Nori marched through a beautiful snowy field that had a single tree standing tall in the middle of it. He was dressed for the weather: thick gray jacket, black boots, and his least-ripped pair of blue jeans. The harsh air prickled his exposed hands and face, but it was nothing that anyone native to the region could not handle.
As he walked, a nagging sensation pulled at his mind. It was like something was telling him that there was something wrong. That something wasn't there that should have been there. Nori looked around to see what it might be. That's when he realized.
Meandering near the tree was someone just a little shorter than him, with messy purple hair that reached to his neck. His aster-colored jacket and bright red snow pants stuck out, especially in this world of white. His heart racing, Nori hurried over.
"Lux, is everything okay?" he asked. Did he say or do something wrong? He knew Lux's mom had it out for him. It could be that, too.
"It's just…" Lux stopped walking and spoke with a shaky voice. His indigo eyes were as dull as the clouds above. He groaned. "…I don't deserve a friend like you. You do everything for me, and I can't do anything for you. I know you said you don't mind being friends, but…"
Nori couldn't count the number of times Lux had stressed over this. Nori was without a doubt one of the popular kids. Yet he was choosing to hang out with Lux. A lot of people thought of Lux as weird or awkward. They thought he was friends with him out of pity. But it wasn't true!
"I don't mind. I've never minded," he firmly replied. He tried his best to be soothing, even though he couldn't help but express his passion. "I know it doesn't seem like you've done a lot for me, but trust me. You have."
"But…I'm unpopular, and–"
"Popularity isn't everything," he interrupted. "I'd throw away mine in a heartbeat if it was between that and being right. And I know how others treat you isn't right."
A silence drew over the two. At first, Nori was again afraid that he'd said something wrong. Eventually, the purple-haired boy looked up at him, his eyes starting to water. His face was soft, his features delicate, his lips full. "I want us to be closer…" Lux suddenly hesitated, his face flushing. "Um, as friends."
Nori's heart raced at his words. On the clarification, he droned, "Oh uh, me too."
With a happy smile, Lux stepped forward and embraced him with a contented sigh. They hugged a lot, but this was different, and more intimate than usual. His friend pressed his whole body against him, holding him with a very light grip. Nori reciprocated with one arm by reflex, but the other quivered out at his side.
"Um, L-Lux?" Nori stammered, as he felt all the blood rushing to his face too. "Sh-shouldn't we get going?"
His friend looked up at him with a smile, but did not release him. Nori stared into his friend's half-closed irises. Their faces were practically touching. They were so close to each other.
They didn't speak words. None were necessary. Nori shut his eyes and moved his head towards Lux's.
As he met Lux's soft lips with his own, Nori suddenly couldn't breathe! But in a good way! It felt right! No, better than that. His entire body tingled as a spark of euphoria shot through his spine. He wrapped his other arm around Lux, squeezing him even closer. Centimeters, if not millimeters away.
How long did it last? Three seconds? Half of one? A minute? Even longer? However long it really did, it felt like one blissful eternity. When it finally did end, they were left staring at each other like before. But when he looked at Lux now, it felt different. They smiled as the fog of their breathless gasps danced together in the winter air.
"I love you," Lux whispered into his ear. Nori beamed as warmth spread throughout his body. The purple-haired boy's legs quivered against his own, like either of them might fall over.
They nestled into each other tightly, resting their cheeks against each other. Before this, Nori was afraid of anyone seeing them hugging. Now? He didn't care if anyone saw anything.
Nori awoke with a start, his heartbeat racing from the intimacy in the dream. Why was he dreaming about kissing Lux at a time like this?! Well. Now that he knew Lux's feelings for sure, Nori could say that he didn't hate the thought. He liked Lux, maybe even like that. But it was as much of a dream as that just now.
Maybe, he thought, it was this one incident. He was on a class trip back in February, and he'd been goaded into going down a huge waterslide. It was fun! Like he was soaring through the air! Until he remembered what was at the bottom. He hardly remembered what happened next, being told after that he hit his head on the diving board when trying to get up and Lux helped pull him out.
Lux visited him in the hospital. Nori told him why. He was the only person he'd ever told. About how his phobia came to be. He wasn't sure why. But Lux didn't judge. He just consoled him. They hugged and held each other like they often did. It might've been for seconds. It might've been for hours. Only the nurse walking in broke it up.
Or maybe, he thought, it was back then in that field. He dismissed it at the time, he played it cool but was panicking, but he should've seen it just with that hug and that look. Maybe if he did, it could've ended up like in the dream. That was on the same day when everything changed for the worse. It could've changed for the better. If only it wasn't for Lux's stupid mom keeping them away. Well. Things might not have necessarily worked out anyway because of her and others. But at least they'd have had something. He didn't know. He just didn't know.
Nori looked up. It wasn't even dawn yet. And he doubted he would get back to sleep after that. He double-checked the clock. 6:03am.
"Nothing to do but do it, Nori," he whispered to himself as he sat up. May as well start making preparations. He wasn't sure how much of it would mean anything in the moment, but it was one way to keep his mind off thoughts, good and bad.
When the final bell rang out on Friday, it was both a relief and a dread for Nori. He was about to step into…a place around a pool. He had been doing everything he could to prepare himself mentally. None of it was working, and he doubted any of it that did would when he actually got there anyway. At least the wait was over. It would soon be time to put this all behind him.
He waited for the rush to clear out, speaking with a few classmates until then. After a few minutes, he went to the clubroom. Locked. No one was there. His heart sank a little. All he could do was head to his locker, grab his skateboard, let Pachi out, and set off. He made one final check, but no one he thought would be there was around.
His destination was several blocks away. He was unsure how long it took him to get there. Nori soon arrived at where the battle was to take place.
The construction was solid and square, almost seeming to leer down at everything with overbearing seriousness. It had a white roof and black walls with yellow stripes, sort of like a pastiche of an Ultra Ball. On the street outside was a tall sign in the shape of a hand grasping a mallet with a Poke Ball embedded in the center of the head. It was as if it was being raised to the sky. The name of the place was both on the structure outside and on a golden plaque embroidered on the front entrance.
Mynwest Court was named as such because it was a place where trainers' battling skills were judged by their peers. Although there were some training facilities, it had a reputation of being where serious trainers seeking serious opponents went. It was popular as a place to hone one's skills or keep them sharp, especially with those who weren't traveling. Of course, travelers regularly stopped in. They had a variety of battlefields. There were plain ones and there were more esoteric ones; basically anything they could get away with from a safety standpoint. It had everything from private rooms to open miniature stadiums that could seat a few hundred. If the environmental conditions for a battle were reasonable, chances are, you could have it in a Mynwest.
While Nori did occasionally visit their competitors, he never went to a Mynwest unless asked. The first time he went – to spar with someone and talk strategy for a mutual future opponent – he had so many people trying to challenge him that he had to put a hard limit on it. And one of the ones he turned down went to Sunyshore Gym to fight him anyway! It was just a difference of culture and opinion, he supposed. Nori always found the idea of being a trainer hopeful at best. It was part of the reason why he didn't want to join the battling team.
But now here he was, standing before a Mynwest Court, about to have a serious battle in one against a member of the battling team. He was no stranger to performing in front of crowds, or being embarrassed in front of them like he probably was going to be.
With that thought, he repeated to himself aloud what he had been saying for the past few days. "It's okay, Nori. You'll win."
Pachi looked up at him, eyes blank and mouth slightly open. The little white squirrel tilted his head and made a squeak.
Nori wasn't sure where it was coming from. But he made a guess. "I'll be fine, Pachi," he replied. "Nothing to do but do it."
His Pokemon reluctantly nodded. Nori wasn't deluding himself into believing the environment wouldn't be the hardest part of this, so it was no surprise his Pokemon saw through the act. But he just needed to get past today. There really was nothing to do but do it!
"Let's head inside," he directed.
Nori had been inside a Mynwest Court on a couple of occasions in the past. As one stupid moron put it, when you went to a Mynwest, it was to battle (or watch battles). The franchise and its customers took themselves very seriously, which was part of why he didn't like the place. At least from that prior experience, he knew a little of what to expect.
The lobby was simple and streamlined. There were three clerks working at the front desk and a large number of machines lining the side walls. Someone looking to go to Mynwest could either rent rooms for a certain period of time, or buy day passes to use the facilities as wanted or needed with no limit until closing hours. Otherwise, it was just some vending machines and monitors showing some planned battles; his was indeed listed up there. From the looks of it, the place was packed with people looking to buy an observer pass to see him and Emi fight.
"Ugh, too many lines!" he fussed with a stomp of his left foot. He just wanted to get this done and over with, not spend forever dreading it!
His outburst drew the attention of the people at the back. Some of their eyes lit up with recognition. A dark-skinned woman spoke to him. "Oh, competitors don't have to wait." She gestured to the halls. "Just go on ahead and show them your trainer ID at the door, and they'll show you to your spot."
"Oh. Thanks." Nori rubbed the nape of his neck. He still had a lot to learn about this place. No one laughed at him over it too, so that helped. No, just the opposite, many of them cheered him on.
"You can do it, Demon Tamer!"
"Good luck!"
"Would you, ah, like me to introduce you to my daughter?"
He still had fans. Nori frowned and lowered his head, very unsure how to feel about that. Were they sticking with him out of blind faith? Or were they seeing through all this in a way others were not? It would've been nice to know this sooner!
One thing was certain. He didn't need any more pressure, but somehow found it. Nori raised his elbows and clenched his fists in front of him. He only hoped that they weren't going to be too disappointed by his performance. Because he had absolutely no faith in his ability to function here.
"Just…focus on yourself!" Nori mumbled under his breath. "Think about…anything but that." While he was used to speaking and battling in public, this was the first time he knew there were a lot rooting for him. He just had to push them to the back of his mind until it was time. "Nothing to do but do it," he said under his breath. He was so close now! Hopefully this worked. This wasn't about what people thought of him. It was what they thought about Qwilfish. He just needed to hold it together. And after that…
He suddenly wished that Lux was here. That was probably why he dreamt about him. Nori was sure Lux would rush over instantly if he could. He gripped his shoulders. If only. Too bad Lux's stupid mom made him move without even getting a chance to say goodbye.
He dragged over to the podium-like object near the left hallway. A young adult with flowing purple hair was watching over the hall. A leather gate like the ones you would see at a celebrity event stood in front of the hall. A contrast to the observers' halls which had an electronic one where people scanned their tickets and passes.
"Demon Tamer," she greeted with a brisk nod. "You'll be battling on the central water field today."
"I know…" he shuddered. A stark reminder of what he was about to go through.
"The battle is scheduled for four in the afternoon. Would you like a room to practice and plan strategy in beforehand?"
"No thanks," he waved off without really thinking about it. Even when it hit him, he was sure he had made the right decision. The less time he was near water, the better. But he was curious. "Um, is that a privilege?"
A nod. "For trainers using one of the larger arenas."
"I guess that makes sense. But hey, um." He rolled an ankle and turned away, rubbing a cheek. "My friend offered to stand by my side. Can she…?" Anyone would do. Not that he knew where Yumi was. He had tried to find her after school, but she wasn't in the clubroom or anything. Having anyone with him would help. And she definitely liked him and would be there, just like Lux would.
The receptionist shook her head. "Non-participating individuals are only allowed on battlefields for medical reasons or if previously agreed upon by all participants. This is because they could act as coaches."
Damn it. He knew these people were too serious here. "I thought I'd make sure," he said. Not that Emi would agree. Even though this really could be argued as a medical purpose! Even though Yumi absolutely would yell at them until they agreed, wherever she was. Where was she? Did this have something to do with what was bothering her? Did her stupid parents change their mind? Or…was she lying…?
"You'll be in the blue corridor. Are you all right with finding it yourself?"
"Yes." Maybe going on his own would help distract himself a little.
"Then you can go on ahead." She unhooked the blockade and held it open. "Good luck."
He silently nodded as he set out into the lonely corridors. Just had to read the signs. This was all the easy part. "It's all for Qwilfish," he reiterated to himself, before repeating his mantra as if it were a plea. "Nothing to do but do it. Nothing to do but do it. Nothing to do but do it…"