Pokemon: Legend of Rayquaza

A collab between Follia Della Rovina and maycontestdrew

There are no excuses for this late update. Absolutely none.

Reunion

An auburn-haired girl walked barefoot by the waters right outside her hometown, before lying down. It had been another ordinary day and now the sun was setting. The girl yawned, running a hand through her bangs as her steely grey eyes drooped. Things get severely uninteresting in small town such as Oldale. All she had ever wanted was to travel around and experience different things, but these waters were as far as she had ever gone outside of the town because her mother was quite the worry-wart.

The girl sat up and dipped her feet in the water. Her childhood and best friend had gone off to live in Fortree years ago and it would make her a liar if she said that she didn't envy the girl. She had dreamed of riding on a pokémon as it surfed across the deep blue waters of the sea and to glide with them as they rode the airs. The girl had an ambition - an ambition of becoming the Pokémon Champion and she would fulfil it. In a matter of days, she would go on her own journey and conquer the region.

She shut her eyes closed, thinking for a bit what it would feel like to win over the resident champion. A wide grin spread across her face at the mere thought. The vision was clear in her mind and she felt as though she had already won...

As the sky began to darken, she could've sworn that the voice of the friend she had long since seen was echoing was echoing in the distance. The girl stood up to check only to be tackled to the ground by someone she had never expected to return.

~ * ö * ~

When Steph returned to Oldale, all those reasons that compelled her to come back vanished and all she could contemplate about was being reunited with Amber, her true friend. She rushed past the remaining people and out to the familiar route. This was the spot. Their spot. The girl grinned at the sight of a figure, not far ahead, sitting by the water, seemingly lost in thought.

"Amber!" Steph called as she ran up to whom she hoped was her friend. The figure began getting up then, but Steph had already tackled her back to the ground. She giggled. "…Missed me?" were the only words that could escape her mouth.

~ * ö * ~

Amber blinked once, twice at the person who had caused her to crash back to the ground. She could recognize that head of chestnut-coloured hair anywhere, and when the person giggled, she was certain it was her.

She hugged her dear friend close. "Only a little bit too much," the girl mumbled truthfully with a sheepish smile.

"Of course, you did!" To be honest, Steph was slightly concerned when returning to her initial home, afraid of rejection from Amber. But, all those painful thoughts regarding her dad, who was probably in danger, and her mother, who rather despised her, disappeared as Amber's embrace soothed her.

Steph eventually released her hold, although reluctant, after coming to the conclusion that both of them would suffocate without some space. She gazed carefully at her friend, crouching to steady the stare into eye level, "You, my friend, seem bored."

Amber scoffed at the mention of her boredom as she sat up. It had to be the understatement of the century. Eventually, Steph grinned at her, leaping in for another hug, causing Amber additional trouble in keeping her position.

While resting her chin on Amber's shoulder, Steph whispered into her ear, "So… Are you ready for adventure?"

The girl grinned at her friend. The mere mention of adventure had sent her blood pumping. "Hun, you know I've been ready since the day I was born."

"Do I, now?" Steph joked, "Right, and how your mum would NEVER let you go because you're her teensy little child?" she snickered while parting the embrace once again.

Amber groaned. "Don't remind me…"

"Fine, fine…" Steph muttered, a slight throb of humour and emotion leeching into her voice. Amber was the same, fortunately. The same bestie she always loved and her closest resemblance to a sister.

The redhead looked up at the now-darkened sky before shifting her gaze back to Steph. "Still got the same dream?" she asked solemnly. "I do," Amber looked back up at the sky. "It never changed and I'm gonna succeed no matter what," her eyes glimmered with fiery determination, her steel will unfailing. It was the same look she would give people when she talked about her dreams. It had grown stronger over the years, never faltering. Especially not now.

Steph laughed a little. "Well, duh! Never in a million years would it change!" she too looked up at the sky. "And I'm glad it hasn't," even she was trembling with excitement and anxiety as she envisioned becoming a top coordinator with stunning Pokémon, dazzling and cunning combinations of contrasting moves against an opponent… And the pleasure! The pleasure of being with Pokémon, spectating the occurring incidents in the region – something she had longed to do since… Well, since forever!

"That's nice." Amber smiled fondly and ruffled Steph's hair, laughing in the process. "But, you gotta tell me everything since you've moved first!" Just then, her stomach chose to grumble, stating its complaint because it knew that they would end up talking for hours before its hunger could be satiated.

The redhead's face turned the colour of her hair. "… How about you talk while we have dinner?"

At that, Steph busted into a mad giggling fit, obviously impressed by the timing of her friend's stomach. "I think that sounds like a brilliant idea!" she agreed, standing up and stretching, glancing at the familiar view. Nothing at all had changed.

She turned back to Amber, offering a hand. "… And while your stomach receives its satisfaction, we may talk!" Steph was actually slightly hesitant, to tell the truth. She would love to tell her all those stories about her ever since she left and what she had done over the past few years, except for the most recent one. But, if Steph was going to talk about moving back, there would be a need for reason. Reason that would include her dad and the fires. That was a topic that she was rather tentative about discussing.

But, this was Amber here. Not just ANY Amber – but THE Amber. The best friend Amber. The sister Amber. Surely, any context offered would be necessary in this situation.

Amber glanced at the offered hand and back at Steph before taking it gladly. She could see the slight sadness in Steph's eyes but chose to ignore it for the moment, instead choosing to wink at her friend. "I expect no secrets, okay? Even if it hurts too much to tell, I'm here…" she smiled warmly, hoping it could list Steph's spirit a bit.

"What? Wait… You little bastard!" Steph smirked playfully, heaving Amber up.

Amber laughed as she was pulled up. "Darling, I was born in wedlinck, remember?" she joked.

"Of course, I remember!" Steph snorted, rolling her eyes before getting back on topic. "Okay, no secrets. Promise," she nodded, moving a finger to cross her heart. "Now, let's go grab some munchies!" She exclaimed, dominating Amber's hand and dragging her away.

"Wait…" Steph started once they were in town. "Where exactly will we eat?" she asked, trying to discreetly gaze at her favourite old café nearby, her mouth watering slightly.

Once again, Amber laughed. One of the many things she had missed about her friend was her playfulness. It just seemed to make everything so comfortable and warm, even when the situation was dire. Steph was just like that – a warm person, and it made her glad that she was her best friend.

A familiar scent tickled Amber's nose. It was the smell of her mother's barbeque luring her in. She glanced at Steph who had started to stare at the old café. At this, Amber grinned. "Apparently, my mom decided to be awesome tonight… Do you still want to eat out?" Of course, she knew the answer. No one could resist her mother's barbeque, after all.

"Wha?" Steph stepped back in denial. "Whoever said I was wanting to eat out?" She grinned sheepishly after realising how obvious her staring was. But she could never resist home-cooked food. They were always delicious and never disappointing. When Steph was younger and was still in Oldale, once she'd catch a sniff of steaks cooking over at Amber's place, she'd ditch her parents for the mouth-watering fillets, despite never being invited.

Amber laughed amusedly at her friend. "Sure, sure… whatever you say," the girl grinned mockingly as she started towards her home. "You know, I'd challenge you to a race, but we're kinda too close to the house for that," she shrugged.

"And we all know who would win!" Steph half-bragged, nudging her friend cheekily.

"Of course, it would be moi!" Amber replied jokingly, placing a hand on her chest dramatically before grinning.

"You don't have to speak in behalf of me! Of course I'd win!" Steph smirked, blinking a bit too rapidly.

Amber raised an eyebrow. "Speak in behalf of you? Why ever would I do that? I was speaking of my obvious victory!" The girl bragged, coming to a stop in front of her house.

"Again, you still are not required to speak in behalf of moi!" Steph replied, imitating a posh accent. Her nose felt a sensation of delight as the scent of delicious food found their way into her system and dominating the control centre. It was her stomach's turn to grumble, and she wrapped an arm around it sheepishly. "So… what has your mom got planned for us to eat?" she asked hopefully, grinning-

Amber hummed at the question. "Better get your hopes up, dear. It's gonna be great!" The girl promised, placing a hand on the doorknob enthusiastically.

"My hopes are always up when your mum's cooking is involved! She better not disappoint me, especially not tonight!" she exclaimed, anxious to enter the familiar house and hopefully barbeque.

Amber tossed the door open, fully releasing the scent of the barbeque. Amber grinned. She would feast tonight.

"Oh, mother-dearest!" the girl called. "Look who the devil sent back!" Amber grinned jokingly at Steph who was still standing by the doorway, leaving her to grin in amusement as her friend fell victim to the tscent of her mother's cooking. She was sure that it would make Arceus bow down to her. It wasn't bias, it was a fact.

"Hey there, Mum!" Steph yelled out after snapping out, the greeting meant for Amber's mother. It had always been a habit of Steph's to distinguish her as another Mum. "And no, you see, the Devil couldn't stand having me there, so he retreated in his efforts to keep me from dominating this planet and sent me back here. And tell you what, I scared the heck out of him!" she joked sarcastically.

Jade, Amber's mother, turned off the grill at the call, stepping inside from the backyard. She took a moment to scrutinize Steph before smiling sweetly. "Oh dear… That's quite disappointing. I never thought the devil was a sissy…"

The girl snorted. "Yeah, just imagine what he'd be like if he met me. I bet he'd piss his pants while running away screaming," she laughed.

Jade laughed along, her hair bouncing as she did.

Most people would say that Amber was a carbon-copy of her mother. Both had the same fiery hair and pale skin tone. Oh, but her daughter's eyes - they were such a lovely grey colour! The same as her father's bright ones that would always sparkle when he was happy. The older woman watched her daughter as she conversed with her dearest friend. Her eyes just shone with happiness, and that made her glad too.

Jade pulled Steph into a hug. "It's so good to see you again, dear… We've missed you," a lone tear escaped her eye, happy to be reunited with her surrogate daughter.

Steph found it slightly difficult to concentrate on the embraces, with all the delicious and pleasant scents lurking around her. But she stayed put, wraping her arms around her second, although it felt more like, first mother, "I'd say missed you, but that'd be stating the obvious!" she replied, feeling a small drop of liquid on her head. "That better not be crying I'm witnessing…" Steph groaned jokingly, her own voice cracking.

The brunette extended an arm towards Amber who had been standing there with a soft smile on her face, watching the exchange. She didn't hesitate a single bit to join the hug, her eyes squeezed shut to prevent the wave of tears that she knew was coming. The girl made sure to hug tight- Steph was the only other person she could connect with, and she wasn't about to let go.

"Group hug!" Steph had to announce, her voice wavering and slowly starting to tremble. It was that feeling where you wanted, so desperately, to speak, but the words wouldn't come out without a hint of emotions. Emotions involving tears.

Jade was the first to break the hug, her smile ever present. "Well, shall we eat?"

Amber nodded. "About time," she joked as she pulled Steph towards the dining room and sat her down. "Fell free to pig out!" The redhead grinned brilliantly.

"Oh, trust me, I will!" Steph promised, licking her lips as she eyed the delicious food laid out in front of her.

Warmth emanated from the small home as the three ladies caught up, feeling as though all was right in the world

So… are you ready for an adventure?