Pokemon Scarlet & Violet Stories

From Water to Ice Ch. 1

"Hey, Maya, you're really slackin' today. Everythin' okay?"

The young woman paused, her knife stopping between the slices of vegetables on the cutting board. "Wha? Oh, I'm fine." She forced a reassuring smile. "Just a bit…tired today. That's all."

Kofu placed a hand on his nearly bald head, frowning slightly. "It's the sea, isn't it?" His correct guess made Maya stiffen. "Ya can't hide it from this ol' man. You're missin' the waves." He closed his eyes and crossed his arms, staying that way for several moments before smiling wide. "I've an idea for ya! Somethin' to take yer mind off it!"

Maya trudged through the deep layer of snow. The fierce, chilling wind beat against her. She was caught up in a blizzard threatening to bury her alive. Despite being bundled in a thick coat and pants, the frigid cold of Glaseado Mountain was proving to be too much for her. She wasn't accustomed to the cold. She hugged her arms and squinted through the stinging winds.

"Vaultin' Veluza!" she exclaimed, trying to keep her teeth from clacking together. "It's so cold!" A strong gust howled in her ears and forced her to stop momentarily to avoid being swept off her feet. "Try snowboarding, he said! It'll be fun, he said! You know what's not fun? Turning into an ice cube!"

Her complaints were only met by more wind and falling snow in her face. It was bad. She couldn't find where she even was anymore. There were no landmarks of any kind, just hills of snow and occasional trees covered in sheets of white. To make matters worse, she couldn't feel her fingers, or her toes. Her lips were turning blue, too. It was getting difficult to even move her legs. Another harsh gust blew her back into the snow where she found herself too weak to pick herself back up.

"So…cold…" Her voice was barely audible and her vision was growing dark. "Miss the…sun…and beach…and…water…"

Maya lost consciousness. Her body laid there, slowly getting buried in the blizzard. In the eerie howling of the storm, there were heavy footsteps approaching her, accompanied by a much lighter set. Snow was shoveled off her, and she was lifted onto the back of a large, round pokemon.

~~~~

Grusha stared over at the woman laying across his couch, bundled in blankets. She had, fortunately, regained some color to her skin and lips. Her long hair, which was white with strips of blue about halfway down, was splayed out around her, no longer in the low twin tails they'd been in before. The flames in the fireplace crackled and gave off warmth and light.

"How stupid can someone be?" he muttered, sitting back in his armchair. "Climbing the mountain in a blizzard…"

Judging by her clothes underneath her coat - a white button up shirt and dark jeans - she wasn't a student of the academy. He almost wanted to take a peek in her backpack on the floor next to her just to figure out some kind of background or motive for being there. Grusha got up from where he sat upon seeing her move slightly, beginning to stir at last. He silently went to the kitchen before she had a chance to notice him. When she peeled her ocean blue eyes open, she found herself on a comfy couch near a fireplace. She turned her head and blinked several times to clear her vision. It seemed she was in a cozy cabin. Glancing down at the blanket on her, she slowly sat up to get a better look around.

"Take it easy," a voice said, causing Maya to look toward the doorway leading to the kitchen. The young man had long, icy blue hair and wore a black sweater and some thick pants. "You're lucky I found you out there. You could've froze to death." He brought a mug over, setting it on the coffee table in front of her. "Some hot cocoa should help warm you up."

Maya looked down at the piping hot beverage, smiling as she took it. "Thanks." She took greedy gulps, the drink warming her from the inside out. "This is exactly what I needed." She glanced around once more. "Um, so where am I?"