Nowhere to Hide

10: Opening Memories

"So, how did you know it was me?"

He smirked. "I never forget a rival."

"Seriously."

"You look and sound very different but your battle style hardly changed. You refined it, actually. Just as brazen as before, but now you have the strength to justify it. Only Ash Ketchum faces two Pokemon League Champions with a Pikachu and actually wins."

"Thanks... I guess," I said, "So you aren't curious as to how I'm alive, or what I was doing when you thought I was dead."

"No."

"Fair enough."

Paul stopped me before I walked through the battlefield doors.

"Why?"

"Reporters," he answered. "Luckily, every battlefield in this hellscape has a backdoor."

"Nice to know. I wouldn't call this place a hellscape though. Wyndon on the other hand..."

"They're all the same to me," he grunted. 

"Well then, if you know so much about the tournament," I said. "Can you tell me who is entering?"

"Almost every Gym Leader is here, including the one from Pewter City. All our Sinnoh League rivals registered as well. I heard even some coordinators are here."

"Coordinators? Competing in a pokemon league?"

"There are no entry requirements, so even the most embarrassing 'trainers' could join 'just for the fun of it'. Including that infuriating blue-haired girlfriend of yours."

"Dawn is here?" I asked.

"I'm assuming she, as well as everyone else you knew, thinks you're dead. I almost pity you."

I opened the back door, only to see the girl I've been dreading.

"Tomato." She held back a laugh. "I said pick an alias, but holy shit..."

"What? I never got any ideas from you, Dragon Master."

"Isn't that what you called Iris?"

"Eh. You deserve the title more."

"Excuse me," interrupted Paul. "do you mind pausing the flirting and introducing me to your girlfrie-"

"We're not dating."

Paul gave a knowing smile. "Jeez, just teasing."

"Okay. Zinnia, meet Paul. Paul, meet Zinnia." Their eyes flashed open as if both of them just had a realization.

"Paul Shinji?" Zinnia asked, not waiting for an answer. "This will be interesting..."

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing, you'll find out later," she said with a knowing smile.

"Why does it feel like I'm the one out of the loop?"

"Tough break," Paul commented. I turned to him, but he had a serious look on his face. "Zinnia... that's an unusual name. Where are you from?" He asked. 

"Hoenn," she answered.

"But where in Hoenn?" 

"Why do you want to know?" she asked curiously.

"No reason," he lied.

"Then why bother asking?" Asked Zinnia.

I inched closer to Paul. "Bro, what was that?" I whispered. 

He pushed me away. "You, Zinnia. You're Zinnia of the Draconids!"

She stopped walking. "You don't know what you're talking about," she said, covering her face with her hair.