Universe - Game AU
P.O.V. - Red
Mature Themes - Mild Swearing
Artwork By Lethargay (DeviantART)

Silence; it's all that one hears on Mt. Silver. People say you cannot 'hear' silence, but I can, because I live with it each and every day. I don't talk, sigh, cry or sob like others do

I was born mute after all

It's a big obstacle, having no ability to speak whatsoever, no ability to express just how you feel to those around you without wasting their time. Though I do have other ways to communicate such as Sign Language, I find those methods... Inconvenient. I sign often when I talk to my partially-deaf mother, however aside from her, I dislike this method of communication. It's too slow and much knowledge is needed for one to understand it. Other than my mother, no one can understand a word I sign to them...
I wish when folks spoke to me, they would patiently await my response and not assume I was being rude... I could write something down for them, simply nod or react in another way for them to understand me. If only they were patient...

... Like Blue was

Blue... Oh Blue... He was such a nice person when we were younger, but then he... Changed. He became cocky, arrogant, ruthless, an outright bully towards me. If only I knew what he was going through then, if I could only speak, then maybe I could've helped him... Maybe, we'd still be friends...
I still remember our encounter in The Cerulean Cave, when he attempted to capture Mewtwo. He almost died. If Green and I didn't get their when we did, he would've been a goner, but what happened after, he... He just broke, began sobbing his heart out, spouting all his eternal thoughts and struggles upon us. All I can remember is just how broken he was, how hurt he was, and not just because of his family's obliviousness to how he felt about their pressuring ideals and outlook on him, but... Because of how much I hurt him; how my silence, my lack of speech, drove him to believe I didn't care for him anymore, when that is far from the truth - he's my best friend. My rival, yes, but if I could speak, there are dozens, possibly countless words I want to say to him. He means that much to me, and yet, I kept my disability a secret from him... From everyone. My mother would always tell me 'silence is golden' to make me feel as if my disability was a blessing, not a curse, but silence itself causes just as much heartache as words can... That is what I have learned, at least. Poorly chosen Words, violent actions and even the mere presence of silence at the wrong time can hurt those around you...
It's why I left for Mt. Silver. Here, I cannot hurt anyone, and no one can hurt me. The silence of the mountain is one of comfort, of mystery, and of adventure. It's a bittersweet silence, the cold wind occasionally breaking it all, but it's echoes tell me that despite the isolation, I'm not alone - it's here to comfort me, shelter me from the society that rejects my mere existence

...Three years

Three, long years the silence has kept me company as I Stand on its peak, admiring the view it has bestowed upon myself and other trainers strong enough to climb it's ridges. Despite the bitter cold and isolation the mountain brings, I have found a fondness for it - it's given me all I wanted, all I needed
A place where no one can judge nor hurt me, where only those who truly understand me - my Pokemon - can reach and interact with me. No more hurt, no more pain, no more stigma. Just me, my Pokemon, and nature itself...

... Or so I thought

"RED!"

His voice pierced through the silence of the mountain. I froze as his voice echoed through, breaking the silence of the mountain. Though hardy trainers do occasionally scale the mountains to train just as I do, this wasn't just any trainer. His voice was all too familiar, one I had heard throughout my childhood, one that had changed throughout the years, and one I never thought I would ever hear say my name ever again, much less up hear at the peak of Mt. Silver;

...It was Blue

I slowly and cautiously turn around to see his small figure standing before me. He hadn't changed one bit over the years; his attitude and stance said it all. He was still Blue, just... Older and a little taller. I just stood there, flabbergasted that my old childhood friend had come all this way just to see me, but from his furious expression, I could tell it wasn't because he wanted to challenge me. He scowled loudly

"You IDIOT!" He screamed. "You ran off to this fucking mountain without telling anyone? Without telling me?! You've been gone for THREE fucking years!" I merely stood my ground as I watched him lose his temper. I was expecting him to go Primeape over this... Blue growled

"Red, DO something!" He demanded. "Come on, write something down, sign to me or whatever, just... Explain your fucking-self!" I looked at my old friend with intrigue - I had never told him I knew sign language, and my mother had never taught him either as she had an earphone to help with her slight-deafness. Blue only glared back at me as he stubbornly stood there in the frost, his arms crossed. He was waiting. Though unsure he would understand any word I say, I raised my hands and began to speak in sign

"Why are you here?" I signed to him in a slow matter. Blue furrowed his eyebrows

"Why am I here?!" Blue growled. "Why are you here?! You left EVERYONE without telling them where the fuck you went! Your mother is worried sick! The whole town is! Hell, I'd say the entire REGION is!" I paused for a moment, stunned. Blue had understood every word I signed... But how? And when did he learn sign language? Can he sign back to me? Blue's angry growl instantly snapped me back into reality

"Well?!" He spat, impatient. "Why are you here Red?" I bit my lip

"To train" I replied. Blue scoffed at me

"To hell with that excuse!" Blue shot back. "Tell me right now mister! Or... O-Or..." He let out a frustrated yell. "Just tell me already!" Though I knew Blue had some temperamental and behavioural problems, it shook me to see him so angry. The last time I had seen him this furious or emotional at all was during the Cerulean incident when he... Had a mental breakdown right in front of Green and I... Was it possible that he missed me all those years? Did my sudden and abrupt absence... Hurt him?
There wasn't much else I could do. I looked at my hands for a moment, pondering if Blue would even understand each word I signed, before I slowly began to tell him all I could;

"I came here so I... So I wouldn't hurt you anymore. Ever since you told me all that stuff back in Cerulean, I couldn't bear being around everyone I cared about anymore. My silence, my disability, all it did was inconvenience you all - I can barely communicate with others in the first place, and when I do communicate in sign, I just feel like I'm holding others down... Knowing just how much I hurt my best friend was the last straw for me; I had to isolate myself. Society had already done it enough. I already felt like an outcast, someone who didn't belong because of my inability to speak. It was only a matter of time before I was separated from the norm and isolated from everyone, so I chose to do it myself, on my own terms..."

I paused for a brief moment. I looked at Blue, his face expressionless. I internally sighed as I lowered my head, signing one last sentence

"I'm sorry my old friend..."

...

Blue was speechless. I only looked at him, awaiting his reaction. As he took it all in, I began to ponder if I had confused him with my sign, possibly giving him too much to translate, but as he slowly approached me, his eyes flaring with anger, I gravely realised I had overwhelmed and angered him with the information. He lunged at me and grabbed my shoulders harshly, making me wince from the sudden pain

"Red, you're a fucking idiot!" He screamed. "You... Y-You...!" Blue gritted his teeth, his rage-filled eyes meeting my startled and confused ones, however in almost an instant, the anger within him fizzled, the spark suddenly gone. Blue's grip softened, but only for a brief moment. He lowered his head slowly, his grip tightening once more. "Y-You..." He muttered, his hands starting to tremble. I couldn't exactly tell what Blue was feeling, so I braced myself for the worst. I bit my lip hard, waiting for Blue to continue his screaming or to get straight to the point and punch me for my stupidity, but what he did instead absolutely stunned me. He pulled me close, wrapping his arms around me;

...He hugged me

Silence fell for a moment, before I heard small, audible sobs - Blue was crying...

"Y-You i-idiot..." He spluttered. "Y-You..." He let out a sob. "I-I miss y-you, OK?! I-I should've known something w-wasn't r-right! I-I should've known y-you were disabled, I-I..." Blue paused for a moment to control his sobs. "I-I'm s-so sorry Red!" He shouted in a shaky voice. "I-I'm so, s-so sorry... I-I... I-I j-just..." Blue couldn't continue; overwhelmed, he began to sob loudly, gripping me tightly in the hug. Tears pricked my eyes as Blue's sobs halted the silence of the mountain, filling the void with his sad and broken pleads. I bit my lip and blinked, resisting the urge to let the tears fall, but hearing my dear friend sob his heart out finally broke me - I quickly wrapped my arms around him, returning his warm hug as tears began to stream down my cheeks as heavy as the rush of a waterfall. I hugged him tightly, keeping him close in an attempt to calm the boy down, but it was futile...

I wanted to cry. I wanted to sob. I wanted to tell Blue that it wasn't his fault for what I chose to do. I just wanted to speak. But I can't

I. Just. Can't.

We stayed in our warm embrace for a long, long time. Every time I thought Blue was ready to pull away, he'd bring me back into it and refuse to let go, as if he was afraid I'd just disappear one more, this time, to never return... He would hug me as tightly as he could without a word and I would just oblige. The silence of the mountain soon returned and surrounded us; even Blue had stopped crying by this point and fell to the silence. No word was spoken as we embraced - we just stood there, interlocked in our warmth, until finally, Blue shifted slightly and began to break away. He wiped his face and adjusted his jacket slightly, looking down as he did so, before looking back at me. He looked awful - his usually bright eyes were now dull and numb, red from the crying, his pale and delicate face stained with fresh, warm tears... My stomach churned. It felt horrible to see someone so dear to me so upset and broken... Blue bit his lip

"Red..." He began quietly. "I... I know what I said at Cerulean was really mean and unnecessary, and I'm sorry that I hurt you this much. I will not doubt that yes, you did hurt me in the past, but whether or not I knew about your disability then, that doesn't mean I had any right to hurt you because of that. I realise that now..." He looked down once more, kicking the snow below his feet. "I was selfish, only thinking of what I desired; I just wanted to be recognised by others not as a part of the Oak Family, but as who I am; Blue, and... I felt you kept taking every possible opportunity away from me - first my grandfather treating you better than me, then taking away my champion title when I had just earned it, and lastly, you saving me from Mewtwo in Cerulean. But... You never took those away from me, not intentionally like I thought you were doing. In fact, you saw me as what I wanted to be seen as - You saw me as Blue, just plain old Blue. Your rival, your... Friend. You never judged me when... That's all I did with you..." he sighed heavily, running his fingers through his thick, spiky hair

"...I'm sorry I didn't understand you before..." He spoke once more. "I'm sorry I treated you the way I did. I'm sorry I hurt you to the point of isolation..." He paused. "You mean a lot to me Red, much more than you think. You're..." Blue fell silent for a brief moment. "You're special to me. I was so worried when you disappeared, scared you were... Gone... I... I miss you so much Red, I really do..."

A brief silence fell upon us as Blue blinked back a few tears, before slowly offering his hand to me. I looked down at his hand, not knowing how to respond, before looking at up at him, our eyes meeting - they were gentle, forgiving and hopeful, sparkling within the rays of the sun. He let out a sad sigh, before giving me a small, sad and hopeful smile

"Red...Will you please come home? With me...?"

I was stunned, unable to comprehend what he was asking of me. Did he truly want this? Did he truly want me to return home with him? I looked down at his hand covered in the thick, black wool of his glove, then back at him, who kept his steady, hopeful gaze and smile upon me. His expression said it all; He really wanted this, truly wanted this. The person I had hurt so much in the past with my silence, my disability, wanted me back. Any grudges or weight on his shoulders he had bared before were now gone as he gazed at me, patiently awaiting my answer; just like old times. I teared up, beginning to feel overwhelmed with emotion. I smiled at my dear friend, before I slowly took his hand in mine, pulling him forward and into another hug. Blue returned the hug and embraced me gently. Though I felt the tears slowly return once more, I was happy; happy my best friend had come, happy that he had missed me, happy that he wanted me to return. It was a wish I thought would never come true, but the stars had aligned and granted it before me
I slowly broke from the hug once more, giving Blue a sad yet steady smile. I blinked, the tears blurring my vision, however Blue kindly wiped them away for me as he gave me a soft, gentle and caring smile

"... Come on" He whispered softly. "Let's head home" Finally, Hand in hand, we began to step off the peak of the mountain I had stood atop on for three years. Glancing over my shoulder, I gave it one, last long look - in a way, it was sad to leave the place that comforted me with the silence it brought, but at the same time, after reuniting with Blue, I realised just how lonely I truly was atop of the mountain... Though the silence was comforting, that is all it was; silence, nothingness. I needed someone, or something to break that everlasting silence...

And that's just what Blue did

As the two of us trudged through the heavy, thick snow, I turned to look at Blue, who was keeping his sights on the path ahead. I smiled softly, however it faded as I began to ponder something about him that had intrigued me;

He understood my signing

I never recall telling him about my ability to speak in sign, nor recall my mother telling him either. It surprised me to know he could understand sign language, but since when? Blue caught my curious gaze and raised an eyebrow

"Something up?" he asked me. I nodded. "What is it?" He asked. "Did you leave something up there?" I shook my head. I slowly retract my hand from his and begin to sign to him

"How can you tell what I'm saying?" I asked. Blue smiled. To my own surprise, he lifted his hands up and began to sign back! He signed in a fast yet well-paced manner, just like my mother does

"I learned how to sign from your mum after I found out about your disability" He explained. "I wanted to learn how to sign, so I could understand you better"

...I was touched. Blue had gone out of his way to learn Sign Language, just so he could communicate and understand me. Even though I only usually sign to my mother, now that Blue knows... Maybe I'll sign more often. I gave him a bright smile to show my appreciation

"That's... Really sweet of you" I replied back. Blue flashed me his signature grin

"Eh, it was nothing..." He said with a wave of his hand. "Besides, Daisy was getting annoyed with my constant blabbering; now I can annoy her in another language!"

I grinned and motioned my head to act as if I were chuckling. Blue smiled back, before taking his hand, interlocking it with my own, his smile now brighter than ever. I had never seen him so happy. Then again, I hadn't felt this happy for a long time myself... Blue kept his smile as he gently laid his head on my shoulder. Though surprised at his gesture, I gently rested my head on his own, feeling his soft, spiky hair. The comforting silence returned for a brief moment

"... I'm glad I found you Red" Blue spoke in a soft whisper. "I'm glad you're coming home, with me..." I smiled softly, blushing ever so slightly as I kept my steady smile, looking down upon my friend, his content look making me even happier than before

Though I cannot speak, no amount of words spoken could ever describe just how happy I felt...