"Where's Erika?!" Green shouted as she stormed across Celadon City Gym's main floor.
The older girl who had handed Green her badge rushed up to meet her, a scowl on her face.
"Lower your voice challenger! You have your badge, leave!" She shouted.
"Bullshit! Erika lost on purpose, where is she?!" Green took a step towards her.
"You-" The girl began.
"Denise, enough," Erika's voice came from above.
Both Green and Denise looked up. Above them, standing on the flat glass ceiling of the Gym's main room was Erika. The ceiling served as a greenhouse of sorts that Green hadn't even noticed until now. Erika peered down at them through a square opening in the centre of the ceiling. She tossed down a rope ladder and stepped away.
"Come, challenger, let's talk," Erika sighed.
Green pushed past Denise and marched down the path between the rows of lattice towards the dangling ladder. As Green began to climb she got a real sense of just how massive Celadon City Gym was, below her Denise was but a purple speck. However, despite vertigo, Green felt she continued to climb and refused to calm her furiously thumping heart. Once she was in the rooftop greenhouse Green found Erika sitting at a bench pruning potted, flowering plants. On the end of the bench was a portable healing machine with three pokéballs veiled in golden light. Green stormed across the glass floor.
"You lost that match on purpose!" Green shouted.
"Yes," Erika said as she gently put down her pruning clippers.
"Y-you, what? Why?" Green asked with a defeated look.
"Your Pokémon are hurt, heal them," Erika said.
Erika slid her healing machine down the bench towards Green. With a blank stare, Green blinked at the machine. She stepped past it towards Erika.
"You're mocking the whole Gym System!" Green's nostrils flared as she spoke.
"Calm down, challenger," Erika sighed as she turned on her stool to face her.
"No! Tell me why you threw," Green took a step forward.
Erika remained seated. She looked up at Green with a tired look.
"You have your badge don't you? Just take it, move on," She glanced down at Green's belt, "If you're looking for a challenge Janine can give you that."
"It's not about getting a challenge! You're a Gym Leader! You're meant to test my strength, to ensure that those who challenge the Elite Four deserve too," Green took another step forward.
She was but a few paces away from Erika now but even as she loomed over her, Erika's face made no change.
"You seem strong enough to me, you've trained your Pokémon well," Erika said.
"I shouldn't have won though. Primeape can barely control his fire punch and half my team is weak to yours!" Green rebutted.
"Yes. Still, they're well trained," Erika shrugged.
Green groaned.
"Just tell me why…"
Erika averted her gaze and a frown flickered across her hardened face.
"I don't owe you an explanation," Erika muttered.
"You do. You wasted my time. My Pokémon's time and tarnished the whole Gym system," Green said through clenched teeth.
Erika sighed and raised her eyes to meet Green's again.
"If I tell you, will you go?" She asked.
"Yes," Green folded her arms as she waited for her explanation.
Erika picked up her pruning clippers and held them out to Green.
"This, this is my passion. I don't want to be a Gym Leader," she gestured to the flowers, "I want to do botany," she gestured down to the rows of lattice, "I want to teach."
Green unfolded her arms. The scowl on Green's face faltered for a moment. It took a few seconds of baffled processing for Green to find her response.
"Then quit. Let someone else be Gym Leader."
"I can't," Erika turned to face her plant again.
Green stood there for a moment. She looked over her shoulder. She'd gotten what she wanted but for some strange reason, she felt compelled to stay.
"What?" Erika asked, "Do you want an apology too?"
Green said nothing. She unclipped Machoke's, Graveler's and Primeape's pokéballs and placed them in Erika's healing machine.
"Why can't you quit?" Green asked and sat down on the stool beside her.
Erika shot her a wary look.
"Why do you care so much about being tested?" Erika countered.
"I need to be strong," Green said.
"No one needs to be strong," Erika clipped a branch from the flower's stalk.
"Well I do," Green huffed.
Erika furrowed her brow and looked Green up and down.
"Why?"
"Why can't you quit?" Green shot back.
Erika glanced past Green, the same way she had looked past her during their battle. The look lingered before her focus suddenly snapped back to Green.
"This isn't my Gym, not really. It's my dad's, I need to be a Leader for him," Erika said, her voice softening.
"Your dad?"
Green remembered the old footage she'd seen of Celadon's gym battles.
"You mean the old guy with a cane?" Green asked.
Erika nodded.
"Well, where is he?" Green asked.
"He's dead," Erika said.
Before Green could even process that answer, Erika continued.
"I've got no siblings, so the gym is my responsibility."
A horrible silence followed. Erika turned her attention back to her plant as Green stared blankly at her. Perhaps she'd taken this too far, all the outage and fury had been replaced by a pang of guilt that weighed on Green like a mound of bricks. Still, despite that, she just couldn't drop the issue. Her next words came slowly, each one carefully considered.
"You don't need to run the place just cause your dad did… You don't inherent gym titles."
"And you don't need to be a strong Pokémon trainer. Yet, here you are," Erika said without looking at her.
"I do need to," Green insisted although without as much gusto as before.
Green shuffled her feet.
"My brother was the best there ever was. If I'm anything below perfect, I'll always just be his less talented younger sister to the world."
Erika looked at her and raised an eyebrow.
"If you care that much, why are you only here now? You can start the Gym Challenge when you're eight," Erika asked.
"Because I promised my mother I'd wait 'till I was eighteen. She was scared she'd lose another child," Green said.
Erika put down her pruning clippers and gave Green a sad look. She scooted her stool closer to Green's.
"I've been training for this," Erika gestured to the gym, "for my whole life. Since I could walk, I've had a pokéball in my hand. I promised my dad I'd take over this place, so I did. He was scared of losing his legacy, so I maintain it," Erika said.
Green swallowed her pride and gave a reluctant nod.
"That… makes sense. Sorry for the way I spoke to you, I was out of line," Green said.
"Thank you for understanding," Erika said with a sweet, warm smile.
Erika placed her hand on Green's knee.
"I'm sorry for throwing your fight."
Green's face grew warm and gained a smile to match Erika's.
"I, uh. I didn't mean to like make you um… relive your trauma or anything. I'm sorry if I did, I didn't-" Green began to ramble.
"It's okay. It felt good to talk about it actually. These lot," Erika gestured down to the ground floor, "they either treat me like a teacher or as a boss, so having someone to talk to like a friend was a nice change of pace. Even if we're technically strangers."
Suddenly, the healing machine chimed, shattering the tension. Erika got up, removed a pokéball from the machine and released it. Tangrowth appeared before her. The blue vines of his body formed two arms and stretched out above him as he let out a yawn. Erika's face totally transformed at the sight of him. Her eyes lit up with vivid vibrant that radiated pure, innocent glee.
"Feeling better?" She asked with a soft giggle.
"Growth…" Tangrowth groaned lazily.
His weary eyes widened as they met Green's. Green flinched, unsure of what to expect.
"Growth!" He exclaimed cheerily and waddled over to her.
"Careful! He likes hugs!" Erika warned with a laugh.
Sure enough, Tangrowth wrapped his vines around Green's waist and hoisted her off her stool. She gasped as she was pressed against his mass of vines. It felt squishy as if she were being hugged by a sponge. Green sputtered as she pulled her face out of the vines.
"Nice to meet you too buddy!" She laughed.
Tangrowth set Green down on her feet and his eyes closed in what Green assumed was a smile. Erika rushed up to her, giggling madly.
"Sorry about that, he's just… very physical," Erika said.
Erika looked up at Tangrowth with a look all too familiar to Green.
"No it's alright, I get it," Green said before stepping past them and retrieving her pokéballs from the machine.
Green returned Primeape and Graveler to her belt but decided to release Machoke. He appeared with a flash and looked around with a baffled look at the new environment. It didn't help his confusion when he turned around and saw Tangrowth and Erika. For the first time since he evolved, Green saw Machoke actually have to look up at someone when facing Tangrowth. Tangrowth's eyes widened.
"Growth!" He exclaimed and began waddling towards Machoke, arms outstretched.
Machoke took a step back, eyes wide too but calmed as Green placed a hand on his arm.
"It's okay," She giggled.
Before Machoke could respond, Tangrowth grasped his waist and hoisted Machoke off his feet with such ease it almost made Machoke look light. Machoke laughed as he was hugged and gave Tangrowth a hug back. The pokémon squeezed each other tightly for a moment before Tangrowth set Machoke back down. Erika laughed and Green did the same. Again, she had no reason to stay. She'd gotten her badge, Erika's reason and even an apology but still she stayed.
"Can you show me how to do that?" Green asked, pointing the lattice rows below.
The question surprised Green.
"What? I don't want to do that?" She thought, bewildered at herself.
But still, when Erika's eyes lit up again and Green saw the first hint of passion from her since they'd met, Green couldn't help but follow her to the ladder. Machoke went first, opting to just fall down rather than climb. He landed with a thunderous crash on both feet and walked away like it was nothing. Tangrowth followed, he coiled his vines around a support beam above and lowered himself down. While it was all undeniably fascinating to watch, Green found her eyes wandering back to Erika. Back to her shoulder-length, black hair, the bangs that were just a tad too long and the persisting gentle expression on her face. A face that was practically inviting her to admire. Green gave a shake of her head, trying to snap out of it.
"God, what's wrong with me? We just talked about death and stuff. This is not the time to be horny." Green thought.
"Green? Are you listening?" Erika asked from the rope ladder.
"Huh, what? Oh, no sorry, I didn't hear you," Green stammered.
"I asked if you've ever done flower weaving before?" Erika said.
"No, I haven't."
"Great! I can show you the basics then," Erika began to climb down.
Green followed after her and before long they both joined their pokémon on the ground. Tangrowth and Machoke were chatting to each other in their pokémon languages, seemingly enjoying whatever their conversation was about. They both glanced at Green and Erika and chuckled before resuming their talk. Erika stuck out a hand to Green.
"Come on, let's get started," Erika said.
Green took her hand and her face warmed as she felt Erika's small hand clasped around hers. Erika led her over to one of the stations and let go of her hand. She pulled down a bundle of vines and handed them to Green. Then, she got her own as well as a pair of pruning clippers laid out before them on the station's waist-height desk.
"So, start by clipping up the vines into small lengths. We're going to use these to form our foundation," She explained and began clipping.
Green followed along but found she was only half-listening to Erika's instructions as she again couldn't help but gaze at her. She'd pay attention and follow the instruction only to find her eyes gazing at the purple sash tied around the waist of Erika's red kimono. Up close, Green could see how it squeezed her body. How it ever so slightly showed off the curve of Erika's hip and gave a roundness to her bust. Green dragged her eyes away, just in time too as Erika's eyes moved sidewards to meet hers.
"Are you having trouble with the knot?" Erika asked.
Green looked down at the loop she'd made from tying the lengths of vines together.
"Nope, I've got it!" Green laughed awkwardly and fastened the last knot, completing the loop.
"Nice looks good!" Erika said with a smile.
Green looked at Erika's loop. It was so neat, each knot was perfectly tied with no loose ends, almost blending in seamlessly with vines. While Green's were large and clumpy, with dangly bits hanging off. Erika waved Tangrowth over.
"Flower weaving is a collaboration. So since you don't have a grass type on you, you can let Tangrowth complete yours too," Erika held up her loop to Tangrowth.
Green copied her and Tangrowth took both their loops. He comperes his arms so they were thin enough to fit through the loops. The tips of his vine-arms pulsed green and flowers bloomed all along the length of both loops. The plain, green loops became jam-packed with colourful flowers of different sizes and shapes. Although, clearly not random. Erika's was populated by reds, pinks and yellows. While Green's was made of light blues, orange and white. Despite her ugly knots, Tangrowth had still managed to make hers look absolutely beautiful. Green turned to present it to Erika but as she did, Machoke came up behind her and rested his chin on top of her head, peering down at the flowers.
"Choke," He marvelled and placed his hands on Green's stomach.
Green's heart practically jumped out of her throat from the sudden rush of fear. Her eyes widened and snapped to watch Erika. Thankfully, she was still admiring her flowers. Before Erika's eyes left the flowers Machoke must have realised his mistake as he quickly pulled his hands away and took a step back. However, Tangrowth had seen. But he hadn't given any reaction. Green's face was burning hotter than ever.
"He's really good at that," Green blurted out.
Erika glanced at her, then Tangrowth. She smiled and shrugged.
"Years and years of practice," Erika said.
"Years, you must have been partners for a while then?" Green asked.
"Since we were both young. I got him as an egg from my dad when… well I was too little. I don't remember how young. He was my first Pokémon," Erika placed the flowers on her head and gestured to Machoke, "like you and him."
It took all of Green's strength to not stare at how cute the flower crown looked on Erika.
"How'd you know that?" Green asked, doing the same with her flowers.
"It's obvious, you clearly have a really special bond," Erika said.
Erika's eyes glanced down at Green's belt and she giggled. Green didn't have to follow her eyes to know where she just looked. Instinctively, she moved her hand onto her pink pokéball badge. Which only made Erika giggle again.
"Fuck, what does that mean? Is she one too? Is she into me? Oh god…" As Green's mind raced she began to feel nauseous from all the anxiety, "I thought I'd gotten over this," She complained.
As far as Green could tell, Erika didn't have a pink badge of her own. But then again, she didn't have any badges and Green knew Gym Leaders had to have all eight badges of their region. Green's mind spun trying to figure out her next move until suddenly she noticed the flower clipped in Erika's hair. It had four large fan-like petals. Two were pink. Two were white. The bud was black.
"No way… fuck but now what? Do I just ask? No. That'd be weird," She thought as she raised her hand and pointed at the flower.
"Is that…?" Green started in a small voice.
Surprisingly, Erika's face flushed and she chewed the inside of her mouth.
"Yeah, it is," She whispered.
At the same time, both Green and Erika looked turned their heads to look up and down the rows of the lattice. When their eyes came back to meet each other and they noticed their synced movements, they both began to giggle.
"So, you and him?" Green asked quietly and made a small gesture towards Tangrowth.
Erika raised a robed hand to her mouth and giggled. Her face went bright red as she nodded. That nod made Green breathe a sharp sigh of relief. The stress binding her chest gave way, not entirely but enough for Green's mind to calm. Her demeanour wasn't the only one to change. She heard Machoke and Tangrowth chuckle amongst themselves. The sort of chuckle Green was all too familiar with. The deep kind, the kind that lingered, the kind that dripped with hunger. Erika spoke with a tiny voice.
"S-So, you and him?" She asked, lifting her slightly to point at Machoke.
As she did, Tangrowth moved towards her and put his vine arm around her waist. Erika squeaked at his touch. Machoke moved too, came up behind Green and placed his hands back on her stomach. Green and Erika shrunk back as nervous grins spread across their face. For a moment, things seemed to freeze as Green and Erika, and Machoke and Tangrowth gazed across at one another. That was until Green remembered Brock's advice.
"If they're looking at you like that…" Brock's voice echoed.
"They're into you," Green's thoughts finished.
Despite knowing what to do, Green still struggled with the words.
"Do you uh, want to-" The words caught in her throat.
Erika cocked her head, then her eyes widened and for half a heartbeat Green felt like a complete idiot. That was until Erika gave a small flustered nod. Green's heart fluttered in her chest and only got worse as Erika's eyes fell to look at her breasts. She went to look at Erika when suddenly the world was pulled away from her as Machoke hoisted her off her feet. He threw Green over his shoulder and began carrying her away. Erika let out a gasp and laugh, Green assumed Tangrowth must have done the same. Green had no idea where they were taking them, but, she knew full well what was going to happen when they arrived.