A fair warning: This fanfic's got quite a heavy amount of shipping and romantic moments, but I'm also trying to explore themes from the game as well as the characters, especially N. Plus, this IS part adventure. XD There will be battles, character and relationship development, jealousy, friendship, love triangles, and more. Lots of shipping, of course. =P

This is a rewrite of Chapter 1, and I combined previous chapters 1 and 2 because they were so short. So from now on, my chapters are going to be around 4,000+ words (This one's a bit shorter). XD I know I'm sort of fussy, but I really want to upload quality work.

Note: Touko = White; Touya = Black for those who didn't know

Also, I'd really really appreciate it if you reviewed. I want to improve and figure out what people like and don't like, and it's really helpful if you comment on what you think is good versus what you think isn't good about my style. If I'm going too fast or too slow, or if some things are too cheesy, or too boring, and especially on character portrayal. I think that my characters tend to be not defined enough, but that could just be me. I'd also like to know what I'm doing right so I don't change it. Reviews really help! Thank you! XD

Updates on Mondays for now, but that might change depending on when more people tend to be online.

So, without further ado, here's the first chapter! Enjoy (if you haven't already)! XD

Connection

Chapter One: Journeys and Destinations

The eerie thud of Reshiram's fall echoed throughout the chamber. Slowly, the swirling dust settled, drifting dreamily around the two trainers.

Touko got to her feet painfully, wincing at the many cuts and bruises on her body. As she looked up, she saw N collapse in disbelief.

"Everything's ruined. The truth I held... The dreams Pokemon shared..." He shook his head as if he were unable to grasp the reality of the words he whispered.

"N..." Touko felt guilt stab at her. At first, all she could think about was the prevention of the separation of people and Pokemon, but now she couldn't help empathizing with the green-haired boy. She had had enough nightmares about losing this fatal match to know how he felt.

At last, after a deafening silence filled with only the lonely howl of the wind outside, N stood up. "Reshiram and I were beaten. Your ideals… Your feelings… They were stronger than mine, it seems…"

Touko opened her mouth to speak though she didn't know what to say, but before she could even try, N cut her off. "I want to talk to you about something. It's about when I first met you in Accumula Town. I was shocked when I heard what your Pokémon was saying. I was shocked because that Pokémon said it liked you. It said it wanted to be with you."

"I couldn't understand it. I couldn't believe there were Pokémon that liked people. Because, up until that moment, I'd never known a Pokémon like that. The longer my journey continued, the more unsure I became." He sighed and shook his head again. "All I kept meeting were Pokémon and people who communicated with one another and helped one another. That was why I needed to confirm my beliefs by battling with you. I wanted to confront you hero-to-hero. I needed that more than anything."

At this he paused, and Touko tried to speak again, but before she had even drawn a breath, he continued. "There's no way a person like me, someone who understands only Pokémon— No, actually… I didn't understand them, either. No way could I measure up to you, when you had met so many Pokémon and were surrounded by friends…"

The last word rang with a lonesome echo, and N's endless green eyes were sad but resolute. "What I should do now is something I'll have to decide for myself."

N turned to leave, and Touko watched him go with an ache in her chest. As he began to signal to Reshiram, her feet moved on their own and she grabbed his shirt, almost tripping in the process.

"Wait!" She called out.

N caught her in surprise as she stumbled.

"I..." She trailed off, not knowing why she had stopped him. "N..." She took a deep breath and burst out, "You said you have a dream… That dream… Make it come true! Make your wonderful dream a reality, and it will become your truth! If anyone can, it's you!" She squeezed her eyes shut, her face turning red. Finally, she dared to open one eye and peek at his response.

His eyes were wide with astonishment; his mouth was open but no sound came out—he was unused to such encouragement. With great effort, he forced his mouth shut and grasped at words to say. "Touko... I... ... Thank you."

"Well, then…" Touko didn't know what to say either. She wished she could find some magical words to make him stay, but how could she? He needed to find himself. "Farewell..." She gazed past him blankly as he gently pried her fingers from his shirt.

For once, Bianca and Cheren did not say anything. The let her simply stare in silence and a sudden, piercing loneliness as the graceful figure of Reshiram disappeared into the faraway sky. What would she do now? What sort of adventure could she have without N? What kind of purpose, if not to face off against him? She could no longer simply wander around Unova anymore. She couldn't sit at home, either, because she would always be waiting for a person who would never come. Ever.

Unnoticed, a single tear ran down her cheek. But she couldn't feel it. Or anything except the emptiness in her chest.
—

Morning. The bright sun filtered through the thin curtains of Touko's room. She got up and brushed her teeth mechanically; she looked for all the world like a sleepwalker. Slowly, woodenly, she dressed and walked down the stairs to sit down and eat in silence.

"Sweetie... are you alright?" Her mother's face was worried.

Seeing her mother's distress, Touko halfheartedly tried to look energetic but completely and inarguably failed. She chose a better excuse instead. "I'm just tired. You know, from saving Unova and all that."

Her mother was not convinced, and she was about to pry further, but the look on her daughter's face dissuaded her. She sighed and turned on the TV.

"And yesterday, the raging battle between two heroes concluded in a close tie, according to eyewitnesses, but luckily for most of you Pokemon trainers, Team Plasma's representative did not win. Here is some footage shot by a witness to the fantastical event." The TV began to replay their battle, and as N's face, determined but tired, appeared on screen, Touko frustratedly grabbed the remote and pressed the power button repeatedly. In her haste, she accidentally turned it back on, and she caught a glimpse of his horrified expression as his Zoroark fell before the screen became pitch-black for good. For a long time, she didn't move and just sat there, eyes locked on the blank TV.

A knock on the door interrupted. Touko jumped at the sound, and for some reason, she felt a staggering hope rise in her chest; but as her mother opened the door, she was greeted only by a strange man in a coat.

"Ah..." She couldn't stop a dejected bitterness from creeping into her voice. That was stupid, of course. N didn't even know where she lived, other than that she came from Nuvema Town.

The man in the doorway did not notice, however, and he looked around, stroking an imaginary beard and nodding as Touko and her mother blinked. Finally, with a great flourish, he announced, "I am an agent from Interpol seeking your aid. I have many names, but you may refer to me as Looker!"

"What do you need?" Disappointment made Touko's words unnecessarily harsh.

"I need your assistance. You see, the Seven Sages of Team Plasma, including their leader, Ghetsis, escaped apprehension and are now roaming about. Interpol would like your assistance in bringi—"

"I'm sorry, but I don't want to hear about Team Plasma right now," Touko blurted. She couldn't take it anymore. Everything about Team Plasma reminded her of the end. The end of her journey and the cause she had been fighting for for two whole years. She stood abruptly, nearly knocking down her chair in the process, and fled through the open door.

She ran blindly like a savage beast, trampling through grass and bushes alike, leaving Lillipups and Patrats to scurry away before her. She didn't know where she was going. At some point her feet left the road, but she continued to run until she could no longer feel her lower body. Her head was a jumble, but her body moved automatically to flee, to flee...

As she ran, the scenery began to change and shift, and all of a sudden, she found that she couldn't tell where she was. Dizzy and tired, she stopped and looked around. The trees spread in every direction for what seemed like forever. There was no creature in sight, not even the smallest Bug Pokemon.

Breathing heavily, Touko staggered to a large tree nearby and tried to clear her head. Where was she? She had run out of her house and then... It was no use; her path had twisted and turned so much that it was impossible to retrace it. Waiting until after she had rested was much better.

Slowly, so slowly that it seemed surreal, the forest began to darken. Night was falling; what was the time? Stiffly, Touko pushed herself upright and shivered at the cold.

Her steps fell onto the soft grass one by one as she walked slowly, not knowing where she was headed or where she was going. In her flight, she had forgotten both her Pokemon and her bag, and she had never felt more alone or vulnerable. Against her will, her thoughts began to drift towards HIM again. Was this how he felt, cut off from everything with no human contact? She sighed and kept walking.

Their paths would never cross again. One had triumphed. One had failed. The final battle was the end to it all. That was how it was supposed to work, wasn't it? The trees filtered the moonlight in an eerie yet beautiful way, and the forest seemed to be glowing green. Where was this? Despite her concerns, she kept walking.

Finally, in the distance, she thought could make out a human figure. A town nearby? she wondered, but something about the figure made her squint and look closely.

"N?" That figure, the unmistakeable jumble of hair, the tall, lithe frame... Touko rubbed her eyes, but it was real. Unless it was a very realistic dream. She pinched herself to make sure, but nothing happened. Yes, it was real, real! N's silhouette staggered towards her slowly as he noticed her, but she felt suddenly impatient, and she broke into a run toward him, nearly tackling him in the process.

"Ow! Touko, I thought you were more civilized than that! But I'm glad you're here, I was going to go find you anyways." N's muffled voice sounded so familiar and sweet and comforting. But it seemed rather tired somehow.

Touko stepped back to look at him carefully and gasped. "N, what happened?"

He was bruised and cut everywhere that she could see, and she suspected that his clean, undamaged clothes covered the worst injuries. One side of his face was bit swollen, and he smiled with only half of his face. Nonetheless, it was a cheerful, heartwrenching smile.

"Don't smile like that!" It hurt to see him like this. "What happened?"

He laughed, a freer sound than she had ever heard from him before. "I decided what I wanted to do!" Indeed, he had an air of confidence about him that she hadn't seen since the day she had met him. But the wounds, the cuts, the scrapes...

"You decided to become a professional punching bag?" Touko cried angrily, upset more at his wounds than at him.

"No, that was from when I broke my ties with Team Plasma."

She stared for a second, then realized what had happened. "Ghetsis," she hissed with more venom than she had ever known that she possessed. She was always determined, yes, but hatred rarely infected her.

"Don't worry, Touko. He had to run away before he could do much to me." This didn't assuage the anger in the brunette's eyes, but N continued. "And besides, I know what I want now."

Touko's fury still did not subside, but she gave him a curious glance. "What would that be?"

Surprisingly, N didn't answer at first. He brooded as if considering whether or not telling her was worth it. She waited with impatience. Then, he seemed to change the subject. "Touko, will you be my friend?"

"Of course," she answered, taken aback. "I thought we always were."

"I've never had any real friends... I wouldn't have known. Will you... Will you always be my friend?" Despite his newfound confidence, he sounded unsure.

"Of course." How could she not be his friend? There was no way she could ever hate N. Not him. She couldn't imagine it. Her head swam as she considered a future of hating him, but it only made her dizzy.

"Then, Touko, will you come with me? Let's travel the world together. We'll go to find a new future, a future where Pokemon and people are both perfect. A world where our truth and ideals will fuse and the most elegant formulas will govern everything." He gazed at her steadily, a silent plea in his warm, moss-green eyes, and she was reminded of the time he had told her to become strong to challenge him as a Hero.

And just like that time, there was only one answer she could give. "Of course." Yes, there was something about their meetings that made her wonder if they were meant to happen. A certainty about them. Somehow, the two who agreed on nothing and yet everything were meant to take the world by storm. Two Heroes, two ideals, two truths. That was how it had to be, because there was no black without white.

The surge of giddiness in her chest told her that this was what she wanted but had not dared to hope for. A new adventure. A new challenge. A new journey. With...

For some reason, her legs felt weak all of a sudden, and she laughed her heart out. Her thoughts fluttered and refused to make sense, finally leaving her altogether. A new journey. A new adventure!

"You've already said good-bye?" N leaned in and asked in Touko's ear. He was the sort of person who looked straight into your eyes when he talked, but that was impossible while riding on Zekrom's back.

"Yeah. My mom said she'd miss me, and I called Cheren, too, but he just said that I should get stronger so we could battle again." Touko had to yell because she was facing the front. "That harebrained Bianca never picks up her Xtranceiver, though, so we'll have to find her. I'm sure she's near here."

"Let's take a break first. I think Zekrom's getting tired."

The great dragon, offended by this statement, rumbled his protest, but he obliged because it was clear that Touko was the one who was about to fall out of the sky. Slowly, as if to show that he wasn't tired in the least, he wheeled into a descending spiral and deposited the two trainers onto the ground.

"I think you've got a chill," N frowned worriedly as they alighted. "You must not used to flying that high."

Touko waved it away. "Don't be ridiculous. I've walked all over Unova. I'm as fit as a Bisharp."

"If you say so," N sighed. She did not like it when her weaknesses were revealed, he had learned from their battles. He tried to assist her as unobtrusively as possible instead.

They sat down and N pulled out a world map from his sack. "We've been all over Unova, so we should go to another region first. Kanto, maybe?"

"Well..." Touko chewed her lip. "I wanted to go to Hoenn first. They say there's a huge confrontation between two organizations that may put all the people and Pokemon there in danger."

"But think of all the Pokemon that Team Rocket steals and abuses," N argued. "Even if people in Hoenn fight, the police can stop them. But they can't stop theft or abuse because it's not in the open."

"That's not true if legendaries are involved," Touko frowned, "I mean, do you think any police could have stopped our fight at the castle? We should go to help as many people and Pokemon as we can."

"So it doesn't matter if Pokemon suffer at the hands of Team Rocket?" N scowled, his eyes flashing.

"Of course it matters. But those are things that police should fight. Small things. Crime, theft. They don't need our help with that," Touko said placatingly.

N turned red. "I can't believe that you of all people would belittle the suffering Pokemon."

"I'm not belittling them, I—" She stopped mid-sentence and paused. After thinking for a moment, she said uncomfortably, "Well, I... I have to. I know it's selfish. It doesn't have to be long. Please?"

He never got his chance to reply, for at that moment Bianca rushed in with a giddy cry of "Touuuuukoooooo!"

"Bianca! We were looking for you!" She turned around in surprise after shooting one last, pleading look at N.

"Oooh! It's that cute boy from the castle!" The blonde positively gushed. "You do look so adorable together!"

N inclined his head in confusion, and Touko, feeling irritated all of a sudden, snapped, "Don't give me that bullshit."

"Aww, you shouldn't curse when you're shy, Tou-chaaan!" Bianca giggled and got on her tiptoes to pat the brunette's head—quite a feat for someone five inches shorter than her.

"I'm not shy, you airhead," Touko glared. "You're the one making stupid comments and forgetting to check your Xtranceiver!" Bianca only laughed again, and Touko gave up and sighed. "Whatever. I have something to tell you." It was impossible to stay mad at the petite blonde for long. She was too cheerful.

"Your friendship is rather... frustrating," N observed.

Touko shot him a glare. She wasn't quite sure why she was so irritated now. The argument about where to go first had only been a minor one, and Bianca's comment was typical Bianca-style fluff; she knew better than to take it to heart.

"Um, Bianca, I'm going to be leaving with N to go travel again. We'll be leaving for farther places this time, so I wanted to say bye to you."

"Oh, yes, Cheren told me," Bianca chirped with a laugh. "Don't worry, you don't need to say bye to me. We'll be together all the time anyways."

Touko frowned. "I never knew you were one to say such cheesy things..."

"No, really. We'll be together all the time. I'm coming with you," Bianca said earnestly. "Cheren's just become the new Champion, so he'll be busy with challengers until people get used to him, so I'll be lonely." She giggled as she said that, which took all the credibility out of it.

"Oh..." Touko blinked blankly. "That's certainly a surprise." She laughed, "Well, I'll be much less lonely, then."

"Oh, you wouldn't have needed to worry about that anyways." Bianca looked meaningfully at N, and Touko rolled her eyes. Bianca was being rather persistent on the matter. Even more than usual. And it irritated her, which was also unusual. "So, which way are we going? Kanto or Hoenn?" Bianca's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

N started to speak, but Touko cut him off. "Either way, we'll be going in the same direction for a while. Let's just head northwest first." She sighed took out a Pokeball. "I'll send out Zekr—"

"Reshiram," N interrupted. "He's fully recovered from the battle, and Zekrom has been flying for a day." He saw that Touko was about to protest and said, "Please, listen to me. Your Pokemon need rest and so do you. I can't let any of my friends get injured on the way, can I?" His soft, grass-green eyes looked pleadingly at Touko, and she relented with a huff. She was feeling dizzy anyways-not that she would ever admit it.

The three of them mounted the elegant white dragon, which began to swirl like a cloud into the clear blue sky.

*legasp* Oh dear, Touko is feeling dizzy. =P I wonder what that could mean...

Chapter Two (the real one) will have lots of shipping (especially since I combined three tangent-ful ship chapters together). Look forward to that! :3

And please review! Thanks! XD