The New Normal - 16-12 - Interlude - Cynthia & Misty

The New Normal – 16-12 – Interlude – Cynthia & Misty

The land that both her and John had agreed upon at Route 221 had finally been purchased, with all of the legalities sorted. The large patch of land was now theirs – free to do whatever they liked with it. Or in this case, free to build their dream house upon.

As she had discussed with John, the best way of making sure that they both got what they wanted was for both of them to individually come up with a design for the house. They would list down what they wanted – such as how big should the house be, whether they wanted extra rooms for guests (or perhaps future children!), the size of the rooms, if there were any special requirements for the material that the house would be built out of, and so on and so forth.

Needless to say, there was a lot to think about. But given that this was literally the part where they planned out their future together, as this was the house that they would be living together in for the foreseeable future, she naturally approached the topic with a lot of enthusiasm. And it didn’t take longer than a few days before she had jotted down a rough draft of what she wanted out of their shared home.

First of, she wanted the house to be big. Not something as big as a mansion, but the interior should definitely be sizeable enough to easily fit 4-6 people and a few medium-sized Pokémon should they need to.

Previously, due to a lack of indoor space, their Pokémon (who were all quite sizeable) weren’t able to join them indoors. So she hoped that in their new house things would be different, and Pokémon like her Lucario or even her Garchomp could fit comfortably in certain areas of the house.

Also, she fully preferred her house to only have two floors at maximum, though that was not including the attic and/or basement.

Next, she needed the house to be built out of special reinforced material – the kind used to build Gyms, arenas, and the like. That wasn’t just to protect themselves from potential attacks from their enemies, though that probably wouldn’t happen, but also to shield the house from their own attacks.

Given that they would likely be doing a lot of sparring against each other in the future, it’d be best to ensure that their house wouldn’t be at risk of crumbling apart from a stray attack or two.

There were many other things she had written down. She preferred an open kitchen, she wanted a cellar, she wanted her own separate lab for her archaeological research, she saw no reason for an expansive garden as neither of them were gardeners, and she wanted a large swimming pool just because.

Overall, despite her long-list of demands and requirements that definitely bordered on the overly luxurious, she felt that she had been pretty tame with what she had written down. She knew that she definitely could have splurged on the luxury and opulence – transforming their house into a status symbol of their power and wealth.

A small part of her was still tempted to do so.

However, she knew both herself and John, and so she recognised that neither of them were all that materialistic to begin with. And showing off like that was only for people who wanted or needed to prove something about themselves, and thought that flaunting their wealth was the way to do so.

And the both of them were far beyond the point of needing to prove themselves to anyone anymore.

After proof-reading what she had written down twice-over, she finally felt satisfied with it and sent it off to John for his own thoughts. She hoped that he wouldn’t find anything offensive in it, though given that he was still going strong in the Tournament, he probably wouldn’t have time to deal with such  matters until afterwards.

Shame. She was really eager to get a start on this.

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(Misty POV)

“You know you can still back out, right?” Violet told her gently, “If you’re not comfortable living in Sinnoh without us then you don’t have to say yes. I’m sure Volkner would understand – he told us not to pressure you. He even said that he won’t be offended if you back out of this.”

“I know, but I want to do this.” She insisted, “Otherwise, when can I get this chance again?”

She couldn’t deny that she was a little nervous and afraid. When Volkner had offered to take her up as an assistant at Sunyshore, she had been very quick to say yes – without thinking through what that would actually mean.

In practice, it meant that she would have to go all the way to Sinnoh and live there by herself; without the support and aid of her ever-present sisters.

Admittedly, there were times that she did find her sisters annoying to be around – with how they overly fussed over her and ‘scolded’ her for every little thing. The way that they tattled to Petrel whenever she misbehaved, or the way they forced her to eat certain foods or sleep at certain times.

However, despite all of this, she still loved her sisters, and she would never want to be separated from them if she had the choice. But it just wouldn’t be practical for one of her sisters to live with her while she was in Sunyshore, since they still had their contests and Gym to run.

It wouldn’t be right for one of them to have to serve as a glorified babysitter just for her.

Of course, she wouldn’t actually be living alone in Sinnoh, nor would she be travelling alone, as she was still too young. Someone would accompany her on her trip over, and she would be staying with one of Volkner’s Gym Trainers that he greatly trusted. So she would still be looked after while in Sinnoh.

Yet she would still be living a completely different life while she was there. For the first time in her life, she would be wholly independent from her sisters. She would be free from their shadows, free to craft whatever life she wanted.

…It was a scary thought, and she had gone to Drake a few days ago to ask for his opinion.

“It’s not my place to say whether this is a good idea or not.” He had said, his voice a lot more calm and comforting than he usually acted in public, “At the end of the day, this is your decision to make. However, what I will say is this – Volkner is not only an excellent Gym Leader, but he is also a kind and caring person. I guarantee that you will not only learn a lot under him, allowing many opportunities to be opened up to you, but you will be well-looked after while you are there. Volkner will not neglect you. He’s very good with taking care of children.”

“So yes, going to a new region and living by yourself is scary. I know. I’ve been there before. But being able to overcome your fears is a mark of a great trainer and leader – which I know that one day you can become.” He said, “So make the decision that feels right for you. And if you need any advice or just someone to talk to, I’m always free.”

Drake was always so gentle and patient with her; which was so unlike his usual rough and abrasive behaviour that he showed to the rest of the world. It never failed to comfort her.

So in the end, she decided to accept, and that’s why she was standing at the doorway of their house, with everything packed and ready to go.

Violet stared at her, as if trying to search for any falsehoods or indecision from her, before nodding. Then her expression turned soft.

“…I see that you made up your mind.” Her sister kneeled down and pulled her into a tight hug, “Since when did my little sister grow up so fast? Now you’re already taking your first steps into the wider world… how time flies.”

“…Don’t worry, sis. I’ll make you proud.” She replied a little chokingly, trying to stop her tears from forming. She was a big girl now, and big girls don’t cry.

But the next few words broke through her composure, “You already have.”

With that, they exchanged one final teary hug before she set off for Olivine. Since Violet and Lily were both needed back at the Gym, Petrel was tasked with escorting her.

Yet, as she began walking away from her house, she knew she was taking the first few steps into forging her own future.

A.N. I felt like having a break in-between all of the back-to-back battles, and so I wrote this chapter that focuses on the future. With Cynthia, it relates to John and their new shared home, and I deliberately wrote this chapter because I wanted to offer up the opportunity for suggestions from you guys about what other features/additions could be added into the house. Feel free to comment, and I’ll read through all of them and take any that I like (since I have my own ideas in mind too) into the final design.

As for Misty, she’s FAR off her canon path now, and she’s walking down a completely new road. That’s going to lead to many different changes for her. So I hope you enjoyed!