Fear is Relative (Clair)

The message she’d received a few days ago from Falkner by letter carried from Noctowl came as a surprise. She’d not talked to the young man in some time, and admittedly it was rather good to hear from him. Although she generally tried not to feel too much for her fellow Gym Leaders in this war if they, somehow, turned out to be Nox, she found no problem with it if she failed to contain her emotions. She would take care of them anyway.

The thing that had grabbed her attention and demanded that the young Flying-type specialist come to Blackthorn City, despite the fact it was rather soon after a battle, was because he expressed interest in Dragon-type pokemon. Dragons were the best type of pokemon out there. They were fast, strong, and had almost no weakness, and the pokemon they did happen to be weak against were incredibly rare – Ice-type pokemon and their fellow Dragon-type pokemon.

He should be arriving soon. she thought impatiently, glancing at her nails. She was currently sitting sideways in her chair on the far side of the gym from the entrance. The lava she had beneath the gym floor still remained from the old days, and the moving sheets of rock were the only way across for someone without a Flying-type pokemon – a natural headache to whomever tried getting to her for a challenge.

Her impatience was rewarded moments later when the gym doors opened and a small silhouette stepped in. A smirk parted Clair’s lips and she allowed a small ‘humph’ to escape her throat. ”Come on over, Falkner!” she called loudly enough for him to hear. She raised a hand to wave half-heartedly before placing atop her knee crooked over the side of her chair.

Clair’s hand dropped lazily to her side as she looked on at Falkner in his silence. The young man seemed to hesitate for whatever reason. It didn’t bother her, but she did wish he’d hurry up – the silence that sat between them was annoying, and Clair absolutely hated being made to wait for long periods of time. She was used to getting what she wanted when she wanted it. At least he had shown up in the first place.

He mounted his Charizard and soared across the distance from the entrance to where Clair was, and the blue-haired leader couldn’t help but smile at his choice of a pokemon. Dragon-like enough as they were, the Blackthorn City Gym Leader had a Charizard of her own. They were potent combatants in battle, not to mention loyal companions. Falkner dropped to the ground and his Charizard stayed hovering behind the trainer.

Sitting up more normally and crossing one leg over the other, Clair nodded practically before the younger Gym Leader had spoken. ”Of course,” she murmured, waving her hand slightly to indicate to both trainer and pokemon that the Charizard was free to do as it pleased in the Gym…so long as it didn’t destroy anything, obviously.

Her lips pulled into a smile at the mention of his growing interest in Dragon-type pokemon. How wonderful it was that he finally recognized them for their power, and developed a greater interest in them. Although Flying-type pokemon had the same mobility as Dragons, they were weak in Clair’s opinion…and far too small. She held her tongue on that though, seeing as she didn’t want to push Falkner away when he’d bothered to come and seek her help.

”Well Falkner,” she began, pushing herself out of her chair and walking over to him, heels clicking on the rock beneath their feet. ”To see that you’ve developed an interest in Dragon pokemon is wonderful to hear. They are the ultimate type of pokemon and are fearfully powerful and respectable in their own right. You need to have a strong heart for them. I can teach you all about them, but I must know something first.” Pausing before speaking, she took a closer step to him.

”Now tell me…” Clair poked his chest lightly before walking behind him, running her hand gently through his blue hair, causing it to stick up some, ”…just how strong is your heart?”

Clair allowed her hand to rest atop his head, her fingers spaced between clumps of his hair that remained standing even moments after she first forced it to stand up straight. Her thumb brushed lightly against the top of his head in his pause, and she tilted her head slightly to the side, raising an eyebrow in response to his silence. She wanted to ask what was keeping his tongue; however, the trembling of his jaw quelled her words. He appeared to be ready to speak.

His eyes turned to meet hers and she stared at him, her blue eyes looking over his expression as he spoke. His words could flow from his tongue as easily as a person could lie, but it was in their expression and eyes where one found the root of a lie – if there was one. His response made her laugh. Two words, a simple two words. They were true, and his eyes seemed to blaze as he spoke. ”Well Falkner...” Clair began, running a hand through his hair one final time before dragging it lightly down the side of his face nearest to her.

She bent over some, placing her hand on the opposite side of his face and gently keeping pressure on his jaw to imply she wanted him to stay looking at him. ”...that answer was quite ballsy.” She smirked slightly, gently brushing her fingers over her cheek and beneath his jaw before standing straight abruptly and walking back to her chair, cape billowing behind her from the sudden movement. She snatched her belt from her chair and turned back to him. Clasping it around her hips, she pulled a pokeball from it before tossing it into the air. The red light revealed a Charizard of her own, the large figure of the Blaze pokemon landing on the ground.

”I’ll accept that answer. Come, Falkner!” she strode quickly to the side of her pokemon before hopping upon the Charizard’s back. ”To the Dragon’s Den!” A large window on the ceiling of her gym had been opened all day, and it was the perfect exit for a pokemon like a Charizard. ”Fly, Charizard!”

Obliging, the pokemon spread her wide wings and leapt off the small ledge she had been standing on, a powerful downstroke buffeting against the lava floor of the gym before riding the hot air’s updraft towards the ceiling and out into the open air of Blackthorn City.

The Charizard carried the blue-haired Gym Leader carefully through the window of opening in the top of the Gym before she soared through the cold winter air of Blackthorn City. Above the heads of the citizens that were milling about below, and high enough that Clair lost sight of the distinct patterns of roof tiles on buildings, and instead they meshed cleanly into one splash of color. The Charizard beneath her gave a delighted roar, opening her jaws and expelling a bath of flames into the air. Clair chuckled slightly as the heat from the surrounding area gave her chills. ”Excited to be out here, aren’t you?”

A grunt in response came from the Charizard before she tucked her wings in, barely giving Clair sufficient warning before the Flame Pokemon dove in a graceful – though speedy - arc downwards to the cave-like entrance of the Dragon’s Den. The Gym Leader crouched low over her pokemon’s neck as not to get clotheslined when they entered the den. The dragon-like pokemon halted abruptly, changing her position from completely horizontal to almost entirely vertical. ”What’s with you?” Clair asked her pokemon, more sharply this time. She was behaving a bit strangely compared to usual. The Charizard huffed and Clair shrugged, returning her to the pokeball on her belt.

Turning on her heel, she looked back to the entrance of the cave with her arms crossed, awaiting Falkner’s arrival.

[[uhhh put this thread pre-Battle of Dragons Den lol]]

Clair tapped her boot a bit impatiently against the hard cave ground as she waited for Falkner to appear. It wasn’t his fault by any stretch even though she failed to realize that. Clair was simply an impatient person that hated waiting for anything, even when she knew someone was right behind her. She pracctically expected him to be on her back. If it were possible to velcro people to her so they could be somewhere at the same time without her havign to wait for them to show up, she figured she would be the happiest person in the world...aside of course from if she ever managed to beat Lance.

Her gloved fist clenched as she forced back the immediate simmering rage that boiled up within her. It vanished almost instantly as Falkner’s Charizard came in to view. How could she hold any rage when looking at a dragon of a pokemon? It was simply too gorgeous for her to hold any ill will in the presence of. Falkner jumped off landed a number of feet from her, quickly recalling his Charizard to its pokeball. She closed the distance between them as he moved as well, moving closely so she wouldn’t have to raise her voice at all, and neither would he. The Dragons in the Den didn’t need to be disturbed any more than they already would be.

”Yes, this is the Den.” she looked to the expanse of water within to the sacred shrine in the middle.

”Impressive? Ha. You don’t give it enough credit, Falkner.” She gently tapped his forehead before turning and walkin down some of the stone stairs towards the water’s edge. ”It’s marvelous!” She said this as she stopped at the bank, spreading her arms abruptly and flaring out the cape behind her.