Feeling Blue: V

For a few silent moments both trainers stood, looking down upon their fainted Pokemon. Blues blood had been pumping so fast, that he found himself sweating despite the bitter cold of the mountain. Without a word he returned his fallen fighter to its pokeball as did his rival. They hadn't won the battle, and yet they hadn't lost. The whole truth of the situation filled Blue with the most peculiar blend of emotions and before he could stop it, he found himself burst into laughter.

"You must be joking! Red what on earth was that! That was some of the sloppiest battling I have ever seen out of you! Not letting Lapras absorb Hydro Pump? Thinking Venasaur could out speed Alakazam? Your Pokemon are at crazy high levels, by all accounts I shouldn't have even come close to winning!" Blues laughter rang brightly in the snowy air. He didn't know why he found the situation to be so funny. A part of him felt cheated that Red hadn't battled him seriously, at least he didn't believe he had. Yet another part of him felt glad. As if all the years he had spent brooding over their last battle had melted away, slipping down the mountain with every K.O. that had passed during the match.

At last Blue managed to contain his giddiness. Red stood silently, his gaze having glazed over in a delude of thoughts. Blue began to approach his plateau once more.

"So, does this mean we get to share the mountain now? I won't lie If I'm moving in up here there's going to be some changes to this cold dump." joked Blue. He quickly found himself rushing forward though, when without warning Red collapsed to the ground. "Woah! Hey now Red? Red?! Are you alright?" Blue dropped to his knees, helping Red into a sitting position. As he did, Blue was finally able to see the sheer exhaustion that exuded from his rival. Dark bags lined his eyes, and his hands were cold to the touch. "Red… How long have you been out here?"

"… It's been a few days I guess."

"You guess?!" scolded Blue, digging through his bag for a stash of Yache berries he had brought up the mountain. "Here eat these, they will help." Red seemed hesitant for a moment before scarfing the berries down in a flash. The fruits powerful effects soon took, warming the young man's body from within. "Come on now, let's get you out of this weather," said Blue, hoisting his rival to his feet.

Three hours later Blue sat with his back pressed up against his Arcanine while a large roaring fire filled the cavern with crackling light. He had used up the last of his medicinal reserves to reinvigorate both his and Reds Pokemon. Working together they gathered a large supply of fire wood, as well as many berries and other tasty treats hidden on the nearby slopes down below. Unfortunately, it seemed that the intensity of their battle had caused an avalanche not to far down below the mountain, preventing the two trainers from departing as Blue had hoped. He wanted to get Red down as soon as possible, but now they had no choice but to wait.

A kettle sat over the flames, tea brewing within its belly. Blue hoped that a nice pot of hot tea would be just what his colleague would need when he awoke. Red had practically fainted when they had reached the cavern, and Blue was thankful that his rivals Pokemon were willing to listen to him while their trainer remained unconscious. It was clear to him now that Red hadn't slept or eaten anything in days. Blue had taken the liberty of lending his sleeping bag to the trainer who now lay sleeping next to the fire. His sleep was an envious one, and Blue couldn't help but smile at how cozy he looked.

"Thanks for the fire Arcanine," said Blue, enjoying the warmth upon his back from his Pokemons fur. As he leaned back further, he found his gaze wandering about the walls of the cave. The many strange Unown carvings seemed fresh, and he mused at their origin. Had Red put them there? Is that what he had been up to all these years? And if so why? What purpose did they serve? The whistling from the kettle broke this train of thoughts, and as Blue reached over to silence it he noticed Red stirring. "Geeze, and I thought Snorlax was the king of sleep around here," smiled Blue.

Red seemed confused at first, rubbing his eyes before looking around the room frantically.

"It's ok, its right here," said Blue while flashing Red's hat with his left hand. With a flick of the wrist he sent it spinning over to Red.

"…Thanks."

"Yeah sure thing," said Blue while pouring the first cup of tea. Despite the millions of questions that he knew he had logged away at some point in his head, he found himself struggling to speak.

"How long was I out for?"

"Not as long as you'd think. Two or three hours I suppose," said Blue, rising so that he could hand Red the warm tea. "Here drink that. I used most of the Yache berries I had left, along with some jasmine tea leaves your mom gave me to brew that."

"Thank you," said Red awkwardly as he took the cup. Blue noticed that he was avoiding eye contact.

"So then," said Blue as he sat back down next to Arcanine.

"So then…" repeated Red.

For a while the only sound that filled the cave was that of the fire cracking in the air.

"I uhm, love the Décor? Sure, let's go with that," said Blue, gesturing toward the walls. Reds eyes followed, until becoming fixed on the far western wall where they seemed to study some unseen thing.

"They aren't mine."

"Oh? That's funny. I never had heard of any Unown ruins here on the mountain. Talk about a discovery! Wait till I tell Gramps."

"You can't!" said Red abruptly, and as he did Blue noticed a look of fear pass over his eyes. Finally summoning the courage, Blue asked.

"Red… What's going on with you? Why are you here? What's this all about?"

"… Why do you care?" While the question annoyed Blue, he found himself unwilling to argue.

"You seem worried about it. Your mother, she said that something happened to you while you were out at the Sevii islands. She said it changed you, made you feel like you had to become stronger. Why? You are already the most powerful trainer in all of Kanto and Johto, heck I wouldn't even be surprised if your one of the strongest trainers in the entire world!" Red seemed hesitant to answer, holding his cup close to his chest and taking small sips of tea.

"Why are you here Blue."

"Well that's a stupid question. I'm here to bring you home!" Said Blue, feeling his old frustrations rising.

"Why are you here" repeated Red this time looking directly at Blue, His tan eyes filled with a deep and curious gaze. Blue found himself at a loss, unsure of what to say. He knew deep down what Red meant.

"Look. I know this might be hard to believe, but you must trust me when I say that battling you wasn't why I came up here. I swear to you!" Reds gaze remained firm, and blue felt his cheeks begin to turn red. "Why would I even want to battle with you! I lost to the Johto champ in case you hadn't heard. He took me down at the gym without a problem! Then I hear from Lance that you beat him up here on the mountain. Only a fool would think he stood a chance against someone stronger than the current champ!"

Blue hoped his words would reach Red, but the more he thought about it the more he doubted it. Nearly every time they had seen each other in the past three years, they had battled because of him. At first Blue was always the victor, but somewhere around Lavender Red began to grow in power in a way that Blue had never managed or understood. Red turned his attention to the fire, his face becoming unreadable. Normally, Blue would have grown annoyed at this, and yet instead he found himself almost pleading inside. He didn't just want to make Red understand, he had to.

"Your mom. She asked me to come here herself Red. She acts like she is strong but inside. Its killing her. Your being gone all the time, never being able to hear about you or what you're doing or if your even ok. It's hard on her. Even Gramps has been worried about you… I've been worried about you." Red stood, looking down at the sleeping bag still on the floor.

"I appreciate everyone's concerns, but I can't leave. Not yet, not until…" His voice trailed off as he walked over to the western wall, his eyes sweeping the circular patterns of Unown. "Not till I've earned the power that I need." Fresh confusion washed over Blue as he to stared curiously at the wall. Yet his attention didn't linger there, instead he found himself unable to stop staring at his old rival. He couldn't believe how much he had grown. He was just slightly above Blue in height now, and his face no longer looked like that of a kid. It was fierce, and yet still somehow kind. The old friend that Blue knew all too well was still in there somewhere. He stood up, walking over to stand next to Red.

"I… I'm sorry you know that, right? About everything." Red glanced over at Blue,

"Sorry?"

"Gramps was right. He told me that If I wanted to become stronger. If I wanted to be a better trainer that I had to come here. So, in a way, I guess I did come to become better than you." Blue shuffled his feat, unsure of where it was he was going with this. "But after seeing your mom, and after seeing you. I think… I'm starting to get it. Two years ago, Gramps told me I lost because I hadn't learned to care for my Pokemon properly. But, the more I think about it, the more I realize that it wasn't just Pokemon. It's everyone. I wanted to be a success so that Oak would feel like he had a worthy Grandson. So that I wasn't a disappointment to him like my dad was.

"Blue…"

"When Gramps started giving you all that special attention. I guess I became jealous. I was worried that he would replace me with you if I didn't go above and beyond his expectations. I never even stopped to think about how you felt. My dad just up and left Pallet, wanted nothing to do with my Grandpa or Pokemon. Somehow, I thought that made us the same, that you didn't deserve extra attention. But at least my dad is still alive. Your dad died, and I was such a lousy friend that I never even considered what that was like for you." Reds face softened a bit.

"I… I thought you didn't want to be friends anymore. I thought when I said I wanted to be a trainer someday too. That you felt I was copying you. It's funny, I never really dreamed I would become the champion. I was just excited to finally go out and see the world. See it all with my new friends…and with you."

"At least you took your time," laughed Blue softly, "I was in such a rush that sometimes it feels like I never even saw Kanto."

"You always were two steps ahead," Red said jokingly back.

The two stood in silence for a bit. Blue couldn't quite explain it, but he felt good. Better than he had in a long time. Like an old wound had finally managed to close.

"Look. Whatever it is that you are worried about. You don't have face it by yourself. This won't be like how it was with Giovani and Team Rocket. You're not alone this time. I want to help, whatever that means I need to do."

Red looked over, and Blue could see that same fear in his eyes once again.

"I was at the Tanoby Chambers when it happened. The Unown started acting bizarre, and then this man. He somehow just appeared out of nowhere. He had shadowy eyes and floated just above the ground. The Unown seemed to worship him, spinning around him in circles. He called himself Percival, and that he was very excited to meet me. He challenged me to a battle and…" Red seemed to become lost in the memory itself.

"What happened Red?"

"He was strong. Stronger than anything I've ever seen. We didn't stand a chance against him. After we lost, he said that we had to become stronger. That somewhere along my journey I had lost something important, and that to grow beyond we had to seek out The Power of Bonds. Somewhere on Mt. Silver, he said that I would find what I needed to become whole."

"Become whole? But why?"

"Someone is coming Blue. Someone even stronger than Percival. He didn't say who or when exactly. Only that soon, one with terrible power would awaken once more. That calamity would follow him across the world, and that if he wasn't stopped in his pursuits. Everything would be forever lost."

"That's why you're here then. You've been training nonstop to obtain this power?" Red's eyes grew watery as he placed a hand against the rune covered wall.

"Yet no matter how hard we try, nothing has been revealed to us. We are running out of time, but nothing I've done seems to work!"

The fire had died down by this point, and shadows had begun enveloping the cave. Blue felt fear twinge through his heart. The idea of a someone even stronger than Red was indeed a terrifying thought, and the idea of someone being stronger than that seemed impossible. But as he stared at his old Rival in the dying light, he felt a warmth course through his heart.

"Well then its settled. No matter who it is, when they come, or how strong they are. If they think they can take down two of Kanto's strongest Champs ever, they've got another thing coming!" smiled Blue. Red looked over confused.

"Two?" Blue laughed before turning to face Red fully.

"Two. You and I Red. Whenever this guy decides to show up. You won't have to face him alone. I'll be there, to offer whatever help I can. So what if you don't have some power this weirdo talked about. We are the youngest Champs in world history! Two prodigies working as one team. Nothing can stop us!" Red smiled, then without warning pulled Blue into a tight hug.

"I really have missed you," he said. Blue found himself at loss, but then smiled and began to hug back.

"Yeah… I've missed you too."

A great gust of air swept through the cavern, extinguishing the fire and plunging the two trainers into darkness. Arcanine stood, its fur bristling and its ears twitching this way and that.

"What's happening?" said Blue as the two friends separated. Yet his question was soon answered as lights began to fill the cave. Small, twinkling lights like the glimmering of stars. The letters upon the walls were lighting up one by one. They seemed to make strange patterns, lines that began to stretch across the walls heading towards the great circle. A hum filled the air as beeping sounds began sounding off all around in a chorus of odd sounds. As the circle of script lit up, a great beacon of light shot up from the small basin at its center. The two trainers were forced to shield their eyes as the light and noise grew to calamitous levels.

Then as quickly as it had come, everything went dark and quiet save for the sound of trickling water. Blue struggled to see as his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the cave once again.

"Arcanine, can you help us out please?" There was a woosh as the canine Pokemon re-lit the campfire bathing them once more in its orange glow.

"Look!" said Red pointing towards the wall. The once hollow basin was now overflowing with water, and as the trainers approached they noticed two shimmering stones that now lay in its depths. Carefully Red reached in, retrieving the first stone which he held up to the light. It was a small, smooth, marble like stone of rainbow. At its heart was a strange catseye symbol.

"What is that?" said Blue while marveling at the stone.

"I'm not sure," said Red, "but there is another one in the basin." As he reached in to retrieve this stone, his face furrowed. "It won't budge."

"What?" Blue stared down into the rippling water. Sure enough, there was another stone but try as he might Red could not remove it from its resting place.

"…Blue, why don't you give it a try?"

"Me? But why would I get a stone…" confused as he was, Blue could not deny that he felt the stone was almost calling out to him, and as his fingers grasped around it he felt a tingle of energy shoot up his arm. Without any effort, the stone came loose. Blue pulled it up from the pool, marveling at it.

"The power of Bonds…" said Red as he came to stand next to Blue, holding up his own stone so that the two glimmered together in the firelight. Then with a smile he wrapped his other arm around Blue, pulling him closer as he smiled. Blue smiled too, as he gazed at the glittering stones.

"I think we've both found what we were looking for."