Chapter Twenty-Three: The Cathedral

*Author Note - Hey. We would like to give our big thanks to CallinConnor. It truly helps us.

On a side note: School is taking a lot out of me and my sister, so prepare for irregular updates. It won't be any faster than Wednesday's, it only slows us down by a lot. Really a lot. We try to write, but there is almost no time for it.

Enjoy reading Chapter Twenty-Three: The Cathedral

Pichu's Point of View

The sun was not even up, or I was already awake. I slept terrible here, I probably got used to sleeping on a ship. I went down stairs, just like yesterday. I was longing for apples, longing for anything that would taste better than some dry bread. I knew I would end up eating the dry bread, as I could not find anything else yesterday, too.

I was just drinking some ice water, when Esmeralda stormed – soundlessly – down the stairs.

My mind was not really in the right place; it was like I was staring on a scene without being there. It passed really quick when Pikachirate came down. Well, it says much, as it was ten o'clock.

I wanted to sleep that long. But him coming down did the trick; just to be sure, I splashed some water in my face and waited for my face to become dry. It would not be romantic when I was teeth tattering on a romantic spot.

I left the cosy, safe bathroom, and went to meet Pikachirate. I evaded the mistletoe hanging above him, just because I was almost hyperventilating for no reason at all!

"Ready to go?" he asked in a soft voice. I nodded, not yet able to find my voice at this point. I thought yesterday had been pretty scary, but this day would top that one. I had no experience with love, or other romantic subjects.

Luckily for me, the snow was able to calm me down a lot. Still, I remained silence for a short while.

Pikachirate led me through the town I got to know by a little swiftly. The snow was still falling in a slow pace. The roofs of the small houses were magical with the white pureness, and I kept staring around me in amazement, taking its place next to calmness.

There were some Pokémon walking through the magical village, but most of them paid no attention to us. Still, there were a few who would give me weird glances, as if I were screaming for their attention. I put it in the back of my mind.

I saw we were moving in the direction of the Cathedral, which was in good shape. It had two high towers, and even from down here I could see it was possible to go pretty high as a visitor. It did not look dangerous with all the snow and ice; it was a part of the magical building.

"We're at the place," he mumbled when we stood before the Cathedral. "Well, almost. We still have to climb the stairs."

I skipped to the door. "We better hurry up, then, should we not?" He followed quickly.

It was not hard to ignore the cold. Everything around us was cut out of stone and coloured glass and it was always winter. I did not even entertain the thought of this place being warm, so I headed without hesitation toward the staircase where ice lay upon the steps.

"Careful, you might slip," Pikachirate warned when I was walking with a pace. He thought I would slip? I had more experience with dangerous icy places than he had, of that I was sure.

"No need to worry, there is a banister here," I stated politely. I turned around to see if he would follow. The staircase was round and I noticed windows on our left side.

"As long as you're not too hasty, alright? Take the time to enjoy the view." As if on cue, I looked through the window on the left. It was clear as glass, and the village was admiring exquisite. It was the first time I felt like I was in my tree, looking through the small window with my mother to admire the falling snow and the white trees.

We walked next to each other in silence as we moved from step to step. It was freezing, but the gloves Buneary picked for me were just warm enough to reject the cold, but not that the rest of my body would be jealous of the warmth.

Once and again there would be a place where we could rest from the climb, but I needed no such thing. Neither did Pikachirate. I realized only on what could have been the fifth hundred step that this was one of the few times I moved up the stairs without any assistance of holding hands.

"Say, how many steps are there in this Cathedral? It seemed pretty high from down there . . . ," I wondered.

He grinned. "It's the tallest building in the world, so I guess it looked high. There are seven hundred and ninety-eight steps. I don't even think we're halfway, yet." I was not even slowing. I probably did not have as much endurance as I expected to have.

"Could we stop for a moment? It takes up more energy than I anticipated," I gasped. It took some time, but my breaths eased and we were ready to continue.

After we headed farther up, I noticed something. We were on a flat ground, no stepping stones anymore.

"Have we reached the top?" I asked. Time must have flown by, it did not seem to take as long as I thought it would.

"Nope, I think we're halfway there now. We can look at the scenery if we walk to over there," he pointed out. I walked to wards the window. The view was simply amazing. We were only halfway, but it seemed pretty high already. I saw Pokémon walking through the blizzard, but one Pokémon caught my eye, right in the middle. It was a Xatu and he was surrounded by other Pokémon. I looked closer, and noticed a young Natu on his head.

Pikachirate moved also closer to the window, making him stand right behind me. I could feel his warm breath in next to my left ear.

"I wonder what all those Pokémon are doing on the square." I pointed at the masse of Pokémon surround Xatu.

Pikachirate stared at the place I pointed out. "I think it is the miracle Xatu," he said. "I think Esmeralda was talking about this morning," he explained. "Something about predicting the future."

There was a silence, but then he continued. "We could go see it the day after tomorrow if you want," He suggested uncertainly. I had been avoiding him lately and this was the perfect opportunity to stop doing that. I turned to face Pikachirate.

"Yes, that would be lovely." I gazed into his hazel brown eyes. They were looking back to me intensely. It became dark for a moment when a gray cloud jumped in front of the sun.

We were standing very close to each other. I could not go anywhere because Pikachirate's hands were on my shoulders. Heat was spreading from where his hand were. If I listened closely I could even hear Pikachirate's heart beating. I was uncertain what to do, frozen for an instant. It was like the world stopped that moment. We were just standing there, but it was the most adoring moment I ever experienced – the short minute before the . . . the kiss, which is the ideal moment of anticipation, and sometimes the most romantic or stunning action in the relationship. Not the kiss, but the few seconds before it that prolong the perfect moment

I was trying to figure what to do next when Pikachirate spoke again.

"We should get going if we want to reach the top," he murmured. He too was not sure of what to do. He removed his hands and looked away. A shiver went down my spine from the sudden cold. I wished I had taken some actions while the moment was right. Now the tension started to build up again. Although the Torchic in me was kind of glad for the extra time to prepare myself.

"Yes, we should." I looked one last time at the crowd on the square. It felt like Xatu was looking at me, but it must be my imagination. Xatu was too far away to be looking at me.

The last few stairs – more than a few – were easily conquered, and we soon made it to the top. Here, in the cold fresh air, I felt like the little girl I never got to be. It was a gift from him to me.

We could have stood there for hours, I am not sure, but we had to go back way to quick. Even though I did not slip, Pikachirate did a few times, and I could not help but smile at that.

Back in my room – alone – I gave more thought to the almost-kissing. It has happened twice already, and I should be prepared for the third time. I said to myself, third time is a charm. Next time, I will lean in, or take the initiative.

Because, I am in love with the not-so-real-Pirate who kidnapped me.

Tomorrow, I decided. I should not let him wait any longer than that. I had to wonder; did those books I read really tell the truth about a love story, or was it this hard for them as well?

*Author Note - Well, that was it for this Chapter! If you caught any mistakes, please tell us.*