Critical Hit: Kanto Adventure

Epilogue

She stared at the ground as she walked, not bothering to look up. She was tired of supposedly seeing Red standing ahead of her, only to find that it was someone else or no one there to even begin with. Blue, who was walking beside her, was well aware of her disappointment whenever she thought Red was around. That was partially the reason why it was so difficult to get Leaf to go outside lately. Occasionally, she'd agree to go outside, and when she didn't, he'd stay with her in her room until very late. He did whatever he could think of to distract her from thinking about Red, anything to stop her from being so depressed. In his mind, he swore to beat some sense into Red for disappearing and for hurting Leaf.

"Hey, look! It's Red," yelled someone, a boy's voice.

Leaf immediately stopped and looked up, her brown eyes searching for the missing champion. Her eyes settled on a group of boys sitting on a bench, pointing at a magazine.

"Yeah! And Lance, Bruno, Agatha, and Lorelei," said another boy. "I'm going to be just like them one day!"

The third boy, who was holding the magazine, turned the page of the magazine, his eyes widening at whatever was on it.

"Whoa! Check out that golden-colored Magikarp! It evolves into a red Gyarados! That'd be so awesome to have!"

Leaf looked away, continuing on with her walk. Blue sighed before catching up with her. When he was beside her again, her eyes were focused on the ground again, disappointment so obvious that even she would have noticed it on someone else. He could tell that she was regretting to come outside today, and he began to feel a little guilty for convincing her.

"Leaf! Leaf," called out someone, this time a girl's voice. Both Blue and Leaf stopped, looking to see a little girl in a pastel yellow dress running toward them. In her right hand were three strings that were tied to balloons. There were two red balloons and one white balloon. When the girl reached them, she was out of breath already, her sandy blonde hair a little mussed from the run. She held her right hand out, offering the balloons to Leaf.

"For you," said the little girl, her breathing back to normal. "I… I heard that you weren't feeling good lately, so I bought some balloons with my allowance to make you feel better."

"How are balloons supposed to make her feel better," asked Blue, earning an elbow to the side by Leaf. Leaf accepted the gift, smiling at the girl.

"Thank you," she said, holding on to the balloon strings. "Thank you for the gift, and for even thinking about me."

"You're welcome, Leaf! You're my favorite out of all the champions!"

The girl skipped away, leaving Leaf in confusion.

"The colors of those balloons make it look like you're about get married," said Blue, tugging on a red balloon. "And what's with that look? You actually thought people wouldn't know about what you did?"

"Yeah, I did," she replied, looking up at Blue. "I never thought that I'd get fans."

"You should probably visit the fan club over in Saffron City. I'm sure some people there would go crazy just from shaking your hand."

Blue looked away, thinking about what had happened with Leaf and the girl recently.

"Thanks, Blue," said Leaf, causing him to look up in surprise. "You wanted appreciation from me, right? I can sort of tell that you were bothered that I thanked the little girl."

"Of course, especially since I've been hanging around your moping ass instead of doing things on my own," said Blue, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm actually surprised that you figured it out. I'm not sure you're the dense Leaf I used to know."

Leaf chuckled, holding out the balloons in front of her. The red balloons meant happiness, expressing the girl's wishes for Leaf to be happy. It wasn't just her wishes, either. Leaf knew that her mother and Blue wanted her to be happy, too. The white balloon probably meant mourning, making Leaf reflect on how she'd been feeling the past couple days. But, it could also mean peace, something that she really needed now. Slowly, she opened her hand, letting the balloons go. They rose up in the air, drifting north from the ocean's breeze. Blue stared for a moment before looking back at Leaf for an explanation.

"It's like you said, Blue," said Leaf, watching the balloons float away. "I can't throw it all away. I'm going to find my own happiness, with or without Red."

It pained her to say that for the idea of not being happy with Red was almost unimaginable. Be it as it may, she wasn't going to settle on a tragedy. She was going to get her happy ending, and she was going to fight for it with all the strength she had.

A white balloon drifted over Viridian City, following the calm wind. A red-haired boy in a black jacket looked up to see it. He couldn't help but see it, being that it was the only thing in the clear blue sky. He looked away; it was just a balloon, and it wasn't worth his time. He walked toward the Pokémon Center to find a place to stay. After the announcement of the new Champion, his father had practically abandoned him, leaving him to fend for himself. But it didn't matter to him. No, he didn't need his weak father to be watching him. He was going to be strong all on his own, without anyone's help. His achievements will be far greater than that of his father's.

After all, his name was Silver, named after the tallest mountain in the land.

Azurill bounced happily around her master, who was sitting on a sheet with her two friends. The sheet was placed strategically under a tree with a nice view of the still bay. The Azurill's owner was wearing a white sweater over a red shirt and black shorts, her black hair done in pigtails.

"Wow, Azurill is really hyper today," said Kris, looking up from her book to watch the baby Pokémon bounce around her. She wasn't one to read books, but she checked out her book from the library, one that talked about Azurill and its evolutions. Though she wasn't a trainer, she wanted to know everything to properly care for her Pokémon.

"You didn't feed her anything with lots of sugar, did you," asked the boy that was lying on his back on the sheet, his black hair in a mess. He was wearing yellow and black shorts with a black shirt, holding a magazine in one hand and a sandwich in the other. "'Cause if you gave her candy or whatever, she's going to get a sugar crash later."

"No, I didn't give her any candy, Ethan! She's just a baby, so why would I give her something like that?"

"Aw, Kris is acting like a momma," said the girl sitting with them. She was wearing a dark blue skirt with a white shirt, her light brown hair down. In her hands was a book, but it was entirely different from the one Kris was reading.

"I'm not acting, I am her mom. She's got no one else to take care of her," explained Kris, closing up her book.

"Does that mean you're going to train her?"

"Lyra, if I wanted to be a trainer, I would already be doing that."

"Or getting your ass handed to you by another trainer," added Ethan, taking a bite out of his sandwich.

"Shut up, Ethan! I don't see you with a Pokémon."

"When I have the chance, I'm getting one. And then I'm leaving this backwater town. There's a huge world out there just waiting to be explored. Oh, and pretty girls, too."

"Sounds like a shonen manga," said Lyra, reading her own manga. "Action, adventure, some funny stuff, and girls with revealing clothing."

"Now you're speaking my language!"

Kris just sighed, Azurill jumping into her arms. Azurill looked up, crying out excitedly. Kris looked at what Azurill was staring at, which turned out to be a red balloon in the sky.

"Ethan, Lyra, look. There's a balloon up there," said Kris, getting her friends' attention.

"Good observation explaining the obvious," said Ethan, looking up from his magazine for a few seconds. "I don't think anyone would have figured that out."

Kris resisted the urge to punch Ethan for being a smartass.

"I hope the kid who lost it isn't sad," said Lyra, looking up from her shojo manga to stare at the balloon. "Letting go of a red balloon is like letting go of happiness, isn't it?"

"I think you're reading too much into it," said Ethan, turning the page of his magazine. His amber eyes scanned the new pages of the magazine before focusing on the red balloon. He watched as it lazily drifted, following the currents of the wind. It was stupid, but Ethan actually envied that balloon. Even though the balloon couldn't freely go as it pleased, it was able to see the lands beyond New Bark Town, something he couldn't do. He wanted nothing more than to travel and see the world with his own eyes.

"One day," he thought, looking back at his magazine. "One day, I'll leave this place."

Red collapsed into the snow, his body covered in scrapes, cuts, and bruises. His pants were torn in some parts, his shirt and vest dirty from the long time it took to get to the summit of the mountain. He turned to lie on his back, staring up at the clouds above as snow gently fell to the ground. He was tired, but he finally made it to the top of Mt. Silver, and knowing that made him feel proud. Now, he can begin his training. Only the harsh environment of Mt. Silver could he and his Pokémon reach their potential and be stronger. He saw a strange object in the sky, which began to make its way toward him. He quickly got up in time to see it fall on the snow close to where he had been laying.

Red walked cautiously to whatever it was, only to see the remains of a red balloon. It probably popped from the cold temperature of the mountain. He sighed, his breath visible in the freezing air. He walked away, finding no other reason to stare at a popped balloon. For now, he had to find some shelter before the weather could get worse. As he began his search, he wondered if his decision was really the best option he had. He left everyone behind without a word, not even to his own mother.

Leaf… What was she doing now? He figured she was worried about him. And why wouldn't she? He was her friend, after all. And that was all he'd ever be to her. He should have known better, especially knowing how she could be. Yet, he still fell in love with her. He was hoping that Leaf wasn't as dense as she let on, that she would reciprocate his feelings for her. He was only fooling himself. She made it clear that she saw him as a friend, and that their relationship was just a friendship. There was no chance that they could be something more than friends. So, he had to try to forget about love and focus on something else, and that happened to be success. He was going to do everything in his power to be at the top.

Even so, he didn't think he could ever bring himself to forget about Leaf. His memories of his adventure with her in Kanto would be with him for an eternity. Nothing could replace those memories.

Adventure (n) –

1. An exciting or extraordinary event or series of events.

2. An undertaking involving uncertainty and risk.