Chapter 15

By the time the rain finally stopped, it had grown dusk.

Sissy carried Matt's pack, Craig carried the cumbersome ammunition case, with Emie taking the lead as they wandered down the road towards the Viridian forest. Matt kept his phone close, seeing as Mom had been calling every single hour, on the hour. As seven o'clock came rolling their way, Matt soon enough got the call he was expecting. He answered it.

"Still not there yet," Matt spoke. "If it hadn't rained, we could have gotten there-"

"Hold on a second, honey," Mom spoke briskly. "Something has just come up."

"Huh?" Matt questioned, stopping in his tracks. The rest of his team followed suit, all eyes on him as he listened carefully to the conversation. Mom seemed slightly out of breath.

"Herman contacted me through his usual means," Mom panted. "Psychic vibration. I'm sorry. It's…." There was a pause on the line, with Dante coming to grab the phone. Matt could faintly hear him say 'son of a bitch' before placing the phone next to his mouth.

"You there, Matt?" Dante asked through the phone.

"Is Mom alright?" Matt questioned with concern. Sissy was worried as well, nearing the phone to hear better. She pressed her body against Matt, with Craig standing on his tippy-toes in the hopes of hearing the full conversation.

"She's fine," Dante sighed. "Herman doesn't seem to understand that humans can't handle that much psychic energy at once. He sentLily a message through psychic means, and didn't hold back."

"I'm not sure I follow," Matt confessed. "You're telling me Herman sent her a message through woo-woo powers that hurt her?"

"Mild pain," Dante corrected. "And exhaustion. Look, can I just relay the information for you?"

"I can do it, Dante, stop treating me like a child…." Mom's voice could be heard faintly in the background.

"And I'll put you over my knee if you keep acting like one. Go back to bed and let me handle this."

"Hello?" Matt said, getting Dante to stay on topic. "Is she good or do we need to turn around?"

"You don't need to turn around, no," Dante explained, sounding frustrated. "But you're not stopping at Viridian forest."

"And why not?" Matt inquired, now with Emie nearing closer to the phone. Matt surrendered, figuring it was better to just put the phone on speaker so everyone could hear.

"He didn't really say why," Dante explained, everyone able to hear now. "All he said was that the forest wasn't safe and that he would find YOU instead. Herman had another message for you too: 'Find orange bangs.'"

Everyone looked to one another, all equally confused.

"How the fuck does that help me?" Matt asked.

"Hell if I know," Dante sighed. "But you're going to need to go into the city. Find the Pokemon Center, get a room, and just lay low for a while. And please call me once you're settled in. We're both concerned for your well being."

"Thanks, dad," Matt spoke.

His mouth grew dry instantly, realizing the two unfamiliar words that slipped out. Sissy looked surprised, with silence overtaking the phone call.

"No problem, buddy," Dante chuckled, hanging up.

Matt had to get himself together, taking a moment to rub his head.

"Did I just call Dante dad?"

"It was really sweet," Sissy mentioned, giving him a quick hug. "But can we get back to walking? It's starting to get a little cold."

"It is," Emie nodded, though showed little to no expression of being cold. "Let us make our way to the city."

"Sandslash!" Craig announced.

"Translation?" Matt asked Sissy.

"Craig says 'hell yeah.'" Sissy chuckled.

With Emie still leading the way, the crew continued their journey, now with a detour it seemed.

"I wonder what could be going on with Uncle Herman," Sissy mused aloud to herself. Matt reached out, holding her hand as they walked. He found Craig not far from his other side, keeping his eyes peeled for any trouble.

"Does Herman get himself into trouble often?" Matt asked her, feeling Sissy's warmth run up his arm as their fingers laced together. He forgot how well her hand fit into his.

"Not really, no," Sissy shrugged. "He did once when Mom was still a trainer. Herman and Mom did a lot of…. Stuff, behind the scenes. Rumors spread, and it hurt her reputation."

"Like what stuff?"

"Human and Pokemon relations have come a long way," Sissy said with a distant look in her eyes. "Mom tells me all kinds of stories about how she had to hide the fact that she was sexually active with her team."

"I'm not sure I wanna talk about Mom's sex life," Matt shuttered.

"Well, get over it," Sissy huffed, clenching his hand tighter. "I'm not bringing it up to be weird—I have a point I'm trying to make. When my biological mom, Olive, was alive, dad and Mom were really close with one another. Mom isn't the sweet woman next door everyone sees her as. She's stood up against problems like prejudice of religion, sexual relations, and even against Team Rocket. Which…. Lead to problems…. We talked about it a long time ago, but I don't know if you remember…."

"We don't have to get too deep into it now," Matt told her. "I don't want to stir up any painful memories."

"Your mother is a kind woman," Emie mentioned, still able to keep track of the conversation despite being as focused as she was on the path ahead.

"She also spoke out for what she believed in," Sissy added. "But, that kinda got her in trouble in the end. Even if she's an icon today, before retiring, she had a lot of hate thrown her way. After Team Rocket burned down our home and killed her own child…."

Matt pulled Sissy a little closer.

"We can talk about something different, Sissy," Matt told her. "You okay?"

"Yeah—sorry if I got upset for a minute."

"You're alright, puppy."

Sissy wagged her tail.

Craig soon moved up with Emie, to help her scout the road ahead. Sissy from time to time would look behind them as they walked, soon with another phone call coming as eight o'clock rolled around. Matt answered the phone, seeing it was Dante instead.

"You guys still okay?"

"No, we've fallen into a vat of acid, and the evil doers are laughing," Matt mocked.

"You can joke all you want, smart ass," Dante told him. "I'm only calling because Lily insisted. That…. And I wanted to make sure you're actually okay."

"We're still alright," Matt told him.

"We should be nearing the city," Emie said, pointing to the distance. It was still far, but Matt could make out the tall buildings, with lights illuminating the city.

"Emie says we're almost there," Matt informed Dante.

"Well, good. Just keep a low profile, please?"

Dante hung up before Matt could respond. Sliding his phone into his pocket, Matt adjusted the shotgun slung to his back. The thing was more of a burden the longer they walked. Yes, it was good to have protection, but he failed to see when he was going to need it. Hopefully, not soon.

The four of them continued to walk towards the city, with the night growing darker around them.

"I hope Uncle Herman is okay," Sissy mentioned as they neared the entrance to the city. There was a Gail Company guard positioned outside, noticing the crew, flagging them down. The entire walk, aside from the rain, had been uneventful. Aside from the straggling Pokemon here and there, nothing really wanted to bother Matt or his team. Anything that did was shooed off by Emie and Craig.

"Great, another one of these guys." Matt huffed under his breath, with him and his crew drawing closer to the guard outside the city gate.

"Kinda late to be out playing hero, isn't it?" the guard asked. He had a dark complexion with a voice as smooth as silk. With a green helmet on his head, and a pair of thick goggles covering his eyes, he was fully suited in ballistic armor.

"We're here on business," Matt mentioned.

"Really? Neat." The guard was looking at something on their phone. "And where did you come from?"

"A far away place," Matt dismissed, wanting to keep things simple.

"Don't we all." The Gail company member clicked his pen, pulling out a notepad from his ballistic vest. "I just need a name on file for records sake."

"Last name Cider, first name Dixon," Matt stated. The grunt followed the tip of his pen down the notepad before finally tapping the page.

"Well, they really weren't kidding then," the Gail grunt chuckled. "Friend, I got a call earlier today about this very name."

Matt tensed up a bit.

"You did?" he asked. Matt began to feel sweat forming, running down his back. If he was going to get into trouble, could it not have been within the city itself at least? He did his best not to look conspicuous as the grunt scribbled something down. But to Matt's surprise, the grunt didn't seem all that upset about the fake name he had provided.

"My buddy stationed in Pallet town likes to call and complain a lot," the grunt mentioned, flourishing his pen as he checked a box. "He told me about a young man with an attractive Growlithe and Persian woman walking with him. He told me to be on the lookout for Dixon Cider. For the first time in forever, I heard that grumpy bastard laugh."

"He laughed?" Matt asked.

"Attractive?" Emie inquired, with little inflection of expression.

"He used other words," the grunt explained, with Sissy looking a little flustered. Emie, however, seemed to take this information as a compliment.

"Like what?" Sissy asked, not sure if she wanted to know the answer.

"Well, he…." the grunt began, but stopped. Craig was inches from him, giving a happy, childish wave of their paw. The grunt motioned Matt to step closer, whispering something into his ear.

Matt's eyes bugged a little.

"Well, he's a man of good taste, I guess…." Matt coughed.

"I wanna know what he said," Sissy demanded, furrowing the fur on her forehead.

"I am interested as well," Emie smiled.

"So anyway," Matt coughed, rushing the conversation along. "We free to go inside the city or what?"

"Go on through, man," the grunt chuckled. "But before you do, I gotta lay out some ground rules."

"Ground rules?" Matt repeated.

"Yes," the grunt nodded. "You know—the kind of rules that keep you from getting locked up. We wouldn't want Dixon Cider getting locked up, now would we?"

Viridian City was not the same city Matt remembered. Although his first time in the city had been brief, he didn't remember security being so prominent.

Ever since what the internet dubbed "The Tower of Blood" incident that happened in Celadon, the rest of the cities in Kanto upped their protection game. Gail Company marched throughout the large tourist trap, with advertisements on just about anything you could prop up or hang on a wall. The Elite Four were even more of a big deal than before his first time through. Various humans roamed through the streets, with not a single Pokemon in sight.

The city laws stated that not a single Pokemon could be out and about, unless in the properly designated areas within the city limits. Although weapons and Pokeballs were allowed to be worn freely, it was an offense to draw out either unless in an emergency situation.

It was strange being in a crowd without seeing any Pokemon. It was like being back home again. Matt's hands were shoved in his jacket pockets as he kept his head down. The droning of the city criers filled the air, with the common chatter creating a white noise that made the verbal advertisements inaudible. Matt tried not to get overwhelmed by the commotion as he walked down the busy Viridian street, shuffling his way through the masses towards the main square of the city, with the Pokemon Center in the center being his destination.

That too had changed. The large building from before was even larger, being the tallest building in the city. It wasn't hard to spot, though was difficult to see just how far up it went. Matt bumped into someone, reaching back to double check and see if his wallet was still there. After all that had happened, he wasn't going to take any chances. It wasn't like he could use his Trainer Insurance again with a hit on his head.

Even being as late as it was, the city was still full of life, with colorful lights shining in every direction. The Pokemon center was the worst offender, practically glowing like a star with the built in bulbs of red and white surrounding the building illuminating the city square.

Warm air hit Matt's face as he stepped inside the Pokemon Center, seeing that it was filled. Thankfully, the Pokemon Center wasn't as crammed as the outside was. Still, the numbers were staggering. Trainers and their Pokemon roamed freely in the open lobby of the Pokemon Center. Television screens hung from the ceiling, arranged around the various couches and comfortable chairs the center had to offer.

As Matt made his way to the front desk, he nearly tripped over his other foot at the sight of a forgotten friend.

Orange bangs and black hair. A white Pokemon Center apron, filled with various pins and buttons. A glowing smile against pale skin. The bags under her eyes were present, even at a distance, but there was a certain pep and energy the Pokemon Center staff member exhibited. Her lips moved, but Matt couldn't make out the words over the various voices coming from the surrounding trainers and television sets. Matt stood in the single line that was pooling in the center of the lobby.

Was Viridian city always this busy? Matt wondered to himself. Maybe? After so much time had passed, there was no telling what the city had to offer. His mind wandered with a headache starting to form. His arms were tired from having to carry the ammunition container and shotgun over his shoulder. His backpack felt heavy too. How had Craig and Sissy managed to carry that much for so long?

"Fuck I'm out of shape," Matt sighed, feeling the aches and pains in his body. Was this how it felt to be older?

A headache had finally formed as a woman in line screamed, clutching an exhausted Shuckle in her arms.

"What's the hold up?!" she shrilled. "Some of us are trying to get a room and sleep!"

"And some of us got wounded Pokemon, lady!" another voice cried from the line. "Hurry it up!"

"I swear," the woman ahead of Matt scoffed to her friend as they waited in line. "They really need better help. Could they have picked a slower Pokemon Center Resident?"

"The PCR standards of this town have really gone downhill," her friend responded. She ran fingers through her greasy, green and stringy hair. "My mom used to be a Pokemon Center Nurse—back when they still called them that—years ago. She would have never gave such LOUSY service."

Matt bit his tongue, not wanting to get involved. Instead of throwing a fit, he clenched his jaw. Even as tired as he was, he understood it wasn't the fault of the "PCR" at the counter. Whatever the Pokemon Center was calling their staff these days.

The line moved a margin forward, with Matt taking another step before setting down his ammo case. It clanked, catching the attention of the two female trainers standing in front of him. They looked at him, then to each other, then giggled. Confused, Matt watched the women turn their back to him, still giggling like children.

I'm too tired for this shit, Matt thought in silence, letting out a yawn, rubbing his shoulder. How could a shotgun be so heavy? He swore the sling of his shotgun was going to leave a mark in the morning.

The line moved forward once more, with Matt reluctantly leaning low to grab his ammo case. Christ, his back hurt too…. The noise of the Pokemon Center only grew louder as the impatient Trainers yelled at the woman at the counter.

Orange Bangs, Matt thought, with the smile on his face forming. Was he crazy? Was it really her? After so many years, would she even remember him? The line was starting to pick up pace as it split in two, with another Pokemon Center Resident taking a side by side position with the other PCR. She turned on the terminal, trying to answer questions, hand out forms, and whatever else was expected of them. Whatever it meant to work at the Pokemon Center was far beyond what Matt could keep track of. The lines were really starting to move now, with Matt feeling both relief and nervousness.

"Next please," the tired Pokemon Center Resident heaved, trying to keep her brave face. She moved the orange bangs out of her face, adjusting her uniform as Matt stepped up next.

"How may I help you this evening, sir?" the PCR with the orange bangs asked him.

The fuck do I even say? Matt thought, clearing his throat.

"I could use a room, but the last time I was here I was practically a kid," Matt mentioned.

"Oh, well we have…." the woman stopped mid sentence, looking into Matt's eyes. "I'm so sorry—you just remind me a lot of someone that I used to know. But you're probably not wanting to-"

"Please don't scream," Matt whispered to her.

At this, the Pokemon Center Resident looked bewildered.

"W-why would I…."

Matt grinned.

"It's so good to see you again, Amber," Matt spoke.

Amber's face grew more pale than Matt thought possible.

"I….you….you're…." she struggled. "No, this is some fucked up prank." Amber's hospitality began to fade. "Look, if someone thought it was funny to put you up to this, I-"

"When we first met," Matt told her, looking Amber dead in the eye, "You told me a story about a Sandshrew that was obsessed with peanut butter. You also told me about Daisy Machines, and that Daisies meant simplicity, which was why they named the machines that. Am I real enough now?"

Amber held onto the counter, knocking over her terminal mouse as she did so. The line behind Matt was getting impatient, with Amber noticing it.

"I have so many questions," Amber struggled, acting as if she were talking to a ghost. "If you're really Matt, I need you to wait for my shift to end. Here."

Amber slid Matt a pair of keys attached to a plastic replica Pokeball.

"I'm assuming you're in trouble," Amber whispered, followed by nervous laughter. "Take these and don't tell anyone. Twenty-first floor, room 47. I'm off the clock at midnight. Think you'll be okay by-"

"Hurry it up, lady!" a voice in the crowd demanded.

Matt simply nodded, with Amber speaking as he left.

"I'm sorry we couldn't help you find what you were looking for, sir," Amber said, loud enough for everyone to hear. "I hope you continue to enjoy your stay, Mr. Smith!"

Not sure what else to do, Matt nodded, thanking her as he walked for the elevator nearby. There were two, each on both sides of the main help desk. Matt pressed the button to call the elevator, waiting a considerable amount of time before it opened. He looked to Amber, who still looked flustered by the exchange. Matt looked back to the elevator, tapping his foot.

"You know what," Matt sighed to himself, "The last time I stepped in an elevator, it didn't end too well…. I think?…."

But the thought of going up twenty flights of stairs sounded miserable with all of his gear. Instead of walking, Matt waited. With an unsettled feeling, he stepped into the empty elevator, hitting his floor button, praying it would be nothing like the last time.