IM BACK WITH A CHARGER BITCHESSSS! 3
(this chapter takes place between episodes 3 and 4)
A/N: I'm sooo excited to get started on this again 3 its been waayy too long. Anyway, I'm tryin to catch up. Theres so many chapters in store that im excited to get to! =^.^=
-Citron's POV-
It had been a long day. A very, very, long day..
The kind of day that often left Citron sleeping in late the next morning, or the kind that required several caffeinated drinks to complete. Neither were going to be at his disposal any time soon.
Ahead of him, he could see Satoshi march ahead like it was nothing. Chatting with Pikachu and Yayakoma hovering at his side. With a small sigh, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his electronic map.
"..It says we still have another.. twenty six miles.." the blond's face fell, realization of exactly how long and how far they were traveling dawning on him. When Satoshi said he wanted to travel the entirety of Kalos, he very well meant it.. maybe if they were lucky they'd find a train or something later.. maybe if he got desperate enough he'd invent rocket boots.
"Hm.. we should get there in a few days then." Satoshi grinned, unbelievably chipper. Eureka huddled closer into the trainer's shoulder, long since asleep on his back. How he managed to trek the last five miles with an extra sixty pounds, Citron didn't know. A faint pang of.. jealousy?.. stabbed the blond in his stomach, seeing Satoshi carefully, place his sister against a stump, letting Pikachu cuddle into her lap. With a soft sigh, he let the thought go.
"We should stop for the night."
"Good call." The trainer stretched, amber eyes scanning over their temporary campsite. "You said you got a tent right?"
"Yeah.." He began to rummage around in his backpack for the labeled storage unit. It wasn't exactly like he'd been able to go home anyway, since the whole.. situation.. with his gym, and you can only float between three centres for so long until the nurses start to get suspicious. The last month of camping around certainly seemed to pay off as far as Eureka's lie ('we're just starting our journey too!'). He'd have to thank her later. "..I kinda feel like I want Eureka to use it for now though, so I was going to sleep outside."
"That's cool. I'll join ya."
It wasn't a big deal, right?
The look on Citron's face betrayed him. The blond's wide eyes and sudden pink face threw him off. He never slept beside anyone, occasionally one of his Pokemon when he'd fallen asleep midresearch, but otherwise.. darn, being modest sucked..
"Y-You don't have to. Don't.. don't you have your own tent?" he tried.
"Nah, I don't mind sleepin' on the ground." Satoshi grinned, trying to be reassuring. "Besides, it gives us time ta hang out."
It didn't take long to set up the remainder of camp, chatting, building a small fire and snacking on various treats they'd packed. With his sister finally nestled in the tent, Keromatsu and Horubii as her self-designated "protectors", the boys began setting up their beds for the night.
Finding a softer looking patch of earth besides the fire pit, Citron threw his sleeping bag down,sitting on top in a tired silence- until a loud muffled thump landed beside him, Satoshi now almost uncomfortablly close. It wasn't unnesisarily unwelcomed, just.. unusual. Some people really were just this friendly, wow.
"Man, today was fun, huh?" The trainer shot him a toothy grin, amber irises flickering in the fire light. He ripped open a bag of chips and munched a few, offering the snack out. "..wanna play a game?"
"A game?"
"Yeah, I kinda have a hard time sleepin'." He rubbed under his nose, "Ya know, there's been alot goin' on these last few days, so I guess I'm still amped."
That explains alot. Even though they were both older than her, Eureka had the same problem, often talking his ear off until her words became slow and exhausted. Some people found that trait annoying. Thankfully he'd gotten used to it.
"Sure," His expressioned softened with understanding. Satoshi's expression immediately lit up.
"Twenty Questions! So you guys are from Miare City?" He began, not really one to wait.
"Yeah, I've lived there most of my life, except when I went to school." How much was okay to reveal at first? Surely he could trust Satoshi, that wasn't the issue. However being a private person made him question. He fluffed the back of his hair anxiously, pale eyes flickering over to the fire.
"Ugh, school." There was a tone of playful disgust in his voice. "My mom pulled me outta there when I was.. seven? Then she taught me herself til I left home. Looks like it wasn't really worth your time either."
"No, it was. I learned english, graduated and got certified in a few different fields. There's so much more to research out there, watch," Excitedly, he took out his yellow digital map, turning it on and scanning through different folders, each holding copies of text books, research papers and personal notes.
The trainer gasped in wonder, shoving his way practically into his lap to see. It was rare that he got to share this small library with anyone, Eureka always insisting that it was 'boring'. Beside him, Satoshi's smile widened.
"That's amazing! You're really smart, aren't ya?" Satoshi beamed, and for a moment, Citron felt his heart flutter.
It was that same embarrased joy he'd felt earlier when Satoshi commented on his invention, not even minutes after it'd failed and exploded in their faces. Who could blame him though? When everyone insisted that, while he had potential, it would be best to stick to programming and not robotics, Satoshi praised him.. seriously, he was too easily impressed..
"M-My turn." Citron tried to switch the subject off himself, biting the inside of his lip. "Why did you choose to come to Kalos?"
"The last few months I'd been traveling through Unova on another journey. It was fun, and I met alotta cool people. But when I got to the league, I lost. Then I met Pansy-san, and she suggested I come here." Satoshi said proudly, seemingly unphased by admitting his loss. "I'm not gonna let somethin' like that keep me back from my dream, so we followed her."
Pikachu's ear twitched from his lap, listening while pretending to sleep.
"You're certainly dedicated." He sighed, closing his map and leaning back onto his sleeping bag, throwing his arms above his head to look up at the stars. They appeared framed like a picture against the canyon walls. It was so much darker than his life in Miare City, the sky untainted with light pollution. Inklings of trees starting to break through the red stone walls.
All of a sudden, the world felt so much bigger than a single city.
"I am. A hundred percent."
"I don't think I would've had the motivation to keep going after a long journey like that.." He'd ment it as a strange sort of encouragement, to say that Satoshi was braver than others his same age. However, it was obvious that although unintentional, he'd messed up as the trainer went noticablly and uncomfortably ridged. Satoshi reached out, absentmindedly scratching Pikachu's head.
".."
"I won't stop, no matter how many times I've lost." He flashed another bright smile, one side pulling up higher than the other in a crooked grin. The pride in his voice almost dampered.
"Of course.."
"Next question,"
-(Satoshi's POV)-
Ouch..
He knew Citron ment well, he knew that the blond wasn't aware of his three year losing streak, stretching five other regions. It was easy most of the time to keep his spirits up. Alot of it was his incredible wanderlust. Badges were the goal, but they weren't the only driving force. If not for the thrill of new sights and sounds, new experiences and friends, he would've quit along time ago..
Gently, his fingers combed through Pikachu's fur, taking comfort in the warmth and familiar static that clung to him.
"Next question," He shifted his weight, letting himself lay back on his elbows.
"If I may, can I ask you the next question?" Citron interrupted politely, adjusting his lenses curiously. A spark caught his eye, as the glass flashed like the cool guys from anime he'd always watched as a kid.
"Shoot." He smiled, more honest this time than before. Citron seemed to notice the change, smiling back.
"How do you plan on training Keromatsu?"
Thank you..
"He's driven by his heart, like when Yayakoma made Eureka cry by chasing that Dedenne away." Pokemon were easy to talk about. It was a safe point for both of them, something that they both enjoyed. "He felt bad for her, and wanted to make her feel better. So we used that. Technical stuff will come with time."
"I'm sure it will."
Their questions carry on from there easily. Trivial things, like favourite foods or 'if you could meet a lengendary who would it be?'. Tangents leading to stories they both exaggerated too much, stories about old friends and pleasent memories. How Satoshi first started his journey, or how Kasumi regularly treated him like an annoying little brother. How Eureka caught Citron singing in the shower on camera, or how he'd managed to super glue himself to his bedroom floor one night after too little sleep.
They laid opposite each other, eyes screwed shut, clutching their stomachs, laughing so hard no sound could leave their lungs. Satoshi threw his head back, palms smashed into his forehead. Man, his smile was starting to hurt. Was he sweating yet? He was pretty sure he was, judging by the hair stuck to the back of his neck. Gross.
"Hahaha!" Citron was the first to break their silence, bursting out into a fit of giggles.
Satoshi's laughter dissolved into chuckles, seated deep in his chest, amber eyes peered over. Just when he thought the nerd couldn't turn any pinker, he'd been proven wrong. Citron's whole face was flushed, face broken out into the biggest smile. It scrunched his nose and knocked his lenses off centre.
For a brief moment, he wondered if he'd ever seen someone so.. happy. Untainted by stress, someone with no where to be and all the time in the world. What were they talking about again? Darn, he should've been paying more attention. Maybe next time.
"Nii-chan," a tired voice, followed by the zipper to a tent dragged Satoshi back from his thoughts. Eureka popped her head out, rubbing her forearm across her face. From inside, he could see Pikachu keeping her pillow warm. "I know you guys are having some 'boy time', but can keep it down?"
"Oh, geez, I-I'm sorry." Citron appologized quickly, gasping for breathe. He sat up and adjusted his glasses. "We'll go to bed, I promise."
She mumbled incoherently, and waved them off, turning back into the tent.
"..we really 'ought to get to sleep." He said finally, turning away from the trainer and the dwindling fire pit. The abrupt change in mood was jarring to say the least. Citron removed his lenses and set them aside. "W-what time are we leaving tomorrow?"
"An hour after sunrise." The answer was practically programmed into his mouth, traveling with Takashi through four regions did that for him. It was so hard to get used to when he first started. He wasn't surprised that Citron was having trouble adjusting, being the night owl he was.
"Sounds.. refreshing? Well, goodnight then." the blond sighed, scooting further away. That's okay, not everyone was comfortable sleeping with someone new. Satoshi wasn't offended, though he wished Pikachu had chosen to stay with him. Having Citron a few feet away would have to do for tonight.
The trainer stared a few moments, wondering. His cheeks still hurt, his stomach was still sore with old laughter. One minute they were having fun, joking and telling stories, having 'boy time', and the next- BOOM- bed?
Confusing.
Satoshi rested his arms under his head, eyes turning back to the vast blanket of stars overhead.
"G'night, Citron.."
He didn't sleep at all that night.
happy to be back! 3
comments are my motivation :'D