Rest. Relaxation. [Alyssa]

[alder]

Most people wouldn't say that a pleasant day would involve just sitting in the middle of White Forest, listening to the sounds going on. But he? He was not most people. Alder Cruxly was worried, and very rightly so. The death of Juniper...it weighed heavy on his mind. Yes, it wasn't known for sure if she was truly dead or not, but it was a given, by that point. And now he had to wonder just who was in charge of the movement to get Unova to become its own self-governing body, free of Lux or Nox interference.

He wasn't sure.

Not to mention the fighting going on in Hoenn, as well. He heard an assault was being made on the headquarters of Lux, there, and he...did not feel an obligation to go rushing there. Why would he? Hoenn was not his concern, Unova was. With a sigh, Alder sat down on the ground, his back against a tree. One thing was for certain, he felt he had earned some relaxation.

[alyssa]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] [style=font-family: times new roman; font-size: 23px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 2px; font-style: bold;]Take my hand, this chance [/style] This was perhaps the second time ever she had been in the rumored, mystic White Forest. Even with that, she had never before been this deep into its heart. The forest around her seems almost alive, and it has remained untouched by the war like most of Unova, and she would venture a guess to go as far as suggesting mildly it has remained untouched by time as it warped around the rest of the world, changing everything it touched. Except for this place. The Hoenn Leader sighed as she stopped over another root, half tripping into the trunk of the tree in the process. Her cheek stung briefly as it cut her skin lightly. She pulled away from it and ran her finger lightly across the new wound. It’s as though even the forest is against me… she thought, her dry humor making a small, lifeless smile on her face. As are the people in this region. Getting to the forest without being seen by too many people and giving them the chance to try and tell her to go back to her beloved region or glare at her until she decided to start walking faster. She managed to follow a path of light from about two-hundred meters back to where she is now, and can see through the trees that it opens into a small clearing. ”Daybreak…” she grabs the attention of the delicate psychic-type walking alongside her, and the pokemon jumped forward a bit to give her attention to her trainer. ”…Arceus forbid there’s anybody out here that will attack me…get. Yourself. Out.” She made her love for her partner painfully obvious, and the pokemon knew better than to disobey in a hairy situation. Alyssa stepped over the veil of light that shone down upon the clearing, separating it from the faintly lit shadows between the trees. Out of habit, she pulled at the red beanie around her head, keeping it tightly against her skull before shoving her hands ungracefully in the pockets of her trademark red pants. ”So this is White Forest…” she murmured, oblivious to the fact she’d stepped into the clearing just to the right of someone else.

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,125] [style=font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 3px; text-transform: lowercase; margin-top: -20px;]Team, Espeon tags, Noka as Alder notes, -- ✲ AMB Tanz [/style]

[alder]

What was it, about this place, that kept him so calm? So...relaxed. As if everything was right with the world when everything was certainly not right. Alder didn't understand it. He was a grown man, his entire life he had tried his best to make people happy. And yet...what if Juniper's plan worked? What if they did manage to do as she asked and get him instituted as the leader of this region? The actual, true leader that was. In charge of virtually everything while things were ran behind the scenes by...Juniper.

Damn....

Why did it have to happen? That woman was so brilliant and kind, and he...missed her a lot already. She had been kind of like a rock that kept him in place; as long as she was around, he could be counted on greatly. Otherwise it wouldn't be strange to find him wandering around the region.

Funny, then, that he wasn't wandering then. That he was still deadset on the ideal she had laid out to him. Unova for Unova, with no interference from anyone outside. A region free of this stupid and pointless war. He clenched his fist as he thought of it. So many deaths that could have been prevented.

He let out a sigh. There was no point in venting his frustrations to the wind; they would literally fall on no one's ears at all. Just as he was about to close his eyes and rest, however, he spotted a woman.

Alyssa....Akiyama.

That girl was a Nox leader. And by all rights, he should try to just kill her while he had the chance. Lux would expect that of him. But...no.

That was cowardly.

And besides, she seemed to care. A lot.

Bad people...they usually did not visit this forest.

"Yes, this is," he called out to her, holding a hand up in greeting though he made no motion to move from his current spot. "Alyssa, right?" he asked of her, a casual smile on his face. He would just...talk to her.

[alyssa]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] [style=font-family: times new roman; font-size: 23px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 2px; font-style: bold;]Take my hand, this chance [/style] She almost jumped when a man's voice sounded over the clearing. She hadn't seen anyone upon stepping into the light, perhaps because she was too out-of-tune with her surroundings in this region to bother paying attention. It's like asking assassins to leap at me. she thought, self-consciously adjusting her hat again before slowly turning to face the source of the voice. She found her voice after a moment and dropped his gaze after a couple of seconds, keeping her blue eyes aligned with the ground. "...yeah, that's me." She inhaled deeply before taking slow, wary steps forward. She hadn't needed to stare at the man for too long to identify him. "Your name is Alder, correct? The true Champion of Unova?" she put emphasis on the word, indirectly suggesting her beliefs on the "Champions" Lux acknowledged of each region - none of them had gone through the process to truly attain the rank of Champion save for him. She stopped walking about five feet from him. "Are you going to tell me to get out?" she asked, finally raising her gaze to give him a defiant stare that a younger her would have in any other situation. Though her gaze was unwavering, it was not unfriendly.

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,125] [style=font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 3px; text-transform: lowercase; margin-top: -20px;]Team, Espeon tags, Noka as Alder notes, -- ✲ AMB Tanz [/style]

[alder]

Clearly the girl, no, woman was startled when she heard his voice. Oh she didn't jump or anything, but who wouldn't be startled upon hearing a voice come from seemingly nowhere? At least, it would seem to be nowhere to her, considering she seemed to not even have noticed him at all. Funny how she dropped his gaze quickly...then again, he was Lux, at least publicly.

Of course she wouldn't really like him all that much, considering who she was. Alder didn't mind though, he didn't expect any Nox sympathizers to really like him too much unless they knew of the current movement in Unova. And Alyssa certainly didn't. "Yes, my name is Alder," he said with a nod of his head.

How to answer her other question though...that was an even better question than what she had asked. "And that depends on your definition of true...according to both Nox and Lux beliefs though, yes, I am the Champion of Unova," he added, deciding to just state that. It was the best thing he could come up with. "And why would I tell you to get out, by the way? Last I checked, I don't own this place."

[alyssa]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] [style=font-family: times new roman; font-size: 23px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 2px; font-style: bold;]Take my hand, this chance [/style] So he was, in fact, Alder. Not just some stunningly well-matched look-alike. She swallowed quietly, that could be either good or bad for her situation. She hoped the mood of their current conversation would remain unchanged from how it currently was. His answer was respectable, and he, though Lux, acknowledged Nox’s beliefs. The defiant fire in her eyes faded when his response came, though she remained wary of his presence. ”My definition of Champion is someone that has trained for countless years and battled their way through the Gyms of their Region, then through the Elite Four and taking the title of Champion if they manage to defeat the one before them – proving they have the needed mindset, power, and determination to take a position as weighty in responsibility as that…not just get it because they have a pretty little resumé on paper or social power and money.” She sighed quietly, telling herself to get away from the differences between Lux and Nox, not wanting to start anything here and now when she had come to escape the war. ”…I suppose that doesn’t matter here, though. But I see you as a Champion, something I’ve always seen as a protector of the Region they know so well.” Her gaze fell, unable to hold his for what she was going to say, ”And as a protector I would have expected you’d see me as the threat to this peaceful place my bad reputation suggests.” Her lips twitched into a small frown, ”And as my costly actions in the past would seem to prove.”

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,125] [style=font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 3px; text-transform: lowercase; margin-top: -20px;]Team, Espeon tags, Noka as Alder notes, -- ✲ AMB Tanz [/style]

[alder]

"You're a smart girl, Alyssa," Alder chose to tell her. Truthfully, he agreed with everything she said. One wasn't a Champion just because you had a slip of paper saying you were. Anyone could have a slip of paper saying they're the Champion of a region. No, to be a true Champion, you had to have earned the position.

You had to have proven to everyone that you deserved the position and that there was no one else that could have the position. And if someone else proved they were more suited to it than you were...then it was your obligation to stand down. Alder understood that, and yet he had been content to let Lux institute a string of "Champions" in Unova that hadn't proved themselves, all because he had never thought of making Unova simply for Unova.

Oh Juniper...where would he be right then if not for that one meeting? A frown graced Alder's lips as well, when she continued to speak, and he shook his head. "No. Trust me, each side in a war slanders the other as much as possible. Talking to you, I don't think you're some heartless terrorists that wants nothing more than to destroy everything out there. I blamed you before, for Village Bridge and the near destruction it suffered. But...had things been different, had Lux caused the earthquake, I should think my position would be a bit different right now.

And that aside, Lux has committed worse atrocities," Alder knew what he was saying was risky. But it was the truth, anyone could see that. They had dropped a bomb on an island. It had been unpopulated by humans, true, but the ramifications of letting it be known they were willing to drop bombs was huge, and not something he could be a part of. If they were ever actually used, he was unsure what he would do. "What brings you out here, anyway, Alyssa?" he asked, offering a smile once more.

[alyssa]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] [style=font-family: times new roman; font-size: 23px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 2px; font-style: bold;]Take my hand, this chance [/style] She blinked once in surprise, looking up at the Unova Champion when he…did he really just compliment her? That was a bit unexpected…. She swallowed when he spoke again, feeling a strange weight lifted off her shoulders as his words reached her ears. The Leader managed to keep his gaze at the mention of Village Bridge, though she felt the almost irresistible urge to look away again. She wasn’t going to get anywhere by looking away at the mention of things she’d done. I need to face it. She nodded in agreement with his statement. Lux has committed worse than Nox. she thought with venom, her lip curling slightly at the mention, almost as though the wound of having a bomb dropped on the Hoenn Island was still an open wound that had been doused with lemon juice. Her fists clenched, and she pinned her arms to her side, slowly sinking to the ground in front of Alder, legs curled beneath her. Alyssa sighed to calm her voice before speaking again, ”I’ve come here to regain at least a shred of peace of mind.” she admitted quietly, ”It’s complicated to explain, really…” She paused, ”It’s almost painfully ironic how I would return to a region where one of my greatest regrets lies. I’m sorry for what happened at Village Bridge.” She couldn’t keep her eyes up any longer, ”I know simple words can’t rebuild a landmark like that, nor can they erect Olivine’s lighthouse once again or bring life to Lilycove once more, but it’s something I’m responsible for.” She picked her gaze up again, glancing at Alder once before gesturing with one hand to where she’d come out of the forest. Daybreak trotted forward, quickly lying by her trainer’s side, keeping her violet eyes glued on Alder. ”Besides…there’s no such thing as peace of mind to be regained in Hoenn, and nowhere safe there for my friend here to be outside her pokeball.” She gently pet the Espeon’s head, raising her own finally so that she was keeping an even gaze with him, rather than looking up through her bangs. ”Unova’s the only remaining place where either of those two things can be accomplished.”

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,125] [style=font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 3px; text-transform: lowercase; margin-top: -20px;]Team, Espeon tags, Noka as Alder notes, -- ✲ AMB Tanz [/style]

[alder]

Alder couldn't help but chuckle a little at the fact that she was shocked at his compliment. Why did it amuse him? Even he couldn't rightly put his finger on it...perhaps it was the fact that she was the leader for Nox in Hoenn, and yet such a simple compliment had managed to surprise her. It further gave proof to him that Nox wasn't full of terrible people. Surely if Alyssa was as bad as Lux said she was, she would be able to hide her less evil emotions better than she was doing right then.

"We all make mistakes, Alyssa. I...think you're fighting for what you believe in, and I can say that I respect that. And you're owning up for what you've done too...heh, if anyone talked to you for more than a minute they would learn just how wrong Lux has painted you," Alder spoke up, shaking his head a bit. It was a shame, that this was the state they were in. But if Unova did become separate...he wasn't sure. If they did become separate, they would have to stay out of the affairs of Lux or Nox.

It wouldn't be fair to say that Unova had to be just for Unova and then get dragged in on one side of the fighting. They'd be independent, true, but that would still mean they were a part of the war. The red-haired man glanced to her pokemon companion and offered it a small smile as well. It was nice to see pokemon able to be out and about here in Unova.

Unlike in other regions, the rule about having pokemon out wasn't enforced too harshly. How could it, when neither side had a huge presence? "You think so...? I guess you're right, for now. But if the war progresses, it's only a matter of time until war reaches even here, to this place," Alder said sadly, a frown on his face. What had Juniper said about Nox and Lux? He was positive she had said to not mention too much to them, yet...he felt Alyssa would understand where he was coming from if he entrusted her with some information. "I wish I could keep Unova out of everything." he'd leave it at that, see how she took it. No need to give her a ton of knowledge yet.

[alyssa]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] [style=font-family: times new roman; font-size: 23px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 2px; font-style: bold;]Take my hand, this chance [/style] A smirk pulled at Alyssa's lips, twitching closer to a smile with each sentence the Champion sitting across from her spoke. His words were encouraging - something much greater than she expected from him in the first place. Then again, if she went around assuming people would act one way because of what a group of people said, she would never see anything different in the world. Not to mention, assuming something like that was about as weak as a Nox could get. "I'm...grateful for your words." the Leader murmured, her tone quiet and almost something comparable to humbled by his statement. "It gives me at least a shred more hope for others I'll encounter before this war is over." Her fingers twisted lightly in the fluffy whiskers sprouting from her Espeon's head as he continued speaking. She knew giving him a reaction with optemistic words would be unrealistic - saying she felt as though war would not touch this place would border on a lie, because the state of the world left too much of a fog in any single person's foresight of what events would happen. "If only it were that simple..." she said, "...Unova would remain a place safe from the war as it slowly changes each day, consuming even unnamed locations under it's banner." She glanced at her Espeon, whose eyes had finally closed with content. "Unova has already been a setting for Lux and Nox to meet in battle. The front lines of that were anything but pretty." She looked to the side, "Being there showed me - more than any of the other warfronts I've been on - that Lux and Nox will clash viciously if they believe they can overcome the other, no matter what any other person or party says." Alyssa sighed, seemingly tired just from the thought of it, "At least until one side proves dominance over the other, or proves to be strong-standing on its own as Unova has. But, even then, the war will find a way like some inescapable disease."

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,125] [style=font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 3px; text-transform: lowercase; margin-top: -20px;]Team, Espeon tags, Noka as Alder notes, -- ✲ AMB Tanz [/style]

[alder]

"You should always be open about other people, no matter what they publicly say, Alyssa," he said to her. He knew all too well that one couldn't just say whatever they wanted, in public at least. They had to hold up appearances or Lux might come after them. He wondered, if he said something anti-Lux in public, would they really try to go after him? After all, the public liked him a lot, at least in Unova, and it was doubtful they'd just let Lux come after him and do, well, whatever it was that they did.

Had a situation like this existed before, where the region already accepted him even before Lux instituted him as the official Champion? He didn't think so. And that was a relatively interesting thought. Still, Lux would, in the end, be forced to do something, else they would lose face and show they weren't as powerful as people thought they were. "Though I can understand being hesitant of others...it's an unfortunate side effect of the war," Alder stated, shaking his head. Gone were the days where you could trust someone you just happened to pass by on the road.

No, nowadays you had to be cautious at all times, no matter what. If only Lux and Nox could just find a way to stop fighting; there had to be some way, some concession, the two could make with each other in order to secure the fact that there'd be no more fighting. But...he knew that was a bit too idealistic for anyone's tastes. Heck, he even doubted himself that there truly was a way for them to stop fighting without, well, more fighting.

"But it doesn't have to be like that! Lux and Nox. They just have to work to figure out a way to end the fighting while leaving both sides relatively happy...it's a naive notion, I know that. But it's a notion I want to believe in." he objected. Alder did not want his sister growing up in an environment like this, in war, any more.

[alyssa]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] [style=font-family: times new roman; font-size: 23px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 2px; font-style: bold;]Take my hand, this chance [/style] A small, hopeless smile pulled at her lips. The Nox Leader at least wanted to believe something like what Alder was suggesting, but even with the ideas she had in mind she found herself being supressed by doubt that had been in her mind since she first learned of Lux and their policies, and that Nox had sprung up to oppose them. "I want to agree with you, Alder..." she murmured, tilting her head back to the sky. "...and I want to hold on to the belief that something like that is possible, despite what we see in the news - biased to the views of Lux and Nox alike - and despite what we experience for ourselves when we are affected by the war or fight on the front lines." She sighed and curled the hand that wasn't upon her Espeon's head. "Believing a naive notion such as that, as you call it, is better than believing that one the world is better off without those that oppose your beliefs of how the world should function. Which is why I, too, want to believe what you just told me, even if my current sentiments on the war are different from that." The Leader swallowed, "I want Hoenn to be a place where people can live like they used to - together peacefully with no more violence than the occasional police chase for someone who tries to shoplift. I want people and pokemon to live together - training and battling for nothing more than sport and friendship as they used to, as when I was growing up." Alyssa closed her eyes, "But my home is a war-torn region, now, and even if we do manage to eradicate the oppressive Lux laws, we'll have a longer road ahead of us than we did simply to break through Lux's hold on Hoenn."

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,125] [style=font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 3px; text-transform: lowercase; margin-top: -20px;]Team, Espeon tags, Noka as Alder notes, -- ✲ AMB Tanz [/style]

[alder]

If only naive dreams could become a reality, maybe then he would have a much stronger reason for wanting to believe in what he did. But no. He believed in it for the sake of his sister. For the sake of all the future generations that were going to be born into this war if the fighting didn't find a way to stop. It was a vicious cycle, fighting. Even once it stopped, it had a tendency to start up again. Alder, of course, did not have much experience with actual wars, but it was obvious that this was the case.

People couldn't stop themselves from growing more and more powerful by any means necessary, and that extended to Lux. "Alyssa," he spoke up, a frown on his face as he stared out at the forest before him. It was depressing, what she said, but it was also the truth. And yet despite that, he had to give her some hope. She was a good girl, she didn't deserve to be labeled all the things that Lux labeled her. "Don't just give up like that. Hoenn can be restored, anything can," he said to her with a sigh. But that was not all.

"Weren't you just saying you were sorry about what you had done? Your mistakes? And how you were going to fix them? With dedication like that, I believe that if you do drive Lux out of Hoenn, you'll do right. Tch...and here I actually believed, to an extent, what Lux said about Nox. That you're all terrorists. But no, you're people too. I'm an idiot for not realizing that." Alder shook his head a little. Of course they were people too, it was obvious. Just...why had he not realized such an important thing earlier?

[alyssa]

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,350][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] [style=font-family: times new roman; font-size: 23px; text-align: center; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 2px; font-style: bold;]Take my hand, this chance [/style] Alyssa opened her eyes when she heard her name again, watching Alder as he spoke. She had to admit, his words seemed to pick her spirits up slightly. She managed to chuckle weakly, her breath restricted in her chest before it managed to find its way through her mouth. ”Thank you...for the encouragement.” she sighed slightly before managing to find a smile in herself. ”You may not think you’ve said much but...it’s enough to give me sight again that my goal is, in fact, obtainable.” She turned the palm of her right hand toward her face, looking down at it before clenching her hand in a strong fist. ”I want the world to go back to what it was before the war. And I’ll do what I can to help it get there.” She bit her lip in thought, ”I want my friends to live in a world where they don’t have to be afraid of this or that. I have friends in both Lux and Nox, and though our relationships may be strained across the lines of the factions, we still hold on to the belief that our friend, across enemy lines, is who we met when the world was still undivided.” The Leader swallowed, ”I want to see children be able to leave home at young ages again with lifelong partners and take a journey like myself and innumerable others did. Naïve I know, but it’s my ultimate goal. Lux views Nox as terrorists, but Nox views Lux as tyrants – we’re two sides of the same, confused, coin. I don’t want future generations to know the era we are experiencing now.” Alyssa raised her eyebrows slightly, ”Don’t call yourself an idiot, hm? I don’t blame you for believing what you’ve heard and seen for yourself – anybody that does is a fool.” She shrugged and laughed lightly, ”My friends in Lux I know are people, therefore I have hope for others that I have not yet encountered.”

[atrb=vAlign,top][atrb=width,125] [style=font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: 3px; text-transform: lowercase; margin-top: -20px;]Team, Espeon tags, Noka as Alder notes, agh this music. saving only for sad posts from now on ✲ AMB Tanz [/style]

[alder]

Yeah, Alder was sure that Alyssa was going to go far. So long as she believed in what she fought for, and she really seemed to from what he could see, she would succeed. She had a real fire in her eyes that reminded him somewhat of himself, back when he wanted to take on the league eventually, as a trainer. It was the kind of fire that told people that the one that had the fire was not going to give up, no matter what happened, that they were going to see their dreams and goals accomplished no matter what it might take.

The only problem was that this war...it might have too high of a cost. That was a very real and scary thought. "Any goal is obtainable if you work hard enough! At least, I want to believe that," he said with yet another chuckle. So many things that he wanted to believe; were any of them feasible? Probably not, but as he had already pointed out, it didn't hurt anyone to be as optimistic, as idealistic, as possible. Because really, in the end, that was all anyone had to hold onto when everything was going bad.

Their optimism and hope for the future.

He listened attentively to the words she had to say next, and found himself smiling throughout them all. Spoken with such conviction...he believed in them, absolutely. "You're incredible, Alyssa. You truly are. I hope this war doesn't change you too much," he said kindly to her, looking around at the forest surrounding them with a calm aura about him. Had he another chance, he would have gladly sat down here and listened to Alyssa again, no matter what the consequences of their meeting today might be, because it gave him so much more insight into how Nox thought.

Into how Alyssa Akiyama thought. "Know that you can count on me as a friend, Alyssa. I give you my word on that," he told her. "As for my being an idiot...I still think it was a little foolish of me to presume what you were like just based on what Lux told us. Of course they would paint a bad picture of you."