viridian's grand leader

“When did I say it was good to see you?” Fire mumbled to himself. Fire turned to his Pikachu on his shoulder, giving the pokemon a nod. After given the approval, Pikachu eagerly jumped to the ground to play with his friend. Despite the rocky relationship between the trainers, Fire thought it was nice that their pokemon still got along.

Fire’s face showed nothing but annoyance as Green put his arm around his shoulder. Fire’s eyebrow rose as he listened to Green ramble about the changing world. “How can you not like change?” Fire asked, confused about what Green was saying “If things never changed, we’d still be two losers who have nothing better to do them visit their backwaters hometown from time to time…” Fire paused, looking around for a second. “Oh wait!” Fire gave an exaggerated gesture towards the town, trying to prove his point. 

“Excuse you?” Fire said, taken aback by the insult. He was no stranger to Green’s teasing, however never expected to hear an insult about his abilities in battle after he had proven himself so many time. “Even if I wasn’t on top of my game, I’d still be better than you!”

Green  couldn’t help but coo mockingly, “I can low-key sense that you did miss me, F-i-r-e.” He snickered at his expression, though his teasing died down as he gazed upon their partners scrambling about.  “It’s not that I don’t appreciate change, just... some things are too good to change, y’know? Can’t really explain it, but... yeah.” The gym leader rolled his eyes at Fire’s sarcasm and flicked his forehead lightly just like old times. “Perk up a lil’, you bag of salt. Should take up my offer to come with me to Alola.. maybe you can snatch yourself a girlfriend while we’re there.. maybe ya might even see Leaf.” At that, Eevee let go a tiny growl and promptly nipped him good as if to say shut up and be nice. Backing off for now, he hummed back in response. 

Giovanni maintained a placid smile as Green spoke, keeping his temper in check even in the face of his disrespect. He wasn’t deterred by the comeback; Giovanni’s specialty was taking words and twisting them, and Green’s statement left him open to another insult. “How wonderful,” he said, pointedly ignoring the ‘heated’ accusation. “It’s not as enjoyable as being Champion was, I’m sure, but a gym isn’t a bad consolation prize. Having the League’s pity is a somewhat unconventional way to inherit the position, however. Most trainers do something impressive to take a gym.”

Too petty? Maybe. Really, pointless bickering like this was so beneath him. He ought to make one last parting shot before walking out and hopefully never crossing paths with Green again. But the vindictive part of him wanted to get under Green’s skin. It wouldn’t accomplish anything productive, but it would reaffirm how vastly superior he was to Viridian’s current leader.

Giovanni shrugged. “I suppose even the mediocre among us need role models. It would certainly explain why there are now so many more Earth Badges in circulation.” While he genuinely believed the 'consolation prize’ line was fact, that one was more of an educated guess—also known as pure bullshit. Giovanni hadn’t been in Kanto long enough to stay on top of how many league challengers there were, but he couldn’t imagine the distribution of the badge was the same as when he’d been the one giving it away. A victory against him had been a rare thing; to have one was a true badge of honor. Green’s leadership had undoubtedly robbed the Earth Badge of that previous value. The Elite Four were probably enjoying it, though—more challengers that way. How depressing.

Normally, this sort of banter did not directly bother Green. He considered himself above juvenile behavior such as shit-talking or petty insults. Granted, this was partially due in part to his natural cockiness. But having that said, there was a list of things that struck quite a nerve with him. And for some reason, whether it be due to the way this crime boss stood there so condescendingly, or because of his own hot-hotheadedness, this was one thing that did not sit well with him. 

With a sharp inhale, he shuffled slightly forward, almost hesitating to take a step. He once again subconsciously squeezed the cup of searing coffee in his hand; he’d only had the chance to take a few sips, so it was still rather full, thus a few drops of the black liquid seeped from the gap between the brim and the lid, slightly burning his hand. Not that he noticed - he was letting his irritability momentarily trump his voice of reason.

@irracundia  

He should have listened. 

He should have fucking listened.  The receptionist warned him. The giggling girls warned him. Hell, even Red warned him. But no, it went in one ear and out the other, those warnings falling on deaf ears. Now, in his own defense which was probably idiotic, nobody gave him a heads up. (Yeah, keeping telling yourself that bud.)  Poni Island was huge. Enormous. Much of the land was uninhabited, wildlife and vegetation spreading as far the eye could see. Besides Seafolk Village and the Battle Tree, there wasn’t really much human activity. Sure, you’d run into the occasional ace trainer or tourists, but other than that.. nothing. Even then they had maps and some type of basic knowledge about the damn place. Green Oak? Zero. He’d only arrived two days ago and was still getting use to the region. Sure, the brunette could’ve been decent enough to wait patiently for a tour guide to arrive some hours earlier, but he was itching to explore. So, that’s how he found himself here from a stupid and rash choice on his part. That didn’t stop him from grumbling curses under his breath of no one warning him. Green was too much prideful and stubborn to admit yeah, he probably shouldn’t have drowned out their words with his own thoughts. After a couple hours of walking to dead ends and paths that led to miles upon miles of sea, it was more than a surprise to see someone.

Their face seemed almost familiar, but then again... the gym leader wasn’t one to keep tabs on every single individual he met. Maybe the Alolan heat was getting to him. Nevertheless, Green was just relieved to have human contact. 

Fire was glad to be headed home. Nothing was better after spending weeks away from home in a far off region then walking along the familiar, never changing roads back to Pallet Town. Everything was the same as it had always been. As much as Fire loved his home town, he still wished things were a little different. Nothing about Pallet Town and the surrounding area had changed in the nineteen years Fire had been alive.

It was all a little disappointing to Fire. The unchanging town served as a reminder to how little Fire had changed. He wore the same clothes, had the same hairstyle, he had the same…everything. While the other kids from Pallet had done so much, such as become gym leaders or famous around the world, Fire was still Fire. He was still traveling, still training his Pokemon, and always returned home to the same, old Pallet Town.

Fire let out a small groan, he hadn’t expected to see Green. He certainly hadn’t expected an annoying greeting and the unwanted comment.

“Not everyone can go to Alola and get a tan whenever they want! Besides, I get plenty of sun.” Fire snapped, letting the comment get to him more than he should have. While it was true that Fire was pale, that was more his natural skin tone rather than a lack of sun. Either way, Fire was never going to let Green tell him how much time he should spend outside.

Ah, it never failed to make him snort on how easy Fire was to agitate. That teasing side of Green hadn’t let up after all these years. “Yeah yeah, s’good to see you too. Alola ain’t nearly as fun without ya... plus, Eevee here has been whining non-stop to see that damn Pikachu of yours.” The gym leader shook his head at the little ones antics and unceremoniously slung an arm over the younger’s shoulder in a mock hug. 

“Y’know, kinda glad ya haven’t changed. Dunno, maybe that fucking jet lag still has me, but... eh, too much change is a drag.” The children were still running about, giggles only amplifying in volume, natures gentle breeze tickling their tiny faces. Pallet Town lied on the outskirts, a stark reminder of their past. A few homes and his grandpa’s lab.  A few moments passed in comfortable silence, his arm long gone from Fire’s shoulder. “Hm... I might just drag your ass next time with me. Explore around and battle like the good ol’days. I mean, someone has to make sure you’re still on top of your game.”

It would figure that he would be unable to take one step in Viridian City without coming across his replacement. Not even half an hour in the city and he was already face to face with the one citizen he hated most. That was just his luck. He’d only stopped by out of an unfortunate feeling of nostalgia and the need to stay caffeinated on his flight to Johto; he’d be shipping off from Olivine early next morning. No rest for the wicked.

And apparently he wasn’t the only one planning on a late night. The coffee in Green’s hand matched his own, giving rise to a mixture of old memories and new disdain. He’d been the same way at Green’s age, with the added burden of his duties in Team Rocket; further proof that the kid was nothing but a poor imitation.

“Green Oak. What a surprise,” he said, just enough inflection to be ambiguously sardonic. “Still enjoying my gym?” It was meant as an easy jab, but the moment he spoke the words Giovanni felt a spike of actual bitterness. He hadn’t run it for years and he’d practically abandoned it near the end, but the Viridian Gym had been his. The Earth Badge was his. To know that someone so unworthy had taken his place was endlessly irritating, even after all this time.

He’d never dealt with Team Rocket himself personally; that job was left for his rival. If anything, Green avoided that responsibility for childish endeavors that lasted what, less than ten minutes? Yes, that past self  wasn’t something exactly to be marveled at, hell it left a lingering bitter taste. Some part of him also knew. It knew he’d never live up to be the grand gym leader Giovanni once was. A moment of self doubt, but a moment the brunette would never let someone like this old man see.

Green had too much pride.

@flameofkanto

Do you ever find yourself going back to where you started? Green did. In the years he’d been alive, some things never changed. Route 1 was one of them. The ledges were still there, the grass thicker in some parts and obscuring the path. Childish wonder burst through his veins as he walked down the familiar path, often stopping to admire little things.  This is where his journey began. 

This is where they took their first steps into the real world, the small group of friends from Pallet Town who had dreams. It seemed surreal to think that was only.. what, 9 years ago? 10? Time flowed rapidly. None of them were little kids any more.

Humming a soft tune, he watched with a piqued interest at various pokemon scurrying about, young children giggling as they chased, let loose. Some things never did change. Fire was one of those as well. Calm as ever, those crimson eyes which seemingly bore straight through you and trademark brown curls. That and Pikachu. Eevee loved to paw them gently, tail wagging with pure delight. 

Green often felt bad he couldn’t meet up more with his childhood friend, but he placed aside such thoughts for now. The day was fairly nice, a cool breeze tickling his exposed skin and sun providing pleasant warmth.

@stealexploitprofit

Sunday evenings meant one thing- work. 

Nimble fingers threaded through mused locks, lips twitched in slight annoyance. No one ever said being a Gym Leader was easy work.. then again, he’d been putting off this load for almost a week. Tch. Not like it was his fault. Daisy had come up with the brilliant idea of dragging him away to Johto for some much needed, quote on quote, “sibling bonding time”. The ticking of his clock and pens scratches provided the only sounds in the otherwise silent office.  After 30 more minutes passed, Green let out a frustrated sound. To hell with this, he thought, I need some coffee. Viridian was one of those cities that went dead after 11, people bundled in their warm homes, safe from harms way. (Not that anything remotely dangerous occurred nowadays.)

So after purchasing his drink, the last person the brunette expected to see was him. In the years the man had been away, he seemed poised and regal as ever. Their aura was thick, silently commanding your respect and nothing less. Inhaling sharply, Green kept his composure and forced himself to not grip the cup tighter.