"How you got through it doesn't matter. What matters is moving toward the future."
Sabrina's words carried weight—the distilled insight she'd gained while spending time with Grey.
Clinging to the past only stalls your steps; you're supposed to walk toward what's ahead.
"Yeah."
Green mulled it over, tucked the line away, then led Grey and Sabrina to the station to pick someone up.
Saffron City's Magnet Train terminal—its endpoint was Goldenrod City in the Johto region.
The two cities are the largest in their regions; the League had clearly factored that in when they opened the Magnet Train.
Green's friend, Silver, was coming in from Johto.
According to Green, it had been rough going, but he'd made it through.
"Green, your friend didn't piss off someone he shouldn't have in Johto, did he?"
After hearing Green's explanation, a thought popped into Grey's head.
If it took this long to get here, either he'd been scraping together money for a ticket—or he was being chased and had to detour before boarding.
From Grey's impression of Silver…
It was probably a bit of both.
A little "not-so-clean" cash, caught on the spot, and then a lot of running.
"Hey—what's going on in that brain of yours?"
Seeing Grey's expression go a bit off, Green poked his cheek, eyes narrowing to slits. "Okay, okay—I promise Silver's turned over a new leaf. He's not going to try anything on you from now on."
"Alright. I'll take your word for it."
Grey gave a sheepish laugh.
Since they were already here, he was curious which "version" of Silver he'd be meeting.
One thing, though, was certain:
No matter the version, Silver was Giovanni's son.
If he got the chance to walk Silver past Giovanni, the effect would be… something.
Right now, Grey was wondering if taking Silver as a student would give him a special advantage against Giovanni.
If Team Rocket really came knocking and he wasn't strong enough yet, maybe he could pull a few emotion cards with Silver.
Screee—!!!
The Magnet Train eased into the platform.
The doors opened. Green craned her neck, hoping to spot that long-unseen red-haired boy.
"I think I see him—back exit of Car 3."
Grey had a sharp eye; he picked Silver out of a crowd of rainbow-haired travelers at a glance.
It helped that Silver's gaze was so razor-edged it made Grey uncomfortable just looking at him.
"Silver, over here!"
With Grey's prompt, Green raised an arm, then cupped her hands like a megaphone by her mouth.
"Hm?"
In the crowd, Silver's steps hitched.
Memory brought the voice back into focus; he spotted Green on the platform—with a man and a woman beside her.
"Green, I'm here!"
Silver shouldered through the throng. The slightly boyish voice and the keep-your-distance scowl made a sharp contrast.
You wouldn't guess he was actually a few months younger than Green.
When he reached the three, Grey gave him a once-over.
Looked much like the photo.
But…
Was this really Giovanni's kid?
Grey eyed Silver's red hair… and compared it to Ariana's.
Hiss…
Had he just stumbled on something he shouldn't?
Of course, without proof, he wasn't about to jump to conclusions.
"Alright—let's get back to the dojo before we chat."
Seeing the foot traffic swell, and knowing some topics weren't suited for public ears, Grey called the retreat.
——
Inside the Fighting Dojo.
After days of trekking through the wilds, Silver stepped over the threshold—and a rich aroma seized his breath.
His throat bobbed as he swallowed hard, saliva flooding on instinct.
His legs moved of their own accord, shuffling half a step toward the scent.
Smells amazing…
The cold mask stayed on his face, but his twitching nose and tightening pupils betrayed him.
"Here. Eat. Don't stand on ceremony."
Grey wore the faintest hint of a smile. The bun in his hand still steamed.
He didn't call out the kid's stubborn pride.
He just held the bun out.
"Mm—!"
Silver bit down; scalding juices burst between his teeth.
The lips he always kept pressed together tugged up—Grey noticed.
Silver quickly covered half his face with a sleeve, but he couldn't hide the sudden light in his eyes.
Savory broth dripped through his fingers, blooming little oil stars on the dojo's wooden floor.
"Thanks."
In a few bites, Silver finished the bun, rubbed his belly, and let out a satisfied thank-you.
It was his first hot bite in days.
Just a bun—but one he'd remember for a long time.
"Silver, who's been on your tail? You look like you haven't slept in days."
Green waited until he'd eaten to ask.
Maybe he'd tangled with the local evil outfit and had to spend days ducking and running.
"You won't believe it…"
Silver's voice dipped. His gaze touched each face in the dojo for a couple seconds.
"Team Rocket noticed me."
"Oh, just that."
"Thought it was something big. Team Rocket's got eyes on you, huh."
"Uh…"
Around the dojo, reactions varied.
It's just Rocket. What's the big deal?
They'd seen more Rocket grunts these past days than stray Lillipup.
"?"
Silver blinked, thrown by the nonchalance.
"Don't you think that's weird? Team Rocket noticed me. They even tried to hunt me down!"
He acted out a clumsy running motion in spite of himself.
"I mean, I feel bad for you," Green mused, "but to get chased that many days… you didn't, like, do something to them first, did you?"
Given what she knew of Silver, getting tailed that long felt like he'd put sticky fingers on something of Rocket's.
"Hey! Is that really how you see me? This time is different, okay? They just… fixated on me out of nowhere. Said they were taking me in!"
Thinking back made Silver's spine go cold.
"I was walking a country lane, minding my own business, when a bunch of guys in Rocket uniforms jumped out and said, 'Please come with us. Our Boss wants to see you.'"
"Can you even imagine how that feels?"
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