon shining its light over it as it hovered in the cloudless night sky, they were awed by what they saw. "And I have to admit; it's as beautiful as they say it is," the blunette finished saying and her friends agreed.
A moment of silence passed between them as they continued taking in the sight. "So this is where Queen Ilene lives," remarked Amelia, breaking the quiet atmosphere. "Must be nice being royalty. Gets to do whatever she wants I bet."
"Someone jealous?" asked Aria with a smirk.
Without even looking at her, Amelia responded back. "I'm not the only one. I know you are too and so is the rest of this little group for sure." The three other girls blushed slightly, knowing she was right and so couldn't say anything. The two males didn't say anything to contradict her either even though both of them didn't really care about that. "Must be lucky to have all those servants, to rule over her own kingdom. And…" Turning her gaze slightly towards the red head, who tilted her head, she then turned it towards the blunette of the group. Smiling deviously at her, her target gave her a confused look while the others wondered what that was for. "…Queen Ilene, she was with the hero of the tournament…" Miette started turning crimson while shaking a bit and Aria had her cheeks flush a little bit of color over her words. Shauna, Trevor and Tierno glanced at one another with worry, knowing were this was going to go. "…and who knows what they did in that penthouse suite of his. So far from prying eyes and able to do anything with each other…"
"SHUT UP!" snapped Miette as she lunged at Amelia who swiftly dodged her by sidestepping and laughed as Miette stumbled some steps forward before she caught her footing. The black haired girl then ran away with a pissed off blunette after her. Amelia merely laughed all the while she ran away as Miette shouted promises of severe beatings when she caught her.
Their antics caught the attention of the other people and the four remaining friends felt very embarrassed. Shauna rubbed the sides of her head with both hands. "Ugh, every time we go out together this happens."
"You okay Shauna?" asked Tierno with concern.
Looking at him, she smiled a bit and nodded. "Yea I'm alright, thanks. Just annoyed." He smiled at her and grasped her hand. Shauna had a split second reaction that almost no one noticed before she smiled back immediately after. She turned her gaze towards the window again. "I gotta say Queen Ilene sure does know how to put her kingdom on the map."
"Very true," added Aria and both Tierno and Trevor nodded. The red head glanced at the brunette before making a mental note to ask her later about what she noticed when they had some privacy. Aria turned away from her before she began walking away from the three while speaking. "C'mon, let's go get those two and stop them before they get into big trouble with airport security." Shauna, Trevor and Tierno agreed and went after their trouble making friends who they could hear some distance away from them.
As that happened in the airport, in the castle, the ruler of the kingdom was fast asleep in a chair while leaning over her desk. Several books were laid out on the desk with one open and acting as a pillow for her head. Ever since she had come to the realization of her true feelings, Queen Ilene had been doing her absolute best to stay distracted so she wouldn't think about it. And one of the things she decided to do was to start learning everything that she could that she thought might prove helpful in the future against the coming darkness.
As a result, she began spending every free moment of her time in the castle's library. Looking over scriptures, scrolls, books, records and even pamphlets, Ilene had her librarian and his personnel bring anything and everything that pertained to war. From strategy and tactics to weapons manufacturing and resource management. She wanted to be as prepared as possible and even though she had started things already when she returned from Indigo Plateau, there was still much more she could do. And she also didn't want to think about what had happened there and the realization she had come to…
However, things weren't going as smoothly as she hoped. Because of her rather unusual behavior and requests, her advisors, guards and other staff who worked in the castle had become a little worried and so spoke with Master Riley about their concerns. Though he was able to calm their nerves and told them that their Queen just wanted to increase her knowledge so she can be a better ruler for her people, Riley knew the reason why she was doing it. But it was too soon to let them know about the coming war against the darkness. Yet, he had a slight suspicion that something else had happened. Something that he sensed with his aura; something had changed in his Queen but couldn't quite place his finger on it.
Keeping his worries to himself, Riley would join Ilene in the library to study with her and she didn't object. As the two looked over book after book, they kept this up over the past couple days and time went on until it was the start of Ash's battles against the elites of each region. It was her only break so to speak and since everyone in the kingdom was watching, nobody said anything on the fact that their Queen was watching as well. As they viewed the battles together, Ilene would cheer Ash on throughout the entire broadcast with her heart beating quicker than usual and she couldn't stop her mind forming images in her head.
By the time it ended with the raven haired guardian winning against the Kanto elites, Riley had sensed several things and it confirmed his suspicions. However, he said nothing. He decided to not say or do anything unless he absolutely had to because he had convinced himself that it was nothing more than admiration for one of her knights and so left it alone. After the matches, though she was lost in her thoughts and feelings, Ilene forced herself to continue her research and back to the library they went. Riley ended up leaving some time later to check on the guards since it was time for shift changes. But before he left, he advised her to get some sleep as they'll continue tomorrow.
Deciding he was right, Ilene agreed but took several books with her to her private chambers. She had told herself that she would just read a little more before calling it a night. That didn't go according to plan though because every time she stopped to go to sleep, her mind would form Ash's image in her head and her heart would start pounding loudly again in her ears. As a result, she kept reading and took notes with her eyes getting more and more tired. It wasn't until the middle of the night where her exhaustion took its toll and she fell asleep in her chair with her cheek against the open book. The young Queen of Rota however wasn't sleeping peacefully though as she was seeing mixed dreams of what she went through, the one she had feelings for and what was coming in the future for them all. And her torment lasted until she had an unexpected visitor…
A small yet very powerful pink legendary pokémon was flying through the air, high up in the sky above the Kingdom of Rota. Since she was the guardian of the last Tree of Beginning, which she also viewed as her home that was near the kingdom, she would often go there and observe its inhabitants. Though more often than not, she would end up playing with the people and pokémon of the kingdom while transformed into other pokémon or turning herself invisible to pull some pranks. To say she had been playful or even mischievous would be an understatement.
Right now, though it was late at night, this certain guardian of the tree was not tired. Instead, she was full of energy and wanted to find someone that she could play with. Having become bored of the Regi trio who helped protect the Tree since they wouldn't play much, she wanted a new playmate for the night and began her hunt. Finding no one so far during her search, the pink legendary decided to go to the castle to mess with the guards as she had done on many an occasion. She wondered what kind of prank or joke to pull on them as she made her way. But when she reached the castle, she sensed someone in turmoil. Sparking her need to help someone, as well as her curiosity, she decided to forgo fun for the time being. Using her formidable psychic senses, she zeroed in on who it was coming from and shot to where they were located. Flying towards the place where she knew it was coming from, she wondered why she was sensing such a thing when all was peaceful for the moment.
Reaching her destination, which was the top balcony of the castle, she moved closer to the thick glass doors and peered inside. Seeing the lights on but the blonde woman asleep in her chair and leaning against the table, the pokémon's head tilted to the side in curiosity. Why is she sleeping in a chair? Is it that comfortable? At that moment, Ilene shifted a bit in her sleep. Nope, no way. Her eyes glowing blue, the doors were then outlined in a pink glow before they opened. Floating inside the room, the pokémon hovered over the queen and looked at her. Tilting her head again, she had her eyes glow blue once more before her target was outlined in a pink glow. It was then that the pokémon saw what the woman was seeing; a mixed dream about war, love, betrayal and much more.
A short while later, deciding she had seen enough, she stopped looking into her dreams and thought about what she saw. That's right; she's one from the group who knows. Oooouuh, Ash is in trouble! Oh no wait, Daddy said it's okay that she knows. Man, and I was hoping to see Daddy get mad at him. Especially since he hasn't visited me recently like before…wait! I can get Daddy to get mad at him for that! Giggling, the pink legendary covered her mouth with both hands to muffle the noise. When she finished, she looked at the young queen. Hmm, what should I do? Thinking a bit, she wondered if she should wake her up or not. In the end, she decided to help for once instead of playing around. Alright, let's help her out. Now, how should I wake her? Oh, I know! Lowering her long tail towards the woman's face, she used the end of it to brush against her nose. Wrinkling her nose at first, it wasn't long before Ilene started grumbling a bit as she felt her nose start to itch and it slowly woke her up. She moved her hand to rub her nose while in her half awakened state. But instead of reaching her nose, her hand reached the end of the pink pokémon's tail and started scratching it. The pokémon's eyes widened as she felt her tail being scratched before relaxing. "Oh, that feels gooooood," said the legendary with her telepathy absentmindedly.
It was because of her voice that Ilene woke up fully and then realized that she was scratching something else instead of her nose. And that something was on her face. "AHH!" she screamed out in fright, jumping out of her chair at once, causing it to fall down over being startled with her heart beating like mad.
"HAHAHAHAHA!"
Snapping her attention to the source of the laughter and seeing who was in her personal chambers, the Queen's eyes widened. "Mew?!" Ilene was beyond surprised to see the legendary ancestor pokémon right in front of her, in her own room of all things. "W-What are you d-doing here?" she asked the legendary, her heart still beating quickly, and if possible, slightly faster. "Not that I mind of course!" she added hastily after her question to not be rude.
Mew kept laughing a little more before calming down and answered her question with her telepathy while still levitating in the air. "Just thought I'd see how the Queen is doing. That's all," she said before slowly turning her body in a clockwise direction as a large smile stayed on her face.
"Ah, I-I see," said Ilene, trying to calm down and took in a breath. "Well, is there something I can do for you?"
As she continued rotating in the air, Mew answered her. "Well, I was looking for some entertainment tonight before going to sleep but found you instead." After speaking, she brought up her tail to her left hand and tried scratching while still rotating. Yet she didn't feel the same contentment as when Ilene did it. "What the heck?! Why isn't it working?!" she asked to no one in particular while still scratching.
Ilene gave a confused look at the legendary, becoming concerned and worried. "Um, Mew? Is everything alright?" she asked timidly.
Mew snapped her gaze onto the queen, annoyed at her question. "Well, for your information…" Trailing off, her expression turned from annoyance to realization while the blonde woman was starting to feel uneasy. "Of course!" she remarked all of a sudden, before flying closer to Ilene who was frozen in her spot over her weird behavior. She stopped fright in front of her and practically yelled the next two words; "Scratch it!"
Ilene's expression showed confusion until Mew raised her tail's end to her and she understood. Slowly raising her hand to the pokémon's tail's end, she hesitated before lightly scratching it. Immediately, a wave of contentment traveled through the small pink pokémon's body and she shivered in delight. "Oh yeah, that's the ticket," she cooed, her eyelids closing halfway as a wide smile spread on her face.
Ilene couldn't help but be surprised over Mew's behavior and so let out a small chuckle. "You must really like being scratched there," she commented after a moment. Finally relaxing, the queen smiled. I can't believe the legendary Mew, one of the most powerful pokémon in existence, is just like a child! Seeing the pink pokémon still enjoying the scratching, Ilene shook her head in amusement. But…I do have to admit that she's adorable. Figuring it was enough after a little while, she stopped and the legendary immediately came back to her senses. "So, how was that?"
"Hmm, it was alright," answered Mew, pretending it wasn't all that great, even though the big smile was still on her face.
"Is that why you're still smiling?" asked Ilene with a small smile on her face as well.
Mew's eyes widened before turning away from Ilene. "You saw nothing mortal!" Ilene couldn't help herself and laughed. Mew turned back around and gave her a glare. "Keep laughing if you want to spend the rest of your days as a Slakoth!" she threatened.
Ilene immediately stopped with fear filling her. Yet she remained composed and responded back immediately. "I apologize," she said sincerely with a bow and stayed in that position, hoping the legendary would forgive her.
Mew stared at her for a moment before bursting out with laughter. "HAHAHAHA! I got you good!" Ilene straightened out while giving Mew a look of disbelief. "Oh come on, don't take everything so seriously. It was just a joke."
Ilene let out a sigh as a couple thoughts went through her head. Aren't I going through enough? Why am I dealing with this now?
Hearing her thoughts, it was then that Mew remembered the dreams, or more accurately the nightmares that the Queen was seeing. Oh, right. That. "Hey, Queenie…"
Though she was annoyed over her use of 'Queenie', Ilene didn't dare to contradict the powerful legendary. Especially the legendary who was considered the ancestor of all pokémon. "Yes Mew?"
"Follow me." Mew flew through the air towards the balcony and Ilene followed after her. As the two went outside, the psychic feline sat on her left shoulder and pointed to the railings. Getting the message, Ilene went up to the railings. "Look up into the sky." Ilene looked up and saw the almost full moon shining brightly in the dark night sky. "It sure is bright, isn't it?" asked Mew and Ilene nodded in agreement. "See? Even in darkness, light will find a way to shine. So don't be so gloomy. Everything will be alright." Ilene glanced at Mew over her words and the legendary smiled. "Daddy has been keeping a tab on everything. The plan he made with the guardian and my brother…everything is going well from what he told me and soon the final parts of it will come together. Daddy's plan is working and all will be well in the end."
"You mean Arceus has been keeping watch all this time and he's been making things happen?" asked Ilene in surprise at first before she realized that it was a dumb question because of course he would be doing so.
Mew however, still answered it. "Of course silly. That's his job. Just like you watch over your people and make things happen, and I watch over the Tree of Beginning and make things happen, He watches over all of us and everything and makes things happen." Ilene nodded and was about to ask something else but Mew continued on, cutting her off. "In fact, most of his first children, the legendaries, have been keeping watch with him, especially during the tournament."
Ilene let out a gasp. "You have?!" Mew nodded in confirmation. "I see. But why?" she asked.
"Well, most of us legendaries only have certain responsibilities and even we get bored every now and then. We like viewing or being in part of battles as well. And we have our own roles to play in the future." Ilene nodded in understanding and Mew smiled as she looked back up towards the bright, moon in the sky. "Daddy said all will be well in the end. He never lies. Even now, he's making sure that everything goes well. So don't be so sad or worried. Everything will work out in the end," said the pink legendary feline cheerily.
Ilene let out a sigh before she too looked up towards the moon. A certain raven haired man's image with a confident expression appeared in her mind's eye. She couldn't help but feel a little better at that moment. "I hope so," she said quietly, though with a little more assurance. Mew said nothing more and instead just brought her tail around closer to Ilene's right hand. Feeling her tail against her hand again, the queen knew what her new friend wanted and automatically started scratching it without thought as the two continued staring up into the night sky for a little while longer.
While the Queen of Rota and the legendary ancestor pokémon looked up at the moon from their position, over at the Indigo Plateau Hotel, another blonde woman was doing the exact same thing while she was outside on the balcony of her suite. This particular person however was the Champion of Sinnoh. Cynthia had moved away from the others in the suite to be left alone after what had happened just recently between herself and some of the female elites. She couldn't believe how they would stoop so low just to find out some answers about what's going on between herself and her beloved. Though the altercation between them had ended, thanks to one of her fellow champions, Cynthia couldn't get passed it. She was still feeling angry over what she learned from the four elite women. And truth be told, she wanted to go right back inside and punish them for their disrespect and their lack of tact. But she was barely able to control herself. She didn't want to cause another scene for losing her cool. She couldn't do that anymore, as hard as it was because of who the argument also pertained to.
And it was none other than the Aura Guardian, the savior of the Spirit Tournament and the one who she, Cynthia, had fallen in love with and had given her heart to; Ash Ketchum. As she looked up into the night sky, she thought about him. A warm feeling spread throughout her body as a smile formed on her face. She remembered the first time she met him. The intrigued yet respectful look he gave her. How he surprised her with his hunger for battles yet also had a caring personality towards others and how he never gave up. Treating her the same as everyone else unlike others who treated her differently because of her status. Fighting with him against the ones who wanted to do evil things back in Sinnoh. Never forgetting him after he left to continue his travels to achieve his dream of becoming a Pokémon Master.
That last thought brought her into the present as it reminded her of what was going to happen tomorrow. How he would face her and her fellow champions in a handicap battle and if he won, what could happen afterwards. Ash…now that I think about it, he's grown so much. I've noticed it before but now it just seems…more real. He's getting closer and closer to becoming the next Pokémon Master. If that happens, he'll be the youngest one in history! Well, first he has to go through us Champions. Her smile spread even more as she imagined battling against him. Giving it her all to defeat him as she knew that would be the best thing she could do for him as of now. And that reminded her of their little promise to one another over what would happen depending on the outcome. Her smile faded some as a desire to be with him right at that moment rose within her.
Looking down towards her stomach, she moved her long coat aside with her left hand and raised her top with her right. Instantly she saw the aura symbol with her beloved's name in the middle of it that was on the left side of her abdomen. Without thinking, with her emotions starting to overwhelm her, Cynthia touched the aura symbol. Immediately it glowed blue and a wave of comfort spread throughout her body, calming her. She was expecting that to happen, thanks to experiencing it before.
Cynthia? Are you alright?
She jumped in her spot, letting go of her clothes and became startled some over hearing her beloved's voice all of a sudden out of nowhere in her head. She wasn't expecting it at all. It was then that she remembered what else came with the symbol and took in a breath before replying back mentally. Ash? Why are you still awake?
I can't sleep right now even though I'm lying down in bed. Too excited for tomorrow. Anyway, you didn't answer my question. I felt you being…a little distressed just now. Is everything alright?
Gathering herself, she leaned against the rails. Oh, okay. Well, it's just…it's kind of stupid actually. I just… She let out a sigh. Cynthia wanted to tell him but wrestled within her mind over it. She didn't want to bring up what happened but her desire to be with him was growing. After debating whether to tell him or not, Cynthia finally decided. Ash, can you meet me right now?
Of course. I'll have Mewtwo teleport me to where you are. Just gimme a moment okay?
Alright. As she waited, Cynthia thought of what to say and how to say it. She didn't want to involve him with what's going on between herself and the female elites. Usually she could handle things like this when someone tried to find out her personal information with no problem as she had done so many times before in the past. Unfortunately. Because of her past, her status as Champion of Sinnoh and the fact that several tried to get with her for impure reasons and treated her differently, she had learned early on about all that and so she had to do almost everything on her own. But now that she had someone who was completely the opposite of that and would always be there for her no matter what, she didn't want to go through everything alone again. She felt that she was finally allowed to lean on someone else for certain things. And that this was one of those things she could share with him. It was when she decided to just tell him everything that a blue glow appeared beside her.
The instant he appeared, the raven haired guardian was wrapped up into a tight embrace with the blonde woman's cheek resting against his shoulder. He reciprocated the hug, moving his arms around her and held her tightly. "Sorry for the wait but I'm here Cynthia. What's wrong?" asked Ash softly.
Feeling him up against her and holding her within his arms, it made Cynthia feel that nothing was wrong. But she had called him for a reason. Raising her gaze to his, she looked into his caring brown eyes and spoke. "I'm sorry for calling you here tonight so late, especially when we have our match tomorrow but I needed to tell you what's been going on."
From the way her silver grey eyes were gazing into his as they shined from the moon's light, Ash didn't need his aura senses or the newly developed aura bond between them to know that she had something important to tell him. Nodding his head, he kept his eyes locked onto hers as he spoke. "It's no problem Cynthia. Please tell me."
Hearing the concern in his voice and the soft yet strong way he spoke to her...it was like a catalyst that made Cynthia begin telling him what had happened as they kept their sight onto one another while still in an embrace. "It happened after your victories over the Elites of the world when my fellow champions and I went with them to their floor of the hotel to go over their battles with you. But I remembered what they did to you during those battles and how angry I was. I couldn't control myself and I just went off at them and we began arguing and…and then while in the middle of it, the symbol glowed which everyone saw…" As she continued telling him what happened, she thought that she would have difficulty in explaining things. But she was wrong as the altercation between herself and the four female elites was still fresh in her mind since it happened just a little while ago…
No one moved. No one made a sound. It was still and eerily quiet in the room with widened eyes from over two dozen people locked onto the blonde woman after what they just saw. A sudden blue glowing sphere on the left side of her abdomen was visible through her clothing. And it continued glowing bright blue for a short while until it faded away. Though it brought the woman some much needed comfort and happiness, it also caused this new predicament for her. For after the glowing stopped, she raised her gaze to the twenty three elites and her fellow four champions that were surrounding her and saw their perplexed faces. It was then that she realized that she could no longer hide everything that was going on between herself and the love of her life. That she would have to give up some answers to quell at least a few of the many questions that were no doubt swirling around in each of their heads.
She was about to open her mouth and speak when someone else beat her to it. "What was that blue glow on you just now?" asked the Kalos champion in barely a whisper, yet everyone heard in the dead silence surrounding them.
Taking in a long breath, the blonde woman then let it out slowly before she answered her question. "That Diantha, was the aura tattoo that…"
"Aura tattoo?!" yelped Pheobe, interrupting her while several let out shocked gasps.
"Yes, an aura tattoo…" continued on Cynthia, wanting to just get things over with. "…that is a symbol of the bond between…"
"Symbol?" asked Malva.
"Bond?" asked Karen.
"Will you let me finish?!" snapped Cynthia and they went quiet, along with the rest. Letting out an impatient and annoyed sigh, she said the rest quickly, as if to prevent anyone else from interrupting her. "It's an aura tattoo that is a symbol of the bond between myself and the Aura Guardian, Ash..." Several more gasps were let out over that, though she continued on with stopping. "…that only appears if the love between us is true and pure and we have no doubts in each other, ourselves or our relationship together," she finished saying.
It took a moment for her words to be registered by the others. Until some understood what she said but also wanted to know more. As a result, one opened her mouth. "Wait, what do you mean by all that?" asked Lorelei, drawing everyone's attention. "And you didn't explain why it glowed." Some murmured along with that, wanting to know more.
Cynthia looked down at her stomach, seeing that the glow was gone but when she placed her left hand over her attire where the tattoo was, she was still comforted by it. "I don't know why exactly it glowed just now but I believe it was because he was feeling happy, probably over his victory today." She raised her gaze back towards them and saw them giving her both confused and worried looks. "But it's nothing to be frightened about. And it means that what I have with him…" As Cynthia began saying that, she moved her sight to be locked onto the four who were flirting with him during the day. Her intense stare at them made the four start feeling nervous and their hearts began beating a little faster. "…is not some bullshit fling or anything else like that. It's real, it's special and I won't let anyone or anything come between us. Not even as a prank or a joke. You got that?" she asked them in a heated tone towards the four.
Nobody said anything until someone else other than the four females spoke up. "That doesn't make sense," said Caitlyn of the Unova Elites, catching everyone's attention. "There have been no records of this phenomenon ever happening with past guardians in our league databases. What you're saying has to be false. Why not tell us the actual truth about this?" she asked her. Her words made the others glance at one another before facing towards the one the question was directed at.
Narrowing her eyes, Cynthia felt annoyed with Caitlyn. "Just because you don't have it in your database, doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Did it have records of an Aura Guardian being able to summon his pokémon through his aura alone before this tournament?" she asked him. Caitlyn was taken aback by that because it was true. They had no idea an Aura Guardian could do that until Ash displayed it during the stadium attack. She shook her head and Cynthia felt a surge of vindication. "That's what I thought. You don't know everything so don't presume to act like you do," she told her, making Caitlyn flush with embarrassment but it was also directed to everyone else as well.
However, this was when Pheobe decided to speak up after thinking about everything quietly. "Hold on for a moment Cynthia," she said, drawing the champion's gaze to hers. Finally separating from Lorelei, she straightened herself out and crossed her arms over her chest. "That may be true, but what does any of this have to do with the fight you just started with us?" she asked her.
Cynthia was astounded over her question. "Are you kidding me?!" she snapped at Pheobe, who took a step back in fear subconsciously. Malva, Karen and Lorelei once again moved in close together to shield her from the champion's wrath since she was shaking with fear. "I just said it! What Ash and I have together is…"
"Yea, yea we got it!" interrupted Karen loudly, making Cynthia go silent but was annoyed over that. "What you have is special, pure and true and all that," she said right back to her with a condescending tone, making Cynthia fill up with anger again. "But let me ask you this; how can that be all that you say when it's not just you who's with him?" she asked her and Cynthia didn't say anything, going quiet at once. Though she was still angry, she was unable to speak, not wanting to say anything for she, her sisters and her beloved had agreed together to tell the whole truth after the tournament together. Seeing her not responding back made the others who didn't know become surprised as several of them put two and two together. A smirk spread on Karen's face as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Well? We practically know the truth now. But are you going to answer my question or not?" she asked Cynthia who remained quiet, though her heart was beating rapidly.
Thinking the situation might grow out of control, Bertha decided to step in since she thought that it was getting out of hand. They had gotten their answer already and there was no need to continue. "Now, Karen, I think that's enough," she told her. However, the dark type elite shook her head while keeping her eyes locked onto Cynthia. Knowing that Bertha was just trying to keep the peace, Karen still wanted to get to the absolute bottom of this.
Seeing the adamant expression on her face, Cynthia realized that Karen was not going to drop this. Looking around, she also noticed that many from the large group of elites were also sporting curious and confused expressions of their own. Letting out a sigh, she faced Karen, Malva, Lorelei and Pheobe. "No matter what I say, you won't understand. I'm not explaining anything. All I will say is two things. First is that it's none of your business. And second, don't you dare make a move on Ash again." Turning around to leave the room, Cynthia started walking away from the group.
"Why shouldn't we?" asked Karen heatedly, surprising them all and making Cynthia stop but she didn't turn around as she was trying to control her anger. If she were to face Karen now, she didn't know if she would be able to control it for much longer.
Realizing that the dark elite trainer wasn't going to just let go, Diantha nudged Lance who glanced at her. He saw the look in her eye, knowing what it meant and nodded. Locking his eyes onto his elite, he opened his mouth to tell her to stop.
But by the time he did so, the ice queen of Kanto had also decided to calm things down and acted before him for she didn't want to start something between her friends over something like this. "Karen, enough," said Lorelei as she walked forward a few steps and grasped her shoulder, making her turn her gaze to hers. Karen opened her mouth to speak but Lorelei cut her off by repeating what she just said but with a much more stern tone. "Enough." Hearing the rare seriousness in her voice and noticing the look in her eyes, Karen slowly nodded. Lorelei let go of her and gracefully moved towards the angered woman without any visible trace of fear shown, though inside she was filled with nervousness. "Cynthia, we're not trying to start a fight or anything. We're trying to understand just what exactly is going on. So here's the truth…" Four women had their eyes widen in surprise and fear but weren't able to stop her from continuing on. "…that you should know. What we said before is true. This was all just a prank. A test so to speak. Malva, Karen, Pheobe and I were curious over what was going on between you and Ash and the other girls who are involved because of what's rumored and what we've seen. And…" Explaining everything, the Kanto elite kept talking as the Sinnoh champion listened, as did everyone else. When she finished, she stayed quiet for a moment and the people there were astounded to hear what they would do to find out answers. "I'm sorry and I hope you accept my apology for that." Cynthia heard her and barely glanced back to look at the red head and saw a small but kind smile on her face. "We didn't mean to cause anything. So please forgive us. If it takes time, that's quite alright. But I must also say that you must understand as well that what we did was because of our curiosity over what our friend was doing and how we wanted to know what it was exactly by doing this," she finished saying calmly.
Cynthia was surprisingly quiet when she listened to Lorelei explain things. And when she finished, she looked away from her and thought about what the elite just revealed. So they were testing us to see how we'd react? To see what we have between us? Instead of calming down or understanding them, Cynthia's blood began boiling again and her anger rose even higher. Who the hell do they think they are to do this?! Testing me?! Testing Ash?! I won't stand for it! Her hands clenched into fists as she slowly turned around with a furious expression on her face, her brow furrowed and eyes narrowed onto the four women, making them fill up with fear. "Who the hell do you think you are and who the hell gave you the right to do such a thing to us?!" she snarled at them, taking a step forward.
Bertha quickly intervened and stood between her surrogate daughter and the four. She had seen that angry face several times before and what followed after was never good. Grasping both of her shoulders, she made Cynthia look at her. "Stop! This won't do you any good! Just let it go and go cool off!" she advised her.
"No, let her bring it out!" insisted Karen, breaking her silence once more, causing Bertha to glance behind her to look at the dark type elite with a look that clearly said she thought she was crazy. Karen however didn't care anymore if she was angry since she had become angry herself over what the Sinnoh Champion just said and continued talking. "Who do we think we are you ask?" she said, repeating Cynthia's words. "We are Elite trainers of the world who heard rumors about one of our champions and we wanted to know the truth! What is wrong with that?!" she asked heatedly.
Cynthia immediately answered her back. "Its how you did it that was wrong! You could've just asked instead of trying to flirt with your champion's love!" she shouted back.
"And would you have answered us?" countered Malva, deciding to speak her mind as well. Cynthia moved her angered gaze towards her but before she could speak, the fire elite continued. "Very few know what you've been through. Many of us don't even know about your past, your family or anything at all for that matter. Only your Elites, Goodshow and a couple others know. All we know are rumors! Every time we had asked or got close to finding out, you would bring up an excuse or change the subject so you wouldn't have to talk about it."
"That doesn't matter!" snapped Cynthia, becoming increasingly agitated and angry. But she was also becoming worried since they were once again trying to find out about her past, which she just wanted to keep hidden. "You say you're my friends, then as friends you should not try to pry into things that don't concern you!"
"Don't concern you?" repeated Malva before becoming angry herself. "Everything we do as Elites and you do as Champions reflects off of each other! Of course it concerns us!"
Cynthia shook her head, her feelings and emotions going over the edge. "Not everything! It's nobody's business what I do in my personal life! Especially my past that I don't want to share! And if that's true, then you should've behaved yourself at the stadium instead of looking like desperate flirts!" she yelled at them.
"Desperate flirts?!" repeated Pheobe before her eyes narrowed. Glacia looked at her fellow elite and remembered what happened when she called her that in front of everyone in the stadium. The look of embarrassment and sadness. Feeling horrible over it, Glacia wanted to apologize but was prevented from doing so again because of what was going on at the moment and also because Pheobe had began speaking. "So apparently talking to a guy now means that?!"
"It is when you're jumping on top of him and trying to seduce him to do what you want while barely dressed!" countered Cynthia without missing a beat. Pheobe went a furious shade of red over that, both from embarrassment and anger. Capitalizing on that, Cynthia continued on as she faced the others. "And the rest of you! Touching him and hugging him and whispering into his ear! How dare you!"
"Get off your damn high horse!" snapped Karen angrily and loudly. "As we said, it was all a prank! And even if it wasn't, what's wrong with us doing that?" she asked all of a sudden and everyone there were astonished over her words. Even Cynthia's eyes widened, unable to respond back immediately and she took advantage of that. "I have a question for you; is it wrong that such a handsome, courageous, famous and strong man such as Ash has caught the eye and attention of an attractive young woman? Or several women?" she asked rhetorically, making almost everyone in the room let out a surprised sound or have their eyes widen while Cynthia shook with anger. "It's not like the first time he has, right? I mean, he did catch your attention along with several other girls' right?"
Even though she wanted nothing more than to shut her mouth for her, with her rage getting closer and closer to the point of exploding like a volcano, Cynthia was able to barely keep herself in check. "It's not the same," growled Cynthia in a very angry tone.
"Oh really? How so?" Cynthia wasn't allowed to answer as Karen continued on without waiting for it. "The Aura Guardian has captured your heart as well as many other girls' hearts. We all saw the way you and over a dozen other girls flung themselves into the arena to protect him in the quarter finals. That's something you cannot deny. Isn't that right?" she asked the Sinnoh Champion who didn't answer, though her face was red at this point. Everyone in the room glanced at one another, wondering where she was going with this. Even the champions didn't know what to say about that. "So tell me, what makes it alright for you all to be with him and not anyone else?" Cynthia didn't know how to answer that without breaking the promise she made but the dark type trainer wasn't done. "Why can't I get with him if he's already with so many? Or Malva? Or what about any of the other elites? Pheobe, Glacia, Lorelei and the rest? Or even your fellow champion Diantha?" Lance's heart skipped a beat over that question, with him not even knowing exactly why and that made him become concerned. He glanced at Diantha to perhaps understand why. But when he saw her expression, he grew worried but not over his initial concern. Her eyes were narrowed dangerously onto the dark elite and he knew that she was holding herself from doing anything. Karen's voice sounding out made him look in her direction again. "Or any of the gym leaders around the world such as Whitney, Roxanne, Winona, Karina, Jasmine or the others? Or perhaps any other girl out there?" Cynthia clenched her hands into fists while she kept glaring at her. It was noticed by everyone and when Karen saw that, she smirked. "Angry? I would be too that I alone wasn't enough for him. Apparently this Aura Guardian has such an insatiable hunger that even a champion cannot satisfy him. Tell me, what does it take to keep him if you and several other girls can't keep him happy?" Cynthia was beyond angry over what Karen was saying but couldn't say anything. She was frozen by her embarrassment with all eyes on them now while also shaking with anger. Karen crossed her arms and sported a smug look before continuing on. "But then again, maybe it's because you can't keep him satisfied that's making you all stay with him. I must admit, I'm finding it rather interesting that such a man exists that cannot be controlled. Perhaps Malva is right and there is something about Ash that made her ask him out." Malva's face flushed a deep red at that since most were looking at her with astonished expressions. That is until Karen spoke again, drawing attention back to her. "Maybe I'll take a crack at it. Can't be that hard to wrap him around my finger since it looks like he's so easily attracted to other women. I bet if I actually tried, I could make him mine with barely any effort. Turn him into my own personal servant who'll…"
"SHUT UP!" screamed Cynthia with rage as she finally snapped and she launched herself at Karen, who suddenly became afraid. Right before she reached a scared stiff Karen, four pairs of hands grabbed hold of her and kept her back. Finally coming to their senses, the Sinnoh Elites moved in time to keep her from seriously injuring the Johto elite, if not kill her. "LET ME GO!" she roared at them, struggling to break free but her elites would not do so. They told her to calm down and to think about what she wanted to do and how it was the wrong choice while barely able to prevent her from getting free. While containing her, each of the four elites was wondering the same thing; when exactly did she get so strong that it was taking their combined might to barley hold her? With her struggling to get free while her anger and embarrassment grew and yelling at them to let her go so she could kick Karen's ass, her hands would sometimes get close to where the aura symbol was on her body as she flailed around.
Seeing the Champion of Sinnoh being held back by her own elites, Karen started laughing at her, mocking her. It was at this point that Malva, Lorelei and Pheobe came to their senses and realized that this had gone beyond a prank now and that they were not alright with this anymore. They began telling the Johto woman to stop and be quiet. But their advice and pleadings were not heard. Most of the other elites were fed up of what they were witnessing yet didn't know how to put an end to this. Instead of thinking or calmly trying to help them stop, they too began speaking loudly and yelled over one another in an attempt to be heard. A handful however didn't get involved and one of them was feeling ashamed to even be called an "elite" with such immature people.
And that one was Agatha, who once again was disgusted of this repeated discussion and in her anger, wanted to bring out her Gengar to put everyone to sleep. She was about to do so as her hand hovered over an empty spot on her belt and she remembered that he was recovering from his battle with the guardian still. Letting out an annoyed grunt, she started making her way to the problem starter to make her at least stop laughing so she can do some damage control. However she was having a hard time getting through everyone in the ruckus.
But it wasn't just the ghost elite who felt that way. Even the champions were disgusted over what was going on, especially with Karen's actions. Steven and Alder went to control their elites and were able to calm down most of them, with Steven having Glacia help Pheobe to relax who was feeling horrible for what she helped to happen as well as not being able to make Karen stop. Diantha was able to get all of her elites back in line, including Malva, getting her away from Karen and Lorelei. After that, she glanced over to where the Kanto and Johto champion was. Lance had gone up to Karen and Lorelei to get them in line. He succeeded with Lorelei and was now trying to tell Karen to quiet down and stop but she brushed him off, telling him that it's not a man's business to get in between two females' argument. Even with Lorelei telling her to stop and listen, it didn't work. That made the Dragon Champion angry but he was also stupefied over the blatant dismissal, not expecting that at all from his own Elite member.
But if he was angry, it was nothing compared to the rage that filled the Kalos Champion after she witnessed that. It was at that moment that Diantha decided to end this herself and moved towards Karen. The Johto Elite barely moved her gaze towards her while her mouth kept running.
SMACK! Karen was finally silenced by a sudden slap out of nowhere that caused her to stumble backwards a few steps while everyone else was left in shocked states, leaving the room eerily silent suddenly. Regaining her balance and straightening out with her hand placed against her struck cheek, Karen was staring wide eyed with her mouth slightly open at the champion who struck her. She couldn't believe that she hit her. With the elite unable to speak at the moment, the champion opened her mouth to talk. "You've crossed the line Karen. I will not listen to any more. One more word insulting Ash, Cynthia, their situation, anything else regarding them, or about your stupid reasons behind your actions and you'll receive far worse than just a slap," promised the Kalos champion in a slightly loud, but very serious tone of voice. Unable to respond due to her shock, Karen said nothing, nor did she even move. Seeing her pacified, the Kalos champion continued. "Good. Now apologize to both Cynthia and Lance for your disrespectful behavior," said Diantha.
Karen didn't react, still staring at Diantha over what she just did. And she wasn't the only one either. Nobody was moving or making a sound, with everyone just gazing at the Kalos Champion with surprise. Silence followed for a moment as Diantha kept her glare on the dark elite trainer who was starting to feel some fear until finally she showed signs of life. Straightening out as she faced her champion, Karen said the next words in barely a whisper. "I'm sorry."
Lance didn't respond for a couple seconds since he was stuck in a trance after seeing Diantha take matters into her own hands. Until he snapped out of it and he nodded in acceptance, before he responded back to his elite in a very serious tone. "I know. Let this not happen again or there will be consequences. Now, apologize to Cynthia."
Hearing his stern voice, Karen realized she was in very hot water. Nodding back at him, Karen then turned her gaze to face Cynthia whose expression changed from surprise over Diantha's actions to anger. Seeing the glare on her face, Karen swallowed the saliva that had accumulated in her mouth before she opened her mouth to speak. "I'm…" She didn't continue as the person she was apologizing to, turned around and left the room, heading out into the balcony. Seeing her not even hearing her apology made Karen snap back to herself earlier. "Well, that's rude!" she remarked in annoyance but also loudly so her target could hear her. Yet Cynthia kept walking away, pretending to not even hear her.
"Can you blame her?!" asked Diantha heatedly right afterwards before going after her fellow champion. "I'll go talk to her. The rest of you should call it a night and go to sleep," she told them as she left.
Karen let out a scoff but then hurriedly changed her attitude when Lance glared at her. Realizing she wasn't just in hot water but practically in the fire now, she moved towards her room while muttering out another apology. Deciding to do the same, the others began heading into their own rooms while lost in thought over what they just witnessed. Though one of them did not do so. Lance turned his gaze towards the balcony after making sure Karen went inside her room and saw Diantha walking out into the balcony. Thank you Diantha. And I must say, I'm impressed as to how you handled that. Smiling a bit, he decided to leave things to her and sat down on one of the living room couches as he waited for her so they could go up to the champions' suite together afterwards.
When Cynthia went outside into the balcony, she immediately moved towards the railings and leaned against it as she placed her hands on top of it. Taking in a deep breath through her nose, she let it out slowly through her mouth to try and calm down. She was shaking from her anger still, which coursed through her. Cynthia lowered her head and closed her eyes. She could still see the others' expressions in her mind's eye. The surprise of finding out the truth about her unique situation. Taking in another breath, she let it out slowly. "Why did this happen? Who the hell do they think they are to do something like this and to push it so far?" she asked to no one in particular in a low voice.
"You should understand where they're coming from."
Cynthia turned her surprised gaze to her side and saw her fellow champion Diantha standing beside her with her gaze towards the horizon. "Diantha? What do you mean?" she asked her with a forced calm voice.
A small smile spread across her face before the Kalos Champion faced her equal. "I know you're still angry over what they did. I understand why and the points you made are correct but you should just let it go. There's far more important things coming and happening right now." That sentence made the younger champion feel a little ashamed over her reactions earlier. But she was still being stubborn and didn't change her expression. Diantha's smile didn't leave her face however. "I know. It's hard to let go something like this. But you should know that people want to get to the bottom of things that catches their curiosity and interest. As an archaeologist, you do the same don't you?" asked Diantha kindly.
Cynthia couldn't disagree with that. "Yes, I do," she said hesitantly. "But that still doesn't excuse their behavior!" she shot back immediately.
Diantha shook her head as she responded. "No, it doesn't. But people want what they don't have and what others have. Especially if it looks good. So you should feel a little happy that others want what you have."
Understanding what she was saying, Cynthia let out a breath before nodding. "I get what you're saying. I do. I just didn't like how they were trying to be so…so…"
"I know what you mean," replied Diantha, understanding her already. "They're just envious of what you and the other girls have with him. You should know how us women get like," she joked.
Cynthia let out an involuntary chuckle before speaking. "Fair point but I must say, you're not like that," she told her.
Diantha smiled a bit. "You're giving me too much credit. I have my own faults and done my fair share in the past." Cynthia gave an intrigued expression that Diantha caught, making her chuckle. "Stories for another time. Anyway, back to what we were talking about. It's something that they can't understand. So don't let it get to you alright?"
Looking at her friend, Cynthia appreciated her words and allowed herself to smile a little. "Alright, I'll hold you to it. And thank you. For your words and what you did back there. Especially since I wasn't so great to you all the time, especially here," she finished saying with some regret coating her last words.
Diantha nodded her head and looked out to the horizon while picking up on her feelings. "You're welcome and don't worry about it. I did the same to you. And If I hadn't done something, then we would've had to take you in for assault if not murder," she joked darkly while laughing a bit.
Shaking her head, Cynthia chuckled a bit, understanding her on both topics. "True, but I guess it's water under the bridge as they say. And yea, probably not murder but I would've done some damage," she admitted, making Diantha chuckle. "But what about you?" she asked. Diantha looked at her before she tilted her head in confusion. "You looked like you want to beat the shit out of Karen. Almost as much as I did. It's rare for you, to see you lose your composure. Even more so than me."
Her cheeks flushed some with color but remained calm. "Well, nobody can insult or be rude to my fellow champions in such a way in front of me without having me get involved," replied Diantha.
Knowing there was some truth to those words, Cynthia also knew however that there was another reason for her involvement. "Really? No other reason?" she asked, wanting to know.
"No," answered Diantha.
Silence between the two for a moment. "Okay then. It sure took you a while though to get involved," remarked Cynthia with a slight smirk.
Diantha smirked a bit herself. "I wanted to give you a chance to finish things first." Cynthia half chuckled over that before Diantha continued. "And thanks for not prying into it."
That statement reminded Cynthia of what the female elites did earlier that day and some of her anger returned again but controlled it. "You're welcome. I'm not the type to do that unlike others. I'm sure if it's something I need to know, you'll tell me." Sharing an understanding smile between them, the two female champions then faced the night sky and stood there for a short while. Until Diantha decided to turn in for the night and advised Cynthia to do the same. "I will in a bit. Have a goodnight and let's be ready for tomorrow."
"Thanks Cynthia. Goodnight and we'll do our best against the Guardian tomorrow. Or should I say your lover?" she asked with a wink and Cynthia blushed a bit yet said nothing. Chuckling, Diantha patted Cynthia's shoulder before she walked away. As she left the balcony, Diantha felt that things would be alright now that her fellow champion had calmed down and the female elites had realized their foolishness. As she made her way into the living room, she saw someone sitting on the couch. "Lance? I thought you had left. Everything alright?" she asked him in surprise.
He stood up and then nodded. "Yes. Just thought I'd wait for you and we'd leave together to the champion's suite," he told her honestly.
Becoming very happy with that but also controlling herself, Diantha smiled a bit. "Why isn't that kind of you? I didn't know you were such a gentleman," she teased him.
Lance went red a bit. "Hey, I'm just making sure we all get enough rest for tomorrow," he said.
"Sure. Let's go with that," responded Diantha with a smile as she walked towards the door.
Following after her, Lance asked her a question. "Is everything alright?"
Grasping the door handle as she spoke, Diantha glanced back at him. "It will be. Let's just give her some space." He agreed with her opening the door and the two left the suite.
Back in the balcony, after Diantha left and Cynthia overheard her conversation with Lance since it was so quiet, the Sinnoh Champion felt gratitude towards the Kalos Champion for not getting into it with Lance. She didn't want them to keep talking as she was sure there was enough going on right now in the elites' rooms, with them more than likely awake and talking with one another over what just happened. Though she tried to keep from becoming angry and thinking about it, Cynthia just couldn't help it and it just kept going on….
"…and it just kept bothering me until I thought about you and what we have that they were trying to get in the middle of. I'm sorry I dumped all of this on you and that I called you here right now in the middle of the night. Especially before our big match tomorrow. But I just wanted to be with you for a bit," finished the blond champion as she kept her hold on the raven haired guardian.
Ash had remained silent during the entire time she told him of what happened. When she finally finished, he rubbed her back tenderly with both hands while tightening his hug on her. Appreciating the embrace, Cynthia let out a content sigh and then heard him talk. "It's alright Cynthia. Don't worry about it and thank you for letting me know. I'm sorry that you went through all that."
She shook her head while still up against his chest. "It's not your fault. And I'm sorry that I lost control of my temper." Raising her head to look him in the face, Cynthia decided to tell him something about herself. "That's one thing I've always had trouble with. My temper."
Ash raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Really? Temper? Cause I never would've guessed that you had a temper problem. You're always calm and collected. Though a little off too, but in a good way," he told her jokingly.
She shook her head with a slight smile. "Thanks, you dork." They both chuckled before she continued. "But I still have it, Ash, not had. I still have a temper problem. Though I've learned to control it well after all my experiences. And that's one thing I try to keep under wraps," she told him. "There's a lot more I haven't told you about myself. But I do want to, I just don't know how or when. Though I could try to now but I don't want to keep us up all night before our match together," she admitted to him.
Smiling at her, Ash rubbed her back tenderly as he spoke. "It's alright. I don't mind if you want to tell me now but if you feel now isn't the right time, then that's fine. I'm sure the right moment will come up and you'll know how to say what you want to say. There's no rush."
"Thank you for understanding Ash." Smiling at him, Cynthia felt so better now and felt great in that embrace with him that she just acted without thinking. She leaned in forward and placed her lips onto his. Electricity coursed through both their bodies as they kissed for a short while before separating. Looking into his eyes, she could see herself reflected off of them. "I'll tell you soon though. Probably after our match," she told him as she hugged him with her cheek resting against his shoulder.
"That's no problem and you're welcome," he told her before silence enveloped them both again for a moment as both of them were filling up with good feelings while in the embrace. "But don't forget our promise and after I beat you and the other champions, I'll hold you to it."
Separating from him, Cynthia saw the smirk on his face and felt his confidence. That look and what she felt from him filled her with excitement and made her feel anxious about it all in a good way. Yet she too decided to keep playing their little game. She smacked his shoulder while giving him a challenging look now. "Hmph. Let's see if you can make it happen. You better bring your 'A' game," she told him.
"I will, don't you worry about that," he told her as his right hand went down her side, making her shiver in delight as his left went into her hair. He leaned in closer to her and kissed her again. Though this time, it was a longer, yet still soft kiss. That action filled both of them with wonderful feelings, allowing Cynthia to completely let go of what happened earlier. Withdrawing from her, he grinned at her and she smirked back at him.
He leaned in again and her heart rate increased once more. Cynthia was about to lean in forward but then decided against it. Instead, she wanted to have some more fun with him. She stopped him and left his embrace, making him give her a confused look. She grinned at him and wagged her right index finger left to right in front of him. "Nope, not right now. You haven't earned anymore yet," she told him.
Ash chuckled before he smirked back at her. "Oh you're gonna get it for sure tomorrow," he told her in a playful tone.
"Well, we'll just see about that then won't we my Champion?" she asked rhetorically with a very large smile.
"I guess we will. I hope you're ready for the greatest battle you've ever had. And then to celebrate my victory, I'll be awaiting my reward," he said confidently while sporting his goofy smile. Cynthia shook her head amusingly while keeping her eyes on his. Though her heart was beating quickly over what he said. "I guess for now things will be on hold. I'll have Mewtwo teleport you to your suite so you can rest. Until then…" He gave a playful mock bow before raising his gaze back to hers. "Goodnight m'lady and sweet dreams." Giving a charming smile at her, Ash then disappeared in a blue glow.
Cynthia kept her smile on her face even after he was gone. "I can't wait. Thank you and goodnight Ash, my Champion." Next second, she too disappeared in a blue glow.
At the Indigo Plateau stadium, one of the Pokémon League officials was making her rounds for the night. She had volunteered to do the shift since one of the other guards was sent elsewhere to run another task. She thought it would help her keep her mind off things, to be distracted. But alas, it was no help. For the graveyard shift was a long and boring one, with nothing happening except for the occasional bird pokémon flying overhead. Soon, she grew tired of it and her mind was once again flowing with many thoughts about her crush. The one who she confessed to, who was the same one who rejected her and the same one who she told that she understands and will move on but actually cannot. Finishing up her walk through of the stadium's middle level, she headed towards the stairs to go up to the top level.
Reaching the stairs, she took them up as she muttered her thoughts out loud about her situation and what she could possibly do. "How could I show him and them…maybe I could do that…no that won't work…wait, what if I tell them first…" She then remembered what she was told earlier and that caused her to stop walking as a shudder went through her. "That definitely won't work." She let out a sigh. Nothing seemed possible but she kept brainstorming. "There has to be a way for me too. I'll figure something out. If they all can be with him, then I should be able to as well. Unless…" A sudden thought entered her head and that made her eyes widened. "Wait, what if they have a limit? Could they have talked with him and told him no more can join?" Realizing that that could be a possibility, the official let out a sigh as she shook her head. "Damn it. But if that's the case, I still won't give up. I will find a way to join…" An image appeared in her mind of her crush and her heart skipped a beat. "…no matter what."
Continuing on with her patrol, the official walked through the top level now with her flashlight shining its light all over the place. She took some more steps until she heard some faint sounds from up ahead. What the hell?! Her heart rate skyrocketing upwards, she could feel herself filling up with fear. The noises kept continuing and she realized she had to do something. Snapping out of it, she cautiously moved forward, being as quiet as she could be. As she drew closer, the sound was steadily becoming louder. She wondered what it could be as it sounded like some sort of electric tool being used.
Reaching one of the tunnels that led into the inside of the stadium, she shined her light onto the ladder that led to the top where the light fixtures were. Realizing that's where the sound was coming from, she tilted her head in confusion. Was there maintenance work scheduled for tonight? Unable to remember if there was, she decided to check it out but with caution. She took out her pistol from the attached holder that was on her hip while placing the flashlight in its own holder on the opposite side. Climbing up the ladder, she soon reached the top with the sounds becoming increasingly louder. Finally getting to the top, she stood up straight and immediately found someone at the base of the eastern light post hunched over it with sparks flying. Thank Arceus. It's just maintenance. "Hey!" she called out to the person but they couldn't hear her. Letting out a sigh, she moved closer and talked loudly. "Hey! Hello!" The person at the base of the light post heard her and stopped what they were doing. "Finally. Anyway, what are you doing here so late?" she asked the apparent worker.
The worker didn't move or respond back at first until the official repeated herself. "Sorry, it's just last minute maintenance for the lights," answered a woman's voice. Shit! This ain't good!
Finding out it was a woman working, she was surprised. We have a female maintenance worker now? Since when? Keeping calm but becoming suspicious, she kept things casual. "At this hour?" asked the official.
Unknown to the official, the worker was beginning to slowly move their hand towards something in front of her that the official couldn't see. "Well, you can't argue with the head honcho. Especially when a last minute thing happens," said the female worker as she grasped hold of something and then brought it close to her stomach.
"Can't argue with you there," replied back the official. "Why don't you take a break? C'mon. We'll go grab a snack or something," she told the worker. And maybe I can figure out who you are.
"I'm sorry, but I have to finish this or I'll be in trouble. It has to be ready for tomorrow's match. The lights aren't working properly," said the worker.
"I see. Well, you still have a lot of time as the match doesn't start until the afternoon."
Damn it! This bitch just won't leave! The worker was becoming agitated but kept her cool. "That is true, but I have to deliver a report on the finished job first thing in the morning."
"Oh okay. That's weird though, as the maintenance department is open even now. Why would they wait until morning for the report?" the official asked the worker.
Shit! "Oh, well they told me to do so since it'll be late when I finish and they know how tired I'll be."
Picking up on the obvious lie, the official raised her pistol and aimed it on the apparent worker with slightly shaking hands as she moved a little closer. "You don't work for the maintenance department. I-I know that now because I know for a fact that they don't care if you are tired or not. If you did, then you would know how adamant they are on procedures and delivering reports on time. Now slowly s-stand up with your hands raised." The worker noticed her fear and hesitation but still listened to her as she slowly stood up. "Raise your hands!" The worker raised her hands and didn't move. "G-Good, now don't move!" Reaching around her back with her heart beating faster, the official grabbed her walkie-talkie and brought it to her lips. "This is Natalie, c-come in base."
A second of silence before she got a reply back. "Base here. What's your status?"
The worker spoke up then. "You really shouldn't do this. Forget about all this and leave."
"Quiet!" Natalie snapped before pressing the button to respond. "I have a-aaah!"
The female worker moved too quickly for Natalie to react in time. She had spun around and used one of her tools to attack while simultaneously disarming Natalie by knocking the pistol out of her hand to the floor with it. In a panic, Natalie threw a wild punch but it was effortlessly dodged by her target. Then the worker grabbed her arm and twisted it around her back, causing Natalie to let out a pained shout before she was forced to the ground after receiving a kick to the back of her knee. "Don't move," said the worker in now a cold tone of voice along with kneeling on top of the downed official, keeping her from moving both from fright and from weight applied onto her.
"Natalie? Come in! Natalie!"
The impersonating worker picked up the walkie-talkie and held it in front of the official's mouth. "Tell them everything is fine or I'll kill you."
Not having a choice in the matter, Natalie did as she was told. "S-Sorry, it was just a bug pokémon. I-I got spooked."
Silence for a moment until the two of them got a reply back. "Damn it Natalie. We get it but you're on the job. Start acting like a professional! Over and out!"
After that, the woman dropped the walkie-talkie but kept her hold on Natalie. "Now what to do with you?" she asked in a very scary tone of voice. Natalie was filling up with fear and she was trembling from it. Enough so that it was noticed. "Scared? You should be. I gave you a chance when normally I wouldn't. I just didn't want to be bothered and didn't want to waste my time. Especially since you probably would've been taken cared of tomorrow anyway."
"T-Tomorrow?" asked the frightened official.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk." She moved her other hand towards Natalie's throat and grabbed hold of it. "I can't spoil the surprise now can I?" she asked as her grip tightened, causing the official to start have difficulty breathing. "But then again, since you didn't heed my words, I'll tell you before I kill you. Let's just say, it'll be an epic ending for the Aura Guardian. And everyone else here." Her grip tightened even more.
Natalie started making choking sounds, having her supply of oxygen slowly caught off. No! I can't die! I can't let her and whoever she's with do this! I have to do something! She tried to shake the person off of her but she was holding on too tightly and her submissive position didn't allow her much movement. She tried again but it wasn't much use.
"Struggle all you want, I like it when they resist. Makes it that much more sweeter when they realize it's pointless to defy me," said the female sadistically with a tone of lust, as if she was getting off on what she was doing.
This bitch is fuckin crazy! It was then that Natalie realized she was dealing with a sociopath. And a strong one that she couldn't beat on her own. It was then that she realized she was going to lose this fight. Fear of dying filled her and her heart beat madly because of it. Help! Someone help! Please! Her vision starting to blur with tears escaping her eyes, Natalie's fear increased tenfold. She didn't want to lose her life like this. She didn't want to leave the world when she had barely experienced a little bit of all it had to offer. And not before she thought up of some way to have the one who she loves return that love to her. Realizing that no one was going to save her this time and she had no way out, she decided to go with the only other option remaining for her to take. With her strength fading fast, she used what remained of it to try and speak. "P-Please…don't…h-help…"
Evilly smiling, the woman fed off her fear. "Oh, I love it when they beg. Please continue! Call for help!"
"H-Help…H-Help…
"That's it, keep going! C'mon!" egged on the woman, enjoying the pain and fear she was inflicting.
Her next word came out in barely a whisper. "…y-you…"
Drawing closer to her, she wanted to hear the final words. "What was that last word?"
"Y-You…h-help…you…not…d-die…"
Hearing her words, the woman's smile widened even more. "Well isn't this a change. I don't really need your help. Everything is practically ready. What could you offer me huh?" She waited for an answer but all she got was wheezed breaths and choking sounds. Smirking a bit, she eased up ever so slightly, just enough to allow her to breathe some and talk.
Immediately, Natalie took in as much air as she could, causing her to cough a bit before she was able to speak again. "Any…anything…just don't…kill me…please…"
"Anything? Well, there's much I can ask for but can you deliver? And why should I let you live when many before you have offered me the same and none delivered?" she asked the official.
Natalie thought as quickly as she could but couldn't come up with something. All that came to mind was an image of the raven haired guardian, which made her heart race. Realizing she had nothing to offer, that she was most likely going to be killed, not able to reach her other goals in life and never have another chance with the guardian, her eyes watered and fresh tears rolled down her cheeks. "I…h-have nothing…but please don't kill me…I'll-I'll do anything…I'm…I'm in…love…"
When Natalie said she was in love, the woman was surprised that she said that out of all things. It made her think of her love. Of the one who she'll do anything for. Turn against her comrades if need be or even take on the world for the sake of her love. Bringing herself back into focus, the woman thought quickly and decided on something. "Answer me this and I may decide to let you live for the moment; who is it that you love?" she asked the official.
Natalie kept having tears fall down as she barely could breath, the woman still holding her throat tightly. "I…Iove…love…As-As-"
"-sh Ketchum?" finished the woman and the official was barely help to nod her head. "I see. Then perhaps you can be of some use." And with that, the woman let go of her throat but then immediately clubbed her hard on the head with the flashlight, knocking her out. She quickly bound her hands and feet with spare wires, taped her mouth shut and then stood up before letting out a sigh. "Damn, that was too close. What else can happen now?"
As if to answer her question, the sounds of someone opening the maintenance hatch was heard. She quickly readied herself with the official's weapon since it was closer to her and aimed right at the hatch in time to see her partner in crime's face come into view. The new arrival stood up and faced the aiming woman before seeing the knocked out official on the ground. "What happened, Annie?"
Letting out a disgruntled sound, the blonde Team Rocket member gave an annoyed look at her younger sister. "One job Oakley. You had one job!" she hissed at her sister.
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry! I know I had to keep a lookout but I thought no one was here besides us and I really had to use the bathroom!" she explained to her sister.
Annie let out a sigh and shook her head slightly. "You could've told me at least." She pointed at her ear. "Why else do we have these damn communicators in our ears practically all the time?!"
"Okay, I'm sorry. It won't happen again," promised Oakley. She then looked at the downed girl. "So, what are we going to do with the body?"
Annie looked down at her too before speaking. "Nothing and she's not dead yet."
"Why?"
"Cause she may be useful as she says she's in love with our target," revealed Annie.
Oakley's eyes widened in understanding. "I see. But, do we need her? You're practically done with the adjustments right? And we have all the support we need."
"True," agreed Annie before facing her sister. "But you never know when a love struck coward might come in useful. Especially one you can manipulate for your gain. And she may have other information that could be valuable."
Oakley smiled maliciously. "Oh, I get it. In that case, we should finish up here and take her with us. Domino will probably figure out a way to have her be some use to us."
"Agreed. Let's get this done." The two worked together to quickly finish their assignment and then left while taking the unconscious and bound official with them.
Multiple viewing portals were in front of a white centaur like being as he conversed with many of the legendaries of the world at once. They were giving their father updates on what has been happening around their territories for he had sensed the darkness' power growing. He wanted to know if it was causing any reactions in the world from it as he couldn't have the world become aware of the darkness rising or it would cause panic and chaos. Right now, the water legendary pokémon of Hoenn, Kyogre, was informing Arceus about the ocean's currents. "…and the temperature has remained steady throughout them all. No worries here at the moment," informed the blue whale like creature.
Nodding his head, Arceus was pleased with the information. "Good. If you require any assistance to keep it so, have the prince help you on that."
Kyogre's eyes widened and several of the other legendary pokémon became surprised. "Ah, Father, you do know that Manaphy is at the deepest point of the ocean to rest now, right? He's not due to come up for another couple of months and…"
"I do know that," interrupted Arceus with annoyance and Kyogre went quiet at once. "Yet preventing the world at large from going into disarray at least before the darkness rises is far more important than the prince's rest." Kyogre said nothing for a moment before agreeing. Arceus moved his gaze across the other portals and noticed the expressions on the rest of the legendaries from his words. "You must all understand that even though Ragnarok and his darkness are due to surface in about two years time, he is already causing things to happen. His power is great and will only continue to grow until he emerges from wherever he is. We must not allow it to spread unchecked and acquire early footholds before the war even begins. Am I understood?" he asked his first children.
The legendaries of the world gave their confirmations of understanding by bowing to their father and god. Afterwards, one of them rose back up and asked a question to him. A question that some of them have all been thinking for a while now. "Father, though we have been keeping watch over their progress from time to time, we haven't been given an update on the guardian's progress or of Mewtwo's either for that matter since the stadium attack. What have they achieved? Have they met your expectations?" asked Xerneas, the legendary horse pokémon that represented life.
Arceus smiled a little over those questions before sporting a proud expression, surprising them all. "I apologize for not informing you all, since some of you aren't able to get updates as quickly as the rest. But you should all know that the two of them have done better than I hoped so far. The guardian has won the tournament, beaten all of the elites and is set to challenge the champions for the title of Master if the current one doesn't show up in time." His words caused some of the legendaries to gasp while others had impressed looks on their faces with fewer still having proud looks of their own. "And as for your fellow legendary, Mewtwo has beaten Deoxys for the title of the most powerful psychic in the world and he has grown tremendously, both in abilities and within. He has finally learned to care for others as well as trust them."
Learning of Mewtwo's achievements also shocked them. They couldn't believe it. Not that he had beaten Deoxys. No, that wasn't hard to believe since his powers were very formidable and some of them believed him to be even more so than themselves, though they would never admit it. But to hear that the cold-hearted psychic feline had become such a softy was. One of the smallest of them all, the guardian of the Ilex Forest spoke up then. "I can't believe it Father that Mewtwo has changed. I remember him being very arrogant, cruel and mean. Not to mention scary too," she remarked and Arceus chuckled as did several others.
Finishing up with his chuckling, Arceus nodded. "Yes, he has changed. And because of that he is growing, becoming more and more powerful. Soon he too will be able to…to…" Trailing off, the one who shaped the universe stopped talking for he had sensed something. Or more accurately, another being in his Hall of Origin. Am I imagining this? Arceus stayed motionless and quiet for a moment. His first children were becoming concerned, though they waited for a bit before they started asking if he was alright. Snapping out of his stupor over their questioning, he focused his attention back onto them and Arceus spoke quickly. "Apologies. I am alright. I just remembered I have to take care of something. I will see you later when we convene to watch the guardian's match against the champions and the actions he will take against the coming attack. Until then, attend to your duties." Understanding they were dismissed, the legendaries of the world said nothing except for a few bidding their father farewells before the portals disappeared. When they were all gone, Arceus let out a sigh and afterwards, he looked straight ahead towards the other end of the empty hall for a moment. "After all this time of you staying silent and uninvolved, I am very surprised that you decided to come here now," said Arceus into the apparently empty and silent hall. No response came back and the centaur was starting to become annoyed with waiting. "I know you are there. Why continue this pointless charade?" he asked out into the room.
"Impatient as always," sounded out a voice. The voice was soft and angelic sounding with an air of power and it also seemed to be coming from everywhere in the hall. All of a sudden, an intense, blinding white light flashed through the hall that originated from the middle of the hall. It was so bright, that had anyone else been there besides Arceus, they would've been blinded. After the flash, a pure white circle of light appeared that was shielding whatever was inside it from view by the incredible light it was pulsing out. "And that is the reason why I am here Arceus," said the voice that was now coming from it.
Arceus moved towards the sphere of light and stopped a short distance away from it. He said nothing for a moment until he replied back. "Alright then, I'll play along for now. What does my impatience have to do with you being here? And you can drop the intimidation act. I've seen your true form before or have you forgotten…Raava?" he asked the sphere.
A powerful blast of light shot out from the sphere of light that shook the Hall of Origin, even causing some cracks to form on the pillars against the walls. Arceus let out a grunt over the force but was otherwise unharmed. Before he could say another word however, the angelic voice spoke again with its words filled with some anger. "Arceus! Do not attempt to manipulate me as you do to others! And you know the reason behind my appearance so do not act the fool!" shot Raava, with its light growing in intensity.
"Hmph. Very well Raava," replied back Arceus and the light emitting from Raava dimmed down some. "But in all honesty, I don't understand as to why you are here. Especially now," he repeated.
Raava took a moment to respond back. "Fine. I will also repeat what I said; I'm here because of your impatience!" she shot at him.
Arceus gave a confused look. "What do you mean?" he asked.
A pulse of light escaped from Raava's sphere, as if to signify her annoyance over his words as she began to speak. "Have you forgotten all the plans we made together to combat the darkness should it ever rise again?! Of all the trials we went through and all the mistakes we had to learn from to finally get things right?!"
It was quiet for a moment between the two until he spoke. "I do remember," answered Arceus calmly.
"Then why are you jeopardizing everything by rushing things?!" asked Raava angrily, her angelic voice losing its softness entirely as it sounded more angry and aggressive now. "Why have you forced things to happen? Why have you made our plans occur ahead of schedule instead of letting them happen naturally?! You could have caused things to be even worse! There was no need! There was still time for the guardian to…"
"There is no time and I had to!" snapped Arceus, interrupting Raava. He took advantage of her silent state and continued on. "Though he has become very strong, he is still not ready! His power is still nothing compared to Ragnarok's! He must become one with Aura or all is lost! All of our planning and preparing will mean nothing if that doesn't happen!"
Arceus finished and said no more as he glared at the sphere of light. A short while later, an audible sigh was heard before Raava spoke. "I agree that he must become one with Aura to stand a chance, but what you are doing is going against what we decided as well as the prophecy!" she shot back but Arceus scoffed and shook his head. "You are so set on making the prophecy come true that you just may cause the opposite to happen! And then all we have done and sacrificed will be for naught! That is why I'm here now!"
The white centaur glared at the bright sphere of light before talking back. "Don't give me that excuse. I know you've been visiting him in his dreams," commented back Arceus.
There was a short silence between them until the being in the sphere of light spoke. "Again, it was because of you that I had to. I didn't want to get involved unless absolutely necessary. But you've been pushing him along this path from day one and almost never gave him any assistance. You even blatantly lied to him, right to his face. How do you expect him to succeed with no support?" asked Raava with a tone of disappointment coating her words.
"We had no support either and we triumphed," countered Arceus.
"Barely and that was different. We had nothing, had no one and so we had no choice," replied Raava immediately. "And that is why we must provide support. We have experience and we should lend that to him. He still has time. He still can learn more and become more powerful. The prophecy will come true but only if you let it happen on its own. Not by forcing it."
"That may be, but what were you saying to him in his dreams then? Weren't you pushing him along the same path as I was?" asked Arceus with an insinuating tone.
"Giving advice is not the same as forcing someone down a path," clarified Raava.
Arceus narrowed his eyes in response. "Keep telling that to yourself. Just like me, you knew that the plans we made so long ago were not enough. If they were, you would've appeared long before things turned out this way and prevented me from doing the things that I did." Arceus turned around and began walking away from Raava who stayed silent, unable to respond after that. As he moved away, he continued speaking. "We have both been on this path for a long time now. Any plan that was made for this long period of time will require changes and adjustments. You know that as well as I do. But for now, you just keep doing what needs to be done by keeping your end of things going smoothly and I will do the same." He reached his golden throne and sat on the red cushions before facing the sphere of light again. He then said his final words to her for the time being. "Allow me to say this at least; you have done outstandingly well with the guardian's catalyst. I had my doubts in the beginning to be honest for what you planned with the power of aura and its bonds, but seeing the effects on the guardian, even without them all…well, I am impressed."
Raava said nothing for a few seconds before saying her final words to Arceus for the moment. "Only you would call that just a catalyst but whatever. And I don't need your praise like one of your attention seeking first children. Do not forget that we are equals." The sphere of light began to intensify, the brightness becoming stronger as she finished speaking. "And I know that you knew about the effects beforehand. Otherwise you wouldn't be forcing things along as you have been doing." Arceus remained quiet and seeing him not respond, Raava continued. "Before I take my leave to continue my duties, I say this; you better pray that your forcing things and making things happen sooner than originally planned…brings it all together in the end. Otherwise, you'll have to deal with the consequences." After those words, a flash of white light escaped from the sphere and the next second, the sphere of light that contained Raava disappeared.
Arceus raised his head towards the ceiling of the Hall of Origin and closed his eyes. "Consequences huh? You and I have been dealing with that since the start of our existence. Though I will admit that you have gone through much more than I…" He trailed off and thought some more of what she said. Until something popped out in his mind. "Pray?" He let out an involuntary chuckle. "The problem with that, Raava...is that I have no one to pray to." He took in a breath and then exhaled it out. "And neither do you." Opening his eyes, Arceus decided it was time to get back to work and the next second, he vanished from his spot.
A/N - I know it's not stupid long like the last actual chapter but that was a freak of nature chapter for me. I don't know if there will be any that long again. But what matters to me is quality of the content and making sure what needs to be said is said. So I hope you liked it and it was able to keep you satisfied a bit until the next post. Thank you for understanding, for reading and everything else. Don't forget to leave behind a review, fav and follow! Thanks and take care!
Question 1 - Did any part surprise you?
Question 2 - What scene did you like best from this chapter?
Ash's Harem Status
In the Harem - Misty, May, Dawn, Serena, Leaf, Sarah, Anabel, Cynthia, Sabrina, Clair, Liza, Giselle, Lizabeth, Shauna (Hoenn), Daisy Waterflower
My Other Stories (Please check out my other stories and leave a review!)
"Tale of the Forsaken" - Prologue is up; working on chapter 1
"Agma Sins" - Prologue is up; working on chapter 1