the (further) adventures of Lance & Silver! [onexone]

[Emili]

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THExxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
FURTHER ADVENTURES
of
Lance & Silver!
a ρɵӄєϻɵɴ onexone
featuring Emili & Frothy Crema

all others who post risk being devoured by Lance's Hydreigon
(Silver's Deino might only gnaw on your limbs)
thank you for your cooperation

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[Frothy Crema]

It was a bright and breezy morning. As they generally were at that time of year, on the cusp between Autumn and the first days of Winter. The view from the mountain face above the Ice Path was spectacular, and Silver was entirely alone but for the company of his team. He blew on his hands and rubbed them together, in a ineffective effort to coax some warmth back into his fingers. Typhlosion was a much better bet. He bent his head so the tips of his flaming mane bathed his master’s side.



Weavile, meanwhile, snickered and wriggled closer against Silver. Just because he was in his element up here didn’t mean he was going to miss out on comfort. Silver made an appreciative noise in the pocket of his throat, then rummaged in his pack for the flask of hot chocolate he’d packed. His pokemons’ interest perked. Naturally.

”Wait your turn,” Silver said. He wrapped his gloved-fingers round the cup appreciatively. It was bliss to be away from Clair’s suspicious gaze. She always seemed to assume he was up to something. Even after these twelve years training on-and-off in the Dragon’s Den. Even after the Master had finally conceded he had grown enough as a person to take on a Dratini - maybe.



Anyway, Weavile liked it up here, and that, along with the change of scene and chance to stretch his legs, was as good a reason as any to be out on a walk.



Pouring another two slugs of hot chocolate out for Weavile and Typhlosion in turn, Silver leaned back while they drank, so he could watch the fair weather clouds scudding across the sky. Then he squinted. Then shadowed his eyes with his hands. Weavile sat straighter as well. 



Was that a Dragonite? Come to think of it, was that Falkor? It was arriving from the right direction to be - from the East, and Indigo Plateau.



Silver was on his feet in an instant. The flask was thrown back into his back, and he was scrambling and sliding down the unsteady ground back towards Blackthorn. He’d been bored lately, and if Lance was returning, it was bound to be for some exciting reason. Silver wanted to be the first to know what.

[Emili]

It was good to be home--for a little while, anyway. Lance had dismounted Falkor a short distance from Blackthorne's northeastern entrance and sent the dragonite off to meet his own friends in the area. He liked to walk into town when he came here, not only because it avoided the scene that would inevitably arise from landing Falkor in the center of town, but because it was calming. The familiar sights, the familiar smells, the familiar sounds . . . Lance pressed his hand against one of the sturdy pine trees as he passed. The town had changed since his childhood, certainly, but in his mind it had only matured as he had. It wasn't the hurried change of rapid industrialization or the disheartening change of a town losing its youth. It was like a tree growing taller by the year, a plot of flowers spilling the edge of the bed, one crop replaced by another. Stable. Home.

His official reason to be here was to gather supplies for his trip. Though he'd officially 'lived' at the League for years, he still kept a residence here. Recently, he hadn't had much time to use it, and it had become more of a storage unit than he'd like to admit. I need to come home more. I've been putting it off. Being busy isn't an excuse. But still, he came up with them again and again, more and more reason why he didn't have time to spend here. As much as he loved Blackthorne City and his much-extended family, he secretly cringed a bit at the thought of coming home. That family had become a little too extended, and as much as he loved them individually, having the majority of an entire town barrel down to meet you and chat wore on him quickly. So he came up with excuses to avoid coming home and excuses to leave quickly.

And today was no exception. He did have an appointment to keep. Still, he mentally made himself promise to schedule a good, long stay here--at the next opportunity.

After entering the town, Lance noticed with some chagrin that he had been purposely avoiding being seen. It would be so much easier to just pop in to the little house, dig out what he needed, and leave without every townsperson demanding news and small talk. But that was not only rude, it was petty, and he forced himself to walk plainly through the streets. Thank god the streets were largely clear and he was already close to his house.

((Laaaazy post! I didn't want to make up townspeople. And now Silver can find him at his house! I'm just sort of assuming he has a place there.))

[Frothy Crema]

Silver wrenched his collar up. He hunched his shoulders a moment so the fabric scraped his cheeks - not so he was sheltered from windchill, but for a vague sense of concealment, and to ward of any nosy townspeople who may have also been up. The sun had cracked a golden chasm across the sky, slowly widening as it rose. Silver and his Pokemons’ shadows were long as he trotted the last few streets towards Lance’s vacant house.

The Champion himself was grappling with the neglected lock when Silver approached. He was suddenly at a loss at what to say. How to explain himself. It had been ages since he’d trained at Victory Road, or visited Indigo Plateau. Without Kotoni and Gold around to ambush with a challenge, there wasn’t much point.



As far as he could guess at Lance’s reasoning, he couldn’t be here for a family visit. If he were, he wouldn’t have spent the night in the air, so he arrived at the crack of dawn. So it had to be something else. Something secretive. Though far be it from Silver’s place to question the Champion’s motives, he was curious.



At length, the young red-headed man puffed out a lungful of dragonbreath into the frosty air.



“You didn’t say you were coming home,” nobody told me you were coming home. ”What are you doing here?”



There was no use in dancing around the point.

[Emili]

Lance almost jumped at the sound of Silver's voice. He hadn't realized how intent he'd become on the disused lock--or how preoccupied he was in general. He'd forgotten the younger trainer had more or less taken residence in his hometown. (Which, of course, he'd remember if he visited more often, Lance chided himself again.)

"Silver!" Lance fit a smile on his face and turned to face his fellow redhead. Momentarily ignored, the lock popped open in his hands. "I don't expect to be here long. I'm really just passing through." He pressed on the door, frowned when it stuck, and slammed his shoulder against it. "Damn. Have a few things to pick up."

On the second shove, the door gave way and skidded open into the foyer. "You're welcome to come in if you like . . ." He trailed off as he took note of the house
interior. Even from the front step, it had quite obviously been neglected for some time. A visible layer of dust coated every surface, and a brood of Spinarak seemed to have taken up residence in the rafters.

Lance blew out a sigh and ran a hand back through his hair. "Hm. That's a little embarrassing." He'd have to remember to let Truffle out to give it a good dusting while he stopped by the Den. For now, he'd just have to deal with getting a little dirty.

[Frothy Crema]

Startled, but nevertheless pleased for, the invitation, Silver followed Lance into his house. It didn't seem to fit his notion of a home - even a second one. Gold's house, with all his family around, and the Pokemon he'd grown up with, was the epitome of a home. Lance's looked so dejected. Not quite as impersonal as a hotel room, but not lived-in, and weathered by time rather than worn by people. But Silver just shrugged.

"Don't worry about it. It's not like you should be bothered to tidy on my account." Except, as if to add insult to injury, the chirping tones of a pokeball expanding and wobbling into activity sounded from Silver's bag. Almost the moment Silver retrieved it, Gengar emerged. Always up to mischief. He grinned at Lance and his master, before tilting back to consider how best to bother the bug Pokemon.

If Lance's house hadn't been dusty and dark long enough to attract its own ghosts, at least it was going to be temporarily haunted now.

Silver coughed, apologetically, into his collar. "He won't be any trouble." Any serious trouble, anyway. "Are you going back to the League after this, then?

[Emili]

Lance ran a finger along the bare edge of a table and made a face at the result. It wasn't that he was an overly neat person, but the dust only proved what he'd been trying to ignore--just how rarely he came home anymore. And that long away probably meant there were numerous other maintainence issues too-long put off, as well. Gengar couldn't make it much worse, he thought cynically, but caught himself before he could say it. He'd spent enough time with Agatha's Gengar over the years to know better than to tempt fate with one of those poltergeists around.

"No, actually, I'm bound for Unova." And there was another point of embarassment: the Champion dragon master with a dragon he couldn't master. He could barely control it, much less understand it. At least, he considered, it gave him an excuse to be away from the League for a bit. "Bruno will let me know if it looks like anyone might make it past Karen, but I have a few things to discuss with Drayden and Iris in Opelucid."

He moved further into the house, opening the occasional drawer or closet and frowning to discover that whatever he was looking for wasn't there. After a minute, he paused and glanced back at Silver. "I'd invite you to have a seat, but that's probably not the best idea. How have things been? I see my family hasn't scared you away yet."

[Frothy Crema]

Opelucid. Silver racked his brains for any knowledge he might have about the place. He'd browsed through a couple of travel brochures for Unova shortly after Gold and Kotone had left for Sinnoh. The deepest impression they'd left, aside from foreign Pokemon, was of the vibrancy of the cities. Castelia, the glossy pages alleged, outstripped the glitz and glamour of Goldenrod and Celadon. Then there was the Battle Subway in Nimbasa. Like Johto's Battle Frontier, but with the additional spectacle of taking place on a moving train.

Silver couldn't remember reading about Opelucid.

It wasn't as if he got to see Lance regularly, what with him being at Indigo Plateau and all. More that everyone he had a degree of respect for was going off somewhere exciting. And he was left behind.

"Oh," was all Silver could manage, squashing astomach-turning flare of jealousy as small as he could. He followed Lance into the kitchen, ignoring the ominous echo of a window slamming upstairs.

"Sometimes I think it's not for lack of trying. I don't think Clair's ever forgiven me for that time I insulted her outfit," Silver tried for a sheepish smile. "She wasn't impressed, either, when I started taking on some of the gym challengers - until it turned out it kept them on their toes. Made for more interesting competitors."

The younger man thought for a minute, about whether what he wanted to say to impress the Champion counted as boasting, and whether that would in fact ruin his chances. "The Master says that if I carry on the way I'm going, he might let me take on a Dratini he's taught ExtremeSpeed."

He watched Lance turn another drawer inside out. Then blurted, before he could provide himself with a reason not to: "Can I come with you?

(( Rambling post rambles. And manners, Silver has still never quite got the hang of them. ))

[Emili]

Reaching the kitchen, Lance could only eye the cupboards and refrigerator with a mild apprehensive terror. The fridge was unplugged, of course, and he was fairly certain he'd removed all the food from the room . . . Fairly certain. But, then, he'd been fairly certain about things before.

He avoided the cupboards.

He wasn't especially used to having people in his space--not, at least, on short notice. At the League, there was no reason to have people over: there were many better places to entertain, and houseguests were a rare and generally unnecessary occurrence. And, this house being as small and sparsely equipped as it was . . . He hoped he wasn't expected to offer something to eat or drink. With the kitchen in the state it was, that would probably be ruder than not.

"Ah, Clair." Lance gave a brief bark of a laugh. Of course she'd be the spearhead. "She, ah. She takes being a dragon trainer very seriously. Actually, most things very seriously. I don't think she's forgiven me for dunking her in the lake when we were kids." He made a mental note to do that again at his earliest convenience--after all, he was planning to leave in a hurry, anyway.

Lance was just thinking that he not only needed to clean, but organize everything in this house, when he was distracted by Silver's announcement. He turned a genuine smile toward the younger man. "Congratulations! That's wonderful. You'll do well with a Dratini." He hadn't had the opportunity to observe Silver's progress--hadn't taken the opportunity, Lance scolded himself--but the young man seemed a far cry from the boy he'd encountered all those years ago. Even if the dragon clan hadn't always been good to him--Clair especially--they seemed to have been good for him.

It was the next statement, however, that threw Lance off entirely. "I don't see why--" His mouth, in the mode to be agreeable, rushed ahead before his brain could catch up. His face fell from surprised agreement to a mask of uncertain consideration. Of course he could see why not, once he had a moment to think about it. It wasn't that he disliked the younger man--it was hard to dislike someone you didn't know a thing about anymore--but considering the reason for his journey . . .

Part of it was pride, he admitted to himself. But if he needed help with Orochi, and if the Hydreigon somehow broke free--would Silver be able to handle himself? Would he be safe? He couldn't endanger the younger trainer. "I'm not sure," Lance amended. "I need to speak with Drayden and Iris about a dragon of mine. It's . . ." Hell, Silver had already seen his house. Lance spread his hands in defeat. "I can't guarantee I can control it."


((I have no idea what Lance is actually looking for. xD))

[Frothy Crema]

A dragon Lance, Champion Dragon Trainer, couldn't get to grips with? Silver was incredulous. He was about to ask if he was kidding, but the voice of reason kicked in before he could; Lance wasn't the sort of person to joke about this sort of thing. Instead, he closed his mouth, and considered.

"Surely," he ventured at length, "Surely, it would be better if someone was with you, in that case." Then a spike of the old defensiveness; "I wouldn't get in your way, if that bothers you. Besides, I have Weavile." The sly mountain Pokemon, hearing his name, launched himself at Silver. The young man sloped his shoulder to catch it and arched back a hand for it to nuzzle.

"The more heads the better, right?

(( I am so, so sorry for lame jokes. xD;

Maybe Lance is looking for his passport. ))

[Emili]

It was actually a relief that Silver didn't dispute his statement. It was one thing to admit to failure, and quite another to have to insist upon it. At Silver's final comment, though, Lance could only grimace. "You would think so."

He pulled a hand across his brow, down the bridge of his nose. He wondered if bird trainers had as much trouble with Dodrio as he had with Orochi--but then, it wasn't as though the Hydreigon's heads argued with each other. They all seemed equally focused on rampaging. Three heads simply meant two more with which to devour and destroy.

Lance considered Silver and the Weavile slung around his back. It was true that an Ice type--and a Dark-Ice, no less--could be a help if the Hydreigon broke loose. It was hard to gauge its strength, but it was easy to see the connection between pokemon and trainer. The way Silver anticipated its movements and how Weavile clung to the young man's warmth . . . Yes, they'd both come a long way since Lance first met them.

Still--

Lance shook his head slowly. "I'm not concerned about myself. I know how it moves and I can subdue it, but I can't direct it. You wouldn't be in my way, really. But I wouldn't want you to be in its way. His way," he corrected himself. He found it hard to think of the Hydreigon as having a gender. It seemed like more of an entity than an individual. More of an effect than a cause. He couldn't manage to understand Orochi--and the Hydreigon knew it.

((Why am I awake? I don't even knooow. >< Sleep now.))

[Frothy Crema]

"I'm good at getting myself out of trouble," Silver replied, testily. He was still scratching Weavile's nose absentmindedly, and the Pokemon was very nearly purring at the affection.

Silver neglected to mention that the only reason he had had to become good at getting out of trouble was that he was so much better at getting into it in the first place.

"Besides, if I don't come with you, I'll only--" Silver abruptly cut himself short, surprised and not just a little disgruntled at how much he sounded like his manipulative, younger self. The reason he liked being around Lance, the reason he'd spent so long training in the Dragon's Den, and doing research for Professor Elm, was because he wanted to prove to the Champion that he had changed for the better. Yet here he was, falling into old bad habits, just because Lance had said no to him.

Weavile sensed the dip in his trainer's mood - or else noticed the attention it was receiving was not nearly as lavish as a few seconds before - and made a soft sound in the depths of its throat. He nudged the side of Silver's head with his own, knocking a small smile onto the redhead's face.

"Look, I really want to go traveling again, somewhere new. If there's a purpose behind it, so much the better."

(( Sorry that took so long.

I'm not the only person who got a strong vibe of hero-worship when Silver was stalking around after Lance in Goldenrod and tells the player character to heal up before facing the Champion? xDD ))

[Emili]

Lance couldn't decide if it was encouraging or depressing that Silver was so determined to join him. His first concern was that the Dragon Clan really had been being rough on the boy--but no, there still shouldn't be anything forcing him to stay. (And if Clair had ever been giving the younger trainer that impression, well--she and he were going to have words.) If he really needed to get away--and Lance would be the first to agree on that need--he could go any time.

But he hadn't. Although he clearly wanted to, he hadn't--because?

Because he was lonely, Lance finally guessed. Because he'd stayed here, in Blackthorne, for the company, for people who cared about him, however roughly. Because no one had invited him, and so traveling would probably mean traveling alone. By now, Lance could see, he thought of his pokemon as companions, as friends--but that wasn't quite enough.

Lance really wanted to say yes.

"Any other time," he said with a slow shake of his head, "I would be glad to have you along. But for this . . ."

It only took a moment's recollection to remind Lance why he didn't dare. For now, Orochi was safely secluded in his pokeball, seemingly content to stay there, but if ever he wasn't . . . The Hydreigon had broken out only once since Lance had taken on the dark dragon. It had been a moment of neglect, when Lance had left his pokeballs unattended on the training field, while he ducked indoors for a forgotten item. He hadn't been watching, and Falkor hadn't been watching, and Orochi came out--

In the short seconds it took for Falkor to swoop in and Bruno to bring his Lucario to bear, Orochi attacked and nearly killed half of Will's team. The sight of Gardevoir dangling from Orochi's right mouth and the look of absolute anguish on Will's face . . .

Will had felt it psychically, but he could just as easily have felt it physically. Lance had let Will down, and put his teammates in danger. He couldn't repeat that mistake.

"Next time," Lance offered, gathering his thoughts and forcing his expression out of the pit he was sure it had fallen into. "Next time I'm traveling--and really, I'm usually traveling--you should come with me. But not this time."

His hands, mostly forgotten by the rest of him, finally came across the item he'd been searching for. "Ah! There!" He held it up: a small figurine of a Dragonair, curled and circled around itself in an intricate knot. It seemed more than just a decorative toy, but it was hard to guess it's actual purpose. "Apparently Iris has been sulking lately. Drayden thought a gift might help. Why did I put it in there?" he wondered belatedly, frowning at the drawer he'd finally found it in.

[Frothy Crema]

Silver could tell there was no use in pushing it. There was a convenient scuttling sound and joyous cackle somewhere above their heads, and Silver used it as an excuse to divert his gaze from Lance's.

"I won't come along with you, then." Silver answered at last, spotting his loophole, but remaining as sulky as this Iris sounded. Guilt twitched briefly in his stomach; it was wrong to want to deceive the Champion, no matter how hard part of Silver wanted to argue it was for his own good. If Lance was as worried about the dragon as he said, surely he wouldn't want to put Iris and Drayden in danger, either, despite their experience. Even if he didn't want to admit it, he needed all the help he could get.

Weavile, having also flicked its ears and eyes towards the ceiling, leant over to see the glinting figurine. His movements were sharp and staccato, bringing Silver's attention with him. The younger man smiled with one side of his mouth.

"I have no idea, and I don't think it was Gengar playing tricks." He shoved his hands in his trouser pockets, and did his best not to sound too moody. "I guess you'll be off shortly then. Where are you flying to?"

(( Bonus points, I think, if they have a heated confrontation when Lance realises he's been followed. ))

[Emili]

"Thanks for understanding." Lance smiled then, appreciatively. Good. He felt guilty, somehow, leaving the younger trainer behind, but there would be plenty of opportunity to resolve that later. "This," he added, tossing the figurine once in the air, "is more likely my brain playing tricks on me. That, or a younger cousin."

Lance pocketed the trinket and ran a hand back through his hair, mentally mapping his route. "We'll make the border in Undella, weather-dependent. A long flight, but we have practice." Undella because it was closest, but also because Cynthia kept a villa there. Best place to land with a dangerous pokemon was where people were used to dangerous pokemon--though it would have been better if he knew Cynthia herself would be on hand. But she'd assured him the pokemon of that region were strong enough that most of the trainers had well-attuned fight-or-flight responses. Far better than Striation, where the three brother initiated the brand new trainers into the ways of type advantages. Certainly not.

"You should visit me at the League sometime--I swear, I actually do dust there. Well, Truffle dusts. Better housekeeper, anyway." Reminded, he drew out a green and yellow striped pokeball and returned to the living room for a bit more space. "I need to pay my respects to the Elder," and possibly dunk Clair, "before I go. You're welcome to stay, but I generally consider it a good idea to give Trafalgar a bit of space when he's cleaning."

The best way to describe the Altaria's exit from the nest ball was, well, whimsical. He came out with a graceful twist, singing a long clear note of obvious delight . . . which faded into a hum of dismay as he noticed his surroundings. Truffle rounded on Lance with three sharp notes of disapproval, and the house seemed to shudder a bit at the frequency. Dust rained down from the ceiling. Lance held up his hands. "I know, I'm terrible. Scold me later?"

Truffle seemed distracted enough by the shower of dust to forget any ill feelings. Singing determinedly, it began a thorough sweeping of the room with its cottony wings, pausing only to shriek at the few Spinarak that remained and eat a few for good measure.

((I am making up geography! =D Also, do we want to do a time skip now?))