FOREVERMORE
~Part Three Of The Forever Trilogy~
Chapter 37
Ball of Alliances
February 16, 5001.
(Topaz's POV)
I honestly had no idea what to do anymore.
I wanted Rubin back, but after his violent display, I wasn't quite sure anymore. He actually scared me. Rubin wasn't supposed to be scary. I had no idea what was happening to him. I tried talking to him, but he kept on pushing me away.
I guess... maybe... he didn't like me anymore...
Currently I was in one of the training rooms, training myself along with my Pokemon. Am had pretty much given us a lowdown of what was up. We would literally be going to battle sometime in May, so we needed to train ourselves physically as well. I was in shape, but if it came down to hand-to-hand combat, I'd probably be easily overtaken. So I was training with Fiori.
And, well, the girl was good. I wondered who trained her in the past. I wondered why she even needed to know this in the past if she had Pokemon. Maybe she just wanted to learn?
I hit the ground hard, flat on my stomach. The air rushed out of my lungs, and for a moment all I could do was just lay there. I could barely breathe, and there was pain shooting through all my body.
"So, I can see where you're at now," Fiori said from behind me. "Ready to finally start?"
"Yeah," I grunted, pushing myself up onto my knees, and then struggling back to my feet.
"All right!" she exclaimed, grinning at me. "First I'm going to-"
Suddenly, my sister burst into the room, her eyes bright with excitement, and her mouth wide with a grin. She looked slightly out of breath, her face slightly pink from exerting herself. "Topaz! Fiori!"
"Hey Cerise," I greeted her. "What's up?"
Her grin widened, and she clasped her hands together. "Shiu and the Elite Four are throwing a ball for us!"
...What? What was the point to that? "Why?" I asked her.
"Because we need to have some fun!" she exclaimed. "And, well, they want Unova to meet us."
"That sounds logical," Fiori said with a nod. "I think that's a good idea!"
I sighed, and brushed my bangs out of my eyes. "I suppose so."
"It'll be fun, Topaz!" my sister exclaimed, trying to reassure me. "We can dance and eat food and meet knew people and act crazy!"
We already acted crazy. Well, I had no choice now. It was going to happen and I would have to go since I was a general. I might as well not complain about it. It'd be over soon enough.
...
February 22, 5001.
"Hold still!" Jade snapped at me as I fidgeted in my seat; she was doing my hair.
We were in my room, still at N's castle. Today was the day of the ball. There was no avoiding it now. I couldn't help but feel a little nervous about the whole deal. We would be meeting other important people in Unova's government other than the League.
"Hurry up," I complained. "You're doing too much."
"How else are we going to make Rubin regret?"
I sighed heavily, my eyes flickering down to my hands resting on my lap. "It's called I'm going with Alan."
Oh, he didn't ask me. It was Shirou's idea. He was taking my sister, and he didn't want his best friend to be alone. Alan didn't even want to go—like me—but Shirou was making him. Of course, I had to go since I was a general. We were going as friends, but I was aware of Alan's feelings, and, well, he was so awkward. I only really agreed to please Cerise.
"That's not enough!" Jade protested. "You have to do something else, like, kiss Alan or-"
"No!" I yelled, making her flinch and drop my hair. "I'm not going to use him like that. Besides, I don't like him that way, and I'm not about to go kissing people I don't have feelings for. I really doubt that'd help, anyway. I'd just make Rubin angrier at me."
"Oh... Well, true," she said softly.
"I'm really tired of dealing with this," I said. "Just drop it, Jade. I've tried talking to him, but he just pushes me away. I'm done trying. If he wants me back, he'll have to prove it. Now can we talk about something else?"
She was quiet for a moment, but then I could feel her hands going back to my hair. "Yeah, Topaz. I'm... sorry. I won't mess with your relationships anymore, I promise."
"Thank you," I said.
...
"If he tries anything, let me know. I'll kill him."
Cerise and I stood next to each other, looking up at our brother. He looked serious. There was no amusement in his red eyes. Crimson had cleaned up rather nicely. He was wearing the typical tuxedo, and his hair was less messy, but still spiky as ever.
"Crimson," I sighed. "Alan's not like that."
"Crim, you know Shiu would never hurt me!" Cerise exclaimed.
My sister looked even more beautiful than she is normally. She had managed to straighten her wild curls, making her hair go down a little past her shoulders. She was wearing a white dress with a sash going up to her left shoulder, bearing her right one, and it went down a little past her knees.
"I. Don't. Care," he deadpanned. "They're still male."
"So are you," I pointed out.
"Yeah," he said, shrugging. "But at least I know I have morals."
"Crimson," I sighed again, shaking my head at him. "Not every guy out there is a Gold."
"It sure doesn't seem like it!" he exclaimed.
I sighed, slightly agitated with him, and brushed my bangs to the side slightly. "Fine. Be the overprotective brother. I don't care."
"Crim!"
We all turned to see Indigo. Her appearance was startling. She looked absolutely stunning, and I felt like she should have been surrounded by shimmering sparkles or something. Her long brown hair was piled on top of her head, cascading down to her shoulders like a waterfall. He dress was the color of her name, and went about halfway down her calves. It was strapless, bearing her shoulders, showing a bit of cleavage. It fit her rather nicely.
I glanced over at my brother. His mouth was open, his eyes wide as he looked at her. And then the weirdest thing happened.
Blood began to ooze out of his nose, dripping down onto his tux. It took him a second to notice this as we stared at him.
"Agh!" he exclaimed, covering his nose with his sleeve. "Not again!"
Again?
"Here, use this!" Cerise exclaimed, handing him her handkerchief.
"Ugh, my tux is ruined," Crim groaned, his voice somewhat nasal. "Great, just great."
Indigo sweatdropped, wincing slightly.
"This has happened before?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah," he said, his voice fully nasal now that he was pinching his nose. "But I don't have chronic nosebleeds or anything. I don't get it."
Oh my Arceus, what was with my family? I couldn't believe he didn't get it either. Well, he was only sixteen. I really was starting to feel like the oldest child finally. Or maybe Gold was just rubbing off of me?
"That's awful!" Cerise exclaimed.
"Ugh, I know!" our brother complained. "It ruins everything!"
"Crim, let me guess," I said, crossing my arms over my chest. "These nosebleeds usually happen around Indi, don't they?"
He blinked, startled that I said that. "Uh... Yeah, you're right! That's weird. What does that have to do with it?"
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Arceus, he was so dense. "Nevermind. Just... clean up."
"Okay then," he said, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly with his free hand. "Hey, Indi, could you help-"
"No!" I exclaimed, catching him by surprise. "I mean... Clean yourself up, or get a guy to help."
"But-" he began.
"Just go!" I exclaimed, pushing him away.
"Okay, okay! Jeez, woman!"
He left us, still holding our sister's handkerchief to his nose. I sighed, and turned back around to face the girls. Indigo shifted uncomfortably, on her feet, her cheeks slightly pink, obviously embarrassed.
"I don't get it," Cerise said, looking confused.
This time I facepalmed, and Indi grimaced. I just gave up.
"And I'm not about to explain," I said, sighing. "Come on, let's find Alan and Shirou."
...
(Cerise's POV)
The Unova League had its own ballroom. It was fairly large, with large windows that lined the wall, and a stage up in the back. There was also a door that opened up to a balcony, letting anyone take a step outside into the fresh air. The ballroom was all decked out, and there were lots of food and drinks. There were multicolored flashing lights, not what you would typically expect from a ball. Guests were pouring in. I was so excited.
Topaz and I had met up with Shiu and Alan outside of N's castle, and they lead the way inside. My arm was linked with Shiu's, and my sister and his best friend followed us from behind. I already knew the Elite Four where here; I bet Kate was really uncomfortable with the loudness.
"This is great!" I exclaimed, looking around, and then turning to him. "I can't believe you did all this!"
"Hey, it's not so hard when you're Champ and pretty much everyone does what you say," he said with a light laugh, shrugging.
"Still!" I insisted. "This is exactly what we need! Thank you! This will make everyone feel so much better!" I pulled away from him, and stood up on the tips of my toes to kiss him on the cheek.
"Aw, it's nothing, really," he said, throwing his arm around my shoulders as we walked along; I slipped my arm around his waist.
I liked being this close.
"So, who's going to be here?" I asked, looking up at him.
"Oh, the Gym leaders and their trainers, some other government officials that have to listen to the League, and their families. That's about it. All the important people. Oh, and some reporters to cover the ball so they can tell the rest of Unova what's up!"
"You invited the media?" Alan demanded from behind us.
Shirou paused, and turned us around to face him and my sister. "Yeah, who else is going to tell everyone else in the region about the Resistance? They need to know. They can't be kept in the dark about what's going on with the war against the Empire."
Alan pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okay, I get that, but what if they see something else and twist it? They always do that. This could end badly."
"Don't worry about us," Topaz said, looking up at him. "We're used to lies."
He shook his head. "It's not like that. They'll go after your personal life," he said. "The Elite Four member that Kate replaced was utterly destroyed."
Shirou grimaced. "I remember that. But, c'mon, Alan, what can they get from the Resistance today that they can twist?"
He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted.
"Get back here, Sapph!"
Sapph came sprinting by, almost bumping into Topaz. Jade, the one who yelled, came running by us too, chasing her. She was carrying her make up kit. Oh dear Arceus. Gold then joined us. He stopped jogging after them and keeled over, panting. His bruises were just beginning to turn yellow.
"Dude... I'm... so... out... of... shape," he breathed, pushing himself back up, and trying to push his floppy bangs out of his eyes.
"Let me guess," Topaz said with yet another sigh. "Jade wants to put make up on Sapph."
"Yeah," he panted. "This is... what I get... for being lazy."
"Um, is that healthy?" I asked, piping up. "I mean, Sapph's pregnant. She shouldn't be exerting herself like that."
"Tell that to her," he sighed, his expression growing sad. He stood up totally straight, and ran a hand through his sloppy hair. He adjusted his tuxedo, and then looked at each of us. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to catch my girlfriend before she kills something."
He gave us a wave, and then hurried off to rejoin the chase with Jade, leaving us in an awkward silence. We stayed silent for a while.
"Lovely," Topaz sighed, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. "Well, if they keep watching us, the media'll have a field day—a bunch of hormone-addled teenagers who apparently can't keep their hands to themselves. Yay, I can't wait."
"Aw, sis, don't be sarcastic," I said, trying to make her feel better. "It's not true! And I don't think they'll even be able to see us as that!"
"Whatever you say," she sighed. "All right, I have to find Am and Grey before the ceremony. See you guys later."
"Okay!" I said, giving her a wave. "Bye-bye!" I looked up at Shirou. "When do you have to leave?"
"Eh, not until it's time to start!" he said cheerily.
Yay! That meant I could spend more time with him!
...
(Rubin's POV)
This was a nightmare.
Jade eventually forced me to help her and Gold subdue Sapph, who absolutely did not want to be here. I didn't blame her; I didn't want to, either. It pained me to be here, to see everyone so happy. It was torture. It didn't help that Gold was wary around me, and my sister was still angry at me.
Everyone just hated me. I didn't blame them, though.
I was such a fool.
Not only had I lost my temper at the girl I loved, but I blew up at my sister's boyfriend. I should probably apologize to him. Topaz... I couldn't talk to her yet, not here, anyways. I wasn't ready yet. Would I ever be ready?
I was such a fool.
When I was younger, I had struggled with my temper. But my parents got me enrolled in anger management classes, so I learned how to control it. But apparently that wasn't working anymore.
I was a monster.
I had lost my honor, my dignity. How farther down could I go?
I followed them at a slow pace, full of self-loathing. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going, and I was lagging behind them. Music was starting to play, and lights were flashing. The ceremony would start soon.
"Gothitelle!"
I froze in place, and turned to see Kate's Gothitelle, which was the same height as Timothy and Raven. She was staring at me again, an unsettling expression on her face, her pale blue eyes resting their gaze at the top of my head. Chills ran down my spine, and I got goosebumps even though I was warm.
"Goth," she said. "Itelle." Her haunting blue eyes did not remove themselves from looking above my head.
This was really creeping me out.
"Oh! Gothitelle! There you are!" Kate appeared, walking up to us, a worried expression on her face. "I apologize, Rubin. I hope she wasn't bothering you."
"Oh, it's all right," I said, sweatdropping. "She's fine." That was a total lie.
All commanders are to report to the stage immediately.
I flinched when Eris's smooth, clear voice sounded in my head, startling me. I should have expected it, but it still caught me by surprise.
"You better go," Kate said, giving me a reassuring smile. "I'm not needed yet."
I nodded, and turned, altering my course to the back of the ballroom. Everyone in the Resistance was gathering onstage. I scaled the stairs, and joined them all. They were still wary of me, so no one directly came over to talk to me. I looked around to see how everyone was.
Topaz totally caught me off guard, even though that was happening a lot to me today.
She looked absolutely beautiful. Her golden hair was up in a perfect high ponytail, tied with a gold ribbon. The spiky part of her bangs were somehow flattened down smoothly. Jade must have done her make up, for it was perfect. Her orange eyes really stood out, and her lips... Arceus. Her dress completed it all; it was gold, and shimmered, going down to her knees, without straps. It clung to her figure, making me realize she was, uh, growing.
I forced myself to look away, and walked myself over to join Sapph and Gold.
"Rubin, are you okay?" Gold asked me, raising an eyebrow; what, did I have a weird expression or something? "You look like you're about to get a-"
"Get what?" Sapph demanded, ornery as always.
"-nothing!" Gold said hastily, saving himself.
I glared at him darkly. "I'm fine."
"Ugh, I'm not," Sapph growled, clenching her hands into fists. "I swear to Arceus I'm not wearing another dress after this!"
"Aw, c'mon, Sapph!" Gold exclaimed, looking disappointed. "Not even to our wedding?"
...Huh?
"What?" I demanded, and Gold flinched slightly.
Sapph scowled harder, and crossed her arms over her chest. "We're engaged. Because of the... baby..."
"Since when?" I exclaimed, shocked.
"Um... Since yesterday?" Gold offered, rubbing the back of his head. "But we're trying to keep it down, y'know?"
I sighed. "Well, that's understandable... I guess it's all right, then. I'm glad you're being responsible about it and not going the easy way out."
"Thanks... Rubin," Gold said, smiling for the first time at me since I beat him up.
I shrugged. "It's nothing. And... I'm sorry for attacking you like that, Gold. That was rather uncouth of me."
"Ahaha, it's okay, man," Goldy said, giving me a playful sock to the shoulder. "Your reaction was perfectly understandable. I probably would have done the same thing!"
Sapph snorted, and rolled her eyes. He really did not make me feel any better. I turned to look back at the rest of the stage. Shirou was walking up to the podium.
"Time for us to sit down, guys," I said.
...
(Topaz's POV)
I sat in one of the chairs on the right side of the podium. We, that is, the Resistance, sat in order of rank and seniority. First was Am, then Grey, then me, then Gold, Sapph, Rubin, Cyan, Fiori, Crimson, and lastly Indigo. The Unova League—the Champion, the Elite Four, and then the Gym leaders, all in order of rank—was on the left side.
"Hey everyone!" Shirou said into the microphone. "Thanks for coming to this momentous occasion! You've all heard of the Mount Silver Resistance in Johto, right?" The crowd erupted into murmurs. "Well, I'm sure you've heard rumors that they're here in Unova! And they are! And we're going to help them! The Empire will not be allowed to continue! Humans and Pokemon must be united!" The crowd erupted with cheering and applause; Shirou grinned down at all of them. "So, I'm honored to introduce you to the High Commander of the Resistance, Amethyst Kimu!"
The crowd erupted into applause again, and cameras flashed as Am stood up and walked up to the podium. Shirou grinned at him, and they shook hands. Then Shirou went back to his spot next to Manny and sat down. I wondered what Am was going to say.
"I would like to thank all of Unova for taking us in and helping us in our time of need," he said, and it became so quiet. "We were nearly entirely destroyed when the Government bombed our beloved Mount Silver that has been our home for over a century. My colleagues and I are what you may call the only ones left in our war. You have allowed us to stabilize and grow stronger in ways we could never have done on our own, developing a steady force against the Government. We are sincerely grateful."
For a moment, the whole ballroom was silent. Even we hadn't been expecting this. Am, who rarely spoke, had just delivered one of the most intense speeches I had ever heard. He meant every word. And that was truly how we felt. Without Unova, the whole war would have been lost. Finally, the clapping began, and all sound was drowned out by the applause. I couldn't help but smile.
Finally, once the applause ended, Am spoke again. "I will now hand this over to General Rosso."
...Of course he would. It was either me or Grey, and words came to me more easily than to Grey.
Grey gave me a reassuring look, while Gold grinned at me and gave him a thumbs up. I stifled a sigh, and stood up, walking up to the podium. I exchanged spots with Am, only to be horrified that I was the exact same height as the podium. Someone hastily got me something to stand on.
"Hello," I said into the microphone, pondering what to say. "My name is Topaz Rosso, and I'm a general, as the High Commander just said. I guess I'll take some questions." Well, Unova needed to know more about us.
More cameras flashed, nearly blinding me, and hands shot up from the reporters. Dear Arceus, maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all. I looked around at all the hands, trying to choose. Finally, I just pointed to someone.
"No offense to any of your leaders," one of the reporters said, a woman, "but all of you seem to be very young. Where are all the adults?"
"They were all killed in the Mount Silver bombing," I replied calmly. "We've had no choice but to step up and take over. We may be teenagers, but most of us will be becoming legal adults this year."
There was more murmuring in the crowd, and the reporters were jotting this down. More hands raised. I picked another person.
"You sound like you're from Kanto," he said. "The president lives in Kanto, yes? Have you ever met him?"
"I'm from Kanto, but I grew up in Johto," I clarified. "Yes, President Synis lives in Kanto, in Pallet Town to be exact." That really bothered me. "And yes, I've met him. Pretty much all of us have."
Now that made the crowd erupt with noise.
"What's he like?" someone shouted.
"How old is he?" another exclaimed.
"How is he doing as a president?"
"Why did he separate humans and Pokemon?"
SILENCE! Eris's voice exploded in my head, and everyone flinched. It worked, though. I nearly sighed with relief.
"I honestly don't know much about the president," I said. Well, I knew about him, but what I knew I couldn't tell them. "None of us really do. We're still investigating the matter. We want to know the truth to his ideals. I'm sorry I can't answer your questions."
...
When the party officially started, I went to find Alan since he was my date. People were still so surprised we were so young, and didn't know what to quite do with us. That amused me. The Resistance had been full of young people before.
When I found Alan, he was leaning up against the wall, messing with his PDA. That kind of agitated me. He looked up when I stopped next to him, but stayed silent. For a moment I didn't know what to say.
"How'd I do?" I asked him. "Up on stage?"
"...You were fine," he said after a moment. "You did good for someone who didn't prepare."
"Thanks," I said dryly. "Hey, where's Shirou?"
"He went looking for Cerise, I believe," he said, looking back at his PDA.
Of course he did.
I sighed. "Come on, let's go have some fun. You can look at that later."
He didn't look like he was about to budge. Dear Arceus, why did he have to be so difficult?
"We can go look for Shirou," I offered. "If you want, I mean." Really, I wanted to find my sister and make sure she was okay.
"All right," he sighed, standing up straight. "Let's go."
...
(Cerise's POV)
I loved parties, and I was having the time of my life, but I just suddenly felt overwhelmed and crowded. I needed to escape for a moment, to get some fresh air.
Music was pounding from the DJ, and lights were flashing. It was pretty hot in here. It got calm whenever there were slow dances, but right now they were having dances to appease the young people, as in the Resistance and the officials' kids that were dragged here.
I needed some fresh air.
So I decided to go out to the balcony. It was cold out, of course, but it was a refreshing change compared to the ballroom. I walked over to the edge of the balcony, and gasped in awe. I could see far out; I could see all of Unova. It was dark out, and the whole region was lit up. It was a beautiful sight.
Suddenly, I heard the glass doors open, and I turned to see who it was. It was Shirou; I gave him a smile when he walked over to join me.
"Couldn't handle the heat?" he asked, looking over at me with playful eyes.
I laughed lightly. "I just needed a break, that's all." I pushed myself away from the rail of the balcony, and turned to face him. "So what are you doing out here?"
He gave me a grin. "Saw a pretty girl outside, decided to join her."
I felt my face heat up at his compliment, and my hand naturally went up to twirl one of my curls. Arceus, I really needed to stop that. But did he really think I was pretty? Or was he just saying that?
He turned over to the landscape, leaning over the railing. "Well, luckily for you, you also found the place with the best view," he told me, turning back to me and pointing out to the cityscape. From here, you could see everything, from all of Unova, to the stars above out into the sea in the distance, like I just said earlier.
"This used to be one of my favorite places to go when I was bored. I could see everything, and just remember all of the times I had here." He pointed out to a small town in the distance. "There's Numeva, where Alan and I started our journey." He moved over to a small, deserted area with a few lights. "Then Striaton, where we had our first gym battle." He turned to me. "That's also when you caught your purloin with me, in the Dreamyard."
I looked out towards where he was looking. He was right. The view was breathtaking. I leaned forward against the railing, pressing my palms on the icy stone. I followed to where he pointed, a small smile forming on my lips.
"Yeah," I said, looking up at him. "That was fun. You... made me feel special."
It was true, and I supposed he should know that. But that revelation embarrassed me, and I looked away, my cheeks heating up more. I heard him chuckle.
"It must be nice to be able to remember everything," I said softly. "I wish I could remember what happened to me. I wish I could remember what my life was like and who my friends were... You're lucky, Shiu, really..."
I forced myself to look back up at him and I saw him looking down at me and giving me a reassuring smile. "Hey. Don't worry about it, you're here now. You're going to make new memories here, and hey, I'm here, I'll make sure they're even better than the ones you forgot," he said to me, locking his handsome blue eyes with my red ones. He grinned, pushing himself away from the railing. "I swear it."
I couldn't look away now, even if I wanted. He had me captivated, mesmerized. He was just so kind to me, so... perfect. He was all I could have ever asked for in a guy. He was exactly what I wanted.
"Thank you Shiu, really," I said, moving to face him. "It means everything to me."
I moved closer, and hugged him, before stepping up on the tips of my toes to kiss him on the cheek. But before I could reach him, he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me up, snagging me from my friendly kiss to a full-on kiss on the lips.
He totally caught me by surprise.
I froze up for a second, but not any longer than that. I kissed him back joyfully, throwing my arms around his neck so I could stay closer longer. It felt wonderful, so wonderful. I could have stayed like this with him forever.
I let go when I had to, reluctant. For once, I wasn't quite sure what to say. How should I respond to this?
"Shiu..." My voice faded out as I looked back up at him. But I steeled myself; I had to tell him now; I couldn't wait any longer, not after what just happened. "I... really like you..."
He stared down at me, and then grinned, giving me one more kiss on the forehead before replying.
"Guess that makes two of us," he told me, smiling like no tomorrow.
He placed a hand on my opposite shoulder and pulled me in close to him, pointing out to the city before us. "We're going to do this together, aren't we? I'll give you the best memories, better than you've ever had before, and we've got a whole world before us to do that in."
I looked out at the city, joy and excitement filling me, and then back up at him as he continued.
"So I think having you as my girlfriend would make those memories lest even better for me," he said to me, his eyes shining down at mine in utter happiness.
I was pretty sure I had never been so happy before in my life.
I beamed up at him. He was right. And once all the craziness with the war was over, we would truly have the whole world. But even so, if we didn't, I would be content to live here in Unova with him. This place was as close to home as I could get.
"I think so too," I agreed before reaching up to seal it with a kiss.
Everything was going to get so much better now.
...
Moments later, we left the balcony to go back to the party. I was so excited and happy. I could barely believe that Shiu was my boyfriend now. I was so, so lucky to have him. I could barely contain my joy.
However, there was to be another surprising turn of events.
"Shirou!"
Shiu suddenly stopped, a shocked expression on his face. He turned towards the voice, and I turned too, to see who it was. It was a middle-aged man and woman, who looked surprisingly like him. His eyes brightened up and he grinned widely.
"Mom! Dad!" he exclaimed, taking steps towards them. "You came!"
Oh my Arceus, these people were his parents!
The man was around his height, and had short, neatly cut black hair with silver temples, and brown hair. His face had the creases of age and hard times. The woman was about a head shorter, and had graying black hair that went down to her shoulders, and the familiar blue eyes that I loved.
"Of course we did, Shiu," his mother said, a gentle smile on her face. "We haven't seen you in a while."
"Ahahaha," he let out a strained laugh, rubbing the back of his head. "Well, I've been really busy, with the Resistance arriving and all."
"That's perfectly understandable," his father said. "But you could have at least dropped by from time to time."
"You're right. I'm sorry," he said. "I've just... had my mind on other things, I guess."
I took the moment to clear my throat, drawing their attention to me. Shirou's parents seemed surprised to see me, and I couldn't believe they hadn't noticed me yet.
"Um, hi," I said shyly, with a little wave.
"Shiu, who's this?" his mother asked him.
"This is my girlfriend," he said, throwing his arm around my shoulders and pulling me close. "Cerise Rosso!"
I gave another little wave.
"Rosso?" his mother asked. "Are you related to that general?"
"Yep! She's my older sister!" I replied cheerily.
"...Older?" his father asked. "She couldn't be over fourteen years old."
Now it was my turn to let out a strained laugh. "Um, she's seventeen."
They looked shocked. Shirou rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.
"Then how old are you?" his mother asked me.
"Seventeen," I said, and then realized what I was doing. I hastily tried to save myself. "We're twins. She was born first."
"Ah," his father said, sounding relieved. "Why didn't you say that at first?"
I sweatdropped. "Ahahaha... She was born a lot earlier before me, literally a day between us... So sometimes I don't call us twins."
Ugh, this was so embarrassing. They probably thought I was some ditzy blonde or something. Great.
"It's complicated," Shirou said knowingly, nodding.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Cerise," his mother said with a friendly smile. "We're both very... glad and relieved that our Shirou has finally found someone!"
"Mom," Shirou groaned, giving her a dry look.
"Well," I said with a light laugh, smiling. "I'm glad he found someone, too!"
...
(Grey's POV)
Gold was annoying the hell out of me.
He decided to leave Sapph alone for a bit, and go find his sister, who was with me. And now he was hanging with us, being as annoying as possible. I much rather be alone with Fiori so I could try to figure out my feelings. But the world never worked my way, so it wasn't now.
But I think, for once, Fiori was annoyed with him, as well.
We had stopped to get some food to eat. I was leaned up against the wall, eating a cookie. Fiori was sitting down in a chair, as was Gold, and he was chattering away as we ate.
Fiori looked... beautiful. She was wearing a simple black dress, but it looked really good on her. Dear Arceus, what was I thinking? Maybe I didn't think of her as just a friend as I thought I had.
"I'll be right back," Fiori said suddenly, standing up, and I looked up at her. "Gotta go to the bathroom."
She walked away, and I watched her leave. Then I looked back at Gold, who was smirking at me. I narrowed my eyes at him, getting suspicious. He was up to something, I was sure. I knew the guy long enough.
"What?" I asked, eying him.
"You have the hots for my sister, don't you?" he asked me, a devilish grin on his face.
I just stared at him for a moment. "...What?"
"You heard me," he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Do you like my sister or what?"
I remained silently, finishing the cookie in my hand. I doubted he was about to back down, but I wasn't about to respond myself. But then he smirked playfully, and winked at me. I just narrowed my eyes at him again.
"I take that as a yes."
Oh, whatever. Let him think that for all I cared. When I didn't retort, he just grinned wider. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him. This guy was just so annoying sometimes. And he wonders why Sapph hits him all the time.
Dear Arceus, Sapph. I didn't want to think about that.
"Shouldn't you be with your girlfriend?" I asked him, picking up my cup of punch from the giant windowsill.
"Probably," he said with a shrug. "But she wanted to be alone for a bit. Trying to get rid of me, eh?"
"...Shut up, Gold."
He just grinned at me and laughed. I scowled at him, and leaned back up against the wall. Minutes later, Fiori returned. She walked up to us, and then gave her little brother a sharp look.
"You should be with Sapph," she told him. "Go find her and enjoy the party!"
"That's what I just told him," I said before taking a drink.
"Okay, okay," Gold said, raising his hands up in surrender as he stood up. "I'm going, I'm going. If you wanted to be alone all you had to do was say so. Catch you two later!"
We watched him leave in silence. Fiori turned to her, resting a hand on her hip. "He's up to something," she said.
"No duh," I deadpanned.
She rolled her eyes at me, and then walked closer. I looked down at her steadily, wondering what she was going to say next, what was on her mind. I knew her well, but she was still a little unpredictable.
"So," she said. "Are we ever gonna dance?"
"...Do I look like a dancer to you?" I asked, deadpan.
She laughed. "No, I was just wondering. I wanted to see if I could actually get you to do it."
"Nope," I said with a playful smirk. "No way."
"Aw, I would have loved to see it," she said, mock whining. "I bet you're good."
"No," I said.
"So I'll never see you dance?"
"Never."
"You're no fun, Grey Kuro!" she exclaimed with a laugh, poking me on my chest.
"Who said I had to be fun?" I asked, with a smirk and raised eyebrow.
...
(Esmeralda's POV)
"Wow, Jaz, look, here's the balcony!"
I proceeded to drag him through the open glass doors, out into the open, chilly air. It hit me like a wall, but the fresh night air seemed to wake me up and re-energize me. I let him go, and ran to the balcony, and leaned over the edge to peer out at the view.
"Wow! Look at the view!" I exclaimed, my eyes wide with awe.
Jasper calmly walked up to stand beside me. I looked over at him to see his reaction. He looked awed, too, but in a more calm manner. I grinned up at him, and then poked him in the side.
"So what do you think?" I asked him.
"It's beautiful," he said, and then looked down at me. "Too bad we can't see the whole world from here."
"That would be amazing!" I exclaimed. "But then we'd have to see the stupid Empire."
"Yeah," he agreed, looking back out to the view. "But it'll be all over soon."
"You think so?" I asked him, looking back up at him. "You think it'll end this year?"
"We're at our strongest," he said, looking back at me. "I don't see why not."
I grinned up at him, and then hugged him. I caught him by total surprise, which had been my intention. I squeezed him tight as he hugged me back.
"We're going to work as a team, okay?" I told him, pulling back, but not letting go of him entirely. "I don't want to work with anyone else but you, Jasper!"
He smiled down at me, looking really cute. "I feel the same way."
...
(Rubin's POV)
"Why the hell did I have to come here?" Professor Willow groaned. "Oh, I know. Because I was a idiot enough to become a professor and had to take over when the last guy died!"
I was sitting with Navy, Professor Willow, and Ethan. None of us had dates, so we were just hanging out together, enduring. Well, Navy was living it up. Ethan was pretty fine, too. Only the Professor and I were miserable.
"Hey, it's not so bad, Professor!" Ethan exclaimed. "You get to help people!"
"Help people," she scoffed. "Ugh, you should have been there when those girls came over to my lab. I think I scarred them for life."
"Jewel seems fine now, though," Navy put it.
"Oh, she's fine," Willow said, shaking her head. "Because she's older and can actually take it. Those other two are so childlike. Well, now their days of childlike innocence are over. Joyous."
Ethan snickered, and Navy laughed a little. I just rolled my eyes. I didn't budge an inch. I just wanted the night to end so I could go back to my room in the castle and sleep away my sorrows.
"Oooh, check it out," Navy said suddenly, jabbing me in the side with his elbow. "Topaz's with Alan."
At first, I didn't think anything of it. I just sat up straight and looked towards where he was pointing. And, well, what I saw was not what I expected. They were dancing to the current song, and Topaz looked... happy.
She had her hands around Alan's neck, and his were on her waist. It was a faster-paced slow dance, and both of them looked like they were having fun. And it hit me even harder when Topaz laughed, jerking her head back, and Alan smiled down at her.
He wasn't kidding.
He meant what he said.
And it was working.
Oh my Arceus.
I couldn't believe it. Did she like him, then? I was suddenly horrified. I was losing her, if I hadn't already lost her. I had to do something. I could no longer sit around and mope and avoid people. I had to take action. I had to try to get her back.
But how?
I still had to think about it.
"Looks like you've got some competition, Rubes," Navy told me.
I sighed heavily. "I know, Navy."
YES, ANOTHER LONG CHAPTER AAAAAND EARLY UPDATE
I'll try to get up the next chapter ASAP so we can get to the Kummern reunion and all the other great stuff! AND THEN TO THE TIME SKIP AND ALL THE GOOD STUFF YAY.
But yeah, MEZZOFORTE IS CANON. FINALLY. These two are so cute, I swear.
I swear Navy is a shipper on deck for all canon ships.
Oh, Crimson, what are we going to do with you? Hehehehe.
OKAY I HAVE A QUESTION.
Do you think the world should find out the truth about who the gang are? Like that they're from the past and that they're the Pokedex holders' kids? I was going to ask on my blog but I feel like I'll get more responses on reviews.
That's all for now!
REVIEW!