Chapter 31: Proving Myself

I walked back to my last three members of my Master Team, and La-Suke. "Come on guys." I said. "We should find some shelter.
Natalie and I had just located Joshua and Rhonda, and had walked through Foretree, and determined that no one was there. Why would there be? The place was only treehouses, in addition to the gym, Pokemon Center, and Pokemart. We walked south, and after a few hours, we came across a cave. This cave used to host one of the Regis. I didn't remember which one, but that didn't matter. It was shelter.
We made a dinner out of the supplies that Joshua had been carrying.
"This won't last us for very long." I said. "I think we should continue on to Lilycove. The department store might have some food left over. Then we can gather some supplies, and continue to find someone from the League."
"This sucks," Joshua said. "When we dont want them to come near, they are on us every five minutes, but when we actually want them to make an appearance, they don't show up at all."
"Worst comes to worst, we head for the Pokemon League. If the PC storage system still works, then I have a few flying types who can carry us past the Victory Road." I said. "We should try to reach Mossdeep City tomorrow, and if we see anyone, we can try to convince them. Let's get some sleep. Big day tomorrow." I set my plate down, and lay down on my sleeping bag.
Natalie curled up in her bag next to me, and shivered. I felt bad. I gave her the cold shoulder treatment today. I couldn't believe that I had hurt her.
"Natalie? You okay?" I asked.
"Y-yeah, I-I'm just c-c-cold," she stammered, teeth chattering from the cold.
I reached over, grabbed the zipper side of her sleeping bag, and pulled her close to me. She laughed from the surprise. I opened her bag, and zipped our bags together, and held her close to me. She hugged me.
"Thanks," she wispered.
"I can't watch you freeze," I said. "I love you."
"I love you, too," she said. She paused. "Are you doing okay? I know watching Blaziken run off like that must have been hard."
"I trust him to know what he's doing. He promised to come back, and I know he will keep that promise." I said.
"Pika?" the little Pikachu Natalie had taken in hopped over to us. He wanted to join us, so he could be warm.
"Sure thing, little guy," I said. The Pikachu crawled into the bag, and curled up in between us. I rested my hand on Natalie's waist, her head rested on my arm. Her hand lay on the Pikachu. Her other hand stroked my face.
I stared into her eyes, and she stared into mine. How quickly our lives had changed. If this had never happened, would I have ever met this amazing girl, who now was the one person I could not live without?
"In a way, I am glad this happened," I said.
"Why is that?"
"I wouldn't have gotten to meet you, and I would probably be alone in the world, with my badges, Frontier Symbols, and my Team. I love my team and all, it's just that... I need another person there with me. My mom and dad... They were childhood friends, when they lived in Kanto. My dad loved battling, and mom loved to make things look pretty, and then, one day a pokemon appeared while they were playing outside. Dad just couldn't stand a chance against the Salamence, and they all were hurt. Mom had to move here, so grandpa Birch could study the pokemon here. When my papa Norman got a job as the gym leader here, they moved here, and dad ran away from home, because he wanted to take on the contests. Papa was going to tell him, for his birthday, that he would let him challenge the contests, even if he didn't want to. Dad had decided, when he lost that day, that he would never battle again. Mom decided that she would fight to get stronger. They had a contest to see who could complete their challenges when they finally met. 80 days. They both barely made it, becuase that was when Team Aqua and Team Magma awakened Groudon and Kyogre. They got hurt, and they each told a gym leader about the other, not realizing who the other was. Thats when dad realized who mom was. He trapped her in a car, and before he closed it, he took off his hat, and showed her the scar from the Salamence. She knew, right away, who he was. He joined forces from a lady from Team Magma, and they tried to fulfill the prophecy, but the lady wasn't the real one. Mom was, and the lady died. The battle moved out of Sootopolis, and finally mom and dad challanged and defeated Groudon and Kyogre, with the help of the Red and Blue Orbs, which were absorbed into their bodies. They finally found a way to expel them, and were able to survive. They had a little help from Rayquaza, and finally fulfilled the prophecy. They were destined to be together, and after I was born, people expected big things out of me. When mom beat me when I challenged the Pokemon League, I could feel the disappointment radiate from the entire Region. I beat dad, but not mom. I have to get all seven Symbols if I want to prove myself. Then, I will challenge the League again, and maybe even beat Red. I can prove myself then."
"I think you might prove yourself if you make it through this." Natalie said, and then fell asleep.