Project: Titans -- A Pokemon Story (OC x Piers)

Chapter 48

Tomorrow came too soon, and yet not soon enough.

Marnie was over the moon when she found out she was in charge for the day, and went about Spikemuth with an extra pep in her step. Meowsie decided to stay behind, as to keep an extra eye on the young Spikemuthian (and so she wouldn't have to be stuck in her luxury ball all day). Piers and I asked Maddie to fly us to Wyndon, and she readily agreed, especially when she found out I was flying with a man (and then proceeded to tease me for the entire ride).

"Well, that was awkward," I laughed, trying to lighten the mood after Maddie had left us (with a very loud wolf-whistle blasted from a megaphone she had stored somewhere on her person). "Definitely," Piers agreed, turning to the city. We'd touched down in the very center of town, right next to the fountain where I'd lost and, consequently, found Meowsie.

"Ain't this the place you lost that Meowth of yers?" Piers asked.
"How'd you know she was mine?" I asked.
"See any Alolan Meowth wanderin' 'round Wyndon?" he smirked. "'Sides, I kinda put two an' two together once I saw 'er talkin'. Understood human speech pretty well fer a Pokemon. When we found 'er, she mimed out a girl that looked kinda like you, 'cept she had black hair."

"You know, this may come as a shock to you, but I'm not a natural blonde," I said.
"I was wonderin' why yer eyebrows were black," he said sarcastically, but my brow furrowed. I'd taken extra care to make sure my eyebrows matched my bleached hair. "They are not! Shut up."

"Wonder what you'd look like with black hair," he murmured, gazing at the strands that flowed from my high ponytail. "Probably like a whole other person."

"Well, we could always find out," I said slowly, stealing a glance at the yellow-orange and teal color scheme of the barber shop down the road. "I mean, I don't have the money to--woah!"

Before I knew what was happening, Piers was pulling me in the direction of the salon. "Piers," I yelped. "Wait a second--eek! I can't keep up with you; your legs are too long!" He stopped, allowing me to regain my footing and resume our walk to the barber shop, this time walking side by side. "What was that for?" I asked.

"Sorry," he murmured. "Just got...excited. Been a while since I could...since I last--er, guess ya could call it pamperin', I s'pose. Marnie's been all independent since she became Gym Leader, an' don't like me all in 'er face nowadays. Guess I miss spendin' time with somebody like that." I smiled, squeezing his hand.
"I get it," I said. "But next time, please try not to drag me everywhere. Clingy is nice, but that's a bit overkill." Piers laughed, squeezing back.
"C'mon, just keep walkin'."

We walked through the door of the salon with a pleasant ding from a hidden bell above us. Immediately, the woman at the front desk looked up and smiled at us. "Hello, lovelies," she smiled. "What can I do for you today?"
"A dye treatment, please," I asked, looking to Piers for confirmation that he was really okay with it. I got it when he smiled and squeezed our still interlocked hands.

When I was called to the back, I sat in the chair and breathed in the familiar scent of the hair salon. Hairspray, chemical treatments and the casual snip-snip of the scissors was a calming place for me; it reminded me of the days when Andy used to style the hair of all the girls in Alpha Squad D. The careful feeling of hands running tenderly through my hair shocked me out of my daydreaming long enough to tell the hair stylist (whose name was Lillie-Ann) what I wanted. From then, I just let myself relax and doze off to the scent of rosey shampoo.

*********

I must say that when people say a new hairstyle can make a girl feel powerful, they really aren't kidding. I was transfixed watching the stranger in the mirror. It had been so long since I'd seen myself with black hair, I had actually gotten used to it. Now, I smiled as Lillie-Ann tied my hair back into its high ponytail, and sent me outside to meet Piers.

Immediately after I stepped out, Piers' eyes widened to the size of silver dollars and his jaw went slack. I suddenly felt bashful about my new look and looked down. I watched his feet rise from the bench he was sitting on and walk towards me, stopping just in front of my Converse (which had been returned to me the day before).

Slowly, a hand brushed through my soft hair, and I looked up quickly. Piers was studying my new look, gently sifting through the strands. "So, what's the verdict?" I asked, trying to display confidence and most likely failing. Piers paused in his ministrations, and I froze. "I think ya look gorgeous," he said slowly, softly, bending down close to my ear. I flushed bright red. "J-just come on," I said quickly, flusteredly dragging a laughing Piers away from the salon like some shy schoolgirl.

I ended up dragging Piers straight into a Battle Cafe across the street from the salon, so we ended up ordering a little snack from there. He got a black coffee (three spoonfuls of sugar, no creamer), and I picked up an iced pumpkin latte. The leaves on the trees in Wyndon were the color of fire, and I shivered slightly as a breeze blew by. Even dressed for colder weather in that cream sweater I bought my first day here, black leggings and a white scarf, it still felt chilly. I had no idea how Piers managed in blue jeans and a black t-shirt; I would have frozen hours ago had I been wearing that.

"I can't imagine how you wear that in weather like this," I hissed through my teeth as another frigid gust chilled me to the bone. Piers just laughed and pulled me along to the Ferris wheel. "C'mon, stop yer whinin'. You're just not used to the weather, is all." We made it to the wheel, and as we were riding it up, up, up into the sky, I had a sudden realization.

"You know, I've lived in Spikemuth for almost six months and yet I know pretty much nothing about you," I said as we sat in the carriage taking us above the clouds. "I mean, I know basic stuff about you from stalking you on the internet before I came to Galar, but..."

Piers laughed hard at that. "Me an' Marnie really like playin' twenty questions. That work well for ya?"
"Sure. Favorite type?"
"Dark, obviously, but Poison's a close second. You?"
"I don't usually stick with one typing. Favorite season?"
"Winter."

We kept going past 20 questions as we left the Ferris wheel and headed towards Wyndon Stadium. "How well do ya know people inside o' Team Rocket?" Piers asked once we'd tossed our empty coffee cups. "Well, there's the people in Alpha Squad D, that group of operatives I've worked with for years. I've known Andy, Scarlette and Lavinnia since the girls and I were four and he was seven, I've known Toni, Carlos, Arianna and Sidney for eight years, and Reggie for six. And then, of course, there's my father and brother--"

"You've got a brother?" Piers sounded surprised and...a little nervous?
"Yes," I replied slowly. "His name is Griffin. He's about eight years older than me, but we aren't as close as we used to be when we were younger. Work just...got in the way."
"I hate t' sound all in yer business, but you've never mentioned yer ma when talkin' 'bout yer family."

"To be honest, I never knew my mother," I said with a sigh. "I assume she was an operative like my brother and I, but I never asked."
"Why don't ya?"
"Father never talks about her. No pictures, no mention of her name, nothing. I don't even know if I look like her, if I act like she did, if she liked the same things I do, or even her real name. I think it hurts my father too much to talk about. He might be the coldhearted boss of the Kantonian mafia, but I'd like to think he misses her too much to talk about her."

Piers was silent for a moment. Then two. Finally, he said, "You're lucky."
"Why is that?" I asked, confused.
"'Cause you never had a mum t' disappoint ya."
"Wha--"
"My mum left just after Marnie was born; I just turned ten an' was ready t' take on the Gym Challenge. My pop overdosed when I was four. I couldn't take 'er on the road, so I left 'er with Spikemuth's Gym Leader at the time, who's my uncle. He's dead now too."

I was stunned. No wonder Piers didn't like talking about his parents; if I were in his place, I would be ashamed of the people I'd descended from. A few minutes of silence filled the air. Then, I whispered, "I'm sorry." Piers turned and wrapped me in a hug.
"Don't apologise. If anythin', I should be thankin' ya fer listenin' t' me ramble 'bout the past."

"You listened to Meowsie pour out my tragic sob story," I said, muffled against his chest (which was surprisingly warm for the weather we were having). "Consider this repayment." He chuckled, holding onto me a fraction of a second more before letting go. "Alright, then. Where were we?"
"Twenty questions," I smiled. "Though I'm fairly certain we passed the sixty mark an hour ago."
"Fine with me; favorite color?"