Invisible by Marvech93

Prologue: Invisible

I don't own this story. Enjoy!

Blue watched in horror as his Blastoise collapsed on the hard stone floor of the battlefield while his opponent's Charizard stood, wobbly but proud, over its defeated foe. Behind the fire breathing dragon stood its master, ever stoic.

A deafening silence fell over the battlefield. The dust settled. Neither said a thing.

No... this couldn't be true! Blue kept his hazel eyes locked on his fallen pokémon. The sheer force of the emotions that threatened to overcome him was just barely held back by the psychological walls he had surrounded himself with for years. He wanted to scream, punch, kick; tell him just how much he hated him but his pride held him back.

Red withdrew his tired Charizard inside of its pokéball, his eyes locking with his lifelong rival's. He waited. Oh, he knew what he was waiting for. Blue had to bite down on his tongue so hard to refrain himself from screaming, he felt it bleed. However, he made a point of holding his gaze with a glare of his own as he descended the steps on top of which was erected the champion's throne he had sat on not two hours ago.

After all this time; all this work and it all came down to this. He had him! He had only his Charizard left standing and his thrustworthy Blastoise had a type advantage. He had him backed in a corner. All he needed was a well aimed hydro pump... He had his fingers about to grasp the metaphorical trophy; he had been about to defeat Red once and for all and force everyone to acknowledge his superiority. Red, the League and especially his grandfather. Next thing he knew, his starter got his head smashed on the stone floor and didn't get up. Blue withdrew his pokémon.

The two boys stared eachother down wordlessly, suspended in time. Red didn't say anything; his face was set in a calm, determined expression that said a lot more than words could.

This was wrong! He shouldn't have won! His strategy was foolproof! It was bad luck. Nothing more.

His train of thought was interrupted by the appearance of a newcomer who stepped inside the room, the sound of his footsteps reverbating off of the walls.

"Blue! I hurried to congratulate you when I heard you became champion." Professor Oak stopped a few paces away from the two boys. Blue felt his blood freeze in his veins. He knew, just from the look on his grandfather's face, that he understood what happened instantly. And the worst part was, he didn't seem surprised in the slightest. Professor Oak's gaze shifted from his grandson to Red and a smile illuminated his aged features.

"Red, congratulations! I knew you had it in you." The professor proudly patted the red-capped child on the shoulder. Blue watched, scandalized, as his grandfather turned his back on him.

"Now, Red, let's step outside and announce your victory. I hope you're ready. The reporters are gonna be all over you." The professor led his protégé towards the exit as if he wasn't even there.

"W-wait, gramps! I became champion, too! I beat the Elite Four and became champion before he even got on the Plateau! I-"

"And you lost your title as soon as you got it!" the elder Oak snapped at him so harshly that even Red was caught off guard and winced. The latter actually risked a glance at his rival, who looked like he had just been slapped in the face. "You lost, Blue. And you lost to Red because he understood something you were too arrogant to see. You don't trust your pokémon and they can't trust you. You treat them like tools to rise through the ranks. You make them fight way past their limits. You're a tyrant! Red treats his pokémon with love and respect. That's why he triumphed and you failed."

Blue was completely paralyzed. He felt his heart clench; his blood boil. He had become champion and he couldn't even get a pat on the back from his grandfather. Instead, he got a cold, angry and disappointed glare from the man who raised him in the absence of his parents. Red got all the praise.

The latter was actually staring at him, visibly uncomfortable with a semblance of... pity?

Blue felt a knot form in his throat and begin to choke him as the tears started to fill his eyes. His grandfather looking at him with scorn and his rival with pity... The humiliation was just too much to bear. No way he was gonna give them the satisfaction of seeing him cry.

Red looked at his rival, seeing him struggle with the scolding he had just received. A part of him told him he should feel satisfaction. After all Blue had said and done to him; after all the arrogance and disdain he had showed him, he finally got what was coming to him. He got knocked off his high horse and realized he wasn't the best anymore. Red had pictured this moment many times in his head throughout his journey, dreaming of the day Blue would finally bite the dust...

However, now that the moment came true and he saw his rival, utterly crushed, shaking and choking back tears of humiliation, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He couldn't bring himself to laugh and rub his victory in his demolished opponent's face. Not after his own grandfather had just reprimanded him so harshly, completely overlooking his accomplishment which was, nevertheless, impressive. Instead of feeling satisfied, he felt sorry for him.

Blue caught him staring and immediately straightenent up, swallowing back bitter sobs. At that moment, Red saw him dart at him the coldest, angriest and most hateful glare he had ever seen on a human face. It felt like a gun being pointed directly at his forehead. Like the sickening crack of a whip. His head bent with shame and his reddening face partially obscured by stray strands of hair, Blue kept his glare, piercing white hot holes in his skull, locked on him and despite his natural bravery and calm, Red felt it shake him to the core.

"Come on now, Red," Professor Oak beckoned, guiding him towards the exit, apparently oblivious to the silent exchange between the two boys.

Red turned away, reasoning that he should be enjoying the moment; his moment. He had reached his goal, after all. He was the new champion.

As the pair stepped out of the room, Red felt Blue rush past him, running on ahead. Professor Oak paid him no mind and Red couldn't help but wonder why. Why was the old man completely insensitive to his, granted, arrogant but talented grandson?

Blue disappeared through the door ahead of them. Outside, dozens upon dozens of reporters blocked his path, taking his picture and assaulting him with questions. A fresh cold wash of shame overcame him. His red face and his watery eyes for the whole world to see while the reporters made sure he would go down in history as the young crybaby from Pallet Town who knew the shortest reign on the throne ever. He couldn't hold back the tear that ran down his cheek.

Clenching his jaws shut, Blue bolted ahead, pushing through the reporters like an angry tauros, not caring who he hurt in the process. His own dignity was bleeding out of him and nothing else mattered at the moment. Over his shoulder, coming from the mass of journalists, he caught the words: "loser", "former champion", "shortest reign in history", "crushing defeat", "crying"...

When Red and the professor made it out of the League building, a wall of reporters blocked their way, jabbing microphones in his face and blinding him with the flash of their cameras. Two or three reporters asked him questions at the same time. Discreet and humble Red quickly found himself overwhelmed by the sheer anount of noise and visual agression he was sustaining.

"Our records indicate that you're the youngest League champion Kanto has ever seen. Any thoughts?"

"You have dethroned the former champion only two hours into his reign. How do you feel about that?"

"Apparently, you and the former champion are from the same town. Did you know eachother prior to this title fight?"

Red was struggling to keep up his composure and to form a coherent thought. Despite this, he saw, through the bright white flashes, some distance away, the silhouette of a spiky-haired little boy climbing on his Pidgeot and fly away at top speed. And Red was fairly sure he was the only one who did.