Pairing: N x Black/Touya/Hilbert
Summary: "N is happy for memories like this that prove he was more than just some jerk who got in Touya's way." Following the decisive battle at N's castle, Touya's actions cause N to travel the world in search for him to confront their odd relationship. N x Black/Touya/ Hilbert.
Suddenly, this Trainer is stretching a hand out towards N from the back of a flying Pokemon as debris and plaster crash around them. Not quite able to place this memory, N becomes confused, and then suddenly it is Touya in front of him and N does not seem to be falling anymore and he is vaguely disappointed but not sure why and they are rising quickly and dodging things raining from the sky like it is some kind of game and it sure is bright up here and…
Unable to hold on anymore, N slips into darkness.
N is awake now, but he's still confused, perhaps now more than ever. He lies alone in a hospital bed, and he looks at his hands, surprised to see blue veins pumping under soft, fleshy skin. He feels no pain, just tiredness, and his eyes widen when a thought occurs to him.
He is alive.
Somehow.
At first, N struggles to recall the events that led up to this, vivid dreams and illusions mixing in with facts. Frustrated, N rubs his eyes, his fingers brushing against a scratch on his cheek in the process. A vision of a chunk of plaster hitting him rushes to his mind, and the rest of the memories come when called like well-trained Pokemon. N remembers losing to Touya, his castle collapsing into itself, Touya, falling, and Touya's hand grasping for his...
This forces N to connect the dots and conclude that Touya somehow saved him, a strange concept.
N frowns.
Did Touya plan to redeem the villain? N doesn't see much of a point in this, but the principles and ideals guiding his potential savior are a mystery to him. N feels indebted to Touya, which he does not like.
Touya, noble Touya, impeccable Touya…
What other man could assemble such a powerful team of adoring Pokemon?
N could communicate with Pokemon, yet Touya understood them on a level inaccessible to all others.
N easily got Pokemon to fight with him, but Touya's Pokemon fight for him, accepting nothing but victory for their Master.
N wants to discuss this difference with Touya, positive that he could shed light on the mystery, but N remembers the more pressing question.
Why did Touya risk his life to save N?
It was an insane move on Touya's part, suicidal really, and N had done nothing to even remotely suggest he wanted to be saved.
N searches for a reason, but finds nothing. He tries to think of other things, but…
Why did Touya save N?
N continuously returns to the question like a bad itch, and remembers…
The floor breaks off under Touya's weight, and Touya falls wordlessly into the void below, his eyes still locked with N's eyes.
N hadn't seen it at the time, had he? The emotion hiding in the corners of Touya's eyes…Had it really existed, or was N merely glorifying the past?
He must know, he must ask Touya. Touya, Touya, Touya…
N hears doors open behind him, and an Audino appears at his side. N presses the Audino for details, but it knows nothing. N requests a visit from Touya, and the Audino seems reluctant to give N a clear answer.
Audino, however, does inform him that he was found to be innocence of all charges, which means little to N in the face of Touya's absence.
The Pokemon Professor visits him later. She is curious as to what happened in N's castle, and asks N for his account. N tells her everything she knows, and she jolts it down into a notebook, frowning.
N badgers her for information in regard to Touya, but the Professor merely informs N that Touya brought him to the hospital and vanishes shortly afterwards.
N is bored, and thoughts of Touya haunt him in his dreams and waking hours. No one tells him anything.
The hospital releases N after a few days, informing him mysteriously that his bills have already been paid. N easily guesses the identity of his guardian angel.
N has nothing, no goals, no one now, and he wanders aimlessly.
He reads in a newspaper that the new Champion hails from Nuvema Town. Although it takes a fair amount of time and resources, N hitchhikes to Nuvema Town, befriending local Pokemon on his way.
He spends his first hour in Nuvema Town wandering around. There isn't much to see, but N imagines a young Touya growing up here. N notes the town's stillness and assumes that is where Touya's quietness stems from.
N locates Professor Juniper's Laboratory and strolls in unannounced. A vaguely confused lab assistant brings N to the Professor, who looks startled upon seeing him.
Skipping all pretenses, he demands she tell him where Touya is. N is excited, and it bleeds through into his voice. N senses he is close to discovering Touya's hiding place and places his hands on Professor Juniper's desk, leaning forward.
Looking down, she quietly explains that Touya is hunting for the remaining six of the Seven Sages of Team Plasma across Unova, making communication with him impossible.
N leaves without another word. A storm is raging inside of him. He cannot believe Touya, saving N like that and just setting off on the next adventure without so much as a goodbye.
N feels worn, washed-out, all used up. He considers his position and rethinks the Professor's words.
He did play a large role in releasing Team Plasma on the world…N is no longer a child, but a man. As N learned from Touya, men do not run away, even when faced with a collapsing castle, and men do not shy from their duties, regardless of whether the reasoning behind them is as puzzling as risking your life to save an enemy.
N knows what to do now and flies into action.
Inside her laboratory, Professor Juniper looks up, and N is unexpectedly in her face again. She hides her surprise as he begins speaking, telling her of his responsibilities to help Touya find the six Sages.
She appears unconvinced until N points out that of all people, he knows them the best and would be most likely to predict the locations of the Sages and perhaps convince them to give up.
Professor Juniper does not particularly like this plan, as she does not fully trust N, but agrees that it is a good one.
Unfortunately, she cannot gave N any information about Touya's whereabouts, or even tell N if Touya has already captured a sage, as only a few select knew at this point. Professor Juniper stiffens as she explains this, giving off the impression that she finds it ridiculous that she isn't one of them.
Regardless, N thanks her, but isn't sure how to begin his quest. He asks Professor Juniper where Touya lives, figuring he has to start somewhere.
N locates the house easily and stands on the doorstep, unsure of how to proceed. He settles on knocking, and the door instantly shoots open.
A woman, Touya's mother, flings herself outside, but looks at N and stops. Her sunny expression disappears, and N knows she is disappointed that he isn't Touya.
N explains who he is and his connection to Touya, and Touya's mother invites N inside, preferring this strange link to her precious son over nothing.
She explains that she hasn't seen Touya since he began his Pokemon journey, but received a bizarre phone call from yesterday.
N nods, and she relates the story.
She received a phone call from a phone number she didn't recognize. It turned out to be Touya, and only lasted a few minutes. The connection was terrible, so she couldn't understand much of it, but she managed to glean that Touya was on a mission and didn't know when he'd be home. He had a tent set up, in which he'd be staying for a couple of days and was doing fine.
N pats her hand, unsure how the vague tidbits could aid him. She craves comfort, and N understands her pain.
People like Touya aren't easy to love…They have to grab a hold of the world to change it for themselves, running after it until it's in their reach. They leave their loved ones behind not out of cruelty, but because the adventure in their hearts prevents them from standing still.
It finally hits N that he has been left behind, but this is not a matter to be concerned with. If Touya sprints far ahead of him, N will simply have to sprint faster.
In a way, he has been given a second chance at life, and he intends to do good with it.
N thanks Touya's mother, and she smiles, instructing him to find and help her son. N promises to do so as he leaves.
…But where to start?
N knows that Touya is living somewhere in a tent and will stay there for a few days.
Great.
N is a reasonably intelligent person, but it is not much information for even the best detective to go off of. N grits his teeth, because finding the boy who saved his life shouldn't be so hard. It was too bad Touya had had bad reception…
N's eyes flash. It's a crazy idea, more of a huge leap than a stretch, but it's definitely an idea. N knows a man should think things through before darting off on a crazy course of action, but N sees no other options.
He races back to Professor Juniper, interrupting her work for the third time. She finds him impossible, and informs him of this, but he is N, on a mission, and brushes it off.
N explains his plan to her, and sees his credibility go down in her eyes. She gently points out the two hundred flaws and general instability of his plan, but N will not be talked out of it, she recognizes it in the conviction underlining his words.
Professor Juniper unwillingly lends N a flying Pokemon, warning him to come back immediately when he turns out to be mistaken in his beliefs.
N agrees, hoping beyond hope it won't come so far.
He exits the lab and calls out the Pokemon.
After giving it instructions, the Pokemon flies N to the place where N believes he will find Touya.
N closes his eyes. He's chasing a rainbow of whims, but with any luck, he'll find Touya at the end.
One chapter to go. Thoughts?