The next day, Red woke up early. Bill and Daisy were working on something in the adjacent room, and Gold was in the kitchen, helping himself to the contents of Bill's fridge.

He knew he had to go down to Cerulean, to face Misty and talk things through. She would accept that he had chosen Yellow over her, but it was still not a conversation he was looking forward to. Turning his head, he saw Gold approaching him from the kitchen.

"You're awake," the younger boy said, smiling tiredly. "I'd usually sleep longer, but I got too hungry. Didn't get much for dinner last night. Cold pizza?"

Red eyed the plate Gold was offering him, then nodded.

"Yeah. I guess I have to eat something," he replied, accepting it.

"Cold pizza is the best breakfast," Gold said, grinning.

"Glad you like it," Bill interjected. "Red, I need to talk to you. In private."

"Sure."

"Hey! Why am I being excluded here?" Gold yelled, his voice slightly muffled by a mouthful of soggy leftover pizza.

"Because this is something I need to talk to Red about, privately," Bill said. Red glanced at Daisy and Gold, then followed Bill out, into the small garden behind the cottage.

"You're not usually this secretive," Red commented, taking a bite from the cold pizza Gold had handed him. Bill shook his head, looking grim.

"Usually, it's not this important."

"So important not even Gold can hear about it?" Red asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well," Bill replied, hesitating slightly, "I wasn't sure how he'd react to this conversation."

"Tell me."

"You promised Blue you'd talk to Silver for her. What will you do if he refuses to give up?"

"What we decided, of course. Plan B," Red replied with a shrug. "Why?"

"Don't you think it'd be better to defeat him then and there? Turn him over to the police, prevent a drawn out fight?"

"Blue and Gold wouldn't like it," Red said, cocking his head and looking at Bill. The other man met his gaze, but did not waiver.

"I know."

"Which is why you didn't want Gold to hear it. You're not one to recommend something like that, normally. Breaking a promise, betraying a trust? You must be truly serious about this, then?"

"Very. Things are worse than Green and the others wants to admit."

"I'll see what I can do," Red sighed. "No promises. This is something that can't be planned in advance."

"I understand. Just... Be careful. We can't afford you getting hurt or something. Not now."

"Hey, don't worry," Red said, giving him a small smile. "It's me you're talking to!"

Red found Misty training in the back garden of her gym, but she did not notice him approaching. He had not been there before, so he leaned against a tree, watching her shoot down targets from a distance. Her Pokémon recharged themselves with water supplied from a series of fountains, as well as a pool.

After watching for a while, he decided to talk to her. He stepped out from the shade of the tree, and was quickly forced to dodge an Ice Beam attack. It hit a bush beneath the tree, shattering it promptly.

"Uh, hi," he said, trying to sound less nervous than he was.

"Red! Sorry, I missed my target," Misty replied. "Didn't mean to nearly hit you."

"Right, no problem."

Red scratched the back of his head, looking at the frozen pieces that remained of the bush that had been next to him. He was not sure if it really was a training miss, or a warning of some sort. Something like "tread carefully, trainer Red."

"Red, listen-"

"Misty. Are you okay with what has happened? With me and Yellow, I mean?"

She looked at him, her head tilted slightly to the side. She was biting her lower lip, as if thinking carefully, deeply, about his question. Red knew, however, that she had most likely figured out an answer – and more – several months ago.

"At first, I was mostly surprised," she replied, her voice slightly shaky. "That you chose her, I mean. All things considered... You even thought she was a boy, for quite some time!"

"I had to admit, it took me a while to figure it out. Somewhere along the way, I just realized my emotions. I could figure that out, once I knew who she really was."

"She's cute, strong and caring," Misty said, as they sat down on a bench next to one of the fountains. "Everything you deserve, and want."

"Misty..."

"I know, I have strong points as well," she interrupted. "This particular battle, I lost. My opponent was just... better than me. You know?"

"You see love as a battle?" Red asked, frowning. She avoided his gaze, but he continued. "Listen, Misty. I didn't just choose her over you because she was better. We just happened to-"

"Things like that don't just happen! Things happen because we choose for them to happen!"

"I just want you to understand," Red said in a quiet voice. "I really didn't want to hurt you. I had to choose what felt best."

"Exactly."

They sat there quietly, watching the water Pokémon playing around in the garden. After a while, Red got to his feet and cleared his throat.

"Things are okay between us?" he asked. Misty looked up, paused for a couple of seconds, then nodded.

"Yeah. Yeah, they are. As long as you don't start making out in front of me, or anything."

"I'm not suicidal," Red replied, grinning. "How would you like to get some lunch with a very good friend, though?"

"It would be nice, but I don't think Erika's around," she replied, giving him a genuine smile in return.

"Ouch," he answered, laughing. "Forgot how vicious you can be."

"That's what friends are for. Hamburgers it is, and you're paying."

"I'm paying?"

"Yeah. You're the one who invited me to lunch, remember?"