As an attempt to stop receiving comments/messages that point out something that I already covered a long, LONG time ago, I have compiled all the covered information and posted it on my profile. This message will appear in the beginning of the updates of all of S-EARLY.
Alert: SL's Age Relations has updated to Edition III.5.
Okay, I just wanted to point out something. When Pokémon Special progresses forward and has a new piece of information that conflicts with something within S-EARLY, at least wait until the story updates before pointing out such things. That way, no one wastes any energy on pointing out something that I knew for weeks. Rakutsu and Faitsu, for example (this rant would've made sense if this update didn't take 3 months). I knew about them early enough that SE #040 would include them. Given SE #040's release date AND factoring the time it took me to come up with the idea, plan it, then carry it out before updating, it's obvious that I knew about them almost immediately after they were revealed. Which means, I'm fully aware that Black and White do not get updated clothes. They haven't even appeared yet in BW2 (outside of flashbacks, at any rate).
Anyways, the effects of the BW2 arc… Same as SY. The attire shift for Black and White will be reverted after a certain point in the story, in a way that makes sense. And since it's already too late, White's home will still be Aspertia, though the real hometown is unknown. This message will be posted in stories that apply.
Also note: for those who think SL is progressing way too slowly (15 chapters and still no reunion?)… When SL first started, I actually thought of dividing it up into segments and uploading each as a separate story. I chose not to because that would mean I have to juggle 5 stories instead of 1, along with the rest of S-EARLY (also, the name-compilation of S-EARLY would've gone down the drain). So, SL is basically 5 stories mixed into one. So yes, it's long, and yes, it takes a while to progress. 15 chapters in total basically just means 3 chapters on each segment. If you look at it that way, having major stuff happening would be way too early. But I am compensating for the merge. I don't want this thing to drag on forever any more than you. The aim is to keep it shorter than SA. And once SL ends, I'll know if my decision was a disastrous failure or not.
Vote results: 4 Diamond & Platinum, 2 no votes, and 1 Gold & Crystal. So with 4 out of 7, SL #016 is Diamond & Platinum.
Segment: Diamond & Platinum.
Chapter 16: Deterioration
April 24, Olivine City, Johto, 12 pm…
Platinum took a deep breath as she stepped off the ship in the Olivine harbor. The air had a different feel than the air of Sinnoh. And since this was the first time she had taken a step in a different region, she assumed that she would experience all sorts of different things.
She glanced back and spotted Diamond and Pearl following. She focused on Diamond's expression, mostly. He didn't look nearly as happy as she thought he would be. He acted quite differently than normal and he wasn't as nice to her. She hoped that he was just seasick. But something deep inside told her something else. The heiress occasionally thought that Diamond was acting harsh to her on purpose. And that thought haunted her more than any other. She didn't do anything wrong, did she?
"Diamond," she started the moment the boy stepped onto the harbor from the ramp off the ship. "Are you feeling okay?"
"Hm? Yeah, sure," the boy replied.
Platinum knew that he was lying. She didn't like that fact, but she didn't want to explore the issue yet. Instead, she would just let him know that she would be there for him, just as he was there for her in her time of need.
"If anything is wrong, please do not hesitate to tell me," the heiress said after a short moment of thought. "I will do everything in my power to help you."
"I know," Diamond answered, actually sounding genuine. He took a brief look around. "I'm hungry. Is there a restaurant or something around here? I'm sure you want to see what Johto food is like, Lady."
Platinum let out a short sigh of relief. She checked the map of Johto and flipped the page until she got to Olivine City. "There is an eatery in this city. Perhaps we should go there?"
"Where is it, Miss Lady?"
Platinum started to walk west as she observed the map. According to the detailed map, the eatery was quite close to the harbor, so it shouldn't take too long to get there.
"Miss Lady, look out!" Pearl suddenly yelled.
Platinum looked up from the map just in time to see that she walked right into another person. The person was a girl several years older than her, and she looked a bit aggravated from the minor collision.
"I am terribly sorry," Platinum said quickly as she slightly bowed.
The girl let out a huff as she straightened out her clothes and leaned against the rail that acted as a barricade to prevent people from falling into the ocean. The girl was wearing a white brimmed hat, sky blue sleeveless shirt, and a short red skirt along with white shoes and sky blue socks that reached mid calf. She also had long brown hair and blue eyes that weren't easily visible since she was facing away from the sun and was wearing a brimmed hat that cast a dark shadow over them.
"Watch where you're going, kid," the girl said almost in a growl. "Damned kids today have absolutely no respect," the girl grumbled as she reached into her bag.
Platinum was about to walk away but stopped. She faced the older girl with a fierce look. "I beg your pardon?"
The older girl pulled out what appeared to be a cigarette and lit it before even glancing at the heiress. She took a drag and breathed out the smoke, but showed enough courtesy to face away from Platinum while doing so. The wind blew the smoke directly into the heiress's face anyways, though. The older girl examined the heiress from head to toe, putting more focus on the two large rings on her fingers.
"Those are some expensive looking rings. You must come from a rich family," she muttered as she crossed her arms, with her lips holding the cigarette in place.
"For your information," Pearl started. "Miss Lady comes from a very wealthy family in Sinnoh that's known to produce very high quality scholars every generation. And she's going to be that scholar of this generation."
The older girl let out a laugh. She took another drag. "A scholar, huh? What does a spoiled brat like you know about anything?"
Platinum clenched her teeth. "If you are implying that my education is lacking, I will have you know that I have read thousands of books in the past couple of years alone, and most of them were informational."
"A bookworm, huh? Good for you. So you had nothing better to do than read. Too bad you don't put it in practice." She took another drag and this time, exhaled the smoke directly into Platinum's face. The heiress coughed a couple of times and held her breath as she tried to wave the smoke away. "If you've read nearly as much as you claim, then you'd know that "the wealthiest person needs to remain modest". But look at you, with your expensive clothes and those diamond and pearl rings. Clearly your education is lacking." She then looked at Diamond and Pearl. "And what are you two? Did you get hired by this Miss Lady?"
Diamond suppressed his anger and simply looked into the distance, as if he wasn't paying any attention to this. Pearl clenched his teeth. "Hey, what's your problem? We're her friends, alright? Show some respect!"
Platinum looked over at Pearl. "Pearl, you do not have to get angry over what this commoner says."
The older girl let out another laugh. "Like I said, your education is seriously lacking. Look at you, acting all high and mighty because your family is so great and is so rich. Money doesn't mean crap, kid. And just because the family is educated, it doesn't mean everyone in that family is educated. "Do not treat others lowly by considering yourself high". You don't remember that saying, do you?"
The heiress clenched her teeth and glared at the older girl. "No. I remember. But I do not have time to argue with you all day long. I can compare knowledge with you forever, but I know I will win. As such, I shall save myself the effort."
The older girl smirked. "Again with your utter lack of humility! "If you do not experience one event, then you do not gain one piece of knowledge". I've experienced far more than someone like you will experience in 50 years. Life is about experience, kid, not matter how shit the experience is. The sooner you understand that, the better." Platinum kept her glare and trembled in anger. The older girl blew smoke into her face again. "Now get out of here, kid. Come back later once you actually know something."
Platinum maintained her fierce glare for a few seconds before she turned away. Pearl glared at the older girl before following while Diamond followed without any change in expression.
The Sinnoh Dex Holders soon arrived at the Olivine eatery and sat down at an empty table. Platinum let out a frustrated sigh as she tried to calm down her anger. Pearl too, let out a similar sigh.
"Lady, Pearl, don't think about what she said," Diamond said calmly. He sounded way too calm, however, giving the other two Dex Holders the impression that he did not care. "In with one ear, out with the other."
Platinum looked at Diamond with a slightly hurt expression. "Diamond… why did you not try to defend me back there? I would have highly appreciated your support… She insulted me so much. I thought a friend would defend me…"
Diamond cast a glance at Pearl. "Only a rash one would do such a thing. It's best to ignore those kinds of things."
Platinum kept her hurt expression for a couple of seconds before she sighed and did her best to revert her expression to normal. "… You may be right. Very well, then. I will try to ignore what happened today."
"Good."
Platinum glanced at Diamond again before she looked at the menu. "We should just eat something and get on with our sched-"
The heiress was interrupted by a rather loud female voice from directly behind. She put a hand over her ear and looked backwards. There was another table with 4 people sitting at it, all eating and talking. One girl with rather short brown hair was patting another girl with long brown hair while practically yelling. She was the one who interrupted the heiress, by the sound of her voice. The two boys at the table were talking rather quietly, making the girl seem overly rude in comparison.
"Hey, come on! Cheer up! We're not in Unova anymore."
The girl with the long brown hair kept her head down but nodded. "Yeah… I guess it's finally over."
"So cheer up! Eat something! Come on!"
"It still hurts. I don't think I should."
"Oh, don't be a sissy! Eat up!"
"Hey, Sapphire," said one of the boys. "Quiet down, would you? We're in a public place."
The girl with the short hair put a hand over her mouth. "Oh, right. Sorry."
Platinum decided to interrupt her then. She was already in a bad mood and this loud girl wasn't making things any better.
"Excuse me, but could you quiet down?" she said in a frustrated tone. "It is difficult to hear my friend who is sitting right in front of me."
The short haired girl looked back at her and nodded a little apologetically. "Like I said, sorry."
Platinum shook her head slightly before resuming focus on the menu. She let out a long sigh, as she started to have second feelings about coming to Johto. So far, this was not a good start. And the heiress began to fear that this trip to Johto might result in something absolutely terrible happening to her. In order to prevent that from happening, she decided to play things safe. She was going to try her absolute best to avoid conflict with anyone.
For the rest of the day, she kept all thoughts and opinions to herself. Thankfully, no more bad things happened. And Diamond seemed to be treating her nicely now. So maybe his coldness to her was only because he was seasick. Platinum couldn't help but smile in relief. Maybe this trip to Johto wasn't that bad of an idea after all…
…
Next day, April 25, Goldenrod City…
…
Platinum, Diamond, and Pearl stood outside a building and stared at it. Diamond had a blank look on his face, Pearl appeared to be reminiscing something, and Platinum appeared a bit anxious. The three Sinnoh Dex Holders were currently staring at the Goldenrod Game Corner…
"Lady, do you want to go in?" Diamond asked.
Platinum appeared troubled. "I… promised Pearl I would not enter another Game Corner…"
"It's okay, Lady, since we're here too," Diamond assured. "We won't let you get too far into the games."
The heiress took a nervous glance at Pearl. "Well… I… I guess it would be interesting to see the differences between the Johto and Sinnoh Game Corners…"
Pearl let out a sigh. "Fine, Miss Lady. We'll go in. But only for an hour."
The 3 Dex Holders entered the Game Corner at last. Platinum purchased 50 Coins and promised Pearl that she would not be purchasing any more.
The first game the heiress played was a game called the Card Flip. The heiress lost 10 Coins in a few games and soon moved on. She soon sat at a slot machine with Diamond and Pearl standing beside her. Diamond encouraged the girl to play while Pearl had a stern look on his face.
Platinum nervously glanced at both boys before she reluctantly inserted 3 Coins into the machine. She won 8 Coins. This time, she didn't pay much attention to Pearl as she inserted 3 more Coins. She won 15 this time. And just like that, she managed to completely forget the existence of Diamond and Pearl as she lost herself in the slot machine once again.
…
3 hours later…
…
"Come on, Miss Lady, time's up!" Pearl yelled as he tried to forcefully pull Platinum out of her chair. The heiress had a surprisingly strong grip… Diamond simply watched, again giving the impression that he did not care.
Platinum seemingly glared at the slot machine with her scary unblinking eyes she inserted more Coins into the machine. With perfect timing, she pulled the lever 3 times in rapid succession. She won 300 Coins for getting three 7's in a line.
"Good job, Lady," Diamond said as he put the prize Coins into the bucket.
"Dia, stop encouraging her! Miss Lady, get off that chair!"
Platinum finally turned to look at Pearl. "… It has been an hour already?"
Pearl glanced at the clock. His patience has depleted two hours ago. "It's been 3 hours and 2 minutes, for your information. So let's go!"
Platinum looked over at Diamond. "How many Coins do we have?"
Diamond looked at the sheet of paper he's been using to keep track of the Coins. "Uh… 2703."
The heiress beamed. "Great. One more game then."
Pearl was about to raise his voice again, but the heiress had already pulled the lever after inserting 3 more Coins. She won the jackpot again, thus raising the total Coin count to 3000. With a satisfied grin, she got off the chair and headed towards the prize counter. At the counter, she spotted a boy leaning over the counter, talking to the female clerk.
"Aw, come on," he whispered loudly in a half-beg. "I really need that scarf for a gift."
"I'm sorry, sir, but you were caught cheating. Again. And might I add, this was the 4th time we caught you here this month. I would like to know how you keep getting back here."
"Hey, no need to be cold. I already know one girl who's like that. I need that scarf so she stops kicking me."
"Getting her a warm scarf in the start of summer would likely get her to kick you more, sir."
"Come on! Help a guy out!"
"Sir, for the last time. You are on our probation list. You are not allowed to purchase any prize for a month since your last visit. And on top of that, you don't even have enough Coins to purchase that scarf. Now if you'll excuse me, there is another customer."
The boy glanced back and saw Platinum. The heiress noticed that he was holding a billiard cue. There was a pool table in the back, so she assumed he came from there. She still took a brief moment to examine him. He looked several years older and had golden eyes and black hair in an explosive hairstyle. His cap was facing backwards and there was a pair of goggles on the cap.
The heiress soon turned her attention to the clerk. "I have 3000 Coins. What can I purchase with those?"
The clerk politely listed the possible prizes. A scarf made of silk (not a Pokémon-used Silk Scarf) cost 1000, the Wide and Zoom Lens each cost 1000, and a variety of other items were there as well. There was a cute looking wristband on display for 350 Coins. The heiress thought for a second before making a decision.
"Okay, I would like two of the scarves and two of the wristbands."
"Miss, there is a slight discount for those spending more than 2000 Coins. You can purchase 3 wristbands for 1000 Coins."
"Oh, that would be perfect."
The heiress received the bags containing her prize and thanked the clerk before heading towards the exit. The boy from the counter followed her, however.
"Hey, wait up," he said as he ran over.
The heiress turned to look at him. "Can I help you?"
"Yeah, listen. Can I buy one of those scarves off of you? I really need one."
"I apologize, but I cannot help you," Platinum replied.
"What? Why? You already have a scarf on you. You don't need three scarves! And besides, I'm offering to pay you for one."
"I am not interested in money," the heiress said. "The two scarves are souvenirs that I will be sending home. I apologize."
"Fine, be that way," the boy muttered after a sigh. "Figures… I run into a Super Serious Gal while trying to avoid another one…"
Once Platinum was outside, she opened the bags and pulled out the three wristbands. One was red, one blue, and the other was orange. She gave the blue one to Diamond and the orange one to Pearl.
"Here. Now we all have a souvenir," she said with a smile as she put the red one on her right wrist.
Diamond and Pearl put their wristbands on. "Thank you, Lady."
"Yeah, thanks a lot." Pearl adjusted the wristband so it was comfortable and extended a fist. Platinum smiled and joined her fist with his. Diamond did the same, thus forming their symbol of trust. "Here's to the rest of our journey."
"Where to now, Lady?" Diamond asked as he pulled his fist back.
Platinum checked her schedule. "I would like to meet Professor Oak in Kanto. I have heard his name many times but I have never met him."
"That's a good idea," Pearl said. "I'm sure he'll want to meet you too, once he knows who you are."
"So we should purchase tickets for the Magnet Train," Platinum said. "I always wanted to ride it ever since I first heard of it."
Pearl looked over at the Magnet Train Station before he focused on Platinum. "Sorry, Miss Lady, but I don't think I can go with you."
Platinum looked quite surprised. "But… why not?"
"See, they just opened the Battle Frontier here rather recently, so I want to go and meet my dad. He's the Tower Tycoon, after all. He's bound to be here."
"Oh. I see…" the heiress muttered rather sadly. "… What if I went with you?"
"Sorry. But this is going to be a family thing, you know? It wouldn't feel right."
The heiress looked sad, but nodded in understanding. "… Okay, Pearl. I understand. But when you are finished at the Battle Frontier, be sure to come to Pallet Town. I will be waiting."
"Sure thing."
A few minutes later, Pearl waved at the Magnet Train as it started to move. Platinum practically pressed herself onto the window and waved back. Diamond simply stared at her with a small cold smile. So Pearl had finally put his plan into motion. He left the heiress alone with him, thinking that this would eventually lead to Platinum falling for the relaxed Dex Holder.
Perhaps that would happen. But it was most unlikely. Diamond knew Platinum enough to know that she would not forget about Pearl. To her, Pearl would always remain as her first love, and she would never forget that fact either.
Diamond watched as Pearl disappeared from his sight. Platinum let out a sigh as she returned to her seat. Diamond avoided looking in her direction. Again, a cold smile formed on his mouth. He was now all alone with Platinum in a different region. His plan could finally be put in motion.
There's the reunion that everyone's been demanding. Well, not necessarily, but it's better than nothing. Too bad it was pretty hostile. Platinum met Blue in the exact same fashion as she was supposed to meet her in SA (meets Crystal in the same fashion instead). But very different results.
And since SL is using Age Relations Edition III.5, the whole "DP arc took place after HGSS" becomes inconvenient. So, for the sake of the story, that fact will be ignored here. So the Battle Frontier of Johto would have just opened and thus the Frontier Brains of Sinnoh are coming over instead of it going the other way around.
And also, the Sapphire vs. Platinum of SL has started, though obviously not at full speed right now. In SL, this rivalry/hatred will mostly be Platinum's fault. With SR's version (Sapphire's fault) and SY's (both to blame), the SL's version creates balance in terms of fault-distribution. One for Sapphire, one for Platinum, one for both.
Oh, and just to prevent any confusion… Be sure to check the chapter's date that's posted on the very beginning of each chapter (April 24 for this chapter) to get a sense of time. This chapter marks the merge/meeting of the Kanto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Unova storylines. But the next Kanto, Hoenn, or Unova chapter will be set prior to this point. So don't get confused when Ruby, Sapphire, Black, and White are back in Unova. Yes, it's a little confusing. See, this is what happens if 5 stories are merged into one…