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Roy gripped the railing of the Brave Olivine’s observatory. He checked his Rotom Phone. It was twenty minutes till sunrise. That’s still twenty minutes of training, he thought. His legs began to move to the battle court, but his newly evolved Skeledirge nudged him at his side before he could start walking. “Ow!” he exclaimed. But he knew his Pokemon was right. He remembered Liko’s words - without a calm mind, no matter how fast he’d run, he would never gain direction or achieve anything. Roy sighed and slumped against the back wall of the observatory, still fidgeting with his hands.
Roy hated standing still, even if he knew he needed rest. He’d remember Orla’s words, that Friede would never stand still, and he’d suddenly be raring to go again, not caring where in the world he’d end up, as long as he got something done and wasn’t left alone with his thoughts for any longer. Maybe that’s what he truly hated.
If only there was something to distract him right now…
The automatic door next to Roy opened, and Uruto came through, strangely calm and quiet. “Good morning, Uruto.” Roy bolted to his feet faster than he thought was possible. “Gah!” Uruto jumped back, almost hitting the metal railway behind him. “Don’t scare me like that!” Roy giggled a little. Uruto’s grown a lot recently, but he never lost his stupid, childlike excitement. That was comforting to Roy, in a way.
“Are you always up this early, Roy? Sounds like a mega-pain.” Uruto’s voice got quieter again. He’s probably still half asleep. “Yeah!” Roy doesn’t lose his enthusiasm. “If it’s such a pain, why are you up, then?” Uruto groans. “Stupid nightmares have been biting at me for the past week. Got tired of them, so I decided to stay up.” Roy eyed Uruto with concern, leaning forward slightly. “And how long has this been going on?” Uruto just looks away. “It’s not that much of a problem. Stop- stop looking at me like that. “ Uruto looked away, playing with his braided hair.
“It’s about the incident at the Exceed facility, right?” Roy still caught Uruto’s eye despite the latter’s attempts to ignore him. “The destruction, constant supervision, hostage-taking, blatant Rakurium abuse…It’s a lot, especially when you aren’t used to it.” Uruto doesn’t answer, but Roy knew he hit the nail on the head. Roy was Uruto’s reason for joining the crew. Which means, of course, he’s at fault if Uruto gets hurt. Well, that and, who in the world would want to see Uruto suffer?
“You know I’m not forcing you to do this, right?” Roy leaned against the rails, looking up at the cloudy, starless sky. “You could leave this nightmare behind. You owe no obligation to Friede. We could cover up your tracks, and you could go home safe-“
“And so what if this is my home, then?!” Uruto scoffs and turns to face his friend, like the answer must have been so obvious to Roy. “You’re making assumptions about me again. Do you think that just because I’m scared I’ll lose all my willpower?! I’ve been scared my whole life.”
Uruto hesitated for a second. “Do… you remember what I told you after you saved me from Indy and Rubella?”
You saved me, Roy thought. Uruto never admitted to being vulnerable. And that statement wasn’t even true - Uruto did it all on his own. “You told me that in order to protect those you hold dear, and those who were in trouble, you’ll become the mega-strongest.” Roy said, warmth evident in his voice. Uruto’s catchphrase used to be something Roy got annoyed at, but that’s slowly getting replaced with a strange kind of affection.
Uruto seemed slightly embarrassed, or frustrated? The soft pink on his cheeks could mean any number of things. “Yes, and, what did I say after that?” Roy paused. He came across the answer fast, it was something he remembered well. But for some reason, it was hard to force out of his throat.
“That you’ll protect me too.”
“Exactly!” Uruto elbowed Roy aggressively, which Roy barely even flinched at. “You can be so smart yet so mega-stupid sometimes. That’s why I’m not leaving you, or anyone on this damn airship. You guys need me more than you think!”
His arrogance is back up, Roy thought. That’s a surefire sign he’s okay. “You’re right, we do need you. Sorry.” Uruto clearly wasn’t expecting that, he visibly lights up a little before going back to guarding his expression.
“What I should be saying is, thank you for sticking with the Rising Volt Tacklers, even when it wasn’t what you signed up for. As one of the acting commanders, it means a lot!” Roy tried to straighten his jacket and be professional, but the emotions still bled through. Uruto rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t asking for some grand speech.” He pauses, before adding “I… appreciate that, though.” The smallest of smiles painted Uruto’s face, and for once he didn’t wipe it away as soon as it came. Roy found himself taking a second just looking at him. It’s so cathartic seeing him truly happy. “Thank you.” he whispered.
“...What did you come here for, anyway?” Uruto says, clearly trying to change the topic. Maybe he didn’t like displays of affection? Roy thought. Every time he even looked at Uruto for too long, he would hide his face or run away somehow. But didn’t Uruto enjoy it when Roy did his hair in the morning? Roy was starting to get confused.
“Answer me, Roy.” Right. “Sorry, I got lost in thought.” he muttered. Uruto looked at Roy like he had spoken in an alien tongue. Come to think of it, it was unlike him to lose his train of thought. “Cap wanted to be here so it could watch the sunrise. He always did this with Friede, and even alone before they met.“ Cap nodded happily, its captain hat perched firmly on its head. “It had to watch from the steering deck since I never left the helm. But I think it would be important for him to see the real skyline every once in a while.” He bent down to pet Cap, now on his shoulder. “I never noticed.” Uruto said. “How can you remember so much about your Pokemon?”
“If you love someone enough, you burn their whole being into memory!” Roy answered like it was easy, but he knew it wasn’t. “I’ll correct myself. There can be love without understanding, but it’s much harder for you to display that love. It’ll lead to miscommunication, conflict and exhaustion on both ends. I’m sure by now… we both know that?”
His gaze landed directly on Uruto. Uruto nodded, head down. “Yeah, I know. That’s why I’m trying to learn. I can’t really be a good protector if all I do is hurt people.” For some reason, Roy felt compelled to scoot over and squeeze Uruto’s hand. “Well, you aren’t being left behind this time. I’m still learning that, too. I guess if my flaws could amount to one thing, I hope it’d be that you wouldn’t feel so alone.”
There was a comfortable silence. Then, Uruto took Roy’s hand and squeezed it back. Roy knew that had to have some hidden meaning but he didn’t understand what it was. Something he could grasp better was that he felt very strongly about the person he was with right now.
Roy moved closer until they were next to each other. “This is nice.” Roy’s voice had gone almost silent, but Uruto seemed to understand every syllable. He wrapped Uruto in a hug, not one of celebration like he was used to, but one of simple comfort. “Hey, Roy! What are you-“ Uruto exclaimed. He stopped mid-sentence and became dead silent, burying his head in Roy’s arms.
Now it was Roy’s turn to jolt. This wasn’t the Uruto he knew! He expected to be pushed away after a good five seconds, just like usual. Did something change? What changed? And how can he make sure that this change was for good?
Roy didn’t dare speak, not wanting to disturb the moment, but also not really knowing what to say. This was one of those feelings that could only be sung out, and Roy had never learned the lyrics. Whatever it was, it brought warmth to the early-morning cold. Even the dull blue sky began to light up with greens and yellows.
“Pika! Pika!” Cap called out to him, pointing to the horizon line. Roy smiled, and tapped Uruto on the shoulder. “Look!” he whispered. “Have you ever wondered why we were called the Rising Volt Tacklers?”
“Not really,” said a groggy voice at last. Uruto reluctantly turned his head away from Roy to look at the sky. He gasped audibly, which made Roy chuckle. “Well, we’re about to show you why!” Cap began to run in circles, preparing its Volt Tackle. The other Pokemon cheered. “Do you want to join them, Kilowattrel?” Roy exclaimed, energized once again. It squawked in response. Before they took off, however, he turned back to face Uruto. “Are you joining us?” he asked, bright-eyed. “I- how?” Uruto hesitated. “I don’t even have any flying Pokemon except for-” He was interrupted by his dusk ball clicking open. Dragonite scooped Uruto up and threw him on its back with lightning speed. “Dragonite?! But this isn’t a battle at all…”
Roy knew this would happen. “Stop complaining and let’s go!” He signalled to Kilowattrel to take off. “Don’t leave me behind!” Uruto screamed, and he took off, too.
“I know we’re on an airship, but it’s always nice to see things from new heights. Are you feeling okay?” Roy asked. Uruto nodded vigorously, eyes still fixed on the view ahead of them. The sun began to become visible over the vast sea, which sparkled in response. It’s a view Roy’s seen a thousand times, but today was special. For the longest time, he was the ship’s newest member- now it was his turn to tell stories and share memories with someone who would understand.
Cap leapt to his side, springing skywards without hesitation. “That’s mega-cool, Cap! Volt tackle can propel you upwards?” Cap smiled, enjoying the breeze in its fur. “Pika!” Roy hadn’t seen it have this much fun in a long time. Once it began to fall back down to the ground, he caught it with one hand instantly, and used his remaining arm to maintain a firm grip on Kilowattrel’s hind leg.
Uruto paused. His face glowed in the soft yellow light. “Thank you for today.”
“Always.” Roy answered without thinking twice.
The clouds parted, and the sky turned cobalt blue. Roy’s instincts told him that he should get to work and drive onwards, but seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces, most especially Uruto’s, he decided he was content with the way things were for now. Without the constant pressure, everything felt better, and he could actually feel the warmth he'd been trying so hard to create.
Liko was right. A moment of calmness can be good for you.