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misskikuwrites · 2 months

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The Next Step Ch 2

Bede/Gloria (Dressedinpinkshipping)

Tags: references to previous assault, fluff (there will be fluff I promise), angst, its a plot fic, minor hurt/comfort, flashbacks

Words: 8,447

Gloria had never planned to come here, to step foot in the prison housing Rose. She breezed through security with a million thoughts jumbling together in her mind. It had been two years. Two whole years and yet the past kept finding her. Her battle with Leon, the Darkest Day, Rose’s plan, everything was being dredged up again against her will. She didn’t want to come face to face with the man responsible for what had become her worst nightmare. A nightmare in a Pokeball, forever housed in the Pokemon Centre.

Gloria shoved those thoughts away and approached the reception counter. The receptionist’s eyes widened a fraction in recognition.

“Champion Gloria,” she said, not bothering to hide her surprise. “I don’t believe you’re scheduled for a visit.”

“I’m not,” Gloria said. “I wanted to ask some questions about one of your prisoners, actually.”

The receptionist worried her brow. “I’m not sure we can-”

“I’ll take it from here,” a commanding voice boomed from the hall to Gloria’s right. An imposingly tall woman stood by an open door, the plaque on the front reading “Prison Warden.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” the receptionist replied quickly.

Gloria hoped the dreadful pounding of her heart wasn’t showing on her face, in her body language, as she headed down the hall and, following the gesture of the Prison Warden, into the office.

“It’s not often we get such high profile visitors,” the Prison Warden said. “You’re lucky it's a slow day. On any other, news of your visit would be out in the media in a second.” The door clicked shut behind the Warden, who nodded to the chair positioned in front of a fancy wooden desk. “Take a seat. I may be a Prison Warden, but even I can appreciate comfort where I can get it.” She rounded her desk and sat in the leather chair behind it.

“Thank you,” Gloria managed to say through the lump twisting itself into her throat, and took a seat.

“You, obviously, need no introductions,” the Prison Warden said. “Outside these walls, you can call me whatever or however you like.” She leant forward. “But while you have a single foot in my prison, you’ll address me with respect.”

“O-Of course!” Gloria squeaked. “Ma’am,” she added quickly.

The Prison Warden held her gaze for a long, silent moment, before she laughed. “You’re just as precious as the last one!”

Gloria gaped.

“Don’t give me that look,” the Warden said in between beats of laughter, “both you and Leon come in here like a Growlithe with its tail between its legs, I just can’t help myself!”

“Wait, Leon’s come here too?”

The Warden composed herself and nodded. “Oh, yes, he tried to visit ex-chairman Rose,” she said. “But he has severe restrictions on visitations, so we had to turn Leon away.”

“What sort of restrictions?” Gloria asked.

The Warden held Gloria’s gaze. “I think you need to tell me the exact reason for your visit. You may be the Champion, but I don’t answer to you. Not in here, at least.”

“Right.” Gloria shifted uneasily in her chair. “I… need to make sure that Rose isn’t communicating with anyone outside,” she began. “There are… certain things happening that point in his direction.”

“‘Certain things?’”

Gloria felt small under the Prison Warden’s gaze. She didn’t know how to explain why she was here without explaining everything, and she wasn’t yet ready to condemn Samuel as part of a bigger, deeper plot. If she did, then his endorsement would be…

The Warden sighed. “I’m not going to force you to say anything you’d rather not,” she said. “So ask your questions. I’ll answer them if I can, so long as I’m not breaching confidentiality.”

“Thank you!” Gloria perked up slightly as a fraction of the tension constricting her body eased. “I wanted to ask about Rose. Has he had any visitors?”

The Warden shook her head. “Given the nature of his offending, he’s only allowed one visitor - his brother - and as far as I’m aware, the man hasn’t set foot within the prison since Rose was first incarcerated.”

“What about letters? Has he sent any? Received any?”

“No. The same restriction applies - and if he had tried to send a letter, or received one, it would be thoroughly checked.”

Gloria thought to the letter she’d stuffed hastily into her pocket with the crimson ‘R’ on the front. If it wasn’t from Rose, then who…?

“What about other prisoners?” she asked. “Could they have sent a letter for him?”

The Prison Warden gave a single bark of laughter. “Ha! They’d have to speak with him first.”

“He doesn’t talk to anyone?”

“Look, we’re getting dangerously close to breaching privacy rights here - the prisoners still have those - so let me just say this: when you’re a prisoner as high profile as the ex-chairman, your every movement is watched. For your own good.”

Gloria swallowed. “Do you mean… he’s at risk?”

The Prison Warden folded her arms. “It’s hard to threaten the lives of every single person in Galar and not become a target. That’s all I’ll say.”

Gloria nodded. “Right. Thank you.”

“Whatever it is you think Rose is involved with, it’s not him,” the Warden said, an air of finality in her tone. “And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t push the issue. I may not run this place with an iron fist, but I sure as hell keep an eye on my prisoners. Especially prisoners like Rose.”

Gloria had no choice but to believe it. She left the prison dejectedly on her Corviknight, her investigation having run into a brick wall. For a start, she didn’t even know if the two letters - one from Samuel, the other from ‘R’ - were related. They’d arrived together, but so had a mound of flowers and presents. If she couldn’t force herself through the brick wall of the ‘R’ letter, all she had left was Samuel.

Him, at least, she could keep an eye on.

Bede downed his second coffee for the morning, wishing away the headache he could feel brewing on his forehead. He wasn’t a stranger to working on little sleep. That had been a part of his life from a young age - studying endless hours into the night in order to prove he deserved a position at the trainer’s school, to prove his worth for Rose, and later Miss Opal. What he wasn’t used to was an unintentional sleepless night. Bede wasn’t one for mulling over his mistakes into the early hours of the morning. If he’d made a mistake, he would fix it with hard work, with dedication, with study and training.

That worked for almost everything. Everything except love.

And Bede felt he’d made the biggest mistake of them all. He sighed into his coffee - first making sure no one was around to witness it - and cringed. Alone in the stadium, for no Gym Challenger had made it this far in the few days since the Challenge had started, Bede cursed himself for letting his feelings get the better of him. His Togetic fluttered up to his eye level, chirping sadly.

“I’m fine,” he said, gently patting his Pokemon on top of its head.

Yet Bede felt far from fine. He’d replayed his confession to Gloria in his mind over and over again throughout the night. It kept him awake, kept him paralysed.

What a fool he was, confessing to her? To the Champion, of all people?

He’d seen it on her face, the moment the words had left his mouth. She’d frozen. Blood had drained from her face, leaving her pale.

How could he have thought that she would share his feelings? She was the Champion. Leagues above him in every way. He’d prepared himself for her rejection the moment he’d read that in her expression, but of course the kindness in her heart spared him that - she’d asked for time. Time to prepare his heart for the inevitable shattering, was all he could think of now.

His confession had made her cry, for Arceus’ sake.

It was in his nature to break things. He’d failed his mother, left at an orphanage despite her assuring him she’d be back. He’d failed Oleana, never meeting up to her expectations, never doing enough, never being enough. And, of course, he’d failed Rose - in the Chairman’s words, failed Galar in the same stroke, having destroyed a historical monument.

It didn’t matter that failing Oleana and Rose gave him the opportunities he had now, not if he was going to destroy them as well.

He wished he could take it back. He wished to go back to that moment and swallow those fateful words before they formed on his tongue. He wished he could have realised that being in her presence, being Gloria’s friend, was enough. That someone like him, with a past as dirty and unforgiving as his, didn’t stand a chance with someone like her.

Bede had had his head in the clouds. He’d been caught up in the moment. In the desperation of the past few days. And when it was all said and done, his confession hanging in the air between them, everything had come crashing down.

The only saving grace was the fact that he now had time to figure out what to do next. How could he salvage this situation, this mess, if that was even possible? With the Gym Challenge underway, he didn’t expect to see Gloria anytime soon. He could prepare himself, and his heart, for what was to come.

Gloria landed out the front of Turffield’s Gym, recalling her Corviknight as she strode into the building. Muffled cheers filled the lobby, a Gym Battle underway in the stadium behind. Rather than watch the match from the VIP seating and risk her presence being announced, Gloria spoke with a Gym Trainer and got permission to wait for Milo in the locker room. She took a seat on a bench, waiting for the match to finish, and tried to remind herself that she wasn’t imposing herself on him. Milo had said she could rely on him, said she could ask for help at any time. She had his rare League Card, his number, to prove it.

But getting him, getting the other Gym Leaders involved with this mess… it sat uneasily in her stomach.

It wasn’t long before Milo returned to the locker room from the stadium, giving Gloria a bright smile as he pulled off his hat and mussed his curly hair.

“Hoo, that last Max Flare really brought the temperature up!” Milo said, dabbing his cheeks and forehead with a towel.

“That’s something I’ll never get used to,” Gloria said. She stood, anxiously fiddling with her Rotom Phone. “One second you can be squinting through a sandstorm, the next you’re sweating under a glaring sun!”

Milo nodded. “That’s the beauty of Dynamax Battles.”

Their conversation fell into silence, Gloria’s heart wedging in her throat. “So, um…”

“You all right?” Milo asked. His expression softened. “Is it something I can help with?”

It was now or never. Gloria quickly pulled up Samuel’s profile on her phone and held it out to Milo.

“Has this Challenger come through?” she asked.

Milo looked at the photo before shaking his head. “Not yet. I’ve only had a handful of Challengers so far.”

Gloria didn’t know whether to be relieved or not. “If he does come by, could you let me know?”

Milo handed back her phone and met her eyes. “Do you think there’s something up with this Challenger?” He was more perceptive than Gloria gave him credit for. “I could change up my team, make sure he doesn’t-”

“No, no, you don’t have to do that!” Gloria said quickly. “It’s just a… a suspicion, that’s all. I don’t know if he’s involved with-” she struggled to say his name “-Elliot.”

Milo nodded slowly. “Alright. If that’s what you want.”

“Yes, thank you.” The thought of sabotaging a Challenger based on a hunch made her feel ill.

With Milo on board, Gloria headed to Motostoke’s Gym and spoke with Kabu. Like Milo, he agreed in an instant, so she soon made for Hulbury to speak with Nessa. It felt a bit like overkill, getting the first three Gym Leaders involved, but there were so many questions left unanswered about Samuel. At least now she’d be able to learn what he was like from people she trusted - and could even study how he battles in the recordings from his matches too. If she’d learnt anything from her time as Champion, it was that you can tell a lot about someone from how they battle. Not the Pokemon they use and the moves they choose, but how they express themselves. Are they taking risks, or playing it safe? Are they sacrificing one Pokemon to get that last bit of damage in? And when their Pokemon faint, how do they react? When they win or lose, what expression do they have?

Of course, that wouldn’t help in the slightest when it came to figuring out whether Samuel had anything to do with Elliot, but any information right now was better than none.

As the Sky Taxi descended towards Hulbury’s Gym, Gloria spied Nessa by the lighthouse, staring out across the water. It reminded Gloria so much of her own Gym Challenge, the memory striking her hard in the chest, nostalgia and a longing to change what had happened churning together in her gut. She swept that away as she left the Sky Taxi and approached Nessa.

The Gym Leader turned at the sound of Gloria’s footsteps, her eyes widening a fraction before her expression settled. “Oh, it’s you! That’s funny, I was just thinking about you.”

“You were?”

“Yeah.” Nessa looked out across the water. “I’d just finished talking with a friend of mine, someone I hadn’t spoken to for years.”

Gloria waited. There was something in Nessa’s tone, the depth in her eyes, that kept Gloria silent.

“See, I hadn’t known-” Nessa’s lips twisted. She sighed. “Ugh, how do I even begin?!” She ruffled her hair, exasperated, before leaning forward and gripping the railing. “I feel so, so stupid. For all these years, I thought nothing of it, when it was-” she hissed under her breath “-that bastard.”

Gloria’s heart stopped. “You mean…?”

Nessa lifted her head slightly, turned enough to meet Gloria’s eyes for a moment. “Yeah, that bastard.” She took a breath and composed herself. “My friend, she was a model like me. We met early on in our careers, basically started out together. And then we had the opportunity to be a part of this exhibition, it was the boost we needed to get our names, our faces, out there.

“But then… when it was my friend’s turn, she could barely walk straight. She made it to the end of the catwalk and vomited.”

Gloria sucked in a breath.

Nessa pulled a rueful smile. “Exactly. We’d had drinks- one drink I should say, before the show- to ‘calm our nerves,’ as they’d said, and my friend said she’d only had the one… but there were rumours, and I didn’t piece it together until my friend called.” She paused. “She’d seen the livestream. And she told me, she said ‘there’s finally evidence that he’s a scumbag,’ and I remembered who’d given us the drinks that day. ‘For our nerves.’”

Gloria felt dizzy. Like the floor beneath her feet had collapsed and plunged her into the waves.

“No one wanted to employ her after that,” Nessa said, “and we lost touch. I never… it didn’t even cross my mind that someone might’ve done that to her.”

“He did the same thing to me,” Gloria said quietly. “He said that he got bored at those kinds of events so… it was for his own entertainment.”

Nessa turned to Gloria and took her hand. “I’m so, so sorry. It shouldn’t have happened.”

Gloria’s lip trembled as a flood of tears built behind her eyes. Her heart clenched tight. “I know. But it’s- it’s over now.”

A tear slipped down Nessa’s cheek. “All because of you.” She stepped forward and pulled Gloria into a hug. “My friend said that you saved her,” she said softly, her voice cracking.

Gloria squeezed her eyes shut, feeling each tear as it escaped.

“You did what no one else could,” Nessa said, “you got him to talk, you got it on tape, and I know, I know my friend wasn’t the first of his victims. Not when he was so damn good at it.” She gave a shaky sigh, a frustrated huff of air. “Arceus, who knows how many people he’s done that to?”

“I couldn’t have done it without you,” Gloria said. “Your and Raihan’s instagram accounts were the stars, really.”

Nessa pulled out of their hug, her hands on Gloria’s shoulders. “Nonsense!” She quickly wiped at a tear in the corner of her eye. “You're the one that confronted him. My friend, she tried to do the same, but couldn’t even get close. He hid behind his wealth, behind an army of lawyers… he was untouchable. Even the police told her there wasn’t any evidence. The glass she’d drunk from had been taken and washed up long before she stepped foot on stage.”

Nessa’s pained expression turned into a grin. “But now, we’ve got him!” She smiled through her tears. “So, thank you, Gloria. On behalf of my friend, and me.”

Gloria didn’t know what to say. She nodded, trying not to sniffle, and dried her tears with the back of her hands.

“My friend would love to meet you,” Nessa said. “One day, when things aren’t so hectic.”

Gloria managed a smile. “I’d love that, actually.”

“Great. I wasn’t sure how to bring up the subject, but then you just appeared out of nowhere…”

“About that…”

“Is something up?” Nessa asked. “It’s not to do with that bastard, is it?”

“Well…” Gloria pressed her lips together. “It is and it kinda isn’t.”

Nessa frowned. “That doesn’t make sense.”

Gloria brought up the picture of Samuel on her phone and showed Nessa. “Apparently he’s been endorsed by Richard Murdoch,” she said. “Elliot’s father. Who, apparently, has never endorsed a Challenger before.”

Nessa’s expression sharpened. “You think he got his endorsement from Elliot?”

“I don’t know. At the moment, nothing Samuel’s done has been related to him.”

“What do you mean? What has he done?”

Gloria shrank a little under the intensity in Nessa’s eyes. She explained quickly about the letters and how Samuel had accused Gloria after the Star Tournament. Nessa folded her arms in thought.

“That’s the day he was lying in wait for you, wasn’t it?” Nessa asked, though she already knew the answer as she huffed, “that’s one hell of a coincidence if it wasn’t planned.”

“I’m not sure that it was,” Gloria said. “Because… what he did, what he was going to do…” Automatically, her hands touched the scarf around her neck. “Why set up a plan when he was going to end things?” Gloria shivered. “I mean, I don’t know whether he was going to-” it was hard to say it. Harder to stomach it “-to kill me, or not. In the moment, I thought he was-” She choked on her words. “I thought I was going to die.”

She saw his face, felt his hands around her throat, felt the burning in her lungs. It was gone in an instant, but her body reacted as if the threat was ongoing. Her heart raced. Throat constricted. Blood pounded in her ears.

Nessa took her hand again, gave it a squeeze. “Anyone would’ve felt the same.”

“Arceus, I didn’t mean to bring it up,” Gloria said, shaking her head, trying to rid herself of those memories. “I meant to talk about Samuel, not- not that.”

“Okay, so, this Samuel kid. How can I help?”

Gloria took a breath. “I’ve spoken to Milo and Kabu about him, asked them to let me know when he comes to their Gyms. If you could keep an eye out for him, I’d appreciate it.”

“That’s easy enough,” Nessa agreed. “But why take the chance? If he’s in cahoots with Elliot, wouldn’t it be better to out his endorsement as a forgery and get him kicked out of the Challenge?”

“Because I don’t know for sure,” Gloria said. “Even if his endorsement was forged, we don’t know what he’s up to, whether there’s some deeper plot going on. At the moment, Samuel doesn’t know that we’re aware of his connection to Elliot. If we give that away, it might be harder for us to figure out what they’re planning.”

Nessa sighed. “Alright. I’ll do as you’ve asked.”

“Thank you.”

“But,” Nessa began pointedly, “the second I get even a hint of suspicion that he’s going to harm someone, whether it’s you or anyone else, I’m putting an end to it.”

Gloria had no choice but to agree to those terms. It was what she had planned to do herself, if things went sour.

After Nessa returned to her Gym, Gloria remained by the lighthouse, toying over what to do next. In regards to Samuel, it was a waiting game. As much as she hated having to wait, there wasn’t anything else she could do. She still had the letter from Samuel, along with the photo, in her pocket, as well as the ‘R’ letter. She still had more questions than answers about both of them.

Again, she thought of Miss Opal. The ex-Fairy Gym Leader was friends with Richard Murdoch, and wise in ways that at times made Gloria wonder if she was actually psychic. It made sense to get Miss Opal involved, and yet…

The chances of running into Bede at Ballonlea’s Gym were extremely high. So early into the Gym Challenge, no trainers would’ve made it to Ballonlea yet. Gloria would have to wait weeks, if not months, if she was planning on waiting until Bede was battling a Challenger to speak with Miss Opal. With the two letters burning in her pocket, she knew she couldn’t wait that long. She’d have to take a chance.

The flight to Ballonlea had Gloria’s blood buzzing with nerves. She tried not to think of Bede, of what she might say if she came across him, but her mind spun out of control with various scenarios that made her want to turn the Sky Taxi around.

Somehow, she managed to gather up the courage to enter the Gym, shooting a quick glance around to make sure Bede wasn’t in sight. She hurried over to the Gym Trainer in the lobby.

“Good afternoon, Champion Gloria!” the Gym Trainer beamed. “Are you here to see Gym Leader Bede?”

“No!” Gloria blurted out a little too quickly. “I-I’m here to see Miss Opal.”

The Gym Trainer blinked for a moment. “I believe she’s in the theatre. You can head on through, we’re not expecting any Challengers for a while.”

Gloria muttered a thank you, ducking past the Gym Trainer in her embarrassment. It didn’t take her long to find Miss Opal, as she was the only one in the theatre.

“Now, this is a surprise,” Miss Opal said, her expression warming as she saw Gloria. “I wasn’t expecting you to come by, as busy as you get with your Champion duties.” Her smile carried a hint of amusement. “Are you here to see Bede, by any chance?”

Gloria’s heart thumped, missing a beat and almost tripping her up. “No, actually, I came to see you,” she said. She thankfully managed to keep herself composed despite the torrent of emotions jostling for centre stage inside her.

“You came all this way to see little ol’ me?” Miss Opal looked at her with interest.

“Yes, since you know Richard Murdoch, I thought you might be able to answer some questions I have.”

The amusement vanished from Miss Opal’s face. “I see. Am I right that these questions have something to do with Richard’s son?”

“Sort of,” Gloria conceded. “They’re more to do with this guy.” She pulled out her phone, showing Miss Opal the photo she’d taken of Samuel’s Challenger profile, along with the identity of the person who’d endorsed him.

“Now, that is interesting,” Miss Opal said after studying the information for a moment.

Gloria nodded. “From what I’ve heard, Richard Murdoch hasn’t endorsed anyone before.”

“That’s right. While he’s happy to sponsor talented kids to go through Trainers School, as far as I’m aware, he’s been against personally endorsing any such kids for the Challenge,” Miss Opal said.

“That’s… what I thought,” Gloria said, sighing. “Which means the endorsement is probably from-”

“Gloria?”

Her heart stopped. Bede stood in the door to the theatre, staring at her. He glanced at Miss Opal for a split second before walking up to them.

“H-Hi, Bede,” Gloria squeaked. Her tongue tied itself into knots. Her lungs filled with air, fluttering as if she’d swallowed a hoard of Butterfree.

“You’re not bothering Miss Opal, I do hope,” he said, raising an eyebrow at her. He was acting the same as usual, nonplussed by her sudden appearance in his Gym, as if he hadn’t professed his feelings for her the day before.

“Of course not,” Miss Opal answered before Gloria could untie the knots from her tongue. “She was merely asking me about this Gym Challenger.”

Before Gloria could stop Miss Opal, or even stammer out a protest, the ex-Gym Leader handed Gloria’s phone to Bede.

“Who is this?” Bede asked, and Gloria saw the moment he read the endorsement note. His expression darkened, his eyes snapping to Gloria. “You’re kidding me. This can’t be real.”

A sharp chill ran down Gloria’s spine. She nodded stiffly under his gaze. “It is. He’s the one who… made those accusations the other day,” she said. “He’s also the one who wrote the letter you got.” She dug out the letter she’d found amongst her gifts and held it out to Bede. “He also sent me this.”

Bede all but snatched the letter from her, cold fury in his eyes. He scanned it quickly, huffed at the photo. “We need to call the League,” he said. “And get his endorsement revoked.”

“No!” Gloria protested. “We can’t just do that.”

“Except we can.” Bede folded his arms. “I don’t see why we shouldn’t reveal this kid as a fraud, when he’s clearly motivated enough to do the same to you.”

“Now, now,” Miss Opal said, “why don’t you let her explain her reasons first?” She gave Gloria a warm smile, but it did nothing to break the ice forming around her heart.

“He hasn’t done anything yet,” Gloria said, before seeing the expression of incredulity on Bede’s face. “I mean he hasn’t violated any rules.”

“Forging an endorsement is against the rules,” Bede said.

“You know that’s not what I mean!”

“Who knows what this kid is capable of, or what Elliot has put him up to?”

Gloria clenched her jaw. “We don’t know that he’s been put up to anything yet!”

“You can’t seriously be this naive,” Bede huffed. “The fact that he’s clearly endorsed by someone who wished you harm is enough evidence as it is! We should have him kicked out, whether the damn endorsement is forged or not.”

“That’s unfair!” Gloria huffed. “Why should he have to pay just because he’s endorsed by Elliot?”

“He should pay for exactly that reason.”

“But that’s-” Heat surged up Gloria’s throat. “That’s like saying you should pay because Rose is a criminal.”

She knew the moment she’d said it that it was a mistake.

“Don’t bring Rose into this,” Bede said, his voice cold. “What he did to me has nothing to do with this.”

“I-I didn’t mean…” She couldn’t figure out what to say.

Bede sighed sharply. He thrust the letter, and Gloria’s phone, into her hands and turned away. “It doesn’t matter. You obviously didn’t want my input on the situation in the first place,” he said. “I can see when I’m not needed.”

Bede stormed off, the door to the theatre slamming behind him, making Gloria wince. She bit back the tears stinging in her eyes, wishing she could take it all back.

“I’m sure he’ll come ‘round,” Miss Opal said, gently touching Gloria’s back. “I’ll have a word with him about taking that sort of tone with young ladies-”

“No, it’s alright,” Gloria said. She shoved the letter and her phone into her pockets. “I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have mentioned Rose. I just- he wouldn’t listen, so I thought maybe if I used Rose as an example he might understand, but…”

Arceus, why had she done that? What a way to hit Bede where it hurts.

Despite Miss Opal’s attempts to reassure and comfort Gloria, she left Ballonlea’s Gym with her heart in more turmoil than before. Tears burned behind her eyes. She found a quiet spot by the entrance to Glimwood Tangle and plopped down out of sight on a mossy rock in case she couldn’t hold back her tears. A mixture of regret and indignation swirled inside her. Yes, it had been a mistake to mention Rose, but Bede hadn’t listened, hadn’t understood, a single thing she’d said. For someone who was supposedly in love with her, she couldn’t understand why he’d immediately jumped to argue with her. And the way he’d stormed out, the look on his face… The Bede who’d confessed the day before and the Bede who’d argued with her were hard to reconcile in her mind.

She couldn’t make sense of it.

It wasn’t long until frustration won over Gloria’s regret, and she worked her way through Glimwood Tangle to Stow-on-Side. Each step fueled by the thoughts blazing in her mind. Why wouldn’t he listen? He acted as if she hadn’t thought it through, as if she didn’t know what she was doing, what risks she was taking. He didn’t even know she’d already spoken to Milo, Kabu and Nessa about keeping an eye on Samuel.

Her jaw clenched. How can he say that he has feelings for me when he won’t even listen to me?

Those thoughts, looping around and around in her mind, accompanied Gloria as she trained in Bea’s personal workout room in Stow-on-Side’s Gym. On Bea’s suggestion, she’d begun supplementing her self defence training with boxing. It was another tool that Gloria hoped she’d never have to use. Another tool that Gloria feared she’d forget when it came to it.

Just like she’d forgotten everything beneath the weight of her fear when she’d seen Elliot that night.

Was that why Bede didn’t trust her? She tried to shove away that thought while practising with Bea, ducking beneath the Gym Leader’s swipe as instructed. The training was repetitive, and left Gloria sweating and her lungs burning, but it was better than mulling over her feelings, better than crying over things she couldn’t change.

At least throwing a punch at the lightning fast Bea didn’t leave her feeling helpless.

But Arceus, the hurt in Bede’s eyes when he’d said he knew when he wasn’t needed- Gloria ducked again, Bea’s punch coming close enough to feel in her hair. She punched out, using her frustration, and Bea deflected it cleanly.

The way Bede’s expression had fractured when she’d mentioned Rose flashed in her mind, and Gloria’s cheek exploded with pain beneath Bea’s gloved fist. She hit the mat on her side, vision blurring. Vaguely aware of Bea kneeling in front of her, calling frantically to someone, saying something to her. It sounded like an apology. Like many apologies.

“No, no, it’s not your fault,” Gloria managed to say through the pain in her jaw. “I got distracted.”

A simple exercise, punch and duck, a way for Gloria to train her body to keep moving instead of freezing in danger, and she’d failed even that.

She gave in to Bea’s urging and let the onsite nurse examine her, and was thankful at least that she’d gotten away without a break or concussion. She didn’t doubt that if Bea had been seriously sparring with her, that either would’ve been a possibility.

Bea remained at her side as Gloria soothed the ache with an ice pack, sitting on the floor with their backs against the wall.

“I’m so sorry,” Bea apologised for the umpteenth time. “As your trainer, I should have noticed that you were distracted. It’s my duty to tell whether or not you’re capable of training.”

“It’s okay. Your punch managed to break me out of my thoughts, so that’s a positive at least,” Gloria said.

“What had you so distracted?” Bea asked. “You’re usually very grounded when we train.”

Gloria sighed. “I had an argument with Bede.”

“Do you need me to have a word with him?” Bea asked, cracking her knuckles.

“I don’t think that’d work on him,” Gloria said with a dry laugh. She didn’t know if Bea was aware that Bede could hold his own in a fight, but against someone with formal training and a black belt, Bede wouldn’t stand a chance. “He just… wouldn’t listen to me, and then I said something that I regretted instantly, but…”

Bea nodded in understanding. “Just like in a fight, if you strike out in anger, you’re going to regret it.”

“It wasn’t so much anger, but frustration.”

“I find that they are more closely related than you’d think.”

“You’re probably right,” Gloria said.

She chatted with Bea for a while longer, even as the ice pack began to melt and was exchanged for another, before Gloria decided to head home. In the Sky Taxi to Postwick, she pressed her cheek against the cool glass of the window. Exhaustion finally began setting in. Down the street from her house, two teenage girls remained. A strange feeling formed in her stomach when she saw Nicole and Megan. Her two former-bullies-turned-fans were still on self-inflicted paparazzi removal duty. The sight of them distracted her enough that it was only after she’d left the Taxi that she turned towards her house and saw Bede standing outside.

For a split second, Gloria’s feet were rooted to the ground. A flash of frustration, regret, defiance, and then resignation was all it took to get her moving again. She walked up to Bede where he waited at the end of the stepping stones leading up to her front door. His eyes cased her face, landing on the red welt forming on her cheek.

“What happened?” he asked. His voice was surprisingly soft. Full of concern. There wasn’t a trace of the anger that had snapped at her hours before. “Are you okay?”

Bede stepped forward, his hand lifting from his side as if he were reaching for her cheek, before he quickly folded his arms.

“You’re hurt,” he said.

“That obvious, huh?” Gloria said dryly. Something cold clamped around her heart. The double meaning of her words registered like a slap across Bede’s face, his eyes widening.

“Gloria, look, I wanted to-”

“Stop.” Gloria cut him off. “If we’re going to talk, then let's not do it here.” She glanced down the street, then towards her house. She lowered her voice and said, “I haven’t told mum about Samuel. She doesn’t know the one behind the letters is taking part in the Gym Challenge. She’s already worrying about enough as it is.”

Gloria walked towards the Slumbering Weald, passing through the gate without checking to see if Bede was following. Soon enough she heard his footsteps on the ground behind her as the fog of the Weald enveloped them. She held back a shiver as the temperature dropped. Gloria kept her head held high as she powered past Pokemon that dashed for safety between the trees. She had a thought to keep going to the depths of the Slumbering Weald, if only for the possibility of losing Bede along the way so she didn’t have to deal with confrontation, but something in her decided against it, and she stopped in a clearing not far from the entrance instead.

Gloria folded her arms, partly to ward off the chill and partly to steady herself for what was to come, and turned to face Bede.

“I feel like we’ve done this before,” Gloria said. “You, coming all this way, and me, deciding to hear you out because of it.”

She was being callous. She knew that. But being around Bede, seeing the vulnerability on his face, the fear that lay deep in her heart slithered forth. This longing, these feelings that took hold, she was terrified they were going to break free. That her heart was going to reveal itself.

Bede sighed heavily. “It’s not the first time I’ve snapped at you, you’re right. I shouldn’t have done it.” His gaze dropped from her face. “I’m sorry, Gloria.”

Something in Gloria’s heart squeezed. “I thought… I thought that you would’ve listened to me. You didn’t even let me explain properly.”

“I was… worried,” Bede admitted. “I thought that this business with Elliot was behind us. And when you mentioned Rose, compared what he did to me with Elliot and this kid, I…” He shifted on his feet, keeping his gaze from her. “It still wasn’t right for me to lash out.”

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Gloria said. “It came out wrong. I wasn’t trying to compare you two, I just… when you had your endorsement taken away and were kicked out of the Challenge, I saw how much it hurt you.”

Bede met her eyes.

“I don’t want to be the one to do that to someone else,” Gloria said quietly. “That’s… what I was trying to say.”

Her explanation hung in the cool air between them. The silence was filled with the chirps and cries of nearby Pokemon, faint Wooloo and Dubwool calling from distant farms. Gloria took a breath, Bede’s gaze pinning her to the spot.

“A-Anyway,” she continued, “I’ve asked Milo, Kabu and Nessa to keep an eye on him, and to let me know when he challenges their Gyms. If anything does happen, I’ll take the information we have to the League,” she said. “I promise.”

Bede’s expression softened. “And I’d called you naive, when you’d already done all of this behind my back. You’ve thought this through.” The slightest smile came across his face, one that sent Gloria’s heart skittering. He almost looked… impressed.

“Well, I-I didn’t want to be a bother, y’know?” she said.

“That’s never stopped you before.”

She pressed her lips together. “Things are… different now.” Unbidden heat pooled across her cheeks the instant she said that, and the air shifted between them. Bede’s eyes flicked quickly away from her.

Bede cleared his throat. “I didn’t want things to be like this.” His voice was quiet. Heavy. “To make you… wary of being around me.”

Gloria’s heart stopped. Her stomach plummeted.

“I know how you feel about love,” he said. “It was selfish of me to push my feelings onto you, knowing that. You don’t need to come up with a way to spare my feelings.”

The floor pitched away beneath Gloria’s feet.

“If you’d rather forget that I said anything, then I understand,” Bede said. “Since I know you don’t share my feelings-”

“Don’t- Don’t put words in my mouth!” Gloria huffed. She blinked through the burning heat on her cheeks, the way her heart thundered in her throat. “I never said that I don’t-” her voice cracked “-that I don’t share your feelings.”

Bede froze. “You-”

Arceus, Gloria could hardly breathe. “I asked you to give me time not because I was trying to find a way to reject you, but so I could… figure out how to do this. How to stop myself from being so afraid…” She couldn’t bear to look at Bede, instead she took to staring out into the trees. Even feeling his gaze on her was almost too much. “I can’t return your feelings right now, but- but that doesn’t mean I don’t feel the same.”

Movement from Bede in Gloria’s peripheral vision made her jolt, and she snapped her attention towards him with a start. He’d dropped into a crouch. With his elbows resting on his knees, Bede pressed his forehead into his arms and exhaled heavily.

“I thought… I thought you were going to reject me,” came from Bede, his voice barely above a whisper.

“What- why?” Gloria asked.

He peered up at her, bashful heat ablaze beneath his eyes. “You’re the Champion,” he said, “and I’m… me. Everyone knows what I’ve done.”

“You wanted me to see all of you,” she said, using his words from the day before. “And I do. The good and the bad. They’re all a part of you.”

“Of course you’d use my own words against me,” Bede grumbled.

“Wh-What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing,” he said, getting to his feet and tugging the collar of his magenta coat higher. It did nothing to hide the blush on his cheeks. “Although I suppose if I’d had said ‘I love you,’ yesterday, you wouldn’t have said it just now.” He saw the look on her face and frowned. “What?”

“You- You just said-” She couldn’t breathe again. She hid her face in her hands, unable to face Bede.

Bede coughed. “So what? You already know how I feel! Why are you getting all embarrassed now?!”

“It’s different!” she lowered her fingers enough to glare at him. “I’ve never… heard you say that before.”

“Yes, you have.”

Gloria dropped her hands from her face. “What? When?”

“When you helped me practise Kalosian,” Bede pointed out. “One of the translations was ‘I love you,’ remember?”

Gloria scoffed. “That’s completely different!”

“They’re the same words.” Bede folded his arms. “And besides, I-” He stopped.

“What?”

He quickly looked away. “Nothing.”

Gloria twisted her lips into a pout. “It’s definitely not nothing.”

He met her eyes for a moment, weighing his defiance against her stubborn nature, before sighing. “Fine,” he huffed. The swirl of heat across his cheeks burned brighter. “I wasn’t going to tell you, but… when I said that back then, it… carried the same meaning as it does now.”

Gloria’s mouth dropped open. “You mean… back then, you were…?”

Bede didn’t reply, but the look on his face said enough.

“Does that mean you’ve said that to me twice now…?” Gloria said, mostly to herself, mostly to try and come to grips with what was happening. It made her dizzy.

“There… was a third, actually,” Bede said, snapping Gloria out of her thoughts.

She blinked at him.

“But that, I think I’ll keep to myself,” he said. “After all, we’re not actually dating, are we?”

Gloria pouted. She couldn’t refute that. “Now you’re just being cruel. What do you mean there was a third?”

“I’m the one being cruel?” he asked, taking a slow step towards her, “when you’re the one keeping me at arms length?” There was a teasing lilt to his tone, but the heat in his gaze made Gloria shiver.

“I-I still can’t…”

Bede stopped. “I know. I won’t push it.” He unzipped his coat, Gloria blinking at him in stunned silence, before he closed the distance between them to wrap it around her shoulders. “Right now, hearing you say you feel the same is enough for me,” he whispered by her ear.

Gloria scrambled a few steps away from him with a squawk. “I-I didn’t say that!”

“Not those exact words,” Bede conceded, “but the meaning remains the same. Or are you going to deny it now?”

She pouted, feeding her arms through the sleeves of Bede’s coat. “Well, no, but…” She had no rebuttal.

“Feeling warmer yet?” Bede teased.

Gloria grumbled, but nodded to him. “I didn’t exactly dress for the temperature in the Slumbering Weald when I left this morning.”

“You’ve been busy, then?”

Gloria gave a brief explanation of her investigation so far, digging out the letter with the crimson ‘R’ on the front when it came up. She held it out to him, and Bede’s expression darkened.

“See why I thought it was from Rose?” she said. “I couldn’t think of anyone else who wants revenge against me that has a name starting with with ‘R.’”

“This isn’t the initial from someone’s name,” Bede said. “It’s Team Rocket’s logo.”

The answer snapped into place. “Team Rocket?!” Gloria gaped. “You mean- like those people from the Wild Area? But I thought they were ex-Team Rocket members.”

Bede held up the letter. “Well, it looks like someone is trying to get Team Rocket up and running again. Here in Galar, too.”

Gloria wrapped her arms around herself. “Arceus, this is bad. The traps they’d set for Pokemon were bad enough…” She thought back to the Vulpix she’d rescued, the teeth of the steel trap crushing the poor Pokemon’s tail. “This… is so much worse than if it’d been from Rose.”

“Based on the behaviour of the ones we came across in the Wild Area, I doubt they’re as organised as they were in Kanto,” Bede said.

Gloria nodded slowly. “I’ll have to get the League involved, see if we can station more staff across the Wild Area to keep a look out for any signs of Team Rocket.”

“Good idea.”

“I can’t believe I didn’t recognise the logo,” Gloria sighed. “A big red ‘R,’ how did I miss it?”

“It’s been a while since we encountered the ex-Team Rocket members in the Wild Area,” Bede said, “so I doubt they would’ve been at the forefront of your mind today.”

“That’s true. But ugh, seriously, Team Rocket on top of everything else? That’s the last thing we need right now.” She shook her head. “Come on, let's head back. It’s not getting any warmer out here.”

Gloria led the way out of the Slumbering Weald, grateful for Bede’s jacket to ward off the chill.

“You never did tell me how you got hurt,” Bede said, gesturing to her cheek.

“Oh, that.” She touched her sore cheek gingerly. “Bea punched me.”

“And how on earth did you even end up in a situation where that could happen?”

“Bea’s training me,” Gloria explained. “We’ve been doing self defence training for a while, and she thought maybe supplementing it with boxing would help, and well, today she was training me and I got distracted.”

“It looks sore.” Bede’s fingers graced her cheek, making Gloria suck in a sharp breath. The touch was there and gone in an instant, but left sparks on her skin and a smouldering heat in her belly.

“I-It’s not too bad right now, actually,” Gloria said quickly, trying to focus on anything else but the way his fingers had felt across her cheek. “I put ice on it for a while, which helped.”

They made it through the gate at the entrance to the Weald, and Gloria dragged it closed behind them. She looked to where Megan and Nicole were in the distance.

“They’re still there,” she noted.

“Your mum said they’d stopped two sets of paparazzi from setting up today,” Bede said.

Gloria sighed. “I know they’re being helpful, but…” She turned from them and headed up the path to her house.

“Welcome home,” Gloria’s mother said, giving her daughter a smile that was a little too knowing, and Gloria immediately shucked off Bede’s jacket, thrusting it towards him.

“I-I’m going to have a shower,” Gloria stammered. She made for her room, before looking over her shoulder and saying, “I-I’ll see you later!”

She had too much to think about, too much to process, to be around him any longer.

That night, Gloria woke up to hands around her throat. She screamed. Thrashed. Fought for her life until her bedroom door was flung open, the light clicked on, and her mother rushed to her side. There were no hands around her throat. No Elliot. Only her mother’s comfort as she cried and wailed beneath the onslaught of memories that felt all too real.

“I thought- I thought he was here,” Gloria choked out. She kept touching her throat, fingers trembling at the feeling of hands biting into her skin. As if she could somehow brush the physical memory away.

“I know,” her mother said. “It felt real, didn’t it?”

Gloria buried her head into her mother’s shoulder. “It felt so real.” She took a few shuddering breaths. “I don’t want to go back to sleep.”

“Why don’t you come and sleep in my bed?” her mother asked. “You used to do that whenever you had nightmares, remember? You’d squeeze in between me and Dad.”

“And then I’d roll so much in my sleep that I’d keep you awake,” Gloria said with a faint laugh. “You always ended up going to sleep in my room.”

“You don’t have to sleep, but I thought maybe having someone with you would help,” her mother said. “If you’d like.”

Gloria nodded, and the two headed to her mother’s room. She paused in the doorway, looking to the side of the bed that had remained empty for years.

“Are you alright?” her mother asked.

Gloria forced herself to move and got into the bed next to her mother, before whispering, “I miss him.”

“I miss him too,” came her mother’s reply.

Gloria squeezed her eyes shut, knowing that these weren’t the same sheets her father had slept on, the pillow wouldn’t carry his scent, but it was still the bed he’d slept in for years, and a part of her wished she could feel his presence. Any part of him.

She curled up on her side, longing for a time where she had to squeeze between her parents in this bed. Where the deep breathing of her father would lull her to sleep. Gentle fingers ran through Gloria’s hair, bringing tears to her eyes.

“You used to fall asleep in an instant when I played with your hair when you were little,” Gloria’s mother said. “It was the cutest thing.”

“Hey, mum…?” Gloria began.

“Yes?”

“Do you think… Dad would be upset if I moved out?”

It was a nonsensical question. Her father was dead, and the dead hold no opinions. But still, a piece of her wanted to know.

“I think,” her mother said after a moment, “that he’d want what’s best for you. And if you wanted to move out, then he’d support you.”

“You think so?”

“I know so,” her mother said.

And with that, Gloria let the gentle touch of her mother’s fingers through her hair pull her into a deep sleep.

#bede #gloria #bederia #dressedinpinkshipping #btyu #my writing

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misskikuwrites · 2 months

Text

The Next Step Ch 1

Bede/Gloria (dressedinpinkshipping)

Tags: angst, fluff (i swear there will be fluff later), references to past assault, a lot of plot

Words: 5,295

Gloria ruffled her Arcanine’s cheeks, his tongue hanging languidly out the side of his mouth, and said quietly, “look after her for me, will you?”

Arcanine gave an astute bark, snapping to attention. He changed from lazy, spoiled canine to alert and ready in an instant. Gloria pressed a kiss to Arcanine’s brow. Her stomach tied itself into knots, unease roiling inside her, as she stood and turned to her mother.

“I’ll be fine,” Gloria’s mother said, accepting Arcanine’s Pokeball from her daughter. “I’m the one who should be worrying about you, not the other way around!”

Gloria’s mouth twisted. “I know, but… I’ll feel better if Arcanine stays with you. You’ll keep him out of his Pokeball as much as you can?” Arcanine leant his big head on Gloria’s hip, gazing up at her in hope of more pats. She scratched behind his ears automatically.

“You know I can’t bring him into the shops,” Gloria’s mother said. “And I’m not sure the Wooloo down the street would appreciate him-”

“Okay, okay, I get it!” Gloria huffed, throwing up her hands. “Just keep him around when you’re at home, then. He gets along with Munchlax well enough.”

For a moment, when the two Pokemon had met, Gloria thought that Arcanine was going to make a chew toy out of Munchlax. Thankfully, Arcanine had decided against it, and soon the two had curled up on the rug for a nap.

“And what about you?” Gloria’s mother asked.

Gloria looked up from her Arcanine. “What about me?”

“You’re doing all of this so that I’m safe, but what about you? Do you feel safe here?”

Gloria didn’t know how to answer that. Something lurched in her stomach. “Of course I do. This is my home.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” her mother said gently.

“What?” Gloria gaped at her mother. “No, we’re not moving. Not because some asshole had it out for me.” She stood her ground, folded her arms. “You’ve spent years on the garden! You love this place! You can’t just- just leave all that work behind!”

Gloria’s mother touched her arm. “I wasn’t talking about me.”

“Then…?” Her heart plummeted. “No. You know I’m not leaving you. Ever.”

“Hun-”

“No, I made a promise. I can’t just… abandon you.”

“Gloria, listen to me.” She gave her daughter’s arm a soft squeeze, her expression firm. Understanding, but not willing to budge. “I never wanted you to feel as though you had to give up your life because of me.”

“I’m not-”

“Just listen. Let me finish.”

Gloria pursed her lips, but remained silent.

“Do you really think it would make me happy to see you never move out, never fall in love or get married, because of a promise you made when you were a child?”

Gloria’s gaze dropped to the floor.

“I know you feel like you have this duty to stay with me, but isn’t it enough that we already lost one life? I don’t want you to put yours aside, to put your life on hold, because of me.”

Something heavy sank in Gloria’s stomach. “But…”

“Gloria, no matter what, nothing will ever take you from me.” Gloria’s mother wrapped her arms around Gloria, embracing her daughter in a hug. “If you move out, if you get married, that’s not you leaving me. That’s you growing up, living your own life.”

Tears pricked Gloria’s eyes. “But I don’t… I don’t want to…” She sniffled, tried to blink away the tears. “What if I end up getting hurt? I don’t want to… lose anyone like that…”

“Oh, hun.” Gloria’s mother gave her a squeeze. “Do you think I would’ve preferred to have never met your father? To have never fallen in love, to have never had you?”

Gloria had no answer to that.

“I know it hurts. Arceus, I know it hurts.” Her mother’s voice dropped to a whisper. “But the time I spent with him, loving him, having you, I would never for a moment give that up. Not for anything.”

“Even if you knew what was going to happen?” Gloria wondered out loud.

“Even then, I’d rather have those years with him than none at all.”

Gloria closed her eyes at those words, letting the heat of her tears warm her cheeks as they fell.

The morning air was brisk as Gloria stepped outside, hiking the tartan scarf around her neck that little bit higher. She hadn’t hidden the bruises around her neck when confronting Elliot the day before, using them as a way to get him talking for the hidden cameras livestreaming the whole thing, but now, as she desperately wanted to leave that whole incident behind her, she opted for a scarf. Light enough not to press on her bruises and make them hurt, but sturdy enough that she didn’t have to keep securing it in place every few seconds.

Gloria glanced up the street to where two teenage girls remained on guard. A Drednaw and Pelipper flanked them at the junction between Gloria and Hop’s house. They spotted Gloria, hopped off the fence, and bolted towards Wedgehurst.

“Wait!” Gloria cried, the word leaving her mouth before she’d thought about what she was doing. The two girls froze. They exchanged worried looks as Gloria approached.

“Um, we were just…” the one called Nicole stammered. She gestured sheepishly towards Wedgehurst. The other girl, Megan, stared at her boots.

“Mum told me you two have been fending off reporters,” Gloria said.

“Well…” Megan shot a look at Nicole.

“It doesn’t make up for what you did,” Gloria said, “but… thank you.”

She sped off towards Wedgehurst, leaving the two girls to their shock, and hailed the first Sky Taxi she came across without looking back.

It was hard to believe it had only been two days since Gloria had last been in Motostoke’s Gym. The Star Tournament, the Opening Ceremony, it felt like it had been a lifetime ago. But, thankfully, it had only been two days. That meant the evidence Gloria was after was probably still here. She walked up to the counter, thinking back to what Bede had told her.

“Champion Gloria!” the Staff Member behind the counter greeted her, his eyes flicking for a second to the scarf around her neck. “How can I help you?”

She swallowed the nausea that built in her throat at the Staff Member’s glance, and gave him the ‘everything’s fine’ smile she’d tried to perfect in the mirror earlier. “I was wondering if I could view the CCTV from before the Star Tournament the other day?” she asked.

He gave her a curious look, but allowed her behind the counter all the same. “Of course,” he said. “Is there anything in particular you’re after?” He brought up the CCTV on the computer, navigating to the date of the Star Tournament. The screen displayed footage from the various cameras around the Gym, both inside and outside.

“Hmm… I think it’s a bit later than that… wait- there!” she jabbed a finger at the screen showing the waiting room. There stood Bede, a white envelope in his hands. “Can you go back a few seconds?”

The footage rewound, and a League Staff Member with bright orange hair walked backwards to Bede, taking the envelope from him.

“There- who’s that?” Gloria asked, pointing at the Staff Member on the footage.

“That… looks like Jemma,” he said, before nodding with more confidence. “Yeah, I’m sure that’s Jemma. She was on duty that day. She should be on the doors today- you’d have passed her as you walked in.”

“Great! Thanks a lot!” Gloria said, hurrying out from behind the counter, and shot outside. Just as the Staff behind the counter had said, there was Jemma, standing tall outside the Gym.

Gloria collected herself for a moment before she approached. “Hi, are you Jemma?” she asked, again flashing a smile as unsuspicious as she could.

Jemma’s eyes, hidden behind her dark sunglasses, flicked to Gloria before recognition filled her face. “Oh! Champion Gloria!” she squeaked, jolting to attention. “What- What can I do for you?” A starstruck smile broke over her face.

Gloria wondered for a second if Jemma’s smile was real, or put on to hide something. It seemed too bright. Too eager. “I was wondering if you remembered delivering a letter to Gym Leader Bede on the day of the Star Tournament?” Gloria asked. “That was two days ago-”

“Oh, yes! I remember that!” Jemma answered quickly. “The poor kid was so nervous, he couldn’t bring himself to deliver it!” she gave a sympathetic laugh.

“Wait, someone gave you that letter to give to Bede?”

Jemma nodded. “It was one of the Gym Challengers. Said he was a huge fan of Gym Leader Bede, and asked me to deliver it for him.”

A Gym Challenger. Gloria’s heart flopped. “Do you remember what he looked like?”

“He was, what, about 14, 15 years old? Short, too. With a mop of brown hair.” Jemma shrugged. “He was wearing the Challenger Uniform, so there’s not much else I can say.”

Oh, Jemma had said enough. A memory flashed in Gloria’s mind of a young boy, a Gym Challenger, fitting that exact description. The boy who’d waited until everyone else had left. The boy who’d thrown accusations about Rose, about her battle with Leon, at her.

“Thank you,” Gloria said. “You’ve been a great help.”

She turned to leave, to head back into the Gym, when Jemma called, “wait- um, Champion Gloria!”

Gloria turned back to the Staff Member, to the notebook and pen that was thrust in her face.

“I-I’ve been a fan of yours for ages!” Jemma squeaked. “Can- Can I get an autograph?”

Gloria almost laughed. Her heart skittered in her chest as she signed, feeling as overwhelmed as Jemma looked as she handed the notebook and pen back.

A fan. That’s all she was. Gloria’s head spun as she entered Motostoke’s Gym again. She didn’t think she’d ever get used to people suddenly declaring themselves as fans, suddenly asking for photos or autographs. It always left her feeling dizzy. Feeling giddy. She walked in a daze to the counter again, where the Staff Member greeted her with a tinge of confusion on his face.

“Back so soon?”

Gloria cleared her throat to snap herself back to reality. “You were right, it was Jemma,” she said. “So, my next question is, can I have a look at all the Gym Challengers who are enrolled for this year?”

The Staff Member raised an eyebrow and nodded. “If it were anyone else asking, I’d have to say that’d be a breach of confidentiality, but since you’re the Champion…” He let her behind the counter again. “Let me just pull them up… there you go!” He nodded to her and stepped back from the computer.

“Thank you.” Gloria gave him a smile and began scrolling through the Challengers.

“Has this got to do with…?” the Staff Member’s question trailed off, his eyes once again landing on her scarf for the briefest moment.

“No,” Gloria said sharply. The word came out with enough force that the Staff Member stiffened. “At least, I don’t think so,” she added to soften the blow.

“Right.” The Staff Member looked incredibly sheepish now. “I’ll just… leave you to it, then…” He stepped to the side and Gloria’s stomach dropped.

She hadn’t meant to snap. Hadn’t meant to let memories of that night, of the day that followed, creep back into her mind. She scrolled through Challenger after Challenger, barely registering their profiles before continuing. She tried to concentrate on what she was doing, but her throat tightened. She itched to tug her scarf higher on her neck.

Of course, the fact that everyone knew what had happened was her fault. It was her idea to stream the whole confrontation live on Nessa and Raihan’s instagram accounts. Elliot himself had made reference to the bruises, “his handiwork,” on Gloria’s neck. The whole of Galar knew what he’d done.

And while that made Elliot a monster in the eyes of the world, it also painted Gloria as a victim. There was no escaping that. Nessa had said as much in the hospital after Gloria had detailed her plan. Gloria had accepted it, taken hold of the double-edged sword, and used it against Elliot. The recoil, however painful, was something she had to live with. She had to keep her head held high. Had to take the next step. She had to-

Gloria stopped scrolling. There he was- the Challenger who’d given the letter to Jemma, the one who’d thrown accusations at Gloria. In his League Card, Samuel Johnson had his arms folded, a determined smile on his face. His brown eyes held a challenge. One that Gloria knew was levelled at her.

“Is that who you’re looking for?” the Staff Member asked. He’d been watching in silence a few feet away.

“Yup.” Gloria took a photo of the display before the blood drained from her face. “Endorsed by… Richard Murdoch…?”

Elliot’s father.

The Staff Member glanced at the info. “Huh, didn’t know Mr Murdoch gave out endorsements.”

“He hasn’t before?”

“Not that I’m aware of. Pretty sure I’d remember if the wealthiest man in Galar had endorsed someone for the League Challenge.”

Gloria’s mouth went dry. She remembered the letter of endorsement that Leon had handed her and Hop all those years ago.

What if… what if it the endorsement wasn’t from Richard Murdoch, but from someone who had access to him, someone who knew his signature, someone who wanted to destroy everything Gloria had, everything she loved-

Gloria took a step back. She wasn’t thinking straight.

“Are there… do you have any more info on him?” Gloria asked, gesturing to the profile of Samuel on the screen.

“Sure, all you have to do is… this.” The Staff Member clicked on the profile and it opened to reveal more details. His home address, age, date of birth, even his height was listed.

What caught Gloria’s attention was the note about the trainer’s school in Hulbury he’d attended. It wasn’t much, but it was a lead. Gloria snapped another photo of the information before looking up the trainer’s school on her phone.

She took a breath, gathered herself together, and gave the Staff Member a grateful smile. “Thank you so much, I really appreciate your help.”

The Staff Member echoed her smile. “Not a problem! Anytime, Champion.”

As Gloria left the Gym, confusion churned in her belly. She’d thought with Elliot arrested, the whole incident with him was behind her. The Gala, the assault, the confrontation that followed, she’d thought she could leave it behind, bury it in the deep recesses of her mind. How was it that he still had claws digging into her skin? She looked at the photo she’d taken of Samuel’s profile. He was just a kid. A kid who’d levelled accusations at her, sent an anonymous letter to Bede, who was probably endorsed for the Gym Challenge by a complete and utter creep, but he was still just a kid.

She felt sick to her stomach thinking about it. Did he even know what sort of a monster Elliot was?

Gloria sighed heavily. She had the information she was after, but what was she going to do with it? The trap that had been laid for her and Bede went deeper than she’d thought.

Bede. Something skittered in her belly. She had a thought to tell him what she’d found out, but the heat pooling across her cheeks burnt it away in an instant. Unbidden memories of yesterday took over her mind. His words, his voice, echoing in her brain.

“I want you to see me.”

Gloria hurried away from the Gym, down an alley where she could be alone, and leant her forehead against a brick wall. It felt like her whole face was ablaze. Burning, searing, with tortuous heat.

“All of me,” Bede’s voice continued in her mind. “And that includes my heart.”

Gloria bit back a muffled scream. It didn’t matter how hard she tried to suppress what had happened yesterday, again and again it shot back into her mind without warning. She couldn’t forget it, even if she wanted to. Bede had said that. He’d confessed. No matter how she tried to twist his words, the truth remained. There was only one meaning behind what he’d said.

Bede was in love with her.

Gloria’s legs buckled and she sank to the ground, feeling like her lungs were filled to the brim with Butterfree. Somehow, in the midst of her shock, her panic, the dread at seeing the heartbreak on Bede’s face yesterday, she’d managed to speak. She’d managed to plead for more time.

But now… she didn’t know what to do.

How am I supposed to face Bede after that…?!

In the end, Gloria decided to leave the question of facing Bede for another time, and caught a Sky Taxi to Hulbury. If she was going to find any more information about this Samuel kid, then the Trainer’s School he attended was her best bet. It gave her something to do, something to focus on. For all she knew, Elliot could be manipulating this kid like he had manipulated her. Maybe… maybe he was just as much of a victim of Elliot’s schemes as she’d been.

As Gloria stepped up to the doors of the Trainer’s School, she put that thought on the back burner. She wanted to give Samuel the benefit of the doubt, but her heart wasn’t entirely in it. He could be a victim like her, but the other option was just as likely. Just because he was a kid didn’t mean he was innocent.

She shook that thought off, collected herself, and entered the building. Immediately upon opening the door, two dozen pairs of eyes shot to her. And chaos ensued.

“It’s the Champion!” a child cried, and Gloria, barely halfway through the door, was surrounded by clambering, excited kids. She hadn’t thought this through at all. Their voices, their calls, jumbled together into a mess of noise.

“Hey, hey! That’s not how we greet someone!” the teacher called, clapping her hands and silencing the swarm of children. “We don’t want to scare her off, do we?”

A sheepish chorus of “no…” came from the kids.

“And what do we say to Miss Gloria?”

Two dozen voices apologised, “sorry Miss Gloria..!”

“Now, get back to your seats while I have a chat with the Champion,” the teacher said, shooing the kids back to their spots while she gave Gloria an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry for that, it’s not often we get visitors like you, especially not on short notice. Or no notice at all.” She raised an eyebrow, curious but unfazed.

“I, uh, didn’t realise a class was in session,” Gloria said. “I can come back another time…”

The teacher just smiled. “Class, it’s time for an early recess! Why don’t you all head on outside?”

There was a mixture of elation and groans, some eager for a break, others disappointed their time with the Champion was cut short, but in a few minutes, the children had vacated the classroom for the yard out the back. Through the door, Gloria spied a variety of baby Pokemon lounging on the grass or cozying up in little shelters. Munchlax, Togepi, a duo of Cleffa and an Igglybuff were what Gloria could spot before the door shut behind the last kid.

“I’m Miss McCarthy,” the teacher began. “To what do I owe the pleasure of a visit from the Champion?” She maintained a professional smile.

“Well…” Gloria got out her phone and brought up the picture she’d taken of Samuel’s profile, fighting the urge to clear her throat nervously. “I was wondering if you were the one who taught Samuel?” She held up her phone for Miss McCarthy to see.

“Oh yes, Samuel. I remember him,” Miss McCarthy said, nodding. “I taught him for a few years- he graduated just last year.”

Gloria almost sighed in relief. She’d found his teacher on the first attempt. “And what was he like?” she asked. “As a student?”

Miss McCarthy opened her mouth to answer before pausing. “What is this about, may I ask? What business does the Champion have asking about a previous student of ours?”

“Oh, it’s…” Gloria’s mind scrambled for a reason, for an excuse. “Official League business,” she said quickly.

Miss McCarthy’s expression twisted into concern. “Of what kind?”

“Well, you’re aware of how… unfair the admission process into the Gym Challenge can be,” Gloria began, rambling off the first thing that came into her head, “with endorsements often coming from the already privileged to a select number of Challengers…”

Miss McCarthy nodded. “Oh, yes. The participants of the Gym Challenge are heavily skewed towards those who have connections.”

“Right! Exactly!”

“But what does this have to do with Samuel?”

Gloria swallowed. “Well, I’m doing a review of the participants this year, looking into their backgrounds, how they got their endorsements, that sort of thing.” It felt like her mind was spinning. Lie after lie springing forth from who knows where. “We- the League- are trying to come up with a way to make the selection process fairer. Maybe do away with endorsements altogether-” Now she was really digging herself into a hole.

“Oh, that would be amazing!” Miss McCarthy chimed, clasping her hands together. “There are so many promising Trainers who find themselves locked out of the Gym Challenge because they can’t secure an endorsement.”

“Right, so, that’s why I’m here to talk about Samuel,” Gloria said, trying to steer the conversation back on topic. “There’s only so much information available on his profile, and who knows him better than the very teacher who taught him at the Trainer’s School?”

Miss McCarthy nodded. “You’re right. I’m sorry for questioning you, you know how it is, we teachers can’t just blab about our students to anyone who comes asking.”

“I understand,” Gloria said, despite feeling like she’d swallowed a bunch of knives.

“Hmm, now what can I say about Samuel?” Miss McCarthy thought for a moment. “Well, he was a good kid. Bright, too. He had a knack for anything to do with Pokemon, and was a huge fan of Leon.” She gave a bright laugh, “but then again, who wasn’t?”

“Did he… ever get into any trouble?”

Miss McCarthy shook her head adamantly. “Oh no, of course not! Well, he’d get into arguments with the other kids on occasion - he could be quite stubborn when it came to Pokemon - but nothing ever came of it.”

A weight dragged down Gloria’s stomach. She felt heavy. Nothing she was hearing explained Samuel’s behaviour, other than being a fan of Leon. “How did he get his endorsement?”

“I’m afraid I have no idea,” Miss McCarthy said.

“Then… how did he come to be at this school?” Gloria asked. She needed something more.

“Oh, he was sponsored, I believe,” Miss McCarthy said, thinking back. “There are a few sponsorships running for disadvantaged kids, and Samuel won a position here.”

“Who?” Gloria asked. Her heart thumped. Pounded. “Who ran the sponsorship?”

It sounded like Miss McCarthy was underwater when she answered, “I believe it was Richard Murdoch.”

There it was. The connection Gloria was after.

“Are you alright?” Miss McCarthy asked gently. “You look a little pale.”

“I-I’m fine.” Gloria shook herself out of her stupor, flashed a bright smile at the teacher. “That’s all I wanted to know, thank you.”

She let herself out of the classroom before Miss McCarthy could say anything more.

Gloria felt sick to her stomach. Everything kept coming back to the Murdochs. The endorsement, the sponsorship, it was too much of a coincidence for her to brush it aside. The weight of what she’d learnt hung over her as she took a Sky Taxi home. She’d toyed with the idea of asking Miss Opal about Richard Murdoch, about the sponsorship, but that put her at risk of coming across Bede - and she wasn’t ready to deal with that just yet.

In the meantime, she needed to think. She needed to figure out what to do next. She hadn’t told anyone what she was after. It was her own idea to go searching for whoever had set the trap that she and Bede had fallen for. Now that she thought about it, the letter handed to Bede, the Challenger accusing Gloria, it had happened the very night that Elliot had snuck into her house in order to-

She didn’t want to think about what could have happened. What almost happened. She bit back the rising fear in her throat as the Sky Taxi landed outside her house. Her hands trembled, fumbled for the door, and she all about fell out through it in her desperation to get home. Despite being the middle of the day, Gloria shoved the front door open with a bolt of fear. Arcanine jolted awake at the sound. He leapt off the couch, ready to confront the intruder, and saw it was his Trainer. He bounded over to Gloria, jumping up to give her cheek a “welcome home” lick.

“Perfect timing,” Gloria’s mother called from the kitchen. “There was a delivery for you. It’s in the lounge.”

The thundering of Gloria’s heart eased at the sound of her mother’s voice. She calmed her shaky breathing, flexed her shaky hands, and tried to tell herself that everything was fine. Elliot was behind bars. No one was going to hurt her.

“Thanks!” Gloria replied when she had enough control over her voice so it wouldn’t quaver. She turned to the lounge and gaped at the mound of flowers and letters propped up against the wall. Bouquet after bouquet, card after card, Teddiursa plushies holding hearts that had “get well soon” embroidered on the front, there were more gifts piled here than Gloria had ever received before.

“What- What is all this?!” Gloria asked.

“I think they’re gifts from the people worried about you,” her mother said.

“But… there’s so much!”

“Didn’t you say the livestreams got millions of views?”

“I did, but…” Gloria stared at the gifts. A lump wedged in her throat.

“There’s a lot of people that care about you,” her mother said, “and I think they wanted you to know that.”

Gloria knelt in front of the mound, picking up an envelope. “To the Champion,” was handwritten on the front. She teased open a card attached to a bouquet of daisies, reading “To our Champion Gloria,” and a heartfelt message wishing her well inside. Each letter carried a similar message. Praising her courage, hoping she’s okay, telling her not to give up. All had a variation of “the Champion,” or “our Champion,” some with her name, some without. A few even had “our Hero,” or “the Hero of Galar.”

At some point, she began to cry. Tears plopped onto the card she was reading, her vision blurring. Her mother came and sat beside her. Together, they read every card. Opened every letter.

“What am I going to do with all these flowers?” Gloria asked at one point, when the reality that she’d affected the lives of this many people didn’t feel so overwhelming.

“You leave that to me,” her mother said. She planted a gentle kiss on Gloria’s temple. “Don’t worry about it.”

Gloria sniffled, giving her mother a thankful nod as she reached for a letter that had been underneath some of the gifts. As she opened it, a photograph fell out.

It was a picture of her and Rose. Gloria remembered the moment captured in the shot - Oleana had insisted that Gloria meet Rose at a restaurant in Hulbury after she’d defeated Nessa. Sonia had been there, but the shot was carefully cropped so that it appeared like Gloria was meeting Rose by herself.

Everything else dropped away as Gloria scanned the letter. It was just as she’d thought. The letter had been typed, just like the one handed to Bede. It read, “I have more proof to come. Galar will soon see you as the fraud you are.”

That was it. Two simple lines.

Gloria’s stomach twisted. Was this a letter from a desperate fan of Leon who was unable to accept his defeat, or was there something deeper, something darker, at play?

“Where did they even get this picture?” Gloria’s mother scoffed, studying the photo. “Did you know someone had photographed you?”

Gloria breathed out a heavy sigh. “No. They must’ve seen us from the docks. Whoever took the photo was outside.”

“I’m not sure what they think this photo proves,” her mother said. “Everyone knows this would’ve been taken during your Gym Challenge.”

“And that’s the point.” She wished she’d never taken up Oleana’s suggestion. Wished she’d walked right past the restaurant. Wished she’d never spoken to Rose at all. “It shows I met with Rose, back when he was the Chairman. They’re… trying to prove that I was a part of Rose’s plan from the start.”

Gloria’s mother shook her head in disbelief. “But you weren’t the one endorsed by him!”

That comment stung, but Gloria kept the pain from her face. “All part of the ‘plan,’ I supposed they’d say,” Gloria said. “After all, it does look… convenient, that Hop and I just happened to be able to call Zacian and Zamazenta, the Legendary Pokemon from centuries ago, right after Leon was knocked out by Eternatus.”

“Oh, hun, don’t say that…” Her mother wrapped an arm around Gloria’s shoulder, giving her a sideways hug.

Gloria relented to the hug, resting her head on her mother’s shoulder. It was too easy to twist what had happened into a conspiracy. She could see how someone who adored Leon like Samuel would believe it.

“Hmm?” Gloria noticed another letter stuck under the gifts right where she’d pulled the obviously-from-Samuel letter. This one had a crimson “R” on the front. She opened it up and read the scrawled writing aloud. “The stunt you pulled yesterday was impressive. I hope you are as entertaining as that footage suggested. I can’t wait to see how you live up to your name, Hero of Galar. I’ll enjoy making you pay for what you did. Love, R.”

“Did these two come together?” Gloria asked, holding up the “R” letter and Samuel’s. “They’re not stamped, or in envelopes.”

Gloria’s mother frowned. “I’m not sure how they would’ve been delivered, then.”

The red “R” on the front of the handwritten letter held Gloria’s attention. “Do you recognise this?”

“No, why?”

Gloria stared at it, twisting her lips in thought. “I swear I’ve seen it before…”

“Could be a logo from one of your sponsors?”

“No, I don’t think so…”

“Well, what about someone who’s name starts with ‘R?’”

Gloria’s heart thumped. Richard Murdoch. But it didn’t make sense. From what she’d heard, Richard Murdoch had been appalled by his son’s actions. The sender of the letter wanted revenge. She tried to think of something she’d done, something that would make someone come after her- and then her mind screeched to a halt. “Rose…?” it came out in a whisper. No. It couldn't be. He was in prison.

Unless… Unless he’d figured out a way…

Gloria shot to her feet. She needed to know.

“Gloria?” her mother called as she whirled and headed for the door. “Where are you going?”

“I need to make sure this isn’t from him,” she said without looking back. If Rose was involved in all of this- Gloria readied her Corviknight, climbing onto her Pokemon’s back and taking to the sky.

She wouldn’t let him get away with it.

#bede #gloria #bederia #dressedinpinkshipping #btyu #my writing

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