Selena Viper, she who puts the Sword in Sword and Pen, she whose sharp quill has cut through even the most tangled webs of lies, accompanies us today as she tells us of her discoveries regarding Inyssa Dawn, Ace Trainer in the making and possibly the only other person in Sinnoh whose thorny attitude rivals hers.
Really, who hasn't heard of this lovely young lady? asks Selena, taking a sip of her wine and pronouncing the word lovely as though it were a stab to the face. She's certainly made a name for herself, more due to her association with the Champion than to her own skill, but a name nonetheless. And honestly; is it any wonder why? With the rise of Team Galactic and the such and the ever-growing dissatisfaction with the Association by many of Sinnoh's citizens, it only makes sense that they would try to push someone like Inyssa as the next competitor for the throne.
We ask Selena if she believes the Association itself has been secretly promoting Inyssa's career as a trainer, and if they have gone as far as to stage some of the incidents which have occurred around her.
Now, now, I'm not one to throw baseless accusations, she says, giving us a wink. But on the other hand, it can't be denied that it all seems a bit too convenient. Are you telling me that this girl has risen to popularity at the exact same time as Team Galactic, a group she openly despises and swears to oppose to her dying breath? And she just happens to be there whenever they attack, ready to make good on her word? Come on now; I'm all for unlikely events, but this is too much even for me.
Not that I'm defending Team Galactic, or that I want them to succeed, of course. Still… We all heard their leader's speech during the Festival of Spirit, did we not? Can any of our readers claim, in full honesty, that what he said was completely untrue? That he doesn't have a point? Now I know what dear Lucian would say, that the fact that he attacked the town afterwards makes his argument null, but then what of everyone else who's been repeating it ever since? Have they been given an ear? A platform to voice their concerns? Of course not.
It's brilliant, really, the system that our dear Champion has created. So brilliant that I would happily take my hat off to her, were it not because I also find it to be repugnant in principle. All she did was make it so you need to be officially certified by the Association if you want to be a trainer, and then turn the process by which you accomplish that into a screening test of sorts, overseen by those in power. Then only those who benefit from the system will become trainers, and why would they have a reason to complain when the system itself is built to keep them compliant? Indeed, the only ones capable of bringing about change are rich, spoiled teenagers for whom the word privilege has absolutely no meaning, and who wouldn't recognize hardship of suffering if the word slapped them on the face.
Again; I'm not supporting Team Galactic. I'm just saying; there's a reason so many young people have joined their ranks.
Following this statement, and a few more seconds for Selena to catch her breath and wet her lips on some wine again, we ask her what she thinks of Inyssa's statement following her match against Byron, Canalave's Gym Leader. She raises one of her sharp eyebrows and gives us a skittish smile.
Come on now, everyone here is perfectly aware of what damage control means. Yes, it is as simple as that. Whoever is behind Inyssa's whole 'tough girl' persona saw how much controversy and hate toward the Association that was spawning, and ordered her to bring it down a notch. Show some humility. Apologize a bit and swear to be better in the future. Right, as if anyone would actually buy that. We've all heard of how sour and unlikable she's been over the course of her short trainer career, so why would this time be any different? People don't change that easily. Trust me, I'd know.
And I can already hear some of you asking 'Oh but dear, beautiful, enchanting Selena! What if the girl really did have a change of heart? What if, over the course of her travels, she's learned of her mistakes and started working toward being a better person!?' and to that I say… Well, firstly, congratulations on still believing in people like that. Do you, by any chance, happen to also think that the Delibird Man is real? Because it kind of seems like you do. And secondly… Oh boy, do I have a story for you. I admit, the thought did cross my mind for a moment and I am nothing if not a thorough journalist, so I deemed it necessary to do a little investigating.
We ask her what she means by this, to which she licks her lips.
What better way to find what this Child of Thorns is made of than to take a look at her roots? So of course, I did a little digging on her background. And believe me, some of the stuff I've learned would send your wig flying off faster than a Honchkrow without its hat. Let's start with her family:
Inyssa's father, Leonard Maise, was one of the many unfortunate young souls sent toward their untimely end during the war. He was twenty-eight when he died on Kantan soil, leaving his wife and two children to fend off for themselves, though of course I wouldn't want to imply with that line that Inyssa or her family ever suffered any kind of monetary hardship. Not at all; especially when her mother –Leonard's wife– happens to be none other than Johanna Dawn. Those of our readers who are over thirty or have a fancy for old-time Contest stars surely know who I'm talking about. One of the finest Contestants Sinnoh's ever known, second only to dear Fantina herself, and whose style and grace set the tone for an entire generation of her peers after the war.
And then… there's Inyssa's sister. I admit, I should have seen it coming long before, but even I have my blind spots sometimes. The shock I felt when I realized this young lady was none other than Shadi Dawn herself… I mean, talk about following your sister's footsteps! Anyone not familiar with Shadi can simply go back three years on my career and find the article I wrote about her titled 'Always Darkest During the Dawn: The Tale of the Woefully Graceless Trainer Making Her Way to the Top'. It's one of the finest I've ever written, if I do say so myself. It was such a shame, what happened to her…
So, there you have it. A father who died when Inyssa needed him most, a mother who gave herself to alcohol soon after and an older sister so much more talented than she was, who nonetheless disappeared from the face of the planet, never to be seen again. Mix them all together and you get the perfect recipe to create the Child of Thorns.
Still, I know what you're thinking. Don't those sound like the roots of a heroine in the making; someone willing to beat the odds and claw her way out of her horrible past? Well… that's certainly the image she's been trying to convey. Unfortunately for her, I've done a bit more digging than usual, and have found a most fruitful source of information hidden within Twinleaf, Inyssa's hometown.
I admit, at first I tried to contact her mother directly. But once I learned she was staying in Fantina's residence (another scandal I am DYING to write about. Look forward to that) and went there asking my usual questions, I received a most… cold and harsh welcome. I asked Johanna if she could tell me the reason behind her daughter's cold, bitter, unlikable personality and… well, you can see how that turned out.
Rolling her eyes, Selena points at a rather protuberant bruise on her face.
What can you do. Sometimes you get punched in your pursuit of the truth. I would have gladly received as many punches as necessary to get the source I got, not that I'm unhappy I didn't. And anyway, it's nice to see that unprovoked violence runs in the Dawn's blood.
We ask Selena who this special source is, and she beams at us
I asked around for people who might have known Inyssa before her… well, region-wide debut, so to speak. Most of the folk I talked to didn't seem to know her much. They've heard rumors regarding her mother and sister, but not much about Inyssa herself, mostly that she was quiet, serious and without many friends. Then, of course, came Cecilia Clearwater. She's one of the town's most… humble citizens, so to speak.
She runs the town's only trainer shop, a dingy little building that very few trainers would ever feel the need to pass through, seeing as there is nothing for them to do in a place like Twinleaf. It's a job she inherited from her father, she told me, right after his death. She was left alone with her younger sister and, unwilling to give her up, dropped out of school when she was only seventeen and has been working ever since to support both of them.
Why am I telling you this? Because it's not just a tiny detail I'm putting in to endear you to dear Cecilia, but relevant information regarding what I'm about to reveal. You see; in school, not only did her little sister attend the same class as Inyssa, but they actually seemed to be close friends, for a time. Oh yes, Cecilia has much to say on the subject. In fact…
Selena grabs a sheet of paper from the ant table next to her and puts her glasses on.
I hope you folks don't mind a little recursion, because I'm about to read to you the most relevant part of my interview with dear Cecilia. Ehem…
[Tell me, Cecilia; even back then, when your little sister was friends with Inyssa, what did you think of her?]
"Never liked her. Something about her rubbed me the wrong way at first, like… like those creepy, super bright green eyes of hers that she'd use to look around when she was in our house, or that pale face that made her look like a vampire. But Connie always told me I was being paranoid, and yeah I've kinda been that a few times with her, but it was for her safety, you know?"
[What do you mean by 'her safety', exactly?]
"Pfft. Come on, lady. This is a town of mostly rich folk and here my little sister was, attending school with their children while wearing second-hand clothes and looking clearly worse off than most. I'm not stupid. I know how awful these spoiled brats can be and I feared that they'd start picking on my sister for not having as much money as them. And I mean, what can you say at that point? What do you do if your little sister comes home from school crying and feeling like shit but not wanting to tell you what's wrong because she knows it can't be helped?
"Though luckily that didn't happen for a while. Maybe it was a time just after the war making parents and kids more kind and humble, like I guess tends to happen, or maybe the kids in her class just happened to not be assholes. Except for that Inyssa girl, obviously."
[What can you tell me about her?]
"Nothing you can't see just by glancing at her. Now that's the kinda spoiled brat I was talking about; no heart whatsoever, just rotten to the core. And I guess it's no wonder; as hard as it was for us, I wouldn't trade my family for hers even if you paid me. Dad goes out and dies just before the war ends, like many did. Mom turns to the bottle and ignores her little shit of a daughter for god knows how long, and then the older sister either got herself into trouble too big to get out of, or was smart enough to know when to walk out and pretend her family didn't exist.
"I mean, you can't tell me there's not some kinda bad juju there. No family is that unlucky, that cursed, unless they deserve it in some way. So of course Inyssa comes out all fucked up, all quiet and creepy and lashing out at anyone who wants to be good to her."
[I understand that Inyssa has had a history of anger management issues, as well as a few other mental… hurdles. Can you confirm this?]
"I've got no idea what it was or what name it had, but it was there and you could see it clear as water. And it took an even worse turn after her sister left. I'm sure the other peeps already told you about that one time she broke a few of the school's windows, yeah? Or when she beat up a group of upperclassmen and almost gouged one's eye out? The kid was mental. Rotten to the core, like I said."
[I am of the understanding that, eventually, she lashed out at your sister?]
"…Yeah. Was one of the last days of school before winter break; everything was shitty and bleak and I'd been shoveling snow from the store's entrance all damn day. Not the kind of mood for hearing bad news, right? Then here comes my sis, early from school and wanting to sneak through the back so I don't see her bawling her eyes out. And I'm not exaggerating; she was a wreck, tears and snot all over her face. Took me like an hour to finally get her to tell me what had happened. She really, really didn't want to but in the end I got it out of her, at least some of it. It was Inyssa.
"I guess the brat had been feeling kinda down ever since her sister disappeared, or so Connie said. She hadn't been attending class and when she did she looked more like a skeleton than a girl, so of course my sis got worried. Really sweet kid, much less than what that piece of shit deserved. Anyway, she tried really hard to cheer Inyssa up and invite her home or whatever she could do to help, and Inyssa didn't take it well at all. Maybe she thought Connie was looking down on her or maybe she just flat out snapped, I don't know.
"She told her to get away from her, that she didn't want to ever see her again and if she approached her again she'd beat the crap out of her. Then… Then she told her something awful. I don't know what it was, 'cause Connie never really told me, I guess she was afraid I'd kill that brat if I ever found out, and she was probably right. All I could make out was that it was something about us being poor, like… She was making fun of her for it. And just like that, it happened. My worst fear come to life."
[What was your reaction to this?]
"I lost it. Who wouldn't have? I bust my ass every goddamn day and here comes this snotty piece of shit thinking she's better than us just 'cause her mother's got money? Thinks she can look down on us? Hell, at least we're an actual family instead of whatever mess she's got! Probably why she said it in the first place, she was jealous or something. Not that I cared, I was too angry to care. So I went out, told Connie I just wanted to do some groceries before it got too dark, and started walking to Inyssa's house so I could give her a piece of my mind. Not that I needed to, though. Found her walking back from school halfway there."
[What did you do when you saw her?]
"…I just told you, gave her a piece of my mind. Sure as shit didn't do anything she didn't deserve. No one says that to my little sis and gets away with it."
[And what happened after?]
"No idea. Never saw her again until she appeared in the news some time ago. If I'd done, it probably wouldn't have been pretty for her.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
"All I know is that she tried to off herself not too long after that night. And let me just say this; if she'd gotten her way, you wouldn't have seen me crying about it, you can be sure about that. Still, guess she's been keeping a low profile ever since. I thought maybe she'd learned not to be such a piece of shit but… Guess I was wrong."
[Does that mean you don't approve of her recent rise in popularity? What about her claims that she is combating Team Galactic?]
"I don't give a shit about any of that. She's always going to be the rotten brat that made fun of my little sis for not having money, and that's not something you can fix. I hope people see her for what she is soon. I hope those Galactic folk call her bluff and give her exactly what she deserves."
[Thank you for your time, Cecilia. Is there anything else you would like to tell our audience?]
"Yeah. You know, I don't care in the slightest about Pokemon training or any of that, but if anyone who's reading does then please, stop supporting that girl and start supporting Barry, the boy who's traveling with her."
[Barry Paladino? You know him?]
"'Course I do. He's always been a good kid, if a little overenthusiastic. And his parents are good folk too, both of them are probably working hard to make Sinnoh a better place, and I'm sure they've taught that well to Barry. So yeah, I'd say he deserves to be the Champion a hundred times more than Inyssa. And Barry, if you're reading this, please reconsider who you're hanging out with, too. Don't be an idiot, don't make the same mistake as my sis. That's all."
[Once again, thank you, Cecilia. It's been a pleasure.]
So there you have it, folks. All anyone would ever want to know about or dear rising star; Inyssa Dawn. Truly a most controversial personality, as most of them are nowadays. I sincerely hope this note was enough to shake some of you off the web of lies that's been shrouding this girl's appearances ever since her debut, and show her for what she truly is, beneath all the bravado and false ideals. The Association isn't our friend, nor is any trainer they decide to place in the spotlight.
Keep your eyes open, my dear readers, and don't forget to subscribe to the Sword and Pen Daily for more…
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Inyssa took a step back, bright lights dancing in front of her eyes as she blinked rapidly, something she had almost forgotten to do as they read the article. Next to her, Barry stood frozen. His hair seemed more spiky than usual, like a Pokemon's fur standing up on end.
"I… She…" He struggled with the words, so much rage and indignity in his voice that it was choking him up. "How could she write this!? Who'd read this crap anyway!?"
The blunt of Barry's anger hit Inyssa like a powerful gust of wind, but this time she felt it distant, as though she were a few feet away from her own body, at the end of a long and narrow tunnel. She kept staring at the screen, and said nothing.
"I'm gonna call her right now and have her apologize!" Barry kept screaming, his face reddened. "Journalist my ass! Why'd she have to go and write all those awful lies about you; what did you do to her any–?"
"They're not lies."
"–way, and…" Barry paused and turned to her, breathing in. "What?"
"Everything she said is true." The voice that came out of Inyssa's mouth didn't sound like hers. "I'd... forgotten…"
She felt a sharp pain in her temples and staggered back a step, her vision going blurry. A deep groan left her lips. With difficulty she placed a hand against her forehead and hoisted herself up again to her full height, trying to ignore the sudden dizziness.
"I'd forgotten all about Connie… And that night." Her eyes lost focus as she stared down at the floor vacantly. "Why did I forget?"
A thousand bright images flashed before her eyes in an instant, leaving her head feeling like a balloon full of helium; hot and weightless. She hadn't thought of Connie in years. Hadn't even remembered her, or her name, until now. The moment she read it in the article, she had felt confusion and a sense of detachment until all the memories came rushing back.
Inyssa closed her eyes and keeled forward, holding her head with both hands. Her temples throbbed like crazy and the skin of her forehead felt burning hot, but there was… something else. A vague sense of relief. Like she'd finally lodged a thorn from her side; it hurt badly, but she somehow knew that once that faded she would feel… better? Maybe?
"Is this what Uxie meant?" she whispered, opening her eyes and staring at her own hand. "What I'm supposed to do?"
"Are you… okay?" Barry's voice brought her back to reality; he stood close to her, looking a mix of angry and worried. "What... happened?"
She looked up, meeting his eyes. Then, seemingly from nowhere, sprouted in her chest a bitterness so heavy and pungent she felt like she couldn't breathe at all. Her nostrils flared, and for a moment she felt compelled to push him away.
What can you tell me about her? Inyssa could perfectly imagine Selena's voice asking that question, followed by: Nothing you can't see just by glancing at her.
She stared again at Barry, this time fully taking it all in. She knew exactly what Cecilia had meant; the reason she'd told everyone to support Barry instead of her. It wasn't hard to see why. Barry's face had that distinguishable softness and brightness that only belonged to kids who'd been loved their whole lives. It came through like a ray of sunlight exuding from his self outwards; it's what made his eyes look so bright, what made his smiles so easily drawn and his laughs so vibrant and contagious. It shone through every aspect of him, and for the first time in her life Inyssa couldn't stand to look at it.
"I'm fine," she spat out, and once again the voice that spoke sounded nothing like hers. "And I already told you; everything she said was true."
She turned around, unable to look at him anymore. But as she did so she faced the window, and there behind the still pelting hail and the wet glass she saw reflected her own face, and shivered. There was no brightness like Barry's in there. Every inch of her was sharp and cold and eager to hurt, and it exuded from her just like Barry's gentleness did. She swallowed and her cheeks sunk, making her look like a corpse.
So what? She thought, taking in a furious breath. Is that Barry's fault? Why should it make any difference, then?
She heard Barry speak behind her. "She made everything look a lot worse than it was, and that's lying whether she likes it or not!" His voice was still heated as he said that. "You beat those kids up because they were bullying someone! And… And you breaking those windows wasn't even your fault, it was…"
"What about Connie?" She looked over her shoulder, and was slightly relieved to hear her voice returning to normal. "I really… did say something horrible to her. If you'd knew what it was…"
"I wouldn't think worse of you!" he finished her sentence, swatting at the air with one hand. "You weren't well at the time, it wasn't your fault. That was the day…"
He didn't need to finish the sentence, as both knew exactly what day that had been. Inyssa bit her lip, almost to the point of drawing blood, and slowly turned around to face Barry once again. To her relief, she didn't find the sight of him repulsing as she had done a few seconds ago.
"It wasn't your fault," he repeated, dropping his shoulders.
"How bad I felt at the time doesn't justify what I said." Inyssa shrugged. "I deserve what I got for that."
Barry's eyebrows went up. "I wanted to ask… What'd Cecilia do?"
They stared at each other for a second, and Inyssa knew immediately that she would never tell him the truth. He didn't need to know. Besides, even if he thought differently, she knew that the beating she'd gotten that night was completely justified. Who wouldn't have done the same thing, in Cecilia's shoes?
"Nothing. Just told me off." Inyssa looked away, trying to think of how to change the subject. "Anyway, even if there's justification for all that stuff, that doesn't mean that what Selena wrote isn't technically the truth."
"But it's not!" argued Barry. "You're not a pawn of the Association!"
"I might as well be," she whispered bitterly.
"That apology after you beat Byron wasn't because you wanted to trick anyone!"
"Well…"
"You're not a bad person!" Barry bellowed, poking her in the chest with this index finger. "We've been through this a million times and I'm gonna repeat it as long as I gotta until you get it!"
She flashed him a quick smile, though it didn't show in her eyes.
"I guess we'll see," she said. "Either way it doesn't matter. I'm not gonna stop trying to get better and if someone is convinced by what Selena said then I wasn't ever gonna get them on my side regardless."
"That's still…" Barry struggled for a moment, shaking his head. "What she wrote wasn't…"
She placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping his rambling. "It's fine. Let's just drop it, okay?" She smiled again, this time more genuinely. "I'm tired and my head kinda hurts so I'd like to go to sleep already."
"But…" He frowned, looking down at his Poketch.
"I know it's early," she said. "But we disembark in a few hours so I'd like to get as much sleep as possible."
Barry didn't look even remotely convinced; his expression made it very clear that he was willing to stay by her side until then, something she normally would have found endearing, but right now she could do with some solitude. Standing on her tiptoes she gave him a quick kiss and turned him around before he got the chance to protest.
"B-but… Niss promise me you won't think about…"
"I know. I won't," she said, pushing him through the door. "Good night, Barry."
The door slammed shut behind him, leaving the room in almost total darkness, only broken by the brightness of the computer screen. Inyssa glanced over her shoulder, seeing the end of the article there, taunting her. Without thinking it twice she hurried to the screen to turn it off. Then she threw her hat and coat on top of the computer and let herself fall against her bed, ready for sleep to take hold of her.
But it didn't. Her headache stuck the perfect chord between physically debilitating and slightly too painful to allow her to fall asleep easily. So she turned and turned on her bed, tangling herself in an increasing number of sheets and clothes as she did so. Her mind must have thought it looked like fun, as it began turning too, soon after.
While the sheer bulk of memories had rushed back to her with the speed and bluntness of a punch to the face, smaller and less painful details became clearer in her mind with every minute that passed. She remembered Connie's face; the sound of her voice and the ring of her laugh. She remembered some of the conversations they'd had, and more than a few hi-jinks they'd gotten into along with Barry. Then she remembered the exact details of that horrible conversation, the weight of every word she spoke to Connie and the way her smile broke down in an instant, tears flooding her eyes. The details were bright and blaring, too much so after so long of being hidden in the depths of her mind. She did her best to endure the pain, knowing well that she deserved every ounce of it.
Part of her wanted to talk to Uxie, tell it what had happened, but she knew that it was pointless. What would it say? Congratulations on unearthing yet another memory of you being a horrible human being? No, she wasn't in the mood for that conversation again. Besides, Uxie would know soon, anyway.
She raised a hand above her face and stared at the nothing between her fingers, eyes distant and lost. Did she expect a sudden rush of power? An understanding of her abilities? No, she knew it wouldn't be that easy. It never was for her, but that was okay. These things wouldn't be fun if they weren't so hard, right? So what if she didn't have Barry's attitude or disposition to make everyone like him? She was just playing on hard mode, that's all. Putting a little more effort than everyone else had never killed her, and she would make sure that would continue to be the case.
Her arm fell back to the bed, bouncing on the mattress. Okay, now that she was at peace with that, what next? She found it surprising, if pretty relieving, that she didn't care much about what Selena had said about her in the article. It made no difference, really. Like she told Barry; she wanted to prove herself anyway; now it was just going to be slightly harder, which, again, she was completely fine with.
Still…
There was one thing she felt like she needed to do. The idea bounced around in her head for a few minutes, making her turn and turn even more as she tried to think of a way to ignore it. Yet, no matter how much she thought it over, she knew it was the right thing to do. It just happened that it would also be pretty nerve-wracking.
After taking a deep breath she sat up on the bed and untangled herself with a little difficulty, setting her feet on the ground. It wouldn't do any good to keep fretting over it. Better to get it over with as fast as possible.
She pressed a button on her Pokétch and the sudden brightness of the screen made her wince, her temples throbbing. Eight minutes to eleven. There was a chance that she'd be asleep, but Inyssa doubted she would get the courage to do this a second time, so she got to work.
First she logged on to the only social media site she –barely– used, and entered the name in the search bar. Finding her was easy. Not many people lived in Twinleaf, and certainly no more than one young girl with that name. Then she looked through her profile and was pleasantly surprised to see that she kept her contact information public. After copying the number, she exited the app and opened the phone part of the Pokétch.
Then, after a few seconds, her trembling fingers began to dial.
It was hard keeping her wrist still as the beeps of the call mounted, each one sending a shiver of anxiety from her stomach outwards. For a moment, she had the fleeting hope that no one would answer. Unfortunately, just as the thought had formed there was a sharp sound followed by a voice coming out of the device.
"Hello?"
Inyssa's heart leapt. She opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again and tried her best to control her voice.
"Hi, is this Connie? Connie Clearwater?"
"Yep, that's me! Who is this?"
The pain in her temples exacerbated. It was one thing remembering the sound of her voice, but having it right there, so close…
"Um… It's me, Niss." A second passed, and then she added: "Inyssa, sorry. You know, Inyssa Dawn."
No sound came from the other side for what felt like an eternity, though it most likely had been just a few seconds. When Connie spoke again, she didn't sound as chipper.
"Oh… Um. Hi." There was an awkward pause. "Hi, Inyssa. What can I do for you?"
Inyssa didn't know if it was just a reflex, but Connie's voice had slipped into what she called 'customer service voice' so fast that she didn't know how to respond. Was that a good thing? A bad thing?
"Sorry to be calling this late," said Inyssa, trying to buy time. "Hope I didn't wake you or anything."
"No no, don't worry about it. Just got done with dinner actually," she replied. "Don't usually got to bed 'til midnight, you know?"
"Right, right." Inyssa said those two words, and then froze. She could feel the confusion and impatience coming from the other side of the call, and mentally slapped herself to get on with it already. "Um. Sorry for calling after so long, it's just… I wanted to talk to you about that… I mean I don't know if you've seen it, I just read it today and…"
"The article?"
Connie's tone was court and tired, as though she knew this was coming. Inyssa swallowed.
"Y-yeah."
"Look," said Connie. "I told my sister not to do it. And then she did it anyway and I told her I didn't approve at all, but she's super overprotective and keeps repeating that she did it for my sake or… Whatever." She let out a scoff of exasperation. "Point is, that wasn't me."
"Oh…" Inyssa felt an odd relief at hearing that, and for the first time a smile formed on her face. "No, no! I didn't call to blame you or anything. I know you wouldn't…"
But she didn't say no more. Did she really know that? No, she would have fully believed that Connie was willing to drag her reputation through the dirt for what she had done to her. And, worst of all, she found herself unable to blame her for it.
"Alright." Connie clicked her tongue pensively. "Then… what's up? Why did you call?"
"I wanted to apologize."
The words came out of her before she thought of what to say. Better this way, she thought. Like ripping off a band aid.
However, Connie didn't reply right away. She took her time clicking her tongue and pacing through whatever room she was in, judging by the incessant sound of steps echoing off the Pokétch.
"You called to say you're sorry?"
Inyssa bit her lip. "I mean… Yes? For what I told you, and for what I did. And I guess for being an awful friend. Past tense. I'm sorry."
From the other side there was a sound of drawing and sitting on a chair, and then a low sigh.
"Why now?"
"I… Huh?"
"Do you wanna feel better about yourself? Is that it?" Connie's tone was harsh and blunt. "You haven't called in, like… ever, Niss. What do you want me to… What am I supposed to say?"
"N-nothing, I just…"
"Look I'm not mad at you," Connie hurried to say. "Or… I wasn't, I don't know. It doesn't matter. It's been a real long while and… I wasn't happy to read that article either, you know." She spat out a heavy sigh. "Do you really mean it? That you're sorry? Or is it just so I forgive you and you don't have to feel bad about yourself?"
"N-no, I really mean it!" Inyssa sputtered. "I'm sorry I didn't call before, I just…"
But what was she supposed to say? I forgot? Even if it was true how on earth was she supposed to make that sound good? She struggled with her words for long enough that Connie spoke again.
"Niss, look…" She sighed again, and the way she said 'Niss' made her heart ache. "I'm sorry, but I don't have the time or energy to deal with this now. You calling was probably a bad idea to begin with but…" She left the sentence hanging. "Anyway, I haven't thought about you in forever until now, and I've been doing okay for myself. Congrats on doing awesome so far on your trainer journey, I guess."
"Connie, I…"
"I accept your apology. Though really, if you actually gave a shit you probably should've given it to me before you were called out like that." There was a sound like the creak of wood, and when she spoke again her voice sounded distant. "Anyway, good luck with becoming the Champion. See ya."
The sound of the call ending came before Inyssa could say anything. She stared at the empty screen of her Pokétch until it went dark, then with a great sigh she let herself fall against her bed again, and hoped the hail outside would swallow her completely. At least the water and snow would be good at masking the wetness in her eyes.