Monday, June 19th, 1978, 1730

Western Edge of Route 11

Ellie shook her head in disbelief at her friend's explanation, taking a deep breath to ward off the mounting frustration creeping in. They were walking toward Vermilion City's large, gated entrance and would arrive at the city within the next thirty minutes, assuming they didn't encounter any unexpected interruptions.

"Okay. Let me get this straight just so I'm sure I'm not fucking hearing things. Our fearless leader, Mare, told you about some sketchy dark-energy voodoo magic he heard about from Ona—who is, might I remind you, a literal man-eating ghost pokemon—and you thought that it was a good idea to infuse your body—whatever that means—constantly, with this mysterious darkish energy, that somehow makes you immune to pain, emotionless, and freezing to the touch. Did I miss anything?"

Grimacing, Dani replied, "When you put it like that, it definitely sounds bad. But I don't think that characterization is completely fair. Contextually, it seemed like a good idea at the moment, and I don't know if I should stop at this point. Or even if I can. Every time I even glance at my hands, I want to throw up when I imagine abruptly feeling the pain and emotions in full. Don't think I didn't notice you and Mare look at me with disgust and pity, especially when Priscilla was picking off the dead skin. I don't think I could've even gone through with that as I was before."

She gazed at her hands, turning and twisting them to display the garish burns before continuing, "I don't want to feel the pain. It's easy to critique my decisions when you weren't even there in the first place. When I heard Mare screaming in the water, I thought he was going to die and started panicking. If I hadn't used the 'dark voodoo energy,' as you put it, I think I might've frozen up completely. Even if this isn't ideal, I don't regret my actions and don't appreciate your judgment."

Ellie held her hands up apologetically. "My bad, my bad. I didn't mean to get on your case about it. Untwist your panties, please. You have to understand that it sounds slightly crazy from an outside perspective. Have you told Mare? I would think he'd be interested, to say the least. And, for the record, he isn't always freezing like you, so I don't think you two were doing the same thing. Seems like a pretty big assumption on your part."

Dani shook her head. "No, I haven't told him yet. I'd rather not, so please keep it to yourself until I learn more about it. Also, how do you know he's not cold to the touch?"

Because I helped stitch up his wounds, idiot. Ellie internally rolled her eyes at the ridiculous question, ignoring her friend's suspicious glare. Jealous much?

"Hold up. Why should I keep a secret for you? This energy thing doesn't sound healthy, and that's an understatement. Mare would not appreciate being kept in the dark here, either. Besides, we haven't really talked about the Snorlax in the room, but you let your pokemon kill two people in cold blood, no questions asked. That's not something you would have done normally. I could be wrong, but you didn't really give off the 'hardened killer' vibe when I first met you. Tell me I'm wrong?"

"Because I asked you to? Does there need to be more of a reason than that? I just don't want Mare to know," replied Dani.

"You gotta give me more than that! I need a compelling reason to keep my mouth shut with this, as it completely changes your decision-making. Convince me."

Dani scowled. "Fine, I'll tell him myself. Just give me a few days, okay?"

Beaming, Ellie said, "Done! But if you don't tell him by the end of the week, I'll do it for you. Deal?"

"Deal," Dani grudgingly agreed. "For the record, I never even thought of killing people before that, but now it doesn't seem like a big deal to me. They were part of a clearly hostile group that was more than willing to murder a couple of teenagers simply by virtue of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Why should I feel bad about it? Do you really think they were good people?"

"Fair point, I'll admit they were pretty suspect," conceded Ellie. "Still, the fact that you could do it without even batting an eye is concerning. Your starter was crushed right before you, for Arceus' sake! You're not a soldier; you're just a teenage girl running through the circuit for her second time. Have you thought much about the long-term effects of this mysterious energy on you?"

"No," replied Dani curtly. "It's easier not to think about it. It's hard to explain. Even before everything went down, I wasn't feeling good about myself. Now, I at least feel like I have a purpose. Something tangible to offer you and Mare, so I'm not lacking," she said with a bitter laugh.

Eyebrows raised, Ellie asked, "And what do you mean by that? It sounds like you're implying you need to be able to murder people to be of use?"

"I don't know. Forget I said anything," said Dani as she looked away, picking up her pace to end the conversation. Her long legs efficiently carried her forward, Chausette trailing obediently behind.

Arceus damned tall girls.

Ellie hurried to catch up, earning a cry of protest from Anabelle, who understandably wasn't built for speed. You're not getting off with a comment like that.

"No, I think you knew what you meant. What, were you having a pity party because you didn't feel like you were good enough when confronted with Mare and his encyclopedic knowledge?"

Dani stiffened, confirming Ellie's suspicions. I fucking knew it.

Emboldened, she continued, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Right. Of course. Every trainer should naturally be able to compete with the offspring of what is essentially Kanto royalty, who has been drilled and educated since he could walk? With all the training, nutrition, and rare pokemon money could buy. Makes complete sense. If you met his family, you'd probably think differently. I sincerely doubt Mare wants you, of all people, to meet them, though."

"Shut up. I really don't want to hear it. Of course, he wouldn't want them to meet me," complained Dani, who kept walking, refusing to look at her.

"I mean, why would he? I'm hardly special. When I first approached Mare about joining him, I intended to learn as much as possible in the hopes of improving. It seemed like a good idea then, but all that happened was me realizing how far behind I was. Not exactly good for my self-esteem. I was doing a decent job before meeting you two. It just kept getting worse until we got to The Golden Dream."

"What happened then?" asked Ellie curiously. "What changed? I assume it has to do with the weird voodoo energy."

Dani shot her a glare, but it lacked venom. "I'm getting there. You're always so impatient."

"Impatient and proud," chimed in Ellie, who was summarily ignored as Dani continued her explanation.

"All I had going for me was the experience of going through the circuit for a year, but Mare had all that and more from his travels, not to mention his big sister. It hit me hard after going through the storm. I was tired and feeling mopey about myself. Mare told you about the odd dark substance coming from me, right?"

"Yup, go on. He just said it looked like a stormy black cloud of something getting sucked off of you into that weird obelisk thing, but he didn't say much more than that," confirmed Ellie. "Also, yuck."

"Right. After that, I felt better. Not just a bit better, but life-changing better. Things clicked when Mare told me about Ona's explanation of the substance. When I practiced accessing it with Mare in the waterfall, it felt like the most natural thing in the world."

Shrugging, Dani continued, "I need something that makes me useful. Unique. Pain immunity and the ability to stay calm in stressful situations at least qualify as worthwhile. If things go as poorly as Mare's family seems to think they will, I'll be invaluable in times of crisis."

"I see. That was quite the speech. You've really been giving this some thought. Still, you need to tell Mare, or I'll do it for you."

"Why? He doesn't need to know. It's not like he's responsible for me. I'm older than him, anyway," protested Dani. "If anything, it should be the opposite."

Arceus, she's dense.

"You might be misunderstanding something here. How do you think Mare feels about you? Do you honestly think he's concerned because you're some helpless trainer?"

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Dani nodded slowly, giving her an odd look. "Yes? I thought that was apparent. I'm sure he would treat anyone the same."

Yep. So dense.

Suppressing a sigh, Ellie corrected her friend's marked lack of insight. "Okay. Let's just get this straight. I hate to do this to Mare, but this is killing me. He clearly likes you."

"Of course he does? We're traveling companions, and he agreed to let me join you two. We get along well and have similar interests. It would be weird for him not to like me. I don't understand your point. He also likes you and clearly feels responsible for you."

"Well, first of all, he like, literally is responsible for me. I'm an assignment. If I do something wrong or something happens to me, he fails his assignment. He's not allowed to fail, so he takes it seriously.

"What's your point?" asked Dani. "Am I like extra credit, then?"

"No point, necessarily. When I said like, I meant like-like. Like, more than friends, wants to hold hands and other things, ya know?" Ellie groaned. "That was way too many likes. Anyway, he's into you. Romantically. Did you seriously not notice?"

Dani tilted her head. "That doesn't make any sense at all. He's on an official assignment from Fuchsia's ruling clan, hoping to avoid a war, and you think he's thinking about a relationship? Mare is far too rational for that."

Ellie shrugged. "First off, I never said he was looking for a relationship. It's not like we sat down and discussed Mare's feelings for you in-depth. He probably has no idea how obvious he is with his affections. For all I know, he just thinks you're hot and wants some action."

"Lust, then? That seems even less likely. Mare hardly seems like the type to let something so base affect his judgement, especially considering the circumstances."

Ellie waved her comments away. "Look, dude. Love, or lust, or whatever he might be feeling, isn't always logical. That's, like, half the point of it, if not more. If people just waited for love to be convenient and 'rational,' it would take most of the fun from it. Or so I think. It's not like I have much experience, but I've read plenty of shoujo manga, so I consider myself something of an amateur expert."

"Hm. I see your point. Just before everything went down, I was reading a romance novel, and all I could think was, 'This doesn't make any sense,' the entire time," Dani said with a thoughtful expression.

"Yup!" Ellie nodded. "That's the best part! Off-limit things seem even more appealing. Honestly, I'm jealous of you. Not because I like him or anything, but just because of the whole situation. If even a tenth of what I've read is true, most girls would be over the moon to go on a journey with a cute boy who likes them, even if they don't feel the same way. Everyone wants to be pined over at least once in their life."

Ellie laughed, recalling her first encounter with the boy in question. "When I first met Mare, he cried within like, thirty seconds. My first impression wasn't ideal, to say the least. But in his defense, it was a really unfair situation. Still, he's pretty handsome and smart, and he works hard! I'm sure he'd be a diligent boyfriend. Plus, you saved his life. I bet that made his crush even worse, and he was already down bad. It was painful to watch. So, at least now you know!"

Dani chuckled uncomfortably. "Yeah. I guess so. I'm not sure what to say. I thought his over-consideration of me resulted from him believing me to be unqualified. I feel bad even being upset about it before. You're sure he doesn't think I'm a burden?"

"Are you kidding me? Did you not hear me before when I pointed out that you two act like parents? He consults you for everything! The first time I saw him looking at you on day one, I could tell he was impressed by you. I've had to painfully watch his flirting attempts for the last few weeks and bite my tongue! I want my time back!" Ellie joked with a giggle before growing serious once more.

"Well. Do you like him back? I feel obligated to be a wingwoman here. Even if Mare is obnoxious some of the time, he's done a good job overall. I'm much more prepared than when I started, even if I only just won my first match."

Dani crinkled her face. "I don't know. I never felt strongly about anyone even before the numbing energy, or whatever this is," she said with a broad gesture towards herself. "Now, I feel even less. I do feel fondly towards him, however. And I think he's doing his best in a tough situation. It's been a rough few months for me as well. I don't think I'm in any position to reciprocate his feelings, though. What do you think I should do?"

"Shit. I thought for sure you liked him back," admitted Ellie with a frown. "You seemed to be on the same wavelength. I just thought you were being dense."

"I can't very well deny that at this point," conceded Dani. "I'd like to think I'm perceptive, but I might need to reevaluate that belief after missing something apparently obvious. Still, I'd love to hear your opinion."

"Yeah, I'd check yourself on that. You and Mare are bottom of the barrel on picking up subtleties in interpersonal communications, even if you're sharp on everything else," said Ellie with a shake of her head. "Before I present any of the options, I just want to be clear that I'm not responsible for anything that happens. You ultimately make your own choices as to how you want to proceed. Think of me like a consultant with mostly theoretical experience."

Dani smiled, a rare sight lately. "That's fine. And thanks for telling me. I doubt I would've noticed as I am now. Please, oh amateur expert, grant me your wisdom."

"Okay, now you're just making fun of me, but I'll forgive you this time! The way I see it, you have a few options. You can keep pretending you have no idea, shut him down completely, or friend-zone him super hard."

"Friend zone? I'm not familiar with the term. Would you mind explaining?"

Ellie scoffed. "I figured you might say that. It's funny since you were totally doing it right off the bat! The first few days you traveled with us, you exclusively referred to Mare as 'bud.' It was like you were talking to a small child or something. He practically wilted every time you said it! Poor guy. I commend his dedication in the face of your total obliviousness."

"I still don't understand… what does how I address him have to do with friend-zoning? It's simply a force of habit that I use that language at all! That's what I call my twin siblings. It wasn't anything personal," protested Dani.

"See! Yeah! That's exactly the problem. It's a man thing. It's like you're talking down to him or not taking him seriously. Depending on the guy, it'll either make them double down on their efforts or just give up entirely. Mare seems driven, so it might backfire. When you stopped calling him that, he clearly took it as a good sign. He definitely got more confident when he picked up on the shift."

"Okay. Is it too late to friend-zone him until I figure out how I feel? I can't very well change how I talk to him now without it being too obvious," asked Dani with a hint of frustration seeping into her otherwise neutral voice.

"Not at all! You could comment about thinking other boys were cute or tell him you liked someone back home. Mare strikes me as the respectful type, so I doubt he would do anything overt," explained Ellie.

"That seems cruel to lie like that. What were the other options again?"

Ellie ticked them off on her fingers. "First, you could do nothing. Just pretend we never had this conversation and that you were blissfully unaware that Mare thought of you as anything less than a traveling companion."

"I don't think I could do that," said Dani with a shake of her head.

Ignoring her, Ellie continued, "Second, you could bluntly tell him you're not interested. Or, at least not right now. Mare is considerate enough that he would probably cool his jets and respect your boundaries. That option might be the best but is likely the hardest for you. It's not easy for anyone to tell another person, especially one they're fond of, that they don't like them that way."

"No kidding," agreed Dani. "You've given me much to think about. Thank you for cluing me in. I feel embarrassed I was so unaware after weeks of constant contact with Mare. Even if none of the options seem appealing, it's still better than thinking he thought I was some damsel in distress."

"No problem," Ellie said. "I know we're not super close, necessarily. But I still care about you and want the best for both you and Mare. I'm here to listen if you ever want to talk to me about stuff. Anyway, enough seriousness for now. We're almost here!"

With a low whistle, Ellie admired the bustling port city of Vermilion. There was a large wall ringing the base of the city, and the rest of the housing was built onto several large tiers that led up to a citadel overlooking the massive bay. "This place is huge! It's so much more dramatic than Fuchsia. Why the huge walls? This whole thing looks like a big-ass fortress."

Dani smiled, more than happy to expand upon something she was familiar with. "Due to its strategic position overlooking such a large harbor, Vermilion has been the target of many raids throughout history, thus their defensive measures. Although they have been allies for many decades, even the Seiichi at one point attempted to expand their territory by capturing the port."

"No way! What happened?"

"Not much, to be perfectly candid. Due to its naturally defensive position, the Seiichi maintained a siege for several months with no luck. It is said that both clans eventually grew so bored they decided to wage war upon other provinces not as enemies, but as allies."

Dani chuckled, amused by Ellie's excitement. "I don't know the truth of the matter, but the Seiichi and Kumire have been staunch allies for at least two generations. You should ask Mare; perhaps he knows more. It's not like the public school system is all-powerful."

"Maybe I will. It's cool to learn about the history. How does this whole thing go? Is there like a check-in at the edge of the wall?" Ellie asked as she scanned the city's edge for an opening.

"That's correct. There are two primary gates on the north and east sides of the city. Considering it's been years since any real conflict has happened, they're quite lax. Mare said he would meet us at the center on the eastern edge if I recall."

"Yup," agreed Ellie absently, her eyes glazed over as she took in the sights of the sprawling coastal city. It was approaching dusk, and a beautiful pink glow suffused their surroundings.

True to Dani's word, the security at the city's edge was nearly nonexistent. They effortlessly blended in with the crowd of excited teens happy to return home to regale their families with tales of the day's many battles. The energy and excitement in the air was palpable.

A decently sized line of trainers marked the entrance to the pokemon center, a testament to how popular the battling culture was in Kanto.

"This is crazy!" shouted Ellie, struggling to be heard over the drone of a hundred conversations. "How are we supposed to find Mare in this?"

"Like that," commented Dani with a knowing smile as she pointed towards a man holding up a sign displaying the words, "Seiichi Party: Eleanor Rayne. Daniella Fiore." The man was dressed in a formal kimono and appeared utterly indifferent to the chaos around him.

"Oh. That makes sense. Let's go say hi! We still need to heal our pokemon, so let's tell him to wait for us. It might be a while, though."

"I don't think we need to use the public center for healing," said Dani. "You see that emblem on his shoulder?"

"Yeah! It looks like a spiky yellow ball. Kinda neat."

"That's the emblem of the Kumire clan. It appears Mare wasn't kidding in the slightest when he said he was going to find us fine lodgings. It's easy to forget he's a Seiichi when we're just out in the woods. I have a feeling our experience in Vermilion will be radically different."