Note: ...Yeah, so I thought I uploaded this chapter to Fanfiction when I uploaded it to DeviantArt. Apparently not. Oops. My bad. Upside: Fanfiction gets two chapters at once. So, uh...take solace in that. Along with my apologies.

Follow Me

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Five

Roost

It was always windy in New Bark Town, and December 24th was no exception. The bitter breezes that rushed in from the waters on Route 27 were especially biting, and as the two trainers landed in the peaceful hamlet on the shores near the river that connected Johto and Kanto, Soul shivered as the frosty gale stung her already-frozen cheeks. She turned to Silver, who was returning his Crobat to his Pokéball, and she dug in her bag to do the same with Chuu. Absentmindedly, she stared out over the river, the surface speckled intermittently with small chunks of ice. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply as another gust washed over her body. "Home," she whispered, the faintest hint of a smile on her lips.

Silver allowed her the moment to drink in the surroundings. He watched her in silence as she released Chocobo and talked excitedly to him about being home again. He saw her smile, and his frostbitten cheeks thawed. Shoving his hands in his pockets and coughing, he turned away, adding, "Come on, it's freezing out here."

Soul turned her head and nodded awkwardly. "Nn, sorry," she said, motioning for Chocobo to follow them up the beach toward the small slope that led uphill to the main part of town. "My house is right up there," she added, pointing to the house nearest the water's edge. "I bet Mom will be happy to see us."

"Mom?" Soul said as the two entered the house, the warmth of the home devouring their wind-battered bodies. The house had changed only slightly in the month she'd been away; the kitchen on the left was immaculate as always, the dining room across from the entrance had a nice, festive centerpiece on the table, and in the living room on the right stood a handsome Christmas tree in the corner, the couch and loveseat centered around the coffee table. Family portraits hung in staggered arrangements throughout the home, and the faint smell of smoke from the fireplace in the living room pervaded the whole house. Soul took another step inside as Silver and Chocobo remained at the threshold. "Mom? Pyro? Are you home?"

There was a sudden, loud thunk on the ceiling above them, then the sound of thundering footsteps that cascaded down the stairs until their source, a hulking Typhlosion, burst into the room from the stairwell and charged toward Soul, toppling her to the ground.

Muffled, riotous laughter greeted the eager Pokémon. "Ahh, Pyro, it's good to see you too, but let me up!" Soul giggled, patting the Pokémon's back in a half-hug, half-desperate gesture. Pyro obliged, and Soul sat up, beaming. "Have you been taking good care of Mom, Pyro?"

The Typhlosion nodded, grinning proudly. His gaze shifted to the doorway, where he spotted Silver, and his entire demeanor sank. Tensing, the Pokémon took a fighting stance and growled.

Silver's eyebrows furrowed. "What's his problem?"

"Oh, stop it, Pyro," Soul scolded him. "Silver's here as a frie...a-as a guest," she fumbled.

Pyro snorted but obeyed his master, leering threateningly at Silver.

"So it was you, Soul," a voice, accompanied by creaking footsteps down the stairs, said. Soul's mother, a petite brunette with brown eyes and a kind, middle-aged face, smiled at her daughter. "You hadn't called, but I was hoping you'd come home for Christmas, anyway."

"Mm, yeah," Soul said, rubbing her arm awkwardly, "sorry to drop in unannounced." She noticed the curious glance from her mother, followed her gaze to Silver, and faltered. "Oh, umm, sorry. This is my...friend, Silver. He'll be staying with us for Christmas, if that's okay."

"Oh, it's no problem at all!" Soul's mother said with a warm smile. "It's nice to meet you, Silver."

Silver nodded clumsily. "Nn, same," he said in an effort to be polite.

"Well now!" her mother said, clapping her hands together. "You two must be freezing; care for a cup of tea?"

"Nn, that'd be great," Soul said, removing her coat and hanging it on the rack near the door.

She and Silver made their way to the living room while Soul's mother busied herself in the kitchen. Soul and Chocobo made themselves comfortable on the couch against the rear wall, and Silver sat down on the loveseat across from her. Pyro lumbered by and purposely shoved against Silver's legs with a snarl before settling in front of the fireplace mantle.

Silver frowned. "Seriously, what's the deal with your Typhlosion?" he grumbled.

"Oh, he doesn't like you," Soul said casually as she set her bag down on the floor.

Silver raised an indignant eyebrow. "Wait, what? What'd I do?"

Soul shot him a glare that seemed to say, "Are you joking?" and his face drained of color a bit. Soul cleared her throat. "Well, among many, many, many," she shot him a calculated glare with the emphasis, "things you have done to me, you were also my rival. I guess some grudges don't go away so easily."

"Right..." Silver said, glancing at Pyro, who growled in response.

"Lucky thing I had already set a pot on the stove going before heading upstairs," Soul's mother said cheerily as she joined them with a tray filled with a tea set and some cookies.

Soul puffed her cheeks scoldingly. "Honestly! Mom, you should be more careful. What if there'd been a fire?"

"Oh, don't be silly, Soul," her mother said, not losing a bit of sprightliness. "I know you're a worrier, but the house isn't going to burn down just from me putting on a pot of tea."

"I was more worried about you forgetting about it," Soul mumbled, glancing away. "You're the worst about being absentminded..."

"Hmm? What was that, dear?" her mother asked as she poured a cup and handed it to Silver.

"N-Nothing, Mom, nothing," Soul said with a weak smile, accepting her own cup and saucer from her mother.

"Well, I guess it's a lucky thing I went ahead and went Christmas shopping last week," her mother said with a smile before taking a sip of her drink. "...Ahhh, that really does warm you from the inside, doesn't it?" She replaced the saucer on the table. "Anyway, as I was saying, I went out and did a bit of Christmas shopping for you last week; I got that game you said you wanted...Something-Fantasy? Although I can't imagine why you'd want it if you won't have any time to play it."

"I'll get to play it eventually, don't worry," Soul assured her, offering one of the cookies to Chocobo before helping herself to one as well.

Soul's mother turned to Silver, and her expression sunk sadly. "I'm afraid I didn't expect having any guests, so I won't have anything for you, Silver."

Silver, distracted by a glaring contest with Pyro, glanced up at the mention of his name, and then he shook his head. "Nn, don't worry about it; I'm not used to getting presents on Christmas."

Her mother's eyebrows furrowed a bit. "What on earth do you mean?"

Silver looked at the bottom of his cup with a bored expression and replied casually, "Well, Christmas Eve is my birthday, so we usually just combined the two and opened my gif—"

A loud clink of china halted him, and he glanced up to find both Soul and her mother staring at him with mortified expressions. He blinked, surprised. "...What?"

"To...Today is your birthday?" Soul gasped, horrified.

Silver's cheeks pinkened a bit, startled by their sudden shift in demeanor. "Well...yeah, technically. But I haven't really celebrated my birthday in years, so there's no need to make a big fuss."

Both mother and daughter stared at Silver in the most awkward five seconds of his life. They then turned to each other and spoke in a flurry of back-to-back responses.

"If I hurry, I might be able to make it to the stores before they close."

"Oh, good, Soul, that's an excellent idea. Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure I have enough ingredients here to make a cake, but I'll need you to pick up some candles."

"Nn, sure, I can do that," she said with a nod. She turned quickly to Silver. "You're turning...fifteen today, right?"

"Well, yeah, but seriously, you really don't have to—"

"Come on, Chocobo, we have to hurry before it's too late!" she said, leaping off the couch and grabbing her bag in one swift motion. Before Silver could stop her, she was at the door, throwing on her coat and scarf, adding, "I'll be back in a couple of hours!" over her shoulder before slamming the door behind herself and Chocobo.

Silver turned to where Soul's mother had been to discover she'd already vanished into the kitchen, signified by the scuffles he heard of shifting bowls and spoons. He sat dumbfounded for a long moment, and then he turned to Pyro. "What...What the hell just happened?" The fire Pokémon grumbled in reply.

Selected quote from the next chapter:

"Soul trusted you enough to tell you half of the story, so I think I'll honor that trust and give you the other half."