~ Chapter 75 ~

Out of the Darkness and Into the Woods

"The crippling, chilling darkness of Mt. Coronet was a stark contrast to the blinding, blistering snow covered valleys and foothills of Northern Sinnoh. If it wasn't for the snow goggles we'd all have gone snowblind for a while after finally leaving that cave. The hardest part of the trek was the foothills. We had to be careful. The terrain changed elevation constantly, up and down hills, and because it was always covered in several feet of snow, we never knew how deep the crevices actually went. Several times we almost fell into a deep hole of soft snow that would've collapsed as soon as we stepped on it. Once time, Lucario did, not paying attention. It was his eyes that allowed us to get through there mostly unscathed. Then we reached the woods..."

It has been almost unworldly bright throughout the foothills of Northern Sinnoh.

The snow reflected the light as if the whole world was made of mirrors and light bulbs.

It was blinding.

The snow goggles helped.

And the reflection of the light off all the snow and ice helped warm the group a little—keeping moving helped more.

Regardless of the sun and the reflection, it was still well below freezing up here in this part of the region.

Then they reached the forest, and things got dark again immediately.

The tall, heavy branches coated in ice and snow blocked out a lot of the light. Things got colder down on the snowy forest floor.

The group had built a giant igloo, with a fire pit outside for cooking. The igloo in combination with the warm clothing the group was wearing would provide warmth.

They didn't want to risk the fire on the inside of the igloo, as the fire would have to provide heat at the same level and temperature as the ice would lose heat to the outside elements.

That was too much calculating and monitoring for their liking.

Jeremy and Niya volunteered, surprisingly, to cook the dinner together.

The woods were dark enough during the day, but the evening was approaching the wooded parts of Route 216 were even darker than the caves of Mt. Coronet.

There were dangerous Pokémon living in these parts, far more accustomed to the environment—specifically, hunting in this environment.

Lucario proved to be a good look out. Even when he was resting or sleeping he could sense anyone or anything approaching.

While Niya and Jeremy cooked—Jeremy was attemping to modernize his family's chicken recipe for this frozen climate and was having varying amounts of success—Sam and Alyssandra remained inside the igloo with their lanterns, sitting and talking.

They were discussing the happenings over the last couple weeks. From Iron Island, to the battle with Byron, to the scramble at Lake Valor.

"Your battle against Byron was…almost legendary," she smiled, "The closer you get to the league, the stronger your Pokémon get…I don't want to say the more desperate they get, but the less you're willing to leave to chance. The battles get faster, stronger; you're doing more damage to the field. You can see that every move is meant to put your opponent out of commission as soon as possible."

"That's how battles are at this level," explained Sam, "Apparently I've been told, anyway…at the Pokémon League, sometimes, you get one hit knock outs. They're the top of the top though, at that level of strength I can't imagine anything else."

"So your battles might not be that long against the Elite Four?" asked Alyssandra, "Or even Valentina?"

"Maybe…alternatively, my Pokémon might be evenly matched with there's, and at that point it's just a war of attrition," shrugged Sam, trying not to think about being defeated by the Elite Four in a few swift seconds.

Alyssandra started to shiver beneath her blanket.

Sam motioned for her to come closer, not thinking about anything except helping to keep his friend warm.

Alyssandra understood Sam's motioning, and came over to sit beside him. The two bundled up close together beneath the blanket, and Alyssandra snuggled in close, resting her head on his shoulder as he had when the two sat looking at the sunset on Route 218.

Sam's heart skipped a small beat, but he pushed those feelings down.

Since Iron Island, he had almost felt ashamed of his feelings for Alyssandra.

He had acted horribly, and immature. He was ready to kill people to stop Team Galactic, he had lied, and continued to lie after he promised he wouldn't, he had even beaten a grunt to a pulp.

It was almost as if he didn't deserve to like Alyssandra now, after how much he had disappointed her in the past few weeks.

"Sam?" asked Alyssandra, turning to look him in the eyes.

Sam grunted in response, afraid if he opened his mouth he'd squeak like a chew toy.

"Promise me something?" she started, "Promise me one day, after I've won a Grand Festival, and I've done what I wanted to do with Pokémon Contests, make me do a League Challenge with you?"

"With me?" he asked, squeaking like a mouse, his voice breaking.

Alyssandra thankfully ignored the less than dignified sound he made. "Yeah, people do that don't they?" she asked, "They'll challenge a Gym Leader and the Pokémon league together in double battle format."

"Yeah," nodded Sam, "My grandfather and Professor Rowan did that. And apparently, so did Palmer and Cynthia back when they—"

Sam stopped. He had said too much.

"When they what?" asked Alyssandra, prying for information.

"Nothing," said Sam, changing the subject, "I promise I'll make you do the League Challenge with me once you're ready. There are a lot of regions out there we can explore. Why the sudden interest in the League?"

Alyssandra shrugged. "Being a Pokémon Coordinator is fun, and there's something amazing about being beautifully dressed, you and your Pokémon, trying to be the most aesthetic pair up on that stage, both while showing off skills and battling," explained Alyssandra, "The level of skill and strategy is just like being in a Pokémon battle. But people don't take you seriously. They see you in a dress, and in make up, and they see you making battle look pretty, but because you're not fighting a Gym Leader or trying to challenge the Champion, they don't take you seriously."

"So you want to use the skills you have as a Coordinator in battle against members of the Pokémon League," concluded Sam.

"To prove a point to myself, and to others," added Alyssandra, "You can be pretty, and you can be aesthetic and look good, and still kick some serious ass."

"I never doubted that," laughed Sam, "I learned that the hard way when we were kids."

Alyssandra laughed so hard she snorted.

Sam couldn't help but laugh at that himself.

As the laughter died down, Alyssandra pressed the attack for information once more.

"Now tell me about Cynthia and Palmer," she stated, more demanding than asking.

Sam sighed. "Fine, but you keep this between us, okay? Palmer told me this in confidence."

"Cross my heart, hope to die," swore Alyssandra.

Sam screwed up his face in disbelief. "Really?"

"What?" demanded Alyssandra.

"When we were kids, Niya, Jeremy and I used to test how fast you could leak secrets to everyone," explained Sam, "Telephone, telegram, tell-a-lyss. That's what we used to say."

"What?!" demanded Alyssandra almost embarrassed, "Are you serious?"

"You used to have a big mouth," laughed Sam, "We knew the fastest way to get a rumour out was tell Alyssandra and make her promise to keep her mouth shut. Usually within the hour the word was out. It was like science."

Alyssandra's face was noticeably red. "Continue the story, I promise to keep my mouth shut."

Still smiling, Sam started to explain, though as he did the smile soon faded. "Well, you know that Palmer and Cynthia grew up as childhood friends in Twinleaf Town. When they started their Pokémon Journey, they met Professor Rowan and my grandfather in the middle of one of their typical rival battles at the Verity lakefront."

Alyssandra nodded.

"Palmer was soon taken as my grandfather's apprentice, while Cynthia was Professor Rowan's. They were mentored by them, and battled against each other and the Pokémon League in between meetings with their mentors. According to Rowan and my grandfather, Palmer was the better Trainer, but Cynthia's passions lay in Pokémon Breeding, and she was incredibly good at bringing out a Pokémon's best traits. It was said there were no Pokémon she couldn't train."

"They travelled for a year before challenging the Elite Four together. They were going for a dual Championship, where they would battle each other after winning to decide who became Sinnoh Champion. That was their dream…but the third Elite Four member, Bertha, brought their League Run to an end."

"The two were supposed to train together and come back and try again. But Palmer couldn't handle the loss, and ran off to to the Battle Zone. He spent three years training in the untamed wilds of Stark Mountain, bettering himself."

"What about Cynthia?" asked Sam.

"The two pledged their love to each other short before the Pokémon League," explained Sam, "But Palmer just suddenly up and left, disappearing without a word while he went to train. Cynthia was distraught. She spent three years worrying about him. The Battle Zone didn't have any human inhabitants at the time. It was terrifying then, more so than now."

"Did she forgive him when he returned?" asked Alyssandra.

Sam nodded. "She forgave him, understood, and the two rekindled their budding relationship and long-time friendship. The two made plans to return to the Elite Four…but Palmer wasn't satisfied with his level of strength. He felt he could get stronger, couldn't get the confidence to fight the League."

"Did he run off again?" asked Alyssandra.

Again, Sam nodded, with a heavy sigh. "My grandfather made an offer to Palmer, to come back to his home region with him and train with him. But this time, he told Cynthia, and though she was reluctant to let her love leave, she agreed, and spent her days training under Professor Rowan and studying Pokémon with Professor Oak."

"Palmer got stronger, and Cynthia entered into a budding career in Pokémon Research, looking to be a Pokémon Professor. She even helped Professor Oak develop the first Pokédex."

Alyssandra's eyes were wide. That was no small feat, to be sure. "So what happened next?"

"After three years, at seventeen years old, Palmer returned to Sinnoh and met up with Cynthia again. He came home because his mother died…his father had died long ago, but his mother was his last living parent. Cynthia and him grew closer as a result, and the two became betrothed. They planned their life together. They planned to go to Sinnoh University together and become Pokémon Professors; they would settle down and raise a family just like they'd planned for years."

"For a while…they were happy. They put in their applications…but Cynthia got in, and Palmer didn't. Something about this hit him hard, and he couldn't explain it, even to this day. Maybe it was the ghost of his past failures, his feelings of inadequacy, or the recent death of his mother, but Palmer disappeared again."

"What the damn hell?!" hissed Alyssandra, trying not to alert the others outside to the gossip she was hearing.

"I know. Palmer ran off to explore the world, train and get stronger," explained Sam, "He wasn't going to stop until he was the strongest Trainer out there."

"What did Cynthia do?" asked Alyssandra.

"She gave up," shrugged Sam, "She got tired of waiting around for Palmer to mature and gathered up her courage and her Pokémon and decided she would take on the Sinnoh League alone at the ripe age of twenty-three. Something in Cynthia changed that day according to Palmer; she surpassed him in battle skills. She beat the Elite Four and Jeremy's grandmother who was Champion, and took the title she'd eventually pass on to your sister."

"No wonder Cynthia was always there for the people of Sinnoh, even after she left the Pokémon League," added Alyssandra, "To be there like Palmer wasn't for her."

"That's what Palmer thinks as well," said Sam, "You know what happened next though. Palmer came back to Sinnoh, bought the Battle Zone with some loan money, and built Battle Frontier Franchises in Sinnoh, Hoenn and most recently, Johto. Cynthia and him don't really talk much anymore, and every time Palmer tries to hit on her to get in touch with her she brushes him off."

"Are they just supposed to spend the rest of their lives alone then?" asked Alyssandra.

"I don't know," shrugged Sam, "I don't know if I would forgive Palmer if I were Cynthia. But I'm not her, and I'm a different person."

"Depending on how sincere he was, and if he'd actually changed…" started Alyssandra, "And depending on who it was…I might forgive them. I'd had to really have them prove it to me though—I refuse to be taken advantage of and left again, you know?"

"Lyss, you'd kill a boy before he took advantage of you," snorted Sam, "You don't have to worry there."

"Not like I've ever even dated anyone," she shrugged in response.

"Never met the right guy?" asked Sam, genuinely curious, and not just out of his own interest.

"Not really," shrugged Alyssandra, looking over at the igloo wall, "I suppose he'll show up one day. Maybe he's already come into my life and I just don't know…or maybe I've sent him packing."

"You've sent a lot of boys packing," laughed Sam, "You turned down every guy in town."

"It wasn't every guy," Alyssandra protested, "But it felt like it some days. And how about you though?"

"What do you mean?" asked Sam, taken aback.

"You never dated anyone in school either," pointed out Alyssandra.

"I wasn't exactly chasing them off with a stick either though," corrected Sam, "Besides I just…"

"You what?" proded Alyssandra, looking for an answer. Her methods were not subtle.

Sam was pushed into a corner; he decied to lie, rather than expose his feelings accidentally. "I guess I just haven't met the right girl yet," lied Sam, "I haven't met anyone that I just…have clicked with properly. I was never really looking in school, or even in recent years."

"So you never liked anyone, once?" wondered Alyssandra, her eyes shone more than usual as she asked.

Sam shrugged. "Once, a long time ago," he grunted, "But, I was a kid, and that never works out."

Sam paused before throwing Alyssandra's question back at her. "What about you; was there someone in particular you were waiting for?"

To this day he hadn't know why he asked that question, but Sam would never get an answer—at least not today.

As soon as Alyssandra opened her mouth to respond, Jeremy and Niya cried out that food was ready, and would be in momentarily.

Alyssandra smiled, stood up, and walked over to where she was sitting before, taking her blanket with her. "We don't need them gossiping and making assumptions," she explained, "They tease us enough already as it is. We don't need to make it worse."

Sam's heart sunk a little, but he swallowed his hurt and was just thankful that Alyssandra was still his friend.

That was more important than having her by his side for the rest of his life.