Finale: So, What Ever Happened to the Mouse?

"I still can't believe that Team Rocket caused that blizzard to sneak in here!" Lyra Soul was still as excited as ever as she took her Pokémon from the evil Nurse Joy. She turned to me with a smile as her Meganium stood tall beside her. "I mean, that just screams to me that there's plenty of Rockets still around. One single Sneasel could never cause such a large snow build-up by itself."

I gave her a frown as my own Sneasel peeked out from behind my back, resting his head on my shoulder. "Don't underestimate a Sneasel. These little Pokémon are quite skilled in sneaking around and causing distractions." Lyra just rose an eyebrow and rested her scarred hand on her Petalsaurus' head.

"Yeah, and I'm sure you know that from experience." I just shot her a look as she laughed it off. She suddenly grew serious as she narrowed her eyes in thought. "Well, it looks like nothing's keeping you here anymore, huh?" Yeah, that snowdrift was just a diversion to hold off anyone from coming inside. Now that the Sneasel's knocked out, the snow all melted in the sunlight.

"I'll still hang around here for a little while," I found the words filled with a frantic worry. "I mean, the Dragon's Den is still here, right? That's always a good place to train and all." Amusement flashed through bright hazels as she leaned towards me with her free hand on her hip.

"Oh really? I'm truly surprised that they let someone like you inside, especially after your deep hatred of Lance and Clair went public." My face burned as I recalled that bitter spat in the center of this very village. Ugh, if it's not one thing with you, it's another.

"I'm just fine, thank you." I folded my arms and remained silent as we both left Nurse Joy behind. My shoes seemed to stick to every tile on the cold floors as Lyra stopped beside the looming glass doors. It could have been a trick of the sunlight streaming through the glass entryway, but I could have sworn that her smile faltered into a frown for the slightest fraction of a second.

Either way, Lyra Soul slipped out the door with a determined air surrounding her. I followed her with heavy feet as Sneasel simply gave a few worried chirps from his lookout. My heart seemed to drop in my stomach as she stopped only a few feet away, a few feet that never seemed to leave us.

"Well," Her voice seemed to choke as she looked back to me with a forced smile. "I guess this is where we part ways, right? You have training to do, I have places to be and people to face..." Her voice trailed away as the sun burned me as if I was under a pane of glass.

"Where are you going?" The indifference in my voice was gone with the wind that teased her hair and stole my breath. "Are you heading back to the League for some Champion stuff or something?"

My heart seemed to skip a beat as she shook her head. "Actually, I'm heading to Kanto to challenge the Gym Leaders over there. Besides," She took a moment to look at her bag before looking back to me. "I sorta have something to deliver over there." She took a long moment to look at me before turning to her partner. "I'm sure I'll get there before the end of the week. It's not that long of a journey to go home to New Bark and then head towards Kanto."

"Right," Remember that earlier heart skip? Yeah, now my heart was in my stomach. "You were never one to stay in one place for long." She just laughed at me and waved it off.

"Looks like I can't hide from you, Silver!" She then gave me a nod and took a step backwards. "Well, I better get going. I'm certain that I'm going to have some sort of problem with Ethan when I get there, and then everyone's going to want a piece of me." She gave me a tilt of the head that usually meant that she was thinking of something. "Well, I'll see you later!" Before I could stop her, Lyra Soul ran away towards the mountains, heading towards her home.

I somehow found my hand reaching out towards where she was standing only moments before with a shocked face. Sneasel just waited patiently before tilting his head to rest against my cheek. "That was anticlimactic. You officially fail at socializing with her."

I reluctantly lowered my hand to my side and let out a sigh. As much as I hated it, Sneasel wasn't too far off this time. I seriously need to work on getting her to wait. I ended up letting my head droop as I looked back on the past day and a half. Despite being unplanned, locked inside with my rival and facing off against grunts and my rival in some blind fit of rage, it wasn't so bad. In fact, I felt kinda disappointed that it was over. I didn't even so much as get a battle out of that...

It was then that it hit me.

Lyra Soul was heading to Kanto to challenge the Kanto League, right? There was bound to be plenty of Trainers beside her over there that I could battle. There where Gyms over there as well that gave out badges, Gyms that I could challenge...er, a bit more honorably. That was yet another thing that the dreaded region offered. Besides all of that, there was a distinct chance that I could encounter that...that man over there. He could be hiding somewhere in Viridian City, waiting for his chance.

A small smile formed as I found my mind coming to an answer far quicker than I expected. It was true, Kanto was a place I never expected to return to. However, placing all of these things on the scale, I found plenty of reasons to continue on with my own journey. I might have missed on being the strongest in Johto, but Kanto still was unconquered by both myself and my rival.

"Oh, you'll see me a whole lot sooner than you think, my rival."

Author's Note: And...it seems this is the end. /cue the moans of disappointment/ It's a shame that all good things must come to an end. However, if this didn't, it would truly suffer from never ending. This cannot be "The Neverending Story of Irritation", it has to be just "Irritation". I'm sorry about that. However, I'm so proud of how this story turned out, and even prouder to know that you guys enjoyed this story so much. Really, you guys make me so happy!

It seems that both parties here are a bit reluctant to leave this small corner in Blackthorn after spending time with each other. True, the meeting may have been by chance, but what happened next was no accident. These two are closer than they think, but they are still a bit too dense to understand such feelings. (Except maybe Lyra; she understands her problem) And so, with heavy hearts, they part ways for the moment. However, you can be sure that they will meet again soon.

I've come to a conclusion. THERE WILL BE A SEQUEL TO THIS. After much consideration, I've decided that a sequel will be a good choice. So, my wonderful readers, please be on the lookout for the thrilling sequel to "Irritation"! What will the name be, you ask. Well, that's quite simple. The name shall be...

"Frustration"!

Thank you so much for reading, and I hope to see you all again soon!