Return to you
DISCLAIMER: I Do NOT own Pokémon.
Chapter 9: Unshakable Familiarity
Sapphire and company were having breakfast, and all the while, the brunette was giving menacing stares at Lapis. She knew he did something that made her end up back at camp but how, she did not know. On the other hand, the raven haired boy acted as if nothing happened. He also didn't seem to mind the angry look that the girl was giving him. He just continued to eat his improved version of mushroom stew.
Azura came back a few minutes after Sapphire which made the girl even more suspicious of Lapis. The Kirlia's trainer welcomed her back and gave her a steaming hot bowl of stew. Without even looking at Sapphire, the shiny emotion pokemon accepted it and sat placidly beside her trainer.
"As soon as we're done, let's head over to Goldenrod City," said Lapis.
"Even if ya didn't say anythin', I would've gone anyway!" Sapphire was fuming as she furiously chowed down Lapis' cooking. Her pokemon just watched and shuddered at their trainer who was emitting a deadly aura.
In her head, Sapphire kept wishing for him to go away and leave her alone. She didn't want a travelling partner especially when that person's looks keep reminding her of Ruby. The uncanny resemblance was too much to ignore; his features, his voice, the flickering warmth in his eyes, even though they were blue and that gentle smile.
But that person isn't Ruby. Or is he? If he is, why would he pretend to be someone else? Why didn't he just say so right away? Is he hiding something? If so, then what could it be?
Every time she looked at him, it was painful. And every time she thought to herself if Lapis wasn't Ruby, it was frustratingly annoying.
The boy was a complete stranger to her but he, on the other hand, behaves as if they've friends for a long time. It was odd. Why would he show even the sliver of interest to someone he never knew personally? He was once Ruby's neighbour, but that was about six to seven years ago and Ruby never mentioned anything about him to Sapphire.
The Hoenn girl thought of asking him more questions but because Lapis just replies vague answers, she decided not to. In the end, she huffed in annoyance as she finished gulping down the food.
"Was it good?" Lapis smiled brightly.
Sapphire glared at him fiercely, but still the boy didn't even flinch. He remained grinning and the happy air around him was not fading.
What the heck is wrong with him?! The girl asked herself.
After eating, all of them set out. Azura and Sapphire with Momo on her shoulder were in front while Lapis trailed behind them, and the rest of the pokemons were in their respective pokeballs. The boy was calmly breathing in the fresh forest air as he placed his hands behind is head and looked up at the sunbeams showering down from the lush green leaves above.
Azura was enjoyably dancing around the falling leaves and sunlight as she flaunted her radiant amber eyes and cool blue locks. Sapphire had settled down a bit at the carefree sight. Her mood was lightening up. As long as she didn't pay much attention to Lapis, her head wasn't going to boil over.
● ~ • ~ ● ~
But somehow, Lapis just doesn't know when to keep quiet. Sapphire shifted her attention to a soft whistling sound coming from behind her. It was coming from him, alright. The brunette saw the boy pressing a leaf against his lips and continuously blowing against it.
The peaceful melody resonated in the air and seemed to enchant the forest all around. Butterfrees and Venomoths slowly flew out of the trees to listen. They hovered a safe distance from Lapis and fluttered playfully like they were dancing. Other pokemon like Oddish and Paras poked their heads out of the bushes and listened intently as he passed by. Momo and Azura seemed attracted to his playing as well. The Minccino's ears were perked up and she looked really happy. The Kirlia continued her little performance but followed the rhythm of her trainer's playing. Meanwhile, Sapphire didn't know what to make of it. Lapis was really an enigmatic boy. Every few minutes, he would surprise her with something new. It both made her curious and doubtful.
The tranquil melody continued. Sapphire could feel her heart easing down at the gentle sound, but part of her did not like it. The music seemed to reach the places where she shut her emotions away. In a moment, her heart thumped as her gaze met with Lapis' deep blue eyes. Sapphire felt as if she was slowly being swallowed by the ocean blue orbs of his.
A single blink from her broke her trance-like state and Lapis stopped playing. He looked at her with a plain expression, "Is there something wrong?"
Sapphire rapidly shook her head out of daze. "N-No. Nothing's wrong."
The wild pokemon hurried back to their hiding places as Sapphire returned her attention to the path in front. Lapis threw away the leaf and spoke up. "Why don't you take out Rilo and train him for a bit?"
"…Ah, right." Sapphire removed one of the pokeballs from her belt and sent out the Riolu. Then Azura quickly came over and placed a hand on its head, making the little blue dog fluster. For a few seconds, the two seemed to be having a conversation through telepathy. It caused Sapphire to raise a lot more suspicion.
Azura shot a quick innocent smile to the girl before removing her hand away from Rilo and skipping towards Lapis' side. Sapphire looked at the Riolu and then back at Lapis and his pokemon. She raised a brow and asked, "What was that about?"
Lapis patted the shiny Kirlia's head and replied, "She was just wishing him luck, that's all."
"…Okay." Sapphire reluctantly accepted his answer and shifted her attention to the Riolu. "Well, Rilo. Let's get ta training!"
"Rio." Rilo nodded in agreement.
For the past few hours, Lapis leaned against a tree and watched Sapphire train the emanation pokemon. The brown-haired girl was surprised how agile the little guy actually was. Rilo was a lax little fella but when it comes down to it, he could even match up to Sapphire's pace. He was a fighting type after all.
At first, the Riolu was battling against the bug-type pokemon in the forest. It was difficult pinning him against opponents who were resistant to its type. Sapphire decided to try a different method. She moved on to friendly sparring with Toro. It was a good opportunity for the week old pokemon to learn from a fellow fighting-type. The Blaziken obliged.
While they were busy, Momo and Azura were getting along. The sassy females were playing around with the Minccino's fashion case. Momo took out vibrant orange ribbons and tied them to the Kirlia's teal blue locks. It perfectly matched her clip-like horns as they criss-crossed along her hair.
Meanwhile, Lapis was leisurely tweaking his camera before snapping a few shots of Sapphire and the rest of the pokemon. Lucky for him, he shutter noises were left unnoticed. After a good five to seven snaps, he looked over the photos he'd taken with a satisfied grin.
Sapphire finally looked back at the boy and saw he was doing something with his camera. Her expression darkened. She could only guess what kind pictures her stalker took of her.
"Rilo, Toro…" Sapphire gestured to the duo. "… just keep going. I'll be right back…" Then she walked over to Lapis, leaving her two pokemon gulping and fearing for the outcome.
Lapis noticed a shadow looming over him. He looked up and smiled at the glaring brunette. "Hey, wanna see some of my photos?"
"Hey, Sapph, wanna see my portfolios?" Ruby's familiar enthusiastic words echoed in the girl's head. A sharp pain pierced her heart but she made sure that Lapis' could not perceive it from her face. With a stoic front, Sapphire sat down next to him and peered through the screen of the device.
The first few pictures were pokemon. There was a Vileplume with a large orange flower that was covered in red ring patterns instead of the common huge red flora with white spots. Another was a Butterfree with a slightly different wing color and design. It was beige and it had two small orange spots at the corner of its upper wing. According to Lapis, they weren't shiny. They were just native to an island called Valencia in the Orange Islands.
Sapphire never heard of that place. It made her wonder just how many and what kind of places Lapis went during his journey. The boy did mention he liked to travel. It perked the girl's curiosity as the raven-haired lad showed her more pictures that he took from other regions. Some sights were familiar. There was a town floating in the middle of the ocean and another was a city situated in the trees. Sapphire took a closer look and recognized those places to be located in Hoenn. She realized that Lapis had gone to her home region before, but did Ruby know? Did Lapis even tell him?
"Hoenn is really beautiful." The boy commented.
Once again, his tone and voice rang a sense of familiarity in Sapphire's ears. He sounded just like Ruby. She turned to him, and for the second time, met with his cool mystifying yet gentle gaze. Sapphire felt frozen on the spot as the face of the boy she loved overlapped with Lapis'.
"…Ruby." She murmured unconsciously.
Lapis' eyes didn't waivered from the girl's. He reached out and touched her cheek with his fingers, sending a warm sensation that almost made Sapphire's heart skip. The contact didn't make her flinch. She remained unmoving.
"…Hey, there's a leaf stuck to your face." Lapis pulled back his hand and revealed a little green blade between his fingers. Sapphire abruptly jolted back into reality and on sheer instinct…
*smack*
She slapped Lapis' face.
"The heck?!" The boy backed up in shock as he cupped his red cheek. "What did I do?!"
"Who said ya could touch me just like that?!" Sapphire yelled. Her face was flustered and she vigorously wiped the place where Lapis' had touched her.
"I was getting a freaking leaf, for Arceus sake!" The raven-haired boy shouted back and secured the camera that had fallen to the ground while his other hand was still cupping the sore spot on his face.
Sapphire stood up and stomped away, grumbling.
Azura excused herself from Momo and hurried to her trainer's side. The Kirlia fussed over him and wondered if he was okay. Lapis' stroked her head and admired her little ribbons before replying that he was fine.
Sapphire wanted to completely forget what had occurred so she devoted all her attention on her two fighting types who were cautiously standing by. "Rilo, Toro, let's finish up."
Both her pokemon nodded in compliance and continued their training. Momo tidied up her belongings and scampered towards her trainer. Sapphire didn't notice the little chinchilla coming closer. She was busily watching the Blaziken and Riolu spar.
"Mi-Mincci!" Momo called for her attention which she luckily got.
"Whatcha want, Momo?" Sapphire's tone was still furious but since she was talking to her pokemon. It had simmered down a bit. The red-eyed Minccino looked up to her with concern. She knew that Sapphire couldn't understand pokemon language so she just let her expression do the talking.
Sapphire exhaled deeply and picked up the furry gray chinchilla. "I really miss him, Momo. I thought I could handle it, but lately… I just don't know anymore."
"..Mincci." Momo wondered what she could do to cheer her trainer up. She peered above the girl's shoulder and glanced at Lapis and Azura who seemed to be conversing about something. Momo puffed her cheeks and squirmed away from her trainer.
"Hey, where're ya going?" Sapphire's gaze followed the Minccino as she ran up to the boy and his psychic pokemon. The event earlier flashed through her mind at the sight of Lapis. She turned away but still questioned herself what was Momo going to do.
The approaching Minccino drew Lapis' attention away from his Kirlia. "Hey, Momo. Do you want something?"
"Minccino Minicci-Minccino!" Momo squeaked and pointed accusingly at the boy with the dark blue eyes who was in turn surprised by it.
Lapis nudged his pokemon and asked, "Azura, translation please?"
"Momo says that you should stay away from Sapphire." The blue emotion pokemon explained through telepathy. "
"I see." Lapis looked back at the little chinchilla that was glaring the same way her trainer did. "Sorry if you think I hurt your trainer, Momo. But I can't leave her alone. She gets into trouble too easily."
The Minccino thought about it for a second and knew he was right. She sat down and sulked, trying to figure out a better alternative. Lapis smiled and petted her head warmly, "I'll try not to bother her too much. But I'm glad, though. Sapph's lucky to have a pokemon that cares for her a lot."
Momo slapped his hand away and squeaked angrily again. "Mi-Minccino!"
Azura relayed the message to her trainer, "She said not to call her Sapph."
"Okay-okay… I won't call her Sapph." Lapis tried to calm the furious furball.
Seeing that she had done all she could, Momo hurried back to her trainer with a sense of accomplishment. Rilo and Toro were taking a final breather and Sapphire was noting down some attacks and strategies in her mind.
"Minccino!" Momo called out to them with a proud grin.
"Hey, Momo." Sapphire walked over to her and crouched down. "What did ya talk about?"
"Mincci-Minccino!" Momo replayed the situation where she acted out how she scolded Lapis and how the boy obeyed without question. It was slightly more exaggerated than what really occurred but it made Sapphire giggle and show a fanged smile.
"Nice work, Momo." The brunette praised the Minccino for her efforts.
Then Azura came over, shifting everyone's attention especially Rilo's. "Lapis says if you guys aren't leaving now. We will be going on ahead."
Sapphire found it sort of strange. She glanced at the boy and saw he was already mounting on his Sawsbuck. He wasn't looking back nor was he smiling at all. He just faced the path in front as he waited for Azura to come back. The girl wondered if Momo's talk did work or was it something else.
"Well, we're leaving. Let's meet again at the end of the forest." The emotion pokemon bid everyone goodbye and gave a farewell hug to the Riolu who became stiff as a rock afterwards. Lapis returned Azura to her pokemon ball and rode off without a word. Sapphire stared as they rushed passed the trees and disappeared from her sight.
Afterwards, it became unusually quiet. Only the soft rustling of leaves could be heard all around. Sapphire tried not to mind it. She told herself that she should be thankful her stalker was gone. Momo and the others looked at their trainer with wonder as if they wanted to know what they were going to do now.
Sapphire paused for a second. Then she started pacing, feeling agitated for some reaso. First, he wants to travel with me. Now, he just runs off and leaves me? Can't he make up his damn mind?! Grrr…But why should I even care? He's gone. I should be happy, she thought.
Sapphire's pokemon trio watched their trainer walk back and forth. The girl's brows furrowed as she seemed to be muttering to herself. Moro, who was still in her pokeball, was feeling dizzy. Thankfully, Toro put a stop to it. The blaze pokemon placed a claw on her trainer and squawked softly, "…blaze."
"Thanks Toro." Sapphire took a deep breath and exhaled. "I guess we should make our way to Goldenrod City now, huh?"
The three nodded in response. Sapphire returned Rilo and Toro to their pokeballs to rest after rigorous training. Momo perched on her usual place and wagged excitedly in anticipation to reach the next city.
Sapphire loved traveling through the forest. It was her element, being surrounded by tall thick trees and sturdy vines. The forest smell and the rustle of the leaves felt like home. The main problem was finding the way out, but that was soon resolved by the hoof prints imprinted on the ground. Sapphire could tell that they belonged to Lapis' Sawsbuck, Xylo. Judging from the depth of the marks, it was obvious that the boy left them on purpose so that Sapphire wouldn't get lost. The brown-haired teen didn't know whether to be thankful or irritated that her stalker was treating her like she couldn't do things on her own.
After some time following the tracks, Sapphire and Momo came across a small wooden structure with a red rooftop. It was a shrine. Moss had accumulated at the foot but it was still in good condition. According to the description written, it was for the guardian of the forest. Sapphire was curious to know what being watched over the forest of Ilex, but the sign didn't specify.
"The forest guardian, eh?" Sapphire pondered for a moment as she listened to the serene howls of the wind passing through the trees all around. She looked up at the pale blue sky between the verdant foliage. The sunlight was warm in comparison to the cool shade of the trees. Checking her poketch, it was around 2pm. She didn't know how far Goldenrod was or how big Ilex forest is.
"Mincci?" Momo nudged her trainer.
"Yeah, Momo. We better get a move on." Sapphire shrugged off the worry of her time schedule. She had a good amount of time; 15 and a half to be exact, and there were six badges more to collect.
The blue-eyed lass walked further and unexpectedly got a whiff of an soothing aromatic smell of flowers. Not far, she saw Lapis lying on the ground with his head resting on Xylo and his arms covering his eyes. Azura was right beside him, patiently watching over. They didn't seem to notice her presence until Xylo's head turned towards her, alerting the Kirlia.
Azura stood up and skipped over. "Glad you guys caught up."
"Is he okay?" Sapphire inquired, feeling concerned.
"The exit was nearby. When we got out, it was too sunny for him. He just got a minor headache. But with Xylo's Aromatherapy, he should be fine in a few." Azura replied through her mind.
Lapis got a headache because it was too sunny? He traveled to many places yet he can't take a little sun? Surely, he went to places hotter that this. Sapphire thought. With wonderment, she walked over to him and Xylo as Azura followed suit. "Hey..."
Lapis mumbled an almost inaudible reply.
"I can't hear ya..." Sapphire placed her hands on her hips and waited for a proper response.
"Go on ahead." Lapis spoke up without removing his arms from his face. "After you pass the daycare canter, Goldenrod City is just up ahead."
"That's not my I'm here..."
The raven-haired boy was silent for a moment. "...I'm fine."
"Ya really can't stand the sun?"
"If it's too bright. Then yes. Don't bother asking why. I can't really give you a good explanation."
"Alright then." Sapphire sat down in front of him. As much as she wanted to go to Goldenrod without him, she couldn't just leave him in that state. "I'll wait with ya till it gets cooler."
Lapis let out a small chuckle as a smile curved just below his arms. "Ruby was right when he mentioned you really care for others, even if they were total strangers... I like it. It's an admirable quality."
"How long have ya two known each other?" Sapphire asked.
"Long enough..." Lapis trailed off.
It was another unclear answer but Sapphire ignored it. Azura and Momo were hanging out once again as their trainers continued their conversation. The forest was ever peaceful and time just passed like the wandering wind. Sapphire was little by little getting to know the boy. Lapis had gone almost everywhere; Hoenn, Unova, Sinnoh, the Sevii Islands and the Orange Archipelago. The only place where he hasn't gone was Kanto, but he said that he planned to go there as well one day.
Hearing about his travels, the blue eyed girl realized how big the world really was. She spent most of her life in Hoenn that she didn't know what other regions were really like. She managed to go to Kanto but that was only for a few days. And now, she is in Johto but she had only seen four out of ten of its towns and cities.
"You should prepare yourself for Goldenrod, then." Lapis advised. "That place is the third largest city in the world while Lilycove City in Hoenn is fourth."
Astonished at the info, Sapphire could only imagine comparing the two cities. She had been to Lilycove a few times, being asked by Ruby to watch him compete in the contests there. The place was huge. Knowing now that Goldenrod is bigger made her both reluctant and eager to see it.
The time was now half past three...
Lapis got up and stretched. "Sorry for the delay. Let's get going."
Sapphire stood and motioned for her Minccino to come back. Momo scampered merrily towards her and positioned herself on the girl's shoulder while Azura returned to Lapis' side as the boy recalled Xylo to his pokeball.
The exit was not far, just like what Lapis had told. After leaving the shady woods, Sapphire winced at the afternoon rays that greeted her. She shielded her eyes with a hand as she adjusted to the light before she taking a good look at the path before them. There was a building with wide fences along the road, probably the daycare center. And up ahead after that, rose several skyscrapers. The girl took a deep breath to let the scenery sink in. I'm almost to Goldenrod. She said to herself.
"Still sunny, but it's not too bad." Lapis commented, shading his eyes from the sun beams.
"Well, let's get going then." Sapphire walked ahead.
"What about you-know-who?" Azura asked her trainer, telepathically.
"Don't worry" The boy whispered. "We'll meet up again when the time is right."
They reached the Daycare center and Sapphire caught a glimpse of someone tending to the pokemon near the pond. Her mouth curved into a frown as she jumped over the wooden fence and walked over to that person. Lapis and Azura stayed at the side, not wanting to get in the way of the girl emitting a death-like presence.
There was a black haired boy wearing an orange long-sleeved jacket and a cap with googles, crouching down the edge of the water, watching a Politoed play around with an Azurill. His back was turned. He didn't notice Sapphire coming closer.
"...Hello Senior Gold." Sapphire spoke in a dark tone.
"Wild ga-" Before the boy could fully turn around, his junior pushed him from behind with her foot, plunging him into water with a loud splash.
Gold popped out of the pond and coughed out the water. "Is that any way to treat your senior!?"
"I told ya I'd kick yer ass if ever I'd see ya again!" Sapphire exclaimed.
Gold smirked. "That coat really suits you, little miss-pretty-in-pink."
With veins popping, Sapphire growled and grabbed her senior's collar, pulling the breeder out of the water. "Ya really do have a death wish."
"Hey, cut it out. He's had enough." Another boy with raven hair clutched the girl's wrists, preventing further punishment for Gold.
"Mind yer own business!" Sapphire released her senior and jerked her hands away from Lapis, who backed off, not wanting to get involved in her fury.
Gold got to his feet and peered at Sapphire's companion. "P-prissy boy?!"
Lapis turned to him. That was when Gold saw his deep blue eyes. His other features were like Ruby but those midnight orbs told a different story. The breeder squeezed out the excess water from his clothes and approached him. Sapphire knew that look her senior had. It was the same when she first saw Lapis in person.
Gold eyed him discreetly. He couldn't shrug off the uncanny resemblance.
The zaffre eyed remained composed as he held out his hand. "My name's Lapis."
Gold stared as his hand and then narrowed his gaze towards Lapis' face. Then he got a smell of strongly aromatic flora from the boy, making him back off and almost gag on reflex. "The heck is that smell?! What guy in his right mind wear a girl's perfume?"
"It's not perfume. It's the scent of my pokemon's Aromatherapy." Lapis corrected, trying to stay calm as possible at the comment.
"Well, Flower boy. It reeks. I have a Sunflora but she doesn't smell as girly as you." Gold pinched his nose and gestured him to stay away.
"F-flower boy?!" Lapis was at the point of snapping, surprising Sapphire. The two males just met but they are already at each others' nerves.
"Is everything alright?" An old lady came over, hearing a commotion from the daycare building. In her arms was a small blue pokemon with a large fin on its head and another on its rear.
"Sorry, granny. My junior and her... friend just came over for a visit." said Gold as he walked passed Lapis.
"I see." The elderly woman greeted the two teens as they smiled back.
"Sorry for intruding." Lapis bowed down apologetically.
Suddenly, the little blue creature squirmed out of the lady's arms and hurried over to the blue-eyed boy. "Mudkip!"
"It's been a while since I've seen one of these pokemon." Lapis picked up the small mudfish pokemon and rubbed its fin, tenderly. An almost nostalgic feeling flickered in his eyes.. "Hey there, little guy."
It was déjà vu. Sapphire recalled Ruby's pokemon, Zuzu who was once a Mudkip. The sight before her made the memories clear and vivid in her mind.
The old lady smiled and went nearer. "She has taken quite a shine to you. A young trainer left her here for a while but so far she hasn't really gotten used to pokemon or people. It even took me a while to coax it into letting me touch her."
"So the Mudkip's a she." Lapis concluded.
"Kip!" The female mudfish chimed and nestled against the boy's arms.
"How about you kids have something to eat?" The Daycare Lady suggested.
"Sounds good!" Gold eagerly marched towards the center, but was stopped by the old woman.
"You, young man, need to change into dry clothes first. I won't have you dripping water all over the house." She said and started to walk back to the building.
"Aww... man." Gold sighed in exasperation and turned to her junior. "You better leave me some food. This is your fault in the first place."
"Yer the one who made fun of me over the computer." Sapphire argued.
"I didn't think you'd be so defensive about Prissy boy's hand-made clothes..." Gold came over to Lapis. "And you, a friendly warning, that wild gal's a violent one. Better stay clear if you know what's good for you."
"I don't mind." Lapis replied with a sincere smile.
"eh?" Gold was taken back.
"Senior Gold, you should know that guy's been stalking me since I first arrived." Sapphire said bluntly.
Gold raised a brow at the blue-eyed boy. "Hey flower boy, I've got two words for you... TA-KEN."
"...Don't you mean one?"
"That's not the point!" The Johto dexholder shouted. "She already has a boyfriend."
"I know." Lapis was still straightforward.
*sweat drop* "You're one weird dude... I'm outta here!." Gold walked away, followed by Sapphire.
Azura teleported to her trainer's side. "I'd say that went well."
Lapis chuckled softly. "I think so too..."
End of Chapter 9
Lapis' character is coming in nicely. There are so many mysteries concerning him. Just the way I like it. *evil grin*
I was writing the chapter a few times a day. Sometimes, not consecutively. So it might be a little choppy. Please Review and let me know.
Btw. The cover image can be seen in my deviant art. I placed a link on my profile. I'm not good at faces but please bare with me.
Perhaps it will give you some more clues.
I was surprised that my 1st Fanfic is still pouring in views. 9200 and above so far while this one is still in the 1000s.
I wanna know how to get more reviews.
How about if it reaches 20, I'll post something about what happened to Ruby.
How about it?
Thanks facelessclocks for the review! =D