I do not own Pokemon.
Chapter 6: Of Ice Cream and Blushes
"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Channel 5 Johto News..."
All the televisions were turned to this channel. The Johto news scene had gone berserk after the Ecruteak Contest and its terrible conclusion, but now, there were new developments. The Ecruteak Contest Hall was simply no longer there: All that remained was a large, charred piece of earth. That morning, word had spread that the Violet City hall had been destroyed also: the channel was split screened often. The focus now was on Ecruteak.
"Last night, at 9:32 PM, the Ecruteak Contest Hall was set on fire." The reporter turned to Officer Jenny, who looked disheveled and fatigued. "Can you give us any details?" The reporter handed Jenny a microphone.
"Yes." Jenny answered with a heavy voice, taking the microphone. "As you said, last night, at precisely 9:32 PM there was a report of a massive, sudden fire that shook the contest hall. Firefighters reported to the scene, but the blaze had already cleared the roof, and the entire building was in flames. A witness at the scene reported seeing an attack similar to a Blast Burn as the fire spread. Later this morning, at around 5:05 AM, there was another report in Violet City of a similar incident happening there."
The reporter frowned. "Are there any suspects at this time?"
"A surveillance camera on another building in Violet City captured a picture of our subject. He is a young, eighteen year old male with long blue hair." The screen flashed to that of a picture. In it, the young man was grinning, a look of instability in his eyes. "His given name is Raolin Dhyme, and he was last seen west, towards the National Park, and the site of Johto's Grand Festival. Be warned, his Blaziken is very, very dangerous, and he will use force. We are asking all citizens to be on the lookout, and to avoid him at all costs, and call the police. As a precautionary measure, taking effect in 24 hours, all Contests in the Johto Region will be cancelled until further notice."
The reporter put on a look of shock.
"I-Is there any reason t-to go that far in dealing with this...problem?" she asked.
"Our suspect has made it pretty clear by his past actions that he plans on eliminating the entire Contest scene." Jenny responded. "During the last contest battle, people noticed a significant change in the suspect's manner as the coordinator from Slateport battled him, taking his aggression to higher levels than even seen with the young coordinator from Petalburg. We believe that because of that battle, he has decided to take a more direct approach. However, he may simply be going in the direction of the National Park to throw us off."
"I see. Well, folks, there you have it. All contests cancelled, and it is this reporter's opinion-"
The television snapped off. A figure, tall, but with blue hair, began to make his way out of the hotel room. He was grinning terribly, and his eyes glowed with a sinister pleasure.
It beginss now. And now...to Ssinnoh...
Hearthome City. This was originally supposed to be where Dawn participated in her next contest, but now, it was simply a place to rest and restock. The path from the Pokemon Center and Motel, while it had been considerably easier than the nightmare beforeit still left them the worse for wear. Comparing it, even remembering the rainstorm and the mudslide made her ill. If Ash EVER makes me go through that again, my heel will chat with his chin! But this wasn't the time to consider that. They were finally in real civilization, and better yet, they could finally go shoppingDawn needed to find some new outfits and accessories to use during her contests. Buneary also needed her fur trimmed, and, I can put phase one of my plan into action.
"Excuse me, May?" She asked suddenly.
May turned to her.She was smiling somewhat thoughtfully. She's in a good mood...perfect!
"Do you wanna go shopping? We can pick out some new clothes." Dawn smiled at her.
"Wait, you two." Brock said, interrupting. Dawn stopped and stared at him rancidly. "We need to find the Pokemon Center before we go running off."
Dawn slapped her forehead. Ash chuckled, and May let out a small giggle.Hearthome was a fairly good sized city, and getting lost would likely turn out unpleasant.
After finding the Center, May had agreed to go shopping. Ash had gone with Pikachu to look for a place to eat, and Brock had chosen to do the laundry. After all that trauma with Raolin and Eevee, she felt like she hadn't shopped in forever. Dawn is so energetic. I wonder just what kind of outfits she will pick. She had also brought Buneary along outside her Pokeball. Buneary hopped and skipped happily alongside them, occasionally looking at May and giggling. For an odd reason, this made her a little uncomfortable. Despite that, May couldn't get over just how cute it was. I really need to catch one for myself. That fur perfectly matches...Eevee's.
That reminded her. She needed to call her parents and Max to ask how Eevee was doing. She didn't want to worry her friends, however, and decided to wait. She had only told Ash, and Ash had been good about keeping his mouth shut on the matter, something that she found very strange. Ash had been known to let his tongue get the better of him sometimes.
"So? What do you think?"
Bringing herself back to reality, she found that Dawn had on a rather exquisite looking green dress. The hem was wide and stopped just below her knees. She wore a green ribbon in her hair. She did a small twirl and curtsied. Buneary clapped with approval. "Bun, Buneary!" she squealed happily.
"I think it looks pretty good!" She said. "But it looks expensive."
Dawn let loose a large sigh."That's the problem. It's too expensive." She sighed again dejectedly Buneary matched her sigh, and Dawn disappeared behind the curtain and put her old outfit back on. "All the outfits here are too expensive." She said.
May nodded, somewhat disappointed. She had seen a dress that was an exact replica of the dress she had worn at Cameron Castle's festival dance, but the price tag was exorbitant. There was no way she was affording that. Even if I was a good coordinator... May hung her head. Cameron Castle brought back some great memories. Ash had risked life and limb to get Pikachu back. He was always so determined, and always so fiercely loyal to his friends. And yet...I had to go and leave him. She let loose a deep sigh. I don't deserve him as a friend.
Dawn came out of the dressing room. She saw that May was looking depressed again. This wasn't good. It might ruin her plans.
"I've an idea." She said suddenly. May blinked and looked at her. "Why don't we go for some ice cream? We can afford that at least."
"But...what about eating lunch?" May asked.
"No need to worry." She said, winking. "It's not like we're gonna get fat because of one sweet meal."
May simply shrugged.
After getting themselves a pair of cones, Dawn took them to a grooming shop in town to get Buneary's fur trimmed. Buneary had been bouncing excitedly at this, and kept blushing at the thought of Pikachu admiring her newly trimmed fur. At the grooming shop, she was in an ocean of bliss as the stylist washed her and snipped at small pieces of her fluff. Dawn and May were watching her being groomed as they finished off the last bits of ice cream. May was back into her more happy mood. As she swallowed the last piece of the delicious cone, Dawn saw her opportunity. No one else was in the grooming shop, and the stylist had no other appointments planned for that day, so they were alone.
"So...Ash has told me all about you and your travels with him." She said. May was working down her cone, but stopped abruptly at Ash's name, her posture shifting. Dawn grinned at her.
"He...He has?" May asked.
"Yes, he has. But..." Dawn smiled broadly now. Small, pink blushes were forming on May's face. "But I'd like to hear your side of the story. Tell me more about Ash. He doesn't really talk about himself that often."
"Ok then." She said.
As Dawn thought, May's stories closely mirrored the ones that Ash had about her. They focused a lot on Ash and just how impressive he was, and just how closely bonded he was with his Pokemon. She recounted their first meetings, how he taught her through her first capture, how he would console her when she lost a contest, and how he would go to any lengths to protect his friends. She spoke of Lucario, of the battle with Team Aqua and Team Magma, how he would constantly thwart Team Rocket and their pseudo-villainous schemes. She then spoke of Manaphy and the Sea Temple, how she felt when she believed Ash to be dead. Her cheeks were almost glowing pink now. Dawn giggled internally again.
"-and so after he and I battled in that unofficial contest...I...left."
"Wow...the two of you have been through a lot." Dawn said.
"Yeah...I suppose we have." May replied, looking at the floor.
Dawn smiled. Time to go for it!
"You know," she said. "I've noticed Pikachu hanging around you a lot recently. Always close, always cuddling, and sometimes even sleeping next to you."
May blinked. Now that she mentioned it, Pikachu had been giving her a lot of attention. Attention that she welcomed gladly. But she simply attributed to Pikachu missing her a lot.
"And," Dawn said, a small ring in her voice. "And, they say that Pokemon and their trainers share the same feelings."
May went from pink to scarlet. "W-Wait, what?"
"Just as I said. I've heard that Pokemon tend to share the same feelings as their trainers. And looking at you..." She leaned in a bit closer to her. "I know you feel the same way."
If possible, May went even redder. "Wait, what makes y-you think that?" she asked.
"Oh please. A Zubat can see it all over you. Look at the way you've been describing Ash. You may deny it, or maybe not even know it, but you are falling in love with him." Dawn was smiling very, very broadly now. "And I'm fairly certain, that Ash is falling for you."
May stared at Dawn.
"No...Ash wouldn't want...me." She said. "I went and left him. I'm a terrible friend, and I'm a terrible coordinator. I don't deserve...to be with him."
Dawn winked at her, smiling at her unspoken confession. "No need to worry. Look at yourself. You're very pretty. You're a kind person. You're also a better coordinator than I am right now." She smiled. "I think you're a good match."
May hid her face. Any more blood rushing to her face would result in a bursting artery. Dawn put a hand on her shoulder.
"No need to worry, May." May mumbled something incoherent.
At that moment, the stylist called Dawn over. Buneary was ready. After paying, she began to quietly leave the store. Before opening the door, she turned to May.
"I'll leave you alone for a bit. I'm going to go and help Brock do the laundry. Ok? See you later."
After leaving the store, Buneary wriggled happily in her arm and spoke."Bun, Buneary bun?" She asked. ("Did it go well?")
Dawn smiled. "Yep...we're done with Step One. Now, can I count on you and Pikachu for step two?"