To say dinner was an awkward affair would be an affront to everyday awkward affairs across the globe. What Cassius Hargreaves was currently undergoing was beyond awkward—it was within the realm of cruel and unusual punishment.
The three of them sat almost perfectly distanced from each other. Cassius sat closest to the tents—an easy escape route, if it came down to it. Across from him, Hop Dande and Gloria Victoria kept to themselves and their food, a stark contrast from previous days. They'd elected to keep their Pokémon in their capsules, meaning Hyla was the only non-human unfortunate enough to bear witness to this standoff.
That they'd even silently agreed to eat outside was a sort of miracle in itself. Cassius had been half-convinced that the two would scoop their respective portions and elect to eat within their own tents. Yet, here they all were.
Cassius eyed his food. The chickpea curry looked good, but if Gloria was pissed enough to give him food poisoning (which he wouldn't put past her), he'd rather not spend the rest of the evening gouging out his innards. He did have something he planned on doing, after all.
He sighed. Might as well get it over with. He put down his bowl and spoke. "Hey, uh... I wanted to say that I'm sorry."
The other two froze. Hop actually looked a little surprised, while Gloria's visage remained neutral. "Sorry?" The former questioned.
"For when I blew up at both of you, earlier. That was really immature of me. I guess I was just a little strung-up, after all of the training." He calmed himself. "Still, that's no excuse to yell and try to get violent. I wanted to take this chance to apologize to you both. It won't happen again."
He turned to Gloria. "I mean that to you, especially. What I did was dumb. I hope you can forgive me."
"S'why I punched you," Gloria muttered between spoonfuls. Cassius supposed that was as good a thanks as he was going to get. He took that as cue to move on.
"I wanted to talk to you both about something, actually." Cassius made sure that both parties were paying attention. "I hate that it took me this long to be honest about this, but better late than never, I guess." The two's eyes were fully trained on him now.
"Gloria. I don't agree with everything you said earlier, but there is one thing you told me that's stuck with me. You said that I wasn't going along with this because I wanted to improve, but because Hop had told me to. You said it was... a checklist, I think."
He took a moment. "I did some thinking, and honestly, I think you're probably right."
That seemed to have caught the two off-guard. Cassius noticed Gloria's eyes widen slightly. At the very least, she didn't seem intent on chucking a rock at him again, so he took that as progress.
"Remember when I told you two, before this whole thing started, that I had things I wanted to do instead of training?" Hop nodded, which Cassius took as an answer for them both. "I lied. There's nothing I've ever really wanted to do, or commit myself to. Not really."
Another breath. "Back in Unova, I commuted to school in Opelucid City from Lacunosa. Opelucid's a pretty big place, and it's where the eighth gym of the Unova League is. It's where Iris came from, too. So naturally, there are a lot of high-profile people and talented trainers that visit in and out."
"I'd always felt... inadequate, I guess is the word. I feel like any kid would though, right? All of those successful people, and there you are as a younger kid, witness to it all. You kinda wanna feel like you belong in a place like that. Most kids took it as a challenge, in a way." His eyes softened for a moment. "That wasn't really me, though. To me, I just felt out of place. That I never really belonged in a place like that. Like, here's me, regular Cassius, from regular Lacunosa and born to two regular parents, here in one of the most storied and renowned trainer locations in the region."
"So, I never felt motivated to make myself stand out. I felt like I really couldn't in a place like that. So I was content to just... do whatever people expected of me, I guess. My mom's an anomaly, and I never felt like I'd be good at real estate, so I figured I would just follow in my dad's footsteps and do his job when I got older." He snickered briefly. "The plan when I got here was to take a semester off and find a good trade school or something to enroll in. Wasn't sure where I'd go after that, but it was a start."
He leaned back in his chair. "You've probably figured it out by now, but I never really gave anything one-hundred percent. So when you two asked me to try my best for this, I didn't know where to start. And when Gloria told me that I wasn't giving this my all, well, I got defensive because there wasn't any alternative I could turn to. I thought that following Hop's instruction would be considered committing myself entirely to this."
Cassius turned to his fellow trainer and current mentor. "Hop, be honest. Do you think what we're doing now is the kind of training an elite trainer would do? That a champion would do?" His brother was the champion, after all, so if anybody would know, he would.
Hop hesitated for a moment. And that was enough for Cassius to stop him when he did finally start to speak. "Cassius, you're—"
"Hop, don't lie. I need the truth."
"... no," Hop finally answered, with some difficulty. Cassius had been expecting it, but it still hurt to hear a bit. After all he'd been doing, it still wasn't enough.
Still, it was a needed reality check. No more playing pretend, as Gloria had put it. No need to hold back laying everything on the table, either.
"When I got Hyla from my late grandmother, I wasn't sure what I'd do with her. I actually tried my hand at training—if you could call it that. Really, I'd fight in rudimentary battles with other kids after school. I wasn't any good and didn't learn anything, so after I got my ass kicked enough times, I stopped bringing Hyla to school entirely. And that was that."
"I remember thinking that if I showed everyone that I had a Pokémon, and a cool one at that, and won a few battles here and there, people would finally start to acknowledge me." He thought he'd drained all of his emotions earlier, but reliving the most humiliating period of his life was watering his eyes with tears he didn't know he still had. "I guess that's what it all boils down to. Then and now, it's always been about changing how people see me. Even after I've spent all of this time just doing what other people have told me."
His gaze turned to Gloria. "So yeah, I was just doing what I was told. Because I honestly thought it would make me better, and if I got better, I'd stop being treated like some joke of a person, and more like someone who belonged somewhere. For someone like me, that's enough."
"Cassius, you don't need to—" Hop tried to cut in. Cassius wouldn't allow it. "Hop, let me finish. I... I need to say this. Out loud, to the both of you."
A steadying breath. "I... I know it's dumb. And selfish. And, if you boil it down enough, insecure and pathetic. But, well, it's me. And I can't start to change who I am if I don't first admit to who I am." His hands clenched his pants. Hyla nestled beside him, feeling the unease permeating from him. Her calming presence was enough to help him choke out what he wanted to say.
"I want people... I want people to respect me! I don't want to keep getting ignored, and treated like some waste of space! When people see me—when they hear the name Cassius Hargreaves, I want them to think of somebody who made something of themselves. Someone my parents would take pride in, someone my friends would be honored to know. Not some... nobody, destined to fade into obscurity."
His gaze sharpened. "And I want to do it through Pokémon training. You were right, Gloria—I wasn't being serious before, but I want to take the initiative now. I want to be great. I want to learn, grow, and win. I know how hard it'll be, and that I have a ton to learn, and I know it won't be easy by any stretch—but I don't care. If it means even a slight chance of becoming the trainer that Leon thinks I can be, then I'll do it."
Hop and Gloria were already shocked by this sudden change in his demeanor, but they were floored further when Cassius actually prostrated himself before them from his seat. "I also know that I can't do this without the two of you. You don't have to baby me anymore. Give me a direction to go, and I'll follow it. I know you have your own training to attend to, so I'll do whatever I can during my own time to catch up. I said I'd take the initiative, and I meant that. Really."
His voice hardened. "So please—give me a chance. That's all I'm asking. I don't care if it all amounts to me losing my first gym battle. Let me at least try." He looked up with an expression that was determined as it was vulnerable. "Please."
Cassius didn't know what to expect. Realistically, any sort of immediate reply would have been nice. The more cyclical part of him expected the two of them to burst out laughing at him, before kicking him out. He figured they wouldn't do that, but his mind was hardly in a proper state at the moment.
What he wasn't expecting, however, was a strange noise that sounded awfully like choking. Cassius figured one of the two might have had their food go down the wrong pipe when he looked up—what he was met with instead was one Hop Dande, holding back what looked like sniffles.
Hop tried, and failed, to level his voice. "Gosh, look at what you've made me do. Forcin' out the waterworks. Embarrassin', mate."
The Postwick native stood up, clearing his throat. "Alright, I'm good. Yep, perfect even." Before Cassius could ask what he was doing, Hop stormed over beside him, fell to a knee, and embraced him. So shocked by the action that he didn't even consider the courtesy of hugging him back.
"You know," Hop finally said after a moment, putting some distance between the two. "You and I really are a lot alike."
Cassius' brow raised. "We are?"
"Yeah-huh. I get where you're coming from. Really." His grin faltered a bit. "Well, maybe my traumas aren't exactly as deep-rooted as yours, but I do get that feeling of inadequacy."
Cassius could hazard a guess as to where that feeling came from. "Your brother?"
"Spot on. It's tough, being the blood of Galar's greatest champion. Everybody's always comparin' me to him—I know a few folks who've questioned my actual talent and thought me to be the beneficiary of nepotism or the like. To them, I'm not Hop Dande." Hop's smile fell. "I'm Leon Dande's little brother."
His cheer returned as soon as it had left. "So, suppose that makes us two peas in a pod, hm? A nameless nobody from Unova, and the champion's little hanger-on. I'd say we've both got a lot to prove, yeah?"
It was getting harder and harder to dislike Hop. For all that he'd done in roping him into this, he'd been nothing but supportive throughout. And now, during what was Cassius' first real confrontation with his own life, here he was offering solidarity. Like a friend would.
Cassius still didn't really know what the term entailed. But this had to be a start, right?
He allowed a small, faint smile of his own. "Yeah, I guess we do."
Hop extended a hand to shake. "Then let's start over, and get to work. Anything you need, and I'll help you." He grinned. "Let's become the best trainers this region's ever seen, yeah?"
It wasn't too long ago that Cassius had hesitated when presented with this very same opportunity. Maybe he'd grown a lot since then—or maybe it was more marginal improvement. Maybe it was all in the mind.
Whatever held him back then was long gone now. He'd become a trainer worthy of respect, or he'd go down fighting.
Cassius took the hand, and was suddenly jolted by a force pulling him in. Hop, hand still firmly gripped, had embraced him once more, smacking him on the shoulder with an excited wallop. "Atta boy, Cash! You and I are in it for the long haul now—two brothers, out to defy the odds and shock the world!"
Defy the odds? They were still technically the highest-rated rookie trainers in the region. There weren't many odds to defy from that standpoint. Beyond that, however... "Brothers?"
"You heard me right! You and I—we're brothers, mate!" Hop explained, still giving hearty slaps onto Cassius' quickly aching shoulder. "Ride or dies, comrades-in-arms, whatever you wanna call it! We've got each other's backs. What happens to me, happens to you—brothers forever, through and through!"
Cassius separated from the hug, rolling his eyes. "Did you mean to make that rhyme?"
"Just thought of it, actually. Catchy, innit?"
Hop pointedly turned to the third person present. "But you know... we're always down to welcome a third." Cassius had thought Gloria had been unusually quiet, and between his ramblings, a part of him assumed she'd already left. There she sat, however, watching them silently. Not with disinterest, Cassius hoped.
She sighed to herself, placing her emptied bowl on the ground. "I'll say this now, I'm not much one for pity and the like. Sucks that your life is hard, but so is everyone else's. Hearin' your little sob story won't change how I feel about you."
"And that would be?" Cassius hazarded. Gloria responded without mincing her words. "That you're an outsider with no business bein' on this trip with us." Cassius wasn't particularly surprised. He didn't delude himself into thinking that he'd suddenly win Gloria over with a change of heart and one little speech.
"And you're right about one thing," she continued. "What you're aimin' at, it won't be easy. Not in any sense. Very well could amount to nothin'."
Cassius nodded. Nothing he hadn't already thought about. "I know."
Gloria grunted, crossing her legs with a huff. She looked to be in an even worse mood than she normally was, which was saying something. Hop was maniacal enough to approach her. "You alright?"
"Fuck off," Gloria resorted to her default means of dismissal. "You two're givin' me an ache."
"Why? Are you mad?"
"I'm not mad!" Gloria shouted, which seemed to contrast the nature of her words. "Just... bothered, I suppose."
Cassius grimaced. Was that his fault? "I'm... sorry?"
"You need to shut up for a spell," Gloria pointed an accusatory finger at him. "Ya know, I wasn't fancyin' a life story from you when I came out for dinner. If you're gonna go about detailin' it all, can I at least get a moment to process it?"
The Unovan didn't think he came across as particularly needy for an answer. Though, he supposed begging on all fours would force some idea of immediacy. "Uh, yeah. Take your time."
And so Gloria sat, deep in thought, with that pissed off expression still firmly stuck on her face. Hop mouthed an apology to Cassius—the latter assured him it was fine. He was done trying to make an enemy out of Gloria. Temper aside, he kind of understood where she was coming from. And, as he'd said before, he'd need her help if he was going to make a deep run.
They'd gotten off on the wrong foot—okay, maybe that was an understatement—but Cassius didn't think Gloria meant ill by it. Sure, she was standoffish and kind of an asshole, but she was just upfront about what she thought, and what she wanted. Better that than her lying to his face.
Gloria seemed to be done thinking. "Can I ask you somethin'?"
"Sure."
"What changed? I was of the opinion you'd quit after our little spat. Had half a mind to see if you'd packed up your things and left on your own. What made you decide to stay?"
What indeed? He could have come up with a few answers. His parents, his own desire to prove himself for the first time. Some weird mix of the two. Maybe he was just stupid.
He settled for the sentiment he'd been driving home for the past half-hour. "I did some thinking, talked to some people smarter than me, and I decided I'd keep going. If I want to be someone people respect, I can't go giving up after I'm met with adversity."
"I've never trusted myself to succeed at anything I've tried my hand at. I want to change that. For the first time in my life, I want to bet on myself, and do something that I want to do. Even if I fail."
"And you're certain this isn't something you'll regret in the mornin'?" Gloria quickly shot. Cassius shook his head emphatically. "I'm certain."
Another pause. Then, another sigh. "You know, contrary to popular belief, I'm not some heartless bitch all the time. I don't get off on belittlin' you."
Cassius wilted slightly. "Did I... say that about you?"
"No. And I'll kill you if you do. Point is, I'm not aimin' at puttin' you down for the sport of it." She hesitated. "Okay, maybe I did for a time, but I won't anymore. Swear it."
"You just... how do I say this?" Gloria looked to be having serious trouble pondering over what she wanted to say. "You take some getting used to."
"Oh." That... wasn't the nicest thing anybody had ever said about him.
"Gloria," Hop urged. Gloria raised her arms. "I'm tryin'! I'm not good with this mushy shit!"
Her gaze returned to Cassius. "Look, what I'm tryin' to say is..." her face was burning slightly. "...I'm sorry."
That wasn't what Cassius had been expecting. "Sorry?"
"Yes, I'm sorry. What, you want me to yell it from the mountaintops? I was a twat, and I was projectin' onto you. So I'm apologizing for that."
Her arms crossed. "Also, I said some things that were uncalled for. I got a little heated, and that's on me. For the record, I don't think you're more gimp than dick."
That was... nice of her, he guessed. "Thanks?"
Gloria composed herself. "You said that you wanted to start tryin', and that you wanted to change. I... I can respect that. If you're not givin' me lip service and actually serious about trainin', then I suppose I can offer you pointers now and again." She quickly added, "But, like you said, I won't be babyin' you. Some things you'll have to figure out on your own. We're still technically rivals gunnin' for the same spot. Got that?"
Cassius nodded, a weight lifting itself from his shoulders. "Got it."
"Good." She extended a hand to shake, expression still neutral. "I'm willin' to let the past go. From here on, you and I are fellow trainers."
Well, they weren't friends yet, and Cassius suspected that he'd still have some work to do on that front. But they'd graduated from lifelong enemies to being able to coexist without killing each other. That was progress, right?
Cassius took her hand with a firm grip. "Thank you, Gloria. I won't let you down."
"Yeah, well, I'd worry more about yourself than me."
Cassius chanced a bit of humor. "You gonna hug me like Hop did?"
"Don't push it."
Yeah, Gloria was still very far off from admittance on to Team Cassius. "Yes ma'am."
"Alright!" Hop quickly jumped between the two, dispelling the handshake and draping an arm around each of them. "Now that we've all made up and are best mates again—"
"We're not," Cassius and Gloria quickly denied in unison.
"—it's high time we get some rest and prep for tomorrow. We've a long few days ahead of us." He grinned. "Technically, our journey to becoming champion starts in two days. And as future runners-up, you two can't be traveling low on energy!"
"Fuck'd you call me?" Gloria growled. Cassius supposed he was supposed to start feeding into Hop and Gloria's trainer banter now. "Hey man, that's... not cool."
"That aside," Hop moved on, oblivious. "The world of Pokémon battling isn't ready for the three of us, I reckon! While we may have a difference of opinion, I'm firmly of the belief that Galar's future champion lies at this very campsite!"
Hop put a fist between the three. "So what's say we show the world just how great we are, hm?"
"You're insufferable," Gloria snorted, but nevertheless she put her first in the middle. Cassius followed suit quickly after. "So, is this like a cheer circle you guys do?"
"Nah, we just do it with the fists." An idea came to Hop. "Well, now I guess we have the brother chant. Gloria, you cool with being an unofficial brother?"
And just like that, Gloria disengaged. "Fuck you, goodnight." And there she went, leaving them to clean up. Hop gave Cassius a little punch on the shoulder. "Look at that. She's warming up to you already."
"... really?"
"Take what you can get. As cliché as it is to say, she's not like other girls." He nudged him again. "And I meant what I said. Get some rest. We're gonna be pretty busy in the coming days. Best to get some shut-eye while you can."
He'd take his word for it. "Will do." He was pretty drained, now that he thought about it. Some sleep would do him good. Never mind the fact that the most important part of his life would begin tomorrow when the sun came up.
The rest of his life, as a Pokémon trainer. The thought didn't scare him like it did a few days ago. In fact, as he cleaned what remained of his dinner, packed up, and prepared to retire for the evening, he couldn't remember the last time he'd ever felt so ready.