Chapter Nine: Into the night of tears

We arrive in Fuschia city and I can already taste a difference in the air. Alola had a wild flavor, thick with humidity and sweet aromas.

Kanto tastes more mild, woodsy and with a hint of something darker as well. I could have been imagining it, or mistaking smog with the darkness. I wasn't sure.

Silver didn't really have a Pokémon that could fly him to Lavender Town so we would rely on Arrow. He seemed keen to get away from the docks and get home as quickly as possible.

I obliged, releasing Arrow and hoisting myself onto his back. I offer a hand to Silver and pull him up behind me. Arrow grunts and I reassure him with a pat that everything is fine.

"Take us to Lavender Town," I shout. We burst into the air, cool wind drumming against our faces as we climb higher into the sky. Tendrils of my black hair billow out around me, snapping through the breeze.

Silver helped to direct Arrow towards his home. Arrow seemed to be enjoying the air in Kanto, gliding lazily in the sky and occasionally diving down quickly. I breathed in deeply, the air was getting thicker the closer we got to Lavender Town.

Tucked between craggy cliffs I saw the spire of Pokémon Tower jutting up into the misty sky. Strange how the closer we got the more gloomy things appeared.

"Rrowww," Arrow mumbled curiously as we landed next to the Pokémon Center.

"You'll get used to the fog," Silver says as he hops off of Arrow and onto the ground.

I squint and highly doubted I could get used to it. I felt like I couldn't see more than a few feet in front of me.

"Where's your house at?" I ponder, resting a hand on Arrow's head and scratching him before issuing him to return.

"Follow me," Silver sets off towards the southern part of the town and I follow after him warily.

"This town is creepy," I grimace as I step over a busted gravestone.

"Just because it's different doesn't mean it's creepy," Silver retorts hotly from in front of me.

"It's the hanging fog and stench of lingering death that makes it feel creepy to me," I shoot back.

Silver doesn't say anything and quickens his pace instead. Digging in his pocket he pulls out a key card and I see a house through the misty swirls.

"Is that it?" I ask, pointing and hoping that we've arrived. The Ferry ride and the flight here had left me hungry and exhausted.

"Yep," Silver strides to the door and holds the key card out. The door reads it lets out a beep and clicks open for us.

Silver's house is definitely larger than my Alolan hut; with two bedrooms possessing their own bathrooms, it was already better. A small kitchen and living room took up the center of the house. There's more room and privacy. I breathe a sigh of relief.

"Better?" He asks, opening the fridge and pulling out a bottle of lemonade. "Want one?" He asks.

I oblige and crack open the can, sipping on its sweet contents thoughtfully.

"How long do you think we have to prepare?" I say idly, when the silence became too crushing.

"Not sure. I'm sure Cleyera is really pissed off and wants to see us fucked over sooner rather than later." Silver answers, looking aggravated with the way things were coming together. "We need to come up with a plan."

"Yeah, taking down the organization alone isn't going to work. We essentially need a rebel army." I joked, sinking down into the armchair. It smelled of lemon and seemed stiff, like it hadn't been used much.

"That's exactly what we need!" Silver exclaims. "We need to gather other likeminded people for our cause. It's the only way we can hope to bring them down. Authorities have never had luck with it because they do everything by the book. Fuck that book."

I agree with him and shrink into myself more, trying to understand how one builds a rebel army.

"You hungry?" Silver asks, pulling out a phone and not waiting for my response. He punches something in, pulls out his billfold and then places it back in his pocket.

"What are you doing?" I inquire.

"Ordering food, I feel like shit and I don't want to cook. Plus I haven't been shopping in forever so most of what I've got is probably spoiled." Silver responds curtly, putting his feet onto an ottoman and slouching.

"Where should we start looking for… rebels?" I wonder aloud. I feel silly hearing the words hang there while I await his response.

He opens one eye to pierce me with it. "We go to all the places Team Rocket has left the worst impact. There are bound to be people there who still want their heads. Plus, I already have some personal… friends who'd be willing to help."

Silver stands and halfheartedly prepares the table, sitting a pitcher of ice water in the middle and a couple of cloth napkins at our respective spots.

A knock at the door jarred me; Silver walked over to answer it, I heard him greet someone and thank them before shutting to the doors. He walked into the kitchen, clutching containers of fried rice and green salads. My mouth watered at the smell and I fell into the food after he placed it on the table.

"Don't worry," he says after taking a long swig of water. "I already have an idea of where we should start."

My green eyes flash as I look up at him, he appears more serious now, and angry. I can tell he has a lot of pent up ire and after all these years it was bubbling to the surface.

"I want to help you, Silver. I want revenge and I want to help you unleash yours as well. I'll follow you, if that's what it takes. I'll do anything to smother Giovanni and watch them all crumble."

Silver smiles, pushing his red hair back with a hand, a look of determination covering his face. "You know, I guess you aren't so bad, Jun." He jokes, "having you around won't suck that bad."

"Yeah?" I toss my crumpled napkin at him from across the table, it lands on his empty plate and I smirk. "I'm not sure if you don't suck yet. Your house is better than mine though."

"Unlike you, I have standards." He pushes himself up from the table and glances at a slowpoke clock on the wall. 8:30pm.

Noticing the decor for the first time, I crack a spirited smile. "Do you like water Pokémon?" I ask. A painting of a Dewgong hangs above the armchair behind where I was sitting, a Lanturn lamp illuminates the hallway leading to the bedrooms and of course, the Slowpoke clock.

"So what if I do?" He snaps, face flushed with embarrassment.

"I think that's cool, I didn't think you liked anything with that perpetual grimace you've got on." I stand up too and stretch my tired arms.

Silver lets out a noise and says, "I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. Feel free to do whatever in the house, but if you watch TV turn it down. I'm a light sleeper." He walks away and tosses his hand in the air at me, like a prick.

"Silver, wait-" I start, he turns around with that same bored expression.

"What?" He says, impatient.

"Goodnight." Is all I say, he turns and walks away. There's so much that I want to ask him, so much that I want to know. It can wait though, until tomorrow. Until we've both rested.

I retire to my room, the walls are bare and a plain bed sits in one corner. It doesn't have a blanket or any pillows on it. I groan, hoping there are some in here. I dig around and come up empty, I wouldn't think Silver would have a lot of company. As a last stitch effort I look through the bathroom and only come up with towels.

Shoulders slumping, I make my way down the hallway and knock on his closed door. Silence. He must still be in the shower. It wouldn't be the first time I'd slept without pillows or blankets.

I turn and walk back down the hallway, stopping when I hear a door open. I face Silver and he's holding out a pillow and blanket, a sheepish look on his face and…something else. His eyes seemed empty and downcast.

"I didn't have time to get anything ready before you came." He grunts, shoving the items into my hands and shutting his door, leaving me in the dark hallway alone.

Bewildered, I walk back to my room and close the door. Was there something the matter? It was obvious he wanted to be left alone so I would leave it at that.

I turn the shower on and step inside, under the hot shards of water I finally relax. Things are coming together, regardless of Cleyera and her fucking meddling. I'd have my revenge and the world would be rid of a terrible thing. I would be rid of this venom and could pursue whatever dreams I could fathom.

I step out of the shower and shiver from the ambient cold temperature, drying myself and pulling on loose black pajamas. Not wanting to sleep yet I tiptoe out of my room and into the kitchen to brew some tea.

I fill a kettle with water from the sink and place it on the stove. Reminding myself to pull it off before it whistles so I wouldn't disturb Silver.

I open a large, clear jar stuffed with teabags and a label reading 'Chamomile'. I fish a couple of them out and plop them into a mug while I wait. Steam begins to lick out of the spout and I pull the boiling water and splash some over the bags.

I hear a door open and freeze, unsure whether I was imagining it.

"Damn it, at least turn on a light in here." Silver's voice surprises me and he flicks the Lanturn lamp on. A soft yellow glow illuminates from the orb at the end of it's illicium*.

"I didn't want to wake you." I countered, annoyed that he was even making the comment.

"I never went to sleep," Silver leans against the counter and I notice that same look from earlier.

I take out another mug and pour water over a couple of tea bags for him. "Have you been crying?" I ask bluntly.

Silver looks defeated and shakily meets my gaze, shrugging he looks away. "That's stupid to ask." He mutters.

I'm not sure how to react. My social skills are basically nonexistent, I don't know how to comfort people when they're sad or even if they want comforted. I've seen movies before where people comfort each other so I guess I'll just try that.

I walk towards Silver, take a deep breath and embrace him. I haven't hugged anyone since my mother and those memories had turned foggy and had begun to drift away.

His body tensed up, which I expected because mine did too. I felt awkward as I clung to him, his height made my face get lost in his chest.

It was at this moment that his arms closed around me tightly and he began to sob. Quietly, almost silently at first. Soon they transitioned into choking gasps for breath and I found myself crying too.

Together we sunk down onto the floor, still holding each other and just weeping. All the pain I had ever felt surged up and out of me. My greatest fears and all of those nights I spent alone in my prison of a room. Everything came up in gushing, shaking waves. Choking on my grief I tried to bury myself deeper into Silver, into his presence.

I realize that as he cries he's stroking my hair, shivering with the anguish pulsing through him now.

We don't need words in this moment.

Is this what a real family feels like?

After what felt like hours we both fell mostly quiet and released each other, leaning our bodies against one another on the kitchen floor.

I stood, shakily and grabbed our mugs of tea down to the floor where we were sitting. Silver took his silently and took a deep drink, rubbing his swollen eyes.

"It's going to be okay," I say when the silence started to weigh on me.

"Okay is kind of a relative term," he leans forwards, bringing his knees to his chest and staring off into space.

"You're right. When I say it's going to be okay I mean it though. Regardless of what happens or if we succeed, I feel like I've found a greater purpose now." I take a sip of my tea, running a finger over the lip of my mug.

"What's your greater purpose?" Silver snorts, wiping his nose and looking at me with a crooked smile.

"You," I say. "I feel like I can finally have a family that I care about. I want revenge still but I don't feel like that's the only thing keeping me alive. What happened here tonight, between us…. That's never happened with me before."

"You've never cried?" He asks, incredulous.

"Not that, dumbass." I slap his arm. "I've never had like, an emotional moment like that, I guess." My face grows hot and I look away. "Not that I really give that much of a shit about you. But it was nice to see you're kind of human or whatever." I add quickly, still averting his eyes.

"I can't say I've really had a moment like that either. But don't tell anyone or I'll fucking kill you." Silver chides.

"Do I look like a child who can't keep a secret? Besides why would I spill something that makes me look so bad? Imagine, if I told people I cried into you for comfort. It's honestly disgusting." I brush a finger across my nose and look at him through a single, open eye.

"How old are you anyway?" Silver asks. "You may be a kid for all I know."

"I'm 18, obviously." I stand up, stretching the stiffness from sitting on the floor from my bones. Slowpoke clock tells me it's a quarter until midnight. "We really should get to bed."

"Yeah, I think we'll go to Vermilion city tomorrow." Silver answers with a yawn and stands up, his legs disagreeing with the position he'd been sitting in.

The thought of flying makes my legs hurt, Arrow wasn't what I would call a comfortable ride. His skin was hard as stone and I didn't have a saddle for him. "How do you plan on getting there?" I ask.

"I'll drive us," Silver points a finger in the air. "I paid for a taxi when I hopped a Ferry to Alola. A word of advice, don't leave your car in a commuter lot overnight."

Relief floods over me as well as excitement. I'd never ridden in a car before, that I could remember. It seemed like everyday I lost more memories of my mom and the life I had before Giovanni. I wouldn't tell Silver I'd never been in one though, he would probably laugh at me.

"I'll see you in the morning then," I smile kindly at him as he walks away and into his room. I rinse our mugs out and leave them in the sink before turning off the Lanturn light and making my way to bed.

Exhaustion crashes over me and I barely make it under the covers before I'm fast asleep.

* (illicium is the rod on an anglerfish)