Natalie groggily stumbled out of her bed, trying to find where she tossed her phone at. It was ringing horribly and she couldn't find it. Her espeon growled and hid under the blankets while she heard her houndoom run down the hallway, it's claws making tapping noises against the floors.
"Baby, hold on." She grumbled to the dog pokemon, who bounded into her room. He jumped on the bed, causing espeon to hiss, and barked.
"Good morning!" Lily was now in the doorwell. Natalie quickly kicked her bag with her uniform in it underneath her bed and found her phone somehow under her nightstand. "When did you go to bed?" She questioned, looking at the dark circles under the blonde's eyes.
"Late." Was her reply as she checked the miss call. It was Tabitha. She tossed the phone back on the bed, planning to call him back later. She was still in a foul mood, but she looked to Lily with a small smile. "Good morning." She couldn't be mean towards the girl. She was a ball of sun and happiness, and right now, Nate's only friend.
"Breakfast is ready!" Lily cheered and left so Natalie could start her morning routine and get dressed. Once she was done, she went to the kitchen, espeon and houndoom on her heels. They went straight to their food, where Lily's leafeon and glaceon were already eating. Her mother's swablu flew around, tweeting happily while her ninetails watched it carefully.
"So I was thinking we go to Lilycove for the weekend!" Her mother was so loud in the morning. Natalie could barely function in the morning, while Lily and her mother were absolutely morning people. Natalie was usually vocal about these trips. The past few years hadn't even easy between the two and Natalie hated contests and coordinating, which was everything her mother loved.
"Sounds cool to me." Natalie said, surprising her mother and herself as she ate a biscuit. She didn't want to fight with her mother anymore, she wanted her to be happy. The woman never asked much of Natalie. "Is there a contest thingy going on?" She would have to call out of work too.
"Yes!" Her mother began to speak and Natalie, while wanting to be happy for her mom, tuned her out. Lily quickly stepped in to carry on the conversation, as she knew Natalie could barely hold conversations this early.
Natalie started to think about how angry Tabitha would be with her. She hated him to be angry, but she didn't care too much anymore. She started to think she was becoming more like Courtney. Things just weren't fun anymore and she wanted to be free.
Maybe she was falling out of love with Tabitha? It felt absolutely awful. Being in love was awful too.
"What…." Natalie forgot that Lilycove was a beach city. It was bright and the ocean was so blue, it made her a little disgusted. Her mother was quick to take them by the hotel, drop their things off, and force them into the department store. Her mother was going out later with her friend that lived in the city, so Natalie let the woman drag her around the store. Plus, her mother was buying Natalie every book Natalie wanted so she wasn't going to complain one bit.
Soon though her mother was tired of shopping, so they had lunch and she dropped them off at the hotel to go out with her friend. Lily, of course, wanted to go to the beach, and that's where they currently were.
Natalie was hidden under an umbrella while Lily played with her leafeon and glaceon. Natalie's espeon was asleep in the sun, content with life.
"Yooooo! What are you doin' here?"
And now Nate's day was ruined.
"What do you want?" She growled, glancing at Cassius. He wasn't supposed to be here, ruining her vacation.
"Nothing. Just saw you and thought I'd say hey." He plopped down next to her and Nate groaned loudly. She sat up now, noticing Leighton was off in the water with her piplup. Natalie felt slightly anxious, but when she glanced to Cassius, it disappeared. The idiot wasn't that threatening, to her, anyway, and he wouldn't pull something on this crowded beach. "Whats up? Why are you here?"
"Mother." She said and he nodded his head. She saw two males join Leighton and she tensed up. Lily was down there alone with them, and the other two could easily be Team Aqua grunts.
"They aren't in the gang." Cassius murmured, seeing her body tense up. "I honestly don't think they even know what we do. Leighton sure as hell didn't when she joined. That reminds me, I know you hate me, but, if you ever get stuck fighting Leighton or anything, go easy on please."
"Why should I?"
"She has no clue what she's doing. She's more of a socialite, not a criminal like us." He shrugged, looking at her. "I'm trying to get her to leave, but, her friends want to stay here a little longer. She can't quit the gang unless she leaves the region. It would be helpful if I knew someone on the opposing side didn't want to destroy her the second I take my eyes off of her. Watching her back and mine is getting more difficult."
Natalie could relate. That's how she felt with Lily and her mother. "Understood." She said, looking at the group. Lily was now talking to Leighton about her vaporeon and the two seemed to be getting along well.
The two sat like this, in silence and watching their friends. It felt odd to sit here next to her enemy, but, he wasn't really her enemy right?
"I saved their asses when they got lost in the desert." Natalie said, noticing Mikhail and Jordan looked familiar. Cassius busted out laughing at this surprisingly Natalie.
"Those two are kind of assholes. Jordan is Leighton's boyfriend, and Mikhail is the best friend that has a crush on Jordan and hates Leighton." Cassius told her and she raised her eyebrows.
"Seems like a tad problem." She replied, watching them. "I feel bad for Leighton. She can't help it that Jordan likes her and she likes him back. Seems Mikhail needs to move own and try to get over it."
"That's what I think but the kid hates me." He shrugged and Natalie looked at him. "Okay I'm only like, maybe six months older than him but the guy is such a kid sometimes. He's a total hot head."
"And you aren't?" Natalie questioned.
"You're more of a hot head than me. What I mean is that he just ignores me and gets angry at the little things I do. 'Cassius knocked too hard on the door this morning' or 'Cassius got blood on the couch'." He mimicked. "Not my fault Jordan is the perfect nurse for all work related injuries, especially when all the Aqua doctors are off duty."
"You should try to be more careful. Who shall I fight if you are out with an injury?" Natalie questioned, smirking a bit. Cassius' face lit up, happy the blonde female finally made a joke.
"I'd come to battle you, Lady Natalie. You are fierce opponent." He pet Espeon, who just began to purr. "You two sure put up a fight against my boy and I." He glanced at his umbreon and back to Natalie. "If your mom doesn't take up too much of your time this weekend, we should definitely hang out."
"Okay." Natalie said, not even thinking before she answered. He was shocked, and so was she. Maybe this was her body's way of telling her to stop over analyzing, that maybe, just maybe, this boy was serious about getting away. Serious about taking her away to a far better place.
"Natalie!" Natalie regretted answering her phone the next night. They had gone out, she, Cassius, and the others, and were now on the beach, walking along it. Her phone kept going off, and she didn't want to answer it, but she had to.
"Yes, sir?" She asked and Cassius made a face, realizing who it was.
"Where are you?"
"I called in for this entire weekend, sir. I had to go out of town with my mother." It was actually pissing her off that he was questioning her. He knew she called out. Why was his further harassing her? "Sir I'm very sorry but I have to go." She hung up quickly, sighing. "I just don't understand."
"Why he has such a huge stick up his ass?" Cassius questioned, glancing to the others that were just a little ways ahead of them.
"Basically, yes." She muttered, her mood ruined. She wanted to tell Cassius everything, but she couldn't, could she? That wouldn't be wise, but being on a beach at night with him wasn't either, yet here she was. "It's just been weird lately."
"Bored of it all?" He questioned and she nodded her head. "Look, I know we haven't known each other long and I know you're on Magma's side….but it is nice to find someone who knows the struggle. It seems you're just coming out of the depths, ya know? The 'I love this team' part and into the 'what am I doing here? This isn't what I want' sort of thing."
Cassius made so much sense there, and Natalie found herself nodding her head.
"Like this is fucking weird for you, isn't it? To be this relaxed with the enemy? I think it's because we get each other. We know the pains that these teams bring us. I might be further along than you on this path, but you want out too, right?"
"I'm starting too." She sighed as Mikhail glanced back to them, glaring at Cassius who smiled at him. "Wow he does hate you."
"Yeah. He does." Cassius frowned. "I could tell over the years that it was getting to you. Our battles lately have been less forceful and fierce." He admitted. "That's why I was happy we got lost together in that cave. I wanted to talk to you. I just needed someone who understood."
"I do." She nodded her head, looking to Lily. "I got to think about my future. There's no way they'll get away with their idiotic schemes. That…child…is ruining all of our plans." Natalie began to speak of this teenager that was quickly foiling every mission. "They will team up with the gym leaders and elite four and ruin us. I don't want to be here for that."
"My offer for sailing around the world still stands." He told her, smiling.
"Sail with you? Psh, you'll sink us." She scoffed, shaking her head.
"He can barely keep himself alive. No way he'll keep both of you alive." Mikhail muttered, over hearing them. "Every night it's a different wound. You'll kill yourself one day."
"It won't be I doing the killing, but the dying." He said with a shrug. "Even then I'll be free from this confining hell."
"You're so over dramatic." Mikhail muttered with an eye roll.
"Like you're one to talk." Natalie shot back, hands on her hips. "You just mope about like a kicked poochyena, yet ya don't do anything to better your situation."
"My situation?"
"Yeah, your situation." She repeated sternly, glancing over to Leighton and Jordan.
"Let's fight, ya old hag!"
"I'm not even much older than you!" Natalie exclaimed. "Fine!"
Mikhail sent out his vulpix, who yelped, while Natalie glanced at her belt of pokeballs, deciding which one would be best. "Flygon, let's go!" She shouted, sending out the pokemon.
"This is what happens when two hot heads are put together." Leighton murmured, watching the two battle it out. "What happened?"
"Natalie is defending my honor." Cassius said, mouth open. "He was being a little shit, and she went after him."
"Natalie is very protective." Lily spoke, nodding her head. "She's such a kind hearted girl. She just is…awkward I suppose. She took me in when all my money was stolen. Gave me a place to live and food to eat while I rebuild my money so I head back home, or back to my parents."
"That is very nice of her." Leighton said. "What cash are you short on? I'll cover it!"
"O-oh no, I couldn't take your money! I'd feel horrible!"
"Wanna battle for it?!"
"N-No thank you!" Lily shook her head. She did enjoy to battle, but only at certain times.
A strong sandstorm from Flygon ended the battle in Natalie's favor, earning a smirk from the girl. "Whose an old hag now, little boy?" She asked, returning her flygon to it's pokeball. "Next time think before you speak, or I'll crush you harder."
Mikhail just returned his vulpix to his ball and muttered under his breath angrily.
He stayed quiet for the rest of the night, not in the mood to be crushed by Natalie once more.
