A sigh left Steven's mouth, again, he had sincerely lost count on how many he did ever since arriving, and even before that. If he had to admit, he hadn't been very willing to come all the way here, but Champion's duties were still duties, and he had to do his part, just like his colleagues.
It was the annual Pokemon League End of the Year Ball, this time held in Johto. For all it was worth at least it wasn't in faraway regions such as Galar or Alola, pretty places for sure, but too far for his tastes.
Besides he would prefer at least for one time to be able to spend the holidays with his family, instead of being forced to travel places for League events. Not that he had anything against events, balls, or even seeing his fellow colleagues, even if he had to admit that some people were a bit too eccentric for his tastes, but it would have been nice to have some time for himself to see his parents.
Between League meetings and also business meetings he was always too busy to even say "hi" sometimes.
So at the moment he spent his time sitting in a comfy chair as he watched people chat and have fun and dance, occasionally he would exchange words with fellow Champions or friends, namely Wallace most of the time.
The man had been trying to persuade him the entire night to join the party and was met each single time with a refusal.
Besides, he didn't like dancing anyways. Just because he liked to wear elegant clothes and suits, it didn't mean he was good at everything people of the higher class like him should take part in.
He would rather spend another hour listening to Lance's incredibly long and boring speeches, than ask someone to dance with him.
Well actually maybe not… he'd probably fall asleep.
Not that he'd ever tell Lance, just out of courtesy and respect for the man, but he admitted that for some things the dragon master certainly wasn't the best at. His cousin Clair could probably do better.
A chuckle left his mouth as Wallace engaged himself with some kind of eccentric dance, most likely trying to imitate Fantina who was right next to him, at the center of the stage, and failing miserably.
At least they knew how to cheer up the atmosphere, he thought, as he watched some of the younger League Members attempt to join in too, and even Leon too.
Quite the odd fellow, if Steven had to say so, he even had difficulty understanding him when he talked at times.
He resumed watching the crowd cheer on the little scene that ended up happening almost spontaneously, some people appeared to be more interested than others, honestly, this had been the most entertaining thing of the night.
Suddenly his eyes caught sight of a familiar shock of really long blonde hair.
It couldn't be none other than the Sinnoh Champion herself, Cynthia, and at the moment she didn't appear alone, but, if Steven had to say, her face didn't look all too pleased with her current company.
In front of her he could spot the Unovan Champion Alder, and he didn't appear to be able to take a "no" for an answer, he was probably trying to invite Cynthia to a dance, which she didn't seem to be interested in.
The man could be really nice, but he didn't know when to stop when it came to women sometimes, especially after he had a glass or two of too many, he found out to his, and everyone else's displeasure, especially the fellow female Champions.
But at the moment Diantha seemed very well in better company right now, just by judging from the arm she held around her fellow Kalosian League Member, Malva, as the duo watched the little spectacle from a corner near the gigantic tree in the room.
A bit out of place given that Christmas was gone, but he wasn't going to cause drama over it.
The one inclined to wanting to cause drama instead appeared to be Alder, as one again he attempted to charm Cynthia, even reaching out to grab her arm, as she tried to wrestle out of his hold.
And in this moment he decided that he was not going to just watch, no one touched a woman on his watch, fellow Champion or not.
WIth a scowl he marched over where the two were bickering while the rest just didn't see a thing, or maybe just decided to ignore a woman in distress, and with a firm hold he grabbed the hand holding Cynthia's arm.
"Excuse me, I believe she refused your offer." he spoke with a calm yet cold tone.
But it seemed that Alder had no intention of letting go. "Come on, it's just one little dance." he spoke with a tone laced with drunkness, and Steven could smell the wine from his breath from a mile away.
"She says no." he growled at him, losing his patience, reaching out with his hand for his Metagross' Pokeball.
He was going to force him to leave her alone, it didn't matter if it caused a scene or not. And from the corner of his eye he could spot Cynthia's free hand doing the same in reaching for her own Pokemon.
When it was enough it was enough.
Fortunately it seemed that his words were enough to convince Alder, as he finally let Cynthia's arm free.
Steven however wasn't done yet. "Do that again and I'll have Metagross launch you all the way back to Unova with a one way trip."
Alder held up his hands in defeat. "Okay, man there is no need to be so brutal."
It was all he said before leaving them, and most importantly Cynthia, finally in peace. But how dared Alder to accuse him of trying to be brutal, he could have just done so much worse, but he actually had some kind of decency here.
He was still glaring at Alder's back when he felt a gentle hand on his arm. "Thanks. I was so close to having Garchomp slice him to bits."
"I wasn't going to leave a lady in distress." he smiled, then noticed how she kept holding her arm, and frowned. "Did he hurt you?"
She sighed. "Let's say he wasn't too gentle."
"I'm sorry." he said, but she just shook her head at him.
"You came to my rescue, don't apologize."
There was a moment of silence, he wasn't too sure what to reply, she was right, but he could have still noticed and helped out sooner. That was his regret.
She broke the silence between them first.
"Want to take a breath of fresh air? I feel it'll do me good, want to join me?"
Again he hesitated, it was full winter and he knew how well a man like him, born and raised in the warm climate of Hoenn did when it was cold. The short answer was poorly, very poorly.
Still he couldn't bring himself to deny her request, it was getting rather stuffy inside anyways. He waited as she took a fuzzy black shawl from a couch she had left it on, and then headed outside with her.
Immediately he shivered as the cold air hit him, even though he was well dressed with a full suit, taking note at how she seemed unfazed from the bitter chills even with her arms mostly exposed. He doubted the piece of cloth around her shoulders did much to help, but he wasn't going to ask.
He couldn't help but admire her as she almost seemed to shine brightly in the dark of the night with that pure white dress of hers. He honestly couldn't recall when and if he had ever seen her wear anything else than black.
She shone like the moon in the sky.
Suddenly he was reminded how her last name meant "white moon", and in this very moment he thought it fit her perfectly.
He was so lost in watching her that he didn't notice he was shivering like a little leaf shaken from the wind until she pointed it out.
"Maybe this was not such a great idea." she took his hand in hers, taking note of how cold they felt.
Wordlessly he let himself be led back in, very much appreciating the warmer atmosphere more than before. Noticing the little show had ended, and that now most people just seemed to attempt slow dancing, as the music changed compared to how more lively it was before.
"So… about that dance…" Cynthia gently tugged at him, knowing exactly that she wanted him to join her, but he wasn't sure if he could handle a dance, not even one.
"I'm honestly not a good dancer, I'd probably just step on your feet." he admitted, then glanced at her arm, it didn't look too bad, but it was still red, and probably it would leave a bruise for a day or two.
"You've been hurt enough for today."
But she didn't look like she was convinced of his answer. "You'll be fine, it is just dancing." she took his hands again. "I'll guide you."
He was just about to refuse again, when he met the gaze of her pleading gray eye, and just like that his words died in his throat.
How could he say no?
She led him through the dance with patience and understanding, and he'd been extra careful not to step on her or to place his hands in wrong places, the last thing he wanted was for her to be uncomfortable.
In the end he found out that he wasn't that terrible of a dancer, at least to Cynthia's saying, he wasn't so sure, but he trusted her words.
He trusted her words enough to let her lead him through more than one song, when he didn't even want to have anything to do with a single one before.
And so, the night ended quicker than he expected, probably too quickly, given how he had been enjoying Cynthia's presence next to him, dancing or just simply talking. She was just pleasant to be around.
He'd been disappointed when it had been time to return each to their own region and duties, not knowing when they'd be seeing one another again.
His hand unconsciously touched his cheek where left the mark of her lipstick, when she left a small and soft kiss there, it was barely felt, but it was enough to make his cheeks heat up like he was a teen again.
It had been a thanks for helping her out and staying with her for the rest of the night, she claimed.
Perhaps he should probably try to take some dancing lessons for the next event…
He could even start looking forward to them.