A/N: In need of slight edits, but wanted to get this one out there. Appreciate anybody and everybody who reads. Thanks!
Lake Lucid, 55 days Before The Fall
Seria Day had become the undisputed life of the festival. She had been working on her "fairy dust" routine for a while and had planned to use it at her very next contest but judging from the reactions that she had garnered at one of the biggest contests around, it might have been a bit of an overzealous performance at any other level and Seria supposed it was best to have it debut at the Home of Hearts instead. A chance to perform at the Home of Hearts was something that she had always wanted after all.
All of the attention that followed after however, was not. Frankly, Seria had never even met either of the requirement contests and had only gotten in from one of Juliet's three invitations complimentary for her having been invited on her own. It had also been around that time that Seria had found out that Juliet was in fact, a Top Coordinator.
How on earth was Juliet not overqualified for Violet City?
In any case, Seria was there, hiding from dogged and decidedly annoying suitors who were both genuinely interested in her and in raising their status. And with an exclusive ribbon that gave her exclusive access to the next festival and connections to some of the greatest coordinators in the world to boot, Seria was convinced that one of the intentions definitely outweighed the other, especially when a decent portion of said suitors had come to her to ask about Juliet. The bulk of them had moved down either by the lake, or over to the opposite end toward the main avenue of shops and entertainment; Seria was happy to catch her breath back in the grand lobby of the Brightwater alone.
It was a stunning building and the first time she had really seen something so ornate. The staircase had caught her attention, her eyes following until it split in opposite directions. Its handrails were made to look aged but deceptively strong. They drew Seria's eyes back to the bottom staircase, to the plinths at the beginning of the rails; the sculptures of Slowking were intricately done and their crowns came posts that bloomed into a collection of light that helped bathe the room in bronze. Her eyes continued up and out and Seria sucked in a breath at the sheer grandiosity of everything that made her dizzy.
Blackthorn was nothing like this.
She ambled up the stairs, gliding her fingers atop the railing and over the balusters as she went, coming to a full stop at the landing. A second and third set of stairs split from there, each to a wing of the hotel, coming together at a center to form the third floor. It would be easy to get lost in such a sprawling place. Seria had made her way over to the right wing, glancing down the hallway and looking through the window that stretched from the floor to a great ways up the wall, giving her a direct view of all of the bodies at the lake. She sighed.
"It's a really impressive building, isn't it?" She watched the lake for a fleeting moment before turning to Ryuu with a smile. Did he come looking for her?
"It really is. I'm…actually a little surprised that Juliet dislikes it so much."
"She comes from a lot of money, so this sort of thing might just be normal for her."
"I do too, y'know."
"You're right. But you've lived differently than she has. Juliet… is just Juliet..." Seria frowned.
"Hey, how are you feeling? It's…been a couple of days since they've all gotten here and they all kind of laughed at you about the mastery thing." She corrected herself. "Well, mostly Virgil…But, I saw it with my own eyes so…I really do believe you."
"Thanks. But I'm sure they believe it all now." Seria's frown deepened.
"You're a lot more reserved than usual today." He had been looking slightly past her and his eyes flashed to her, "I just want to make sure you are okay…" He was quiet. "Ryuu…" He turned to her with a half-smile and Seria tucked her hands under her arms to help gauge herself.
Something was bothering him and that made her want to hug him.
"You did great at your performance."
"O-oh. Thanks…But Juliet's performance was actually better. I scored close, but did you see how she put her throne together? And it was a routine her and Zuzu worked on for only an hour. She's… really good." She pressed her hands into her arms harder. "Did you get any good shots?" He nodded again.
"Yeah. I did, but I'll find something I can do with them. I'm also working on something else at the moment too."
"Another project?" He attempted the same sullen face from earlier but it came off closer to a frown. Seria couldn't take it. "Ryuu, please. What's bothering you? What's going on?" He sighed.
"...Have you talked to Juliet recently?"
"I…haven't. I actually haven't seen her all day. She's usually out and about by now but… now that you mention it, she did seem a little off during the Coordination. She seemed really far away."
"Yeah…" Seria narrowed her eyes.
"Like you. Why'd you ask about Juliet? Did anything get worse with her?" He shrugged.
"I don't know. I saw her here in the lobby for her showcase last night and at the afterparty. Her and Virgil went to dance one moment, and then she was speeding away the next." Seria sighed.
"I remember that…That's…usually me." she said with a nervous laugh. "I just hope she's okay. Do you think we should go check on her?"
"No."
" 'No' ?"
"No."
"Why not? I mean…I know she's…well, Juliet and doesn't quite trust you…yet, but if we go check on her together, maybe that'll help her warm up."
"It's easier to let Virgil take care of her for now." Seria shifted indignantly.
"I'm so much nicer than he is though! Besides, they like each other and–" Her words caught in her throat just as fire burned into her cheeks. She turned away. "R-Ryuu…! A-are you setting them up…!?" He turned to her perplexed and with a slight sense of bewilderment before clearing his throat awkwardly.
"That's…not what I'm concerned about…" She gave him a timid glance.
"Well, they do like each other and–"
"Juliet's definitely had an influence on you…" He had said that in his customary sternness, though Seria could still pick out traces of amusement and the slightest tug at the corners of his mouth. He seemed to come back to his body a little.
Good, she was making progress.
"Still," he began. "I wasn't really talking about anything like that at all. But, she was certainly less social. She seemed particularly exhausted to me. I figured this was her element…"
"She doesn't really like too many of the socialites that come here." Seria grimaced a little at her curt response. "All of the attention she's been getting from so many different people is probably exhausting…"
"You're not wrong, but we've seen Juliet deal with them before without a problem. I think whatever was bothering her is something deeper."
"You're…really concerned about Juliet…" Her shoulders dipped.
"Only the same amount that I'm worried about all of you." He took to fiddling with his camera then. She watched him thumb through the settings for a moment in silence.
"Well, that is why you had everyone rush over here from Ecruteak. Mastery was just an extra incentive."
"Well, after that first run-in with Marus and Victoria, I didn't want to take any chances. But…it was a good thing you were there."
"I guess…H-hey! Don't change the subject!" Ryuu laughed. "I'm serious, Ryuu."
"And here, I thought you wouldn't realize." The breath out was slow. "I have to be honest, what's really on my mind about everything isn't really something I want to talk about." Seria frowned.
"Is it mastery again?"
"Not quite." He took to fiddling with his camera again. "I would just like to stay behind my camera. I have photos of all of my favorite shots from the Coordination and even a few videos that I managed to save in storage." Seria couldn't help but mirror his smile that followed. "I'm really excited about the Melodic Musings too. I was hoping that it could wait." Seria's eyes fell to the ground.
"It's scheduled as an evening event so there's still plenty of time…"
"Do you plan on participating?" She jolted to attention.
"M-me?" He nodded once. All of his trust and warmth was embodied in an attentive and reserved curve of his lips. She broke eye contact almost immediately as she clamored for something to say. "I-I was thinking about it…" She managed that through sheer will.
"Only thinking about it?"
"Y-yeah. I don't really know if Melodic Musings is for me."
"Even if you placed fourth in the appeals for the Coordination? You don't think that's confirmation enough?"
"Well…the Musings are a little different…It's…the main events for actors and musicians. You know, stuff like that…"
"You'll do fine."
"You…think?" Ryuu shifted. "Wait, don't answer that." she said sheepishly.
"You know."
"You changed it up on me a little!"
"Consider it a kind of practice." His fingers froze around the frame of his camera. A small grin forming at the corners of his mouth. He ambled over to her and offered her the camera. "This is what I mean."
He had captured key moments in her routine, and they were immaculate. From Sky at the center of a swirling nebula,, to the flight, down to her landing right atop her head with dust that created a mysticism that she preferred to Blackthorn, Ryuu had gotten in all in fantastic detail. Seria couldn't quite believe the girl she stared at in the photo, with her clever thematic costume was her.
"You know how to make an impression in your field." Ryuu said. "I say you should go."There was a subtle strain in his voice that Seria had ignored at first, but there was a certain distance that had gone up at that moment between them.
Was she getting too close?
She shook her head. She needed to see this through. He was bothered earlier, and he had deflected from that. Besides, Juliet had essentially caved from their talk just before her performance. It was her turn. She could do this. She took a breath.
"You and Juliet remind of someone I know." It was Ryuu. Seria stood perplexed.
"Are you going to tell me what's been bothering you now? You don't have to keep me out Ryuu. We're friends."
"I know." His response was a bit morose and Seria couldn't help but mirror his expression as she thought of Victoria. "You and Juliet are like sisters." He paused, weighing his words carefully. "What do you think of her?" Seria was silent for a moment.
"She's…really good…At everything…She's gorgeous, she's not like me and knows how to talk to people, has contests under her belt and can battle. I'm happy that Icey listened and Star is so strong, but Juliet, Angel and Zuzu carried me most of the final match…" The lines deepened in her face. "I'm…a little jealous if I'm honest." Then she sighed. She felt heavier than she would have liked. "Why?" He was looking to her side, at the dirt.
"...I know her brother."
"You…do..?" Ryuu nodded, bringing his eyes back to meet hers.
"If you don't like socialites, then you might not be particularly fond of him. And the same way you see Juliet, is the same way she sees Connor. And she hates it." Fog settled into Seria.
"You…actually know him? Do you know what happened to him? How come he hasn't said anything, or reached out to his sister? Especially when–" He held up a hand and the words caught in her chest.
"He never really told me much about his actual thoughts or home life before we started traveling together but…we were friends…" He hung on that word for a tad longer than she had expected. "The Golden Boy loves his attention and art. He likes to show off quite a bit. Like Juliet did with her routine."
"...Is that why you decided to come along with us? Because you're looking for Connor and you happened to find his sister?" Seria felt as though she were going to buckle.
"No. It's not." He pointed to his eyes. "I see things, remember? And I wanted to make sure my friends were going to be okay…"
"Ryuu…"
"I know more about Juliet than I should because of him."
"...What do you know…?" Quiet settled between them. Maybe she had overstepped her bounds. Everything she was seeing now was beyond Ryuu's normal. Whatever history he had with Connor, the afflictions were clear.
"It's not my place to say, but…" he sighed. "One of the last things Connor asked me to do before he disappeared was to go take a look at contest circuits. He claimed it was for my photography, but I guess he planned to have me keep an eye on Juliet if I ever found her." Another sigh and he turned to Seria with another one of his half smiles, accented with something that she had never recognized on Ryuu before: regret.
She threw herself into his chest and her arms came to rest around his waist.
"You've been through so much," she murmured softly. "I don't really understand everything, but…you're hurting…" He tittered somberly. His arms came around her hesitant.
"We can talk about this later. You should get ready for the Musing." Seria pulled away. Why was he being so stubborn? She went to retort but promptly refrained when she caught sight of one of the guests approaching Ryuu in particular.
"Oh, Mr. Sinclair!" Seria's lip curled into a sneer. "Mr. Sinclair" was way too formal and restricting. She definitely preferred the Ryuu she had met at Ecruteak. Ryuu was much softer than people gave him credit for. Watching his awkward pleasantries with someone outside of the six of them was also quite funny.
"...Well, we have a very special guest that arrived late in the evening yesterday…" the woman continued. Ryuu gave Seria an apologetic glance as he was being led out toward the lake. She watched them go as they exited the door. Seria sighed, slumping down into one of the hallway chairs. She could just watch from the window for a bit but it wouldn't be too long; the Musing was scheduled later in the evening and she had already planned a routine with Icey and King. The issue would be to get them to follow through with it.
For a moment, Seria watched listlessly. Spots of lights flashed in the distance which meant the tabloids were looking for their next big story or something. According to Juliet, bad faith actors like that were there for their own gain and for their own drama and when Seria thought of it, she hadn't seen any press coverage of the festival which made sense given the barrier to entry.
What was drawing so much attention? She made her way closer to the window. The crowd had gotten bigger. Seria could see Ryuu with his signature camera in hand, intent and steely as she had ever seen him. She smiled, eyes following Ryuu's direction. Her eyes came to an ornately designed cloth of purple, black and gold.
Oh no…
Seria bolted outside to the lake. Her eyes flicked over to Ryuu crouched for a particular angle as she slowed to a stop and then away, to the cape.
"Seria," Ryuu began, rising to his feet and coming to her side. "Sorry about earlier." He followed her eyes to the man at the center. "Do you know him?" Seria nodded only once. She pressed her tongue against the roof of her mouth.
She couldn't believe this! The man turned to her with draconic eyes of gold, sharp and warm at the same time. His smile was luminous, just like it always had been. She never had anything to worry about when he was around…
Except for when he did things like this…
"Seria!" she shrank a little at his voice. He sifted through the crowd of people. Seria tucked her hands at her side; she could feel Ryuu's eyes on her and stood to rebuff the man. He was faster and took Seria into his arms tightly. "How's my little dragonfly?" Seria sighed and slipped her arms dejected around him.
"Hey dad…" She snuck a glance over to Ryuu, who came to a complete stop just inches from them. William followed suit to catch Ryuu's stare and was first to offer his hand; he was beaming.
"I'm William Day and you must be the Ryuu I kept hearing about! Nice to meet cha'!"
Seria never thought she would ever look back on a performance with regret, and immediately, her father had turned that hope on its head. He had…actually done a decent job making his way out to the lake, and the group that had gathered hadn't been nearly as massive as she had seen when she was younger. But, the people who knew inevitably flocked to him and by extension, to her.
As if dealing with audacious rich boys the first time hadn't been enough. He had kept close to her, hand on her shoulder and smiling jovially as he worked his way through his audience with perfect charisma like Juliet would have done, answering their questions about Blackthorn and his gentle but firm refusal to showcase his talent. He was her father, and very at home in crowds. She had heard a few people gasp in surprise when he had told them that she was his daughter. Seria flushed in frustration and he turned to her.
"You're…awfully defensive, Seria." He frowned.
Oh, don't do that…
"Something's bothering you, isn't it?" his frown shifted into comfort in an instant. "You know you can tell me. You're my little–"
"D-dad…!" Then she sighed. "I know, I know It's just…How'd you get in here anyway?"
"Huh? You mean it's a private event?"
"Well, yeah!" Seria flushed, but leaned in. "You know how mom is when you do things like this..." William laughed, maybe a little too loudly, and Seria struggled to hush him. "Dad...!"
"Hahaha. Oh, right. Your mom." He gave her a warm smile. "She's a handful, sometimes but she knows me very well, and I'm sure she's already working out a good plan to keep everything under control." Seria sighed in exasperation.
"But that's not really the problem..." It was a small reply and in almost no time later, more people began to take notice and line up near them. Extravagance wafted up her nose and Seria knew exactly what was coming next.
"Oh, Mr. Day, you're so much more dashing in person!" This was the problem. He was William Day and she was certain that he didn't understand that.
Mom is going to kill him… Seria glared, watching one of the women move a little too close, her fingers wisping just over his forearm. Her laugh was inauthentic and stiff. If her father noticed it, which she was sure he did, he chose to ignore it. He was such an oaf but in the best kind of way and as she watched him show off that terrible dragon tamer cape of his, Seria wondered how he had ever managed to win over her mother and wondered how the two of them meshed so well together. Seria took a bold step toward the woman.
"Mr. Day, we should get going now, your hotel room is ready!" Seria halted mid-stride and turned to look over her shoulder.
You have got to be kidding… Another woman met Seria with a toothy smile.
"Seria!" she said, wrapping her in her arms. "It's been a while!" Seria's mind raced. He brought Emmi with him!? She glanced over to her father, who was waving as he made his way over to them and then to Emmi in bewilderment. "Don't worry, we were clever."
"Emmi," Seria hissed. "You're supposed to not let him do things like this! You know how mom is!" Emmi bade a hand dismissively.
"Oh, come on. He just really wanted to see you. You've been away from home for a while now. He was worried sick about you."
"But, that doesn't mean come and find me!" Fire flushed into her cheeks. "I'm fine, okay? I…have friends and I've never been better." Emmi cocked a brow then shrugged.
"I don't know how you think you're going to convince me if you don't even believe it yourself." She gave her a soft smile. "He wouldn't stop talking about how excited he was to see his 'little dragonfly', especially after he saw your performance."
"He what!?"
"I saw everything," Seria turned to see William with a tender smile. "You did great, and…I wanted to tell you how proud I am of you in person." Seria's frustration curbed and her eyes dropped sullenly from his. He brought her into his arms again. "Hey, none of that, okay? There's still the Milotic musings that are happening today, right?"
"It's Melodic Musings, dad." He laughed.
"Oh, right! Hopefully, I won't get eliminated too soon. But, I'll be here to cheer you on either way!" Seria perked up.
"Wait, what?" He hugged her a third time.
"You're gonna' be great, honey. I know it." And then, the both of them made their way back to the hotel.
It wasn't until she had gotten back to her room that Seria realized just how angry she really was. She took a moment to be thankful that the standard doors for the rooms could not be slammed. Seria was certain she would have broken the door frame otherwise. She sank into her bed with an irritable grumble. Why was it that her dad of all people had shown up?
Her eyes went to the clock. The Melodic Musings were scheduled this evening and Seria hadn't really even planned on participating. Not after all of the extreme crowding for the Coordination and more people were bound to show up once word got around that her father was attending too. It was an insult to injury.
He never should have even been able to get in… She laid there for a tad longer before she hopped to her feet. If she sat there, she would just fume; there had to be something that she could do to take her mind off of all this and made her way out into the grand hall.
Her eyes flicked about the foyer. From the staircase and over to the front desk and over the small tidings around them as well. Everything was so…posh and Seria found it strange that her father could ever gel in such an environment.
Well, he was a showman after all…
As she scanned over the rest of the foyer, a form caught her eye. She was moving then, back up the stairs, turning to the right like before, but made a second left on the second level. She gave a slow exhale as she came to the form.
Her fingertips glided over the surface of the piano. It was smooth, sturdy and dense, which meant that like the rest of the hotel, this piano was a genuine piece either brought in or made for this particular place. She slipped into the seat, her fingers tracing lightly over the keys, also densely packed and well crafted and grimaced at how utterly alien it seemed to be. Her mother's piano at home was made closer to Blackthorn tradition and the very one that Seria had practiced on at the urging of her mother especially. Her finger hovered over the keys and Seria sucked in a breath, released it slowly and began to play.
She worked skillfully and notes sounded into place just as she remembered. She was only vaguely aware of the tightness melting from her shoulders. The music was carrying her and Seria leaned more into her performance. Seria's slow hum waltzed and swayed with the piano. Her favorite pieces had always been whimsical or bright and quickly paced; the music that came through her now was strange and contemplative.
Her parents would have said it was tinged with romance. Ryuu came to mind and she bade him away; she needed this. Her fingers twinkled across the keys before slowing to a complete rest. Seria heard a click and she bit her lip in an attempt to keep from smiling too wide. She kept her eyes forward.
"I can't help but think that you really are following me now."
"I always seem to find out something new about you." Her attention turned to him.
"You mean the piano? This…is just something that I grew up doing…"
"And you still think that you're not suited for the Musings?" Seria sighed timidly.
"Well I mean…I've thought of something…It's been on my mind for a while." He raised a brow at that, then chuckled.
"I'm not surprised. You still don't give yourself enough credit. You handled your Swablu really well."
"T-thanks…" Her eyes fell to the floor. Ryuu's shift was subtle but immediate.
"What do you have planned?"
"Well, if I do decided to perform–"
"When." She winced.
"I…still haven't decided…"
"But you have a routine that I know you've been thinking about for a long time." He was so forthright.
"There's been an old Galarian dance routine that I had been really looking into…"
"For yourself?"
"For Icey…" Ryuu balked.
"For Icey?"
"Well, King too. I've…been planning for it for a while." Ryuu was quiet for a moment.
"High risk, high reward," came his response."I think you've proven my point."
"I did?" He nodded.
"You sound like you've mulled over this for a long time. You should do it."
"And risk Icey? Ryuu, you know she never listens to me. The Coordination was the first time ever…"
"That's probably because The Coordination was good for her. Battling without taking orders seems more her speed. Besides, I don't think your Sneasel has really seen you the way you are with your contests. I know I've only seen it one other time before and never up close like yesterday. Maybe it's Icey's sign of respect toward you." Her eyes came up bashfully to meet him.
"...You think?" He smirked.
"I know." Her lips broke open into a smile.
"Alright. You win. But…"
"But…?" Seria pressed her lips into a line.
"I just hope that I don't cause too much of a scene like last time." He rumbled with a small laugh.
"There's only one way to find out, I suppose." His fingers took to fiddling with his camera again and it came up with a quiet hiss of shutter moments later; he was too slow and she gave him another smile.
"Just wait." And she was off to prepare.
Her door clicked shut behind her and she leaned dejected against it. Her gaze fanned out across her room, fixed especially to the garb of blue and white that laid across her bed. She had had it modeled after Sky after the Swablu had clinched her a contest win there too and the Musings seemed to be the best place to try it out. Resting neatly on it though, were two pokeballs: one for King, and one for Icey. The two of them would be her act for The Musing.
Seria crumpled to the floor. The Musing was a lot like Florando's annual Pokemon Exhibition. The contest that had followed afterward had been an impromptu gathering and it had been easy for her to take the win. But the Musings were something entirely different and that wasn't even a thought at the forefront of her mind. She honed in on the ball to the right.
Icey…
The Sneasel had always been a problem, had beaten Daniel to a pulp right outside Blackthorn when she had first ran away but had been careless enough to get herself captured. She was a vicious little thing that happened to have a creative side to her, and the first time Seria had discovered that had been during a particular high streak at a contest where Icey had followed every command Seria had thrown about. Seria also happened to be one of the most skilled people there too.
She won the Coordination through sheer luck by her standards. Daniel had dealt the finishing blow in the finals, but Zuzu and Juliet had done all the work. Seria had also been partnered with the same Nathan York that she had won against and remembered how good he had been throughout the event as well. The Coordinators there were fine tuned just like she knew they would be but she hadn't expected to be so utterly outclassed, and if there was one thing that Icey respected, it was strength, something Seria lacked wholeheartedly. There was no way Icey would ever want to listen…
There was a subtle tilt in the ball on the right. It grew to a violent rock to and fro before shuddering to a restrained sway before coming back to a stop.
No…! Seria lunged for the ball too late; it snapped open. Her Sneasel took shape with a sneer and darting eyes that slowed to a halt; she honed in her target. She raised a claw. Panic flushed into her limbs.
The dress…! Seria threw an arm over the garb as Icey came down with a snarl. Seria yelped in pain and her other arm lashed out but Icey slipped from reach and over by the door. They each watched the other. Icey had never actually struck at her before but Seria figured it would've been a matter of time. Seria frowned.
Seria was too weak. She felt crimson leak into the surface of the bed and Seria made a passing glance down at the outfit, finding that it had moved. Her eyes flicked to the desk chair, finding it draped neatly over the back end of the chair.
"She must be very ornery today." Seria had settled on Icey, whose eyes were low in observation and outright disdain.
"You have bad taste, King…" her Slowking tittered amused.
"She…has her moments. Such as earlier during the Coordination." Seria felt his eyes hone in on her wound. "She's always been about strength."
"I know," retorted Seria, a little sharp. "I know. Is there anything that poison gave you besides human speech?" King sighed.
"I would have asked for my little demon's heart if I could…"
"King!" Seria snapped. Her patience was wearing thin. If Seria hadn't made up her mind about the Musings before, this was her sign. If Icey wouldn't help, then that would be the end of it. "Now's not the time for that. We have to–" Light gleaned into Seria's vision and her breath caught in her throat, catching sight of Icey as she slashed into and through the door. Icey…!
The Sneasel turned to her with another sneer before vanishing from sight.
"Icey!" Seria sped to her feet; fire tore into her arm as she moved.
"Seria, please!"
"King, we can't just let Icey do what she wants. You said it yourself: she's all about strength." Seria fought down a shudder. "She'll hurt someone if we don't hurry up…!"
"You're right," he began. "But everyone here is very strong. We should go after her, but I don't think moving in a panic will help anything." His eyes went to the door rent in two and the frame bent out of shape. "I'll stay behind here to take care of this. Power Gem and my abilities should be more than enough to repair this to perfection. But, when you go after her, please be careful." Seria rolled her eyes.
"The agreement was that you travel with me so you can whisk her away with you. So, 'don't hurt her'. I get it. I'm not going to ruin this Galarian Waltz for either of us, okay?" King smiled.
"Understood."
Icey was moving fast. The utter rampage that Seria had expected was non-existent. In fact, everything was intact, save for a few guests that pieced together that the wild Pokemon they had bumped into was in fact hers. Some of them had actually offered her help that she staunchly refused while a select few others had done their best to ignore her and her incompetence; Seria knew that kind of contempt all too well.
Seria slowed to a stop outside the entrance chest heaving and eyes floundering about. Icey wasn't the type to waste her rare freedom lounging around. She was bound to get into something.
Scratch that: ruin something. She had to get Icey back into her ball as soon as possible.
"Hey, you look a little desperate. Need help?" She spun around a little too fast and almost fell head first into them.
"S-sorry…" She snapped to attention then. "You're…that Nathan York from the Coordination!"
"Yeah, and I'm guessing the Sneasel that's out and about is yours?"
"You've seen her?" He nodded.
"Yeah. She looks like an annoying piece of work. You had her under control during the Coordination. What happened?" Seria sucked in a short breath.
"...The end of the Coordination…" Seria felt her throat run dry at the quiver in his brow. She was on thin ice. She saw his eyes dip toward her arm but said nothing.
"Is she always like this?"
"N-not all the time…" Speak up, Seria!
"Alright. I get cha…" His lips twitched up slightly. "She got into a scrape with me and Silas and got herself roughed up a bit so we'll just swing on by and you can take care of the rest."
"Y-yeah…" Seria sagged a bit. Icey was as good as Nathan's now; he was too strong for Icey to not be taken with him, and slip from under King's advances too. They slowed as they came into the view of the lake and found Icey there like Nathan had said. Shock traced through her shoulders and slowed Seria to a stop; Nathan took his place next to her bemused.
Her Sneasel was still standing, a relief because the last thing that Seria had wanted was anything to happen to Icey despite her nature, but a problem because she was barely able to keep herself upright.
"Nathan," her voice was strange to her. It sounded like scattered ash. "What did your Ninetales do to her…?"
"No worries. Icey only caught herself some poison and a pulse on the inside of that."
"I thought you said you only roughed her up!" His eyes sharpened.
"I did. I could have made it worse." Seria fell silent. "And don't worry. Chiro can help her out once she's down. Besides, I don't think it was Silas that did all that to your Sneasel." Seria turned her attention back to Icey and then, a little in front of her; Seria wanted to shrink away.
She had never seen Virgil's Dewott as ornery as he was in that moment. No, ornery wasn't the right word. He was focused. He held one scalchop at the ready, water flowing from it into the form of a fan.
It felt as though she had stolen him all over again.
An itch worked its way into her stomach. Her jaw tightened and her stomach flipped. A slight nudging of nausea flitted through her; her eyes never left Dewott and he didn't even seem to notice her. Icey yowled and burst forward; she was looking to end this quickly. Icey's claw flashed and instead of finding Dewott's shoulder like she had wanted, Icey had found herself twisted off her mark, shooting past Dewott and into the dirt with a resonant ping. Icey rebounded smoothly and rolled back to her feet. She wasted no time, eyes and claws honing in this time for Dewott's leg. Dewott shifted again, and Icey spun into the dirt a second time.
Icey was livid now, springing back to her feet with a fiendish snarl. Dewott was not going to stop her and she would kill him to do it. Seria sucked in a breath. She wanted so badly to move, but the last time she had seen Icey this violent had been when she had slipped away from Blackthorn and left Daniel on his side unconscious because he simply hadn't been worth the effort. She didn't know how strong Dewott really was, but Cody's Arcanine had been a problem for the both of them. She had to move, or at least try to. Icey shifted toward Seria with a slight glower and Seria froze, realization dawning over her the very next moment.
She wasn't afraid of hurting Icey for the Musings. She was afraid of her.
She managed to pull herself together enough to give a glance over in Nathan's direction. Icey and Dewott had his utmost attention but it was hard to discern anything other than that.
Icey snapped forward a third time. Seria honed in too, picking out that the whole of Icey's fury was directed solely for Dewott's scalchop. Icey chittered something violent, either a demand for Dewott to move or a pure threat. Where Seria had expected defense, Dewott took a single stride forward, into a solid ping that for the third time threw Icey askew. The other claw sliced forward but pinged again as Dewott stepped into her guard. He was moving fast but Seria had already pieced together his next move.
The first blow was perfect and Seria shrank at the impact as she watched Icey's will evaporate right along with her strength. Dewott had opened her guard in a single movement for the best possible result, something Seria had had inklings about from the beginning. The second blow had been unexpected: There was only a breath of a second, enough for Icey to step backwards in a mixture of disbelief and confusion before Dewott had closed in again on her side, a paw just below his neck grasping around a shimmering blue. The scalchop sprayed to life, stronger than Seria had ever seen Dewott do before. It bored down onto Icey with a solid crack and the Pokemon crumpled lifelessly into the dirt. Seria heard Nathan's bored sigh.
"That takes care of that I guess," he began. "But, hopefully she can compete this time around. I'm not a guy for the Musings, but I heard you had signed up. I'm rooting for your two-for one." He left then, but Seria didn't even notice. Her gaze fell onerously on a subdued Icey and then over to Dewott. His eyes looked the same as they had been in Ecruteak but they felt different now with an openness and the discipline from earlier. His gaze was unmoving, and…familiar. A dim glow caught her attention and Seria followed, her eyes halting on a very familiar object.
She had bought that Tide Incense for him early on. Seria felt discomfort ripple through her, in her bones, familiarly in her neck and most annoyingly, in her stomach; She felt sick. She had tried to smile but couldn't and forcing it had only made her feel worse. His eyes never left hers; Dewott didn't even flinch. Seria wondered if he was judging her; he probably was. Dewott had beaten Icey quickly and without mercy. He had even been smart while doing it with a flawless execution of his form and the Tide Incense. Her nausea grew worse.
Blackthorn would have loved Dewott.
Blackthorn would have loved anything more than her. There was no room for a failure, and especially not one belonging to the William Day. And that same William Day was here, in the only place, doing the only thing where it felt safe to be all of the things they would not allow her to be back home. " 'Kay. Thanks, Dewott," she said dejectedly and went to make her way back to her room.
For the second time, Seria found herself slumped dejectedly against her newly reworked room door. It was nearly knocked askew by King when she had returned with an unconscious Icey. Her Sneasel hadn't been out for too long but woke up disoriented, paws dangling loosely over the bed as she watched her. It had taken a pursuit by Nathan and Icey's own nature launching her into trouble to temper the situation, both of which had been out of Seria's control.
But it all should have been.
This was the Home of Hearts. She was supposed to be in her element and yet, she had been pitifully carried by Nathan and Juliet, made even worse with Dewott's perfectly draconian interference with Icey. Dewott was tempered and cool headed. Narrowly focused but open-minded. He held the kind of temperament for The Roar, even though the art was supposed to be her tradition. She was supposed to be flawless and foolproof, yet she always seemed to fail any and all of the tests the elders had given her. The elders attributed her shortcomings to her mother; the outsider would never be one of them and worse, had stolen the mind of one of their finest.
All to bring her into the world.
I'm not going…I can't even manage enough discipline for my Pokemon in my own setting…
There was a light rap at the door; Seria ignored it.
"Seria," King began, "Your guest…?" Silence. "It…could be Ryuu, or Juliet."
"I don't care." Another rap. And Seria perked up a little. It had sounded closer to a scratch that time. There was a third scratch and Seria picked herself and opened the door to find Dewott.
"It's that ruffian…!" Seria's eyes snapped over to King
"Don't." King frowned.
"But–"
"Your 'beloved'. King, I know but…" She turned her eyes back to Dewott as the door clicked shut behind him. He looked past her briefly to Icey and Seria followed. Seria could only describe Icey's expression as dazed. Dewott had hit her hard, but it definitely wasn't enough to cause anything serious. Seria watched closer and noted that Icey's dazed expression was in fact admiration. Seria felt her shoulders tingle and she shuddered. She turned to King to gauge his reaction: He was glaring and stepped in front of Seria and between him and Icey.
"Don't you think you've done enough," he spat sharply. "You've turned out to be more trouble than you're worth, Dewott." Dewott ignored him. His focus was on Icey and Icey alone. "Aren't you going to answer me!?" Seria shrank just a slight bit. It had been a while since King's voice had been anything besides jolly. She shouldn't have been surprised; moments like this always involved Icey; Icey chittered something that Seria figured had weight as King looked first to her, to Dewott in disbelief, then back to her. Icey chittered again and King slumped. "Alright," he grumbled. "Fine." He stepped aside and Dewott's attention settled familiarly on her now.
"You came to see me?" Dewott nodded, dipping further forward for a small bow. Seria fought down the urge to turn away. "You don't have to do that…" Dewott came back up, a paw wrapped around the Tide Incense. Seria noticed the difference in his eyes from before and they were somehow softer. Dewott gave a chatter.
"He says that something's mad you sad," King interjected. "And how that's not like you." Seria frowned.
"I don't think Dewott knows me at all then…" Dewott made a noise of disapproval.
"He disagrees," King repeated.
"Why so? I didn't even have Dewott for too long before Virgil showed back up anyway." Dewott snorted, twitching his nose at her.
"He says that you had the will to steal him in the first place and run away from home to do what you want." Dewott nodded in agreement. "He claims he doesn't understand why you would give up on that same will just because someone from home has shown up." Seria bit her lip.
"That someone is my dad, and him and Lance are the best dragon masters out there…"
"Seria," she felt King's gaze. "The ruffian does have a point. And besides, your father has always been supportive of you. Mr. Day himself said that he's here to support you. And, this is your specialty." Seria was looking at him now.
"I don't mean just contests," King continued. "I mean the Musings specifically. Who else would spend so much time on something like the 'Galarian Waltz?' You don't think any of the elders from back in Blackthorn besides your father or his generation would understand, do you?" Seria frowned, but felt warmth pulling at her lips. Her eyes fell back down to Dewott. She hadn't expected a smile from him at all, but his paw wound tightly around the amulet and his eyes were unflinching.
It was the same way her father had looked at her when she was learning The Roar. Seria knelt down.
"All of that discipline runs into everything you do, huh?" Seria gave Dewott a small smile. "Well, if you have faith in me, then…I can at least try, right? How does that sound?" Dewott nodded but for a fleeting second, she thought she may have seen Dewott smirk. She had wanted to say something on it, but he turned to obscure himself or more accurately, to King. Dewott nodded and disappeared in a flash of warm fuchsia. King sighed irritably.
"Good riddance." He turned to Icey with a sigh, who watched where Dewott had been standing. "I would have rather kicked him out immediately, but I can't say no to you, my dear Icey." Seria rolled her eyes.
"You could have teleported him anytime, King."
"My darling here wanted to hear what the ruffian had to say, so I allowed it."
"You…did it for free?" King drew back incredulously.
"I wouldn't dare. Not with how that mess of a Pokemon is slowly influencing things that he shouldn't be a part of!" Seria laughed.
"I never thought such an esteemed king of Slowpoke could ever find himself so jealous of a 'ruffian'. But, if you didn't do it for free, then what did you do it for?" King smirked, pleased.
"We will be going to the Musings, and the audience are going to see the greatest Galarian Waltz they have ever laid eyes on. My darling says that she will make sure of it."
William Day was not impressed. Some interpreted him as oafish and the more elitist participants were worse than that, particularly the men. Even so, they had put on their best faces, fake smiles that were closer to a wet napkin stretched too far or really bad face paint. There had been others still, particularly quite a few of the women that had made themselves… apparent. For a moment, William pondered if it really had been a bad decision to come down from Blackthorn but he quickly shot the idea down.
He had been so proud seeing Seria make her impression and what had made it even better was that she had been herself more than anything. How was he not supposed to come out to the lake and congratulate her? The Brightwater was definitely an illustrious piece of work but modesty was more of his speed. The hotel didn't even come close to home.
Besides, it was nice to come down from the mountain and the only thing the Elders had wanted him to do was train. That, and "set an example for generations to come". Tradition wasn't necessarily his strong suit; he was certain that that's where Seria had gotten it from. He plopped down near the water's edge with a large stretch and yawn. He could get used to this. It had been so long since he had traveled…
The dirt tingled lightly under his spine. His turn in her direction was half-hearted.
"Did you find anything?"
"Aren't you supposed to be showing off your fancy cape for your biggest fans?" William shrugged. "And…shouldn't they be here?" There was a tightness and the slightest tinge of what Will was going to leave at "hunger". He didn't look at her.
"Emmi, don't."
"And why shouldn't I?" she remarked coyly. "I won't hurt too many of them."
"I don't want to have to leave before Seria goes on this evening."
"Aren't you supposed to go on?" He nodded. "You're so invested."
"Well, she is my daughter." he responded laughing but his smile faded quickly and he was on his feet. "And also, you do remember the real reason we're here, right?" Emmi's eyes flashed with understanding but she gave a casual shrug.
"I do and I think you should thank me. You were just gonna' sit back and listen to Maria."
"Not just Maria, but your sister too." He glanced about the foyer and was sly enough to not linger on a single face for too long. It had taken him enough effort to get all of the attention under control.
"Who wouldn't want to get in the good graces of a dragon master from Blackthorn City?" He frowned.
"Most of them know me because of our wine. You know what I'm really concerned about, Emmi."
" 'Anyone who's in tune knows that when league circuits are suspended, there's a real problem happening.' " she parroted. "That's what you said on our way here, right?" William nodded.
"And from what Clair told the Elders, we really do have a problem running around. They haven't suspended the league circuits yet because they don't want to cause a panic. It's a good idea to get a scope on the outside and see things for myself. And also make sure Seria was okay. It's also better if people know me as the wine guy and not the dragon master " He paused, then mustered up the best smile he could. "And, have a little fun while I'm at it. I can't be business all the time."
Emmi snorted.
"You are such a hypocrite!"
"That's only if I planned on making a scene," he responded. "If you're looking for your loophole, that's it."
"Oh, I see." Will wrinkled his nose. "I'll be careful then. " she purred and rushed her way into the burgeoning crowd. He let out a long breath as he watched Emmi work her way from body to body. He caught wind of a form on the edge of his sight.
"The same protocol applies to Unova." William turned to see Ryuu in full view. "Which means you're looking at something that's at least a catastrophe at a regional level."
"No camera this time?"
"I think the photos from earlier were more than enough." Will chortled.
"It sounds like it may have stressed you out more than it has for me." Ryuu burrowed into his space. The reserved expression across his brow accented his immovability. Will brightened. "You probably scare others with that face, but you'll have to work harder if you want to make me sweat."
"You didn't answer my question."
"You don't have to be so tense y'know." Ryuu ignored him.
"The idea that the region could be in danger doesn't bother you?" William's tone tightened.
"How much of that did you hear?"
"All of it."
"To be transparent, it really is true that I'm here for Seria. I had been worried about her. I was updated on some…less than savory things happening over in Ecruteak, so I came out to make sure she was okay, and to really see what the threat might be before it makes it to Blackthorn. But, I didn't know Unova could have an Elite Four member so young."
"I've…done more than that…"
"I know," William shot back. "Seria's told me a lot about you. You're a former champion." Ryuu grimaced.
"And current photographer." William's hands came up gingerly.
"You got it. I didn't realize your champion days were so…well, not great. Sorry about that…" Silence. "But, I'm not going to beat around the bush here. Seria has told me a lot about you."
"You wanted to meet me?" William nodded.
"She's my daughter and…there's quite a history between her and other people…" More silence. Ryuu weighed his words carefully, his eyes were iron cast. William smiled.
He's a tough one for sure.
"You're her father. Or course you'd be protective of her." William's laugh left him like thunder.
"You're absolutely right! But, so are you."
"My friends are important to me." Ryuu's gaze sharpened and William's did the same. His smile faded.
"Then, what do you think of my daughter?" There was a hesitant pause.
"She's…kind, creative and warm-hearted but airy, naive and…"
"Repressed?" Ryuu's expression gave way but he managed a short nod. "She doesn't have any confidence in anything she does. Well, save for these contests or moments like it. It's the only times where I've seen her come alive like she has."
"...What did you put her through in Blackthorn?"
"Not me, them." Will's face twisted into foreignness. "Blackthorn can be…a little traditional."
"I hear the master's trials in Blackthorn are unimaginably difficult."
"They are," came William's short response; he was frowning. "But, I would rather deal with them than Mastery." Ryuu shifted in discomfort.
"...You know about Mastery?" William gave a rise and fall of his shoulders.
"Most master's do."
"So you really are the 'William Day' Drayden talked about."
"The only 'William Day' that's known like this. But more importantly, I want to clear something up."
"That is?"
"Having your guard up all the time will make you miss something good, even if it's right there in front of your face." William offered Ryuu a small grin. "I know you have your reasons but given what I see, you might have had it rough with family or old friends." Ryuu tensed. "Maybe you should take some time to be nice to yourself every once in a while." Another smile, this time more like the ones from earlier. "I don't know when the actual afterparty for the Musing is going to start, but I think I should probably go and get ready for it. Can you just…maybe think about what I've said? I'm sure you might be able to get something out of it." William disappeared down the hallway, leaving an astonished Ryuu behind him.