Chapter Text
He takes off in the middle of the night. He’s barely conscious, but enough there that he can scrawl out a note to his mom to leave on the kitchen table. When she sees it in the morning, she’ll undoubtedly be beyond angry, but that’s not his problem.
Red straightens his cap as he closes the door behind him, careful to lock it behind him just as his mom likes. Silence falls thick on Pallet Town at this time of day, and all the lights are off apart from one. Red keeps his head down, but the inhabitant of that bedroom must hear him anyway, as the curtain twitches back.
Blue comes into view, staring down at him, eyebrows furrowed. Really, Red should’ve planned for this. He knows very well that his rival has an awful sleep schedule, and the chances of him being awake are high. He glances over to the other house in the town – not a movement from Leaf’s room – one less witness to his escape.
Despite keeping his head turned, he can still feel Blue’s gaze upon him. He braves a glance in his direction – his rival waves, and he waves back. He probably thinks that he’s going out on some late night Pokémon catching jaunt. Pewter City isn’t too far from here after all, and the Clefairy will be out in droves tonight thanks to the full moon.
Blue closes his curtain, and Red moves on. Route One is eerily quiet at this time of night – there are a few Zubat flying about, far away from their usual cave dwellings. At the side of the road lies a pile of sleeping Oddish, and a Rattata not too far from there. He can’t stay here too long, Red realises – too close to home, too tempting to turn back. Once he reaches Viridian City he’ll be able to think clearer.
The bright orange roof of the Pokémon Centre calls his name. He’s not too worried about leaving a trail, not with what he has planned. He mumbles a greeting to the nurse on night shift and takes up a spot on one of the Pokémon Centre’s comfortable sofas, right under the TV. The news channel is on, the only one still broadcasting at this time of night – something about the building of a new Contest Hall somewhere in Sinnoh.
The place is empty at this time of night. Viridian City isn’t as busy as many other cities in Kanto, something that Red can’t help but be grateful for tonight. Aside from the nurse at the desk and himself, the only other living thing in here is a Growlithe, wild or otherwise, protecting itself from the slight drizzle that has begun outside.
Strangely, sleep finds Red easily that night. It had been months since he had a proper night’s sleep, the general worrying about his station keeping him up. Unlike Blue, he didn’t know how to enjoy himself on nights when he was restless – lying in the dark and willing sleep to take him turned out to be his most favoured night-time activity.
As soon as sunlight begins to stream through the windows of the Pokémon Centre, Red leaves. His backpack feels heavier on his shoulders this morning, and he’s constantly looking around him, just in case someone from home is here to look for him. Maybe he shouldn’t have left that note, he wonders. But it’s too late for that now – he’s not gone that far yet, but it’s far enough.
Red heads east. A route he’s familiar with, one he takes all the time. The infrastructure around here has changed, though. The League Committee of Indigo Plateau take things more seriously now, with multiple challengers passing through every day. That means making everything around here fancier, more appealing to tourists, and more comfortable for League staff and challengers.
Working here for the last few months has taken its toll on Red. He’s exhausted – every single bone in his body urges him to rest, but being the best trainer in the country means that he has no time to rest. He must be constantly training, battling, bettering himself and his Pokémon if he wants to retain that title.
He doesn’t want to anymore.
In the thirty days he has memorised the patterns of guard rotations at this spot. This intersection has fourth paths – a linking path to Johto (Red always forgets that this place is the joint league for the two regions), one from Kanto, one up to the newly designed Victory Road and on to Indigo Plateau and another, to the dangerous Mt Silver. This is the one that Red takes this morning, dashing through the building as the guards change, dropping an envelope addressed to the League on the front desk.
Geographically, Red is in Johto now. There’s a Pokémon Centre here too, somehow, though unlike every other one that he’s ever seen this one’s roof isn’t lit up. It’s a little bit of a walk, but Red makes it there, considering that it might be a good place for a base camp.
He’s heard stories of Mt Silver before – an impassable mountain, frigid to the core. The temperature here is a few degrees cooler than before he passed through the gate, but nothing that he can’t handle. He’s packed layers, though, just in case. This place is dangerous, he’s been told, but Red buzzes with excitement at the prospect of conquering this place.
He won’t be the first to do it, though. A path to the summit of Mt Silver has been carved out for many years. The Pokémon Centre is evidence of this too, though when Red reaches it, the automatic doors remain shut. He presses his face up against the glass, peering inside, but all he can see is his own reflection – just darkness inside, with no signs that anyone has been there in years.
It’s a little inconvenient, perhaps, but Red hadn’t planned for it in the first place. The entrance to the cave isn’t too far from here, and there, he can set his plan for peace into motion. His mind wanders home – it shouldn’t be too long until Pallet Town begins to wake up, and everyone will know that he’s gone. He gets rid of that thought as quickly as he can – he cannot dwell on what he’s left behind.
The inside of Mt Silver’s cave system is significantly colder than the outside, and Red pauses, setting his bag down and shrugging on a long sleeved jacket over his usual short sleeved shirt. He knew this would happen, but so quickly? He’s heard of snow topped peaks and heavy blizzards, but there has been no sign of that yet. He moves forward, fuelled with determination.
There is one thing in this plan that Red is certain of, and it is his end goal. He does not wish to be disturbed. Since leaving on his journey and subsequently becoming Champion, Red has been annoyed by others at every step. Between collecting Gym badges because that was what you were supposed to do and taking down Team Rocket almost singlehandedly, other people’s wishes have impeded on what Red has truly wanted to do this whole time – just be a good Pokémon Trainer.
He never set out to be the best. It was something that happened along the way, by accident, fuelled mostly by a rivalry with Blue. It was friendly for the most part. While Blue was serious about training and being the best, his jokes were mostly light-hearted, and there was an ever familiar grin in his insults, right up until the end. He had apologised when they had both made it back to Pallet Town for the things he had said, and Red had managed to smile for the first time in a while.
Not really paying attention to where he’s going, Red walks into a Larvitar. The tiny thing glares up at him – despite its size, he knows that the Pokémon can do some serious damage if it pleases. But Red isn’t here to fight with the Larvitar, or worse, their parents. He kneels down beside it, and murmurs an apology under his breath, holding a hand out to the creature. It hesitates, before sniffing his palm, and resting its rough cheek on it for just a moment.
Red has never been good with words. He can command Pokémon just fine – calling out attacks from one end of a battlefield works just fine for him. But talking to Pokémon one on one like this is nerve-wracking and talking to people even worse. That’s probably why he gets on so well with Leaf – she’s quiet too, not as quiet as him, but nowhere near as extroverted as their other friend.
But this Larvitar seems to understand him, even without words. It looks up at him with dark glassy eyes, and nods. A few other Larvitar pop their heads out from behind some of the rocks in the cave, and a lone Pupitar blinks slowly at him in the distance. That’s the first part of his plan completed – a first line of defence against anyone that may want to bother him up here.
When he makes his way outside, a little further up the mountain, the cold seems to have almost completely disappeared. In fact, Red feels warm, which is distinctly wrong considering that the ground is covered in snow. There’s a strange sound from above him too, and when he cranes his neck to see what the source of the sound might be, there is a most unusual sight above him.
Red has met many interesting Pokémon over his journey. Strong Pokémon, like Blue’s Blastoise, Lance’s Dragonite, and even Giovanni’s Persian. His own team is strong too – Pikachu in particular. But there are three Pokémon in both Kanto and Johto’s mythology that he’s also stumbled upon – including this one, Moltres.
His first encounter with the legendary bird was in Victory Road, truthfully not all that long ago. And here it is again. It lands gracefully in front of Red, melting the snow under it with the heat from its wings. It looks Red in the eye, and somehow, despite understanding the immediate danger in front of him, Red manages to look back at it.
Moltres bows its head, and lifts a wing, moving to push Red to one side. He understands, moving quickly so as not to sustain a burn. Moltres heads into the cave, and Red follows it back the way he came, watching as the bird flies down and around, into a far flung corner, the flames of its wings signifying its resting spot.
Red doesn’t quite understand what just happened, but it’s another layer of protection, so he smiles in Moltres’ direction, and moves on.
There are a lot of exits to the cave that Red has just left, and none of them feel quite right. He wanders around inside a little more, hoping for inspiration. It’s getting dark, and while he would quite like to reach the summit of the mountain before nightfall, there is another group of Pokémon that he would rather like to befriend before that.
So here is where he pauses, takes out some of the food that he made at home, sits down, and waits. Red has always been resourceful – even in a place such as this he’ll be able to find food. Eating wild berries and other plants has never proved a problem for him before, and he doesn’t mind doing the same for the indefinite amount of time he’ll spend up here.
Night falls with certainty, and visibility in the caves drops significantly, along with the temperature. Red pulls out another coat, making sure that everything is zipped up and he can remain as warm as possible. He hopes, and assumes, that he’ll get used to these temperatures over time, but for his first day here he’s not taking any risks.
Over his shoulder, Red can feel a disturbingly familiar presence. When he turns, there isn’t anything there, which makes him all the more certain that he is in the right place to find his next group of Pokémon friends. He stands, and holds his arms open to them, and slowly, a few friendly Misdreavous appear in front of him, cautious all the same.
These, along with the Larvitar he met earlier, are not in the PokéDex that he got when leaving home the first time, so he can’t look up detailed information about them. He does know that these Pokémon have a penchant for mischief, however, and is careful to stay on his guard. Mt Silver is dangerous as is, never mind having ghost type Pokémon playing tricks on him.
Thankfully, they seem as curious about him as he is about them, and so they circle him, floating around to check him out. He offers a smile, as genuine as he can muster, and the Misdreavous cry out happily. They seem to like him well enough, and even when his smile drops and he casts a slightly worried glance at the far entrance to the cave, they seem to know what’s up. One Misdreavous flies over there, hiding itself behind a rock, while the others position themselves around the room.
Maybe he can stay here for tonight, Red thinks. To stay out of the snow for one more night… maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.
Morning arrives much quicker than he would like, and Red finds his sleep ended before he truly feels it’s finished. Light streams in from outside, practically blinding him. This must be light from the snow, Red reckons, and packs his things in a hurry to get outside. The Misdreavous he made friends with last night seem to be gone – likely due to the daylight. He doesn’t mind, and quietly bids them a farewell on his way.
The snow outside is heavy, and this time Red is certain that he’s gotten the right exit. If he tilts his head back he can just about see the top of the mountain, barely visible thanks to the thick clouds that cover it. But sometimes one of the clouds will blow a little to one side or the other, revealing the peak to him. Hopefully, these clouds will act as another natural line of defence for him.
A little further around the mountain Red finds the final entrance to the cave. Inside is a long narrow corridor, the end of which he cannot see from where he stands. But he follows it along, one hand against the cold outer wall to guide him. At one point he has to stop, and feel around a corner. He almost stumbles up some stairs – yet another unnatural feature of Mt Silver. It’s practically impossible to make it up the stairs when he can barely see a foot in front of him, but at the top light shines through from another exit.
This time, he’s at the summit. White plains stretch out in front of him, and beyond that is a mystery to him. He’s a little dubious about going close to the edge – they’re hardly safe, and if he slips on the ice that he’s certain the snow is lying on top of, he will fall to his death and this all will have been a rather pointless endeavour.
Instead, Red takes a moment to appreciate his success. He’s made it up here unscathed, and has made a few friends along the way. He throws his backpack into the snow, and then throws a Pokéball, letting Pikachu pop out. The Mouse Pokémon doesn’t look too impressed at the weather, and immediately climbs up Red’s arm to sit on his hat.
In his backpack he finds a popup tent. He doesn’t expect it to last long up here, but it will survive the elements for long enough for him to find a better way of making a shelter. It’s a fancy tent from Silph Co that he had to spend a lot of money on – if it was any eleven year old buying it the cashier would definitely have assumed that he had stolen the money, but much to his chagrin Red found himself a household name at this point.
The first night up there is rough. His sleeping bag and many layers don’t seem to make much difference against the snow, and along with Pikachu, Red ends up letting Charizard out of its Pokéball for some extra body heat. Thankfully, his Charizard is very still, otherwise the flame from its tail would likely burn the tent down.
In the morning, with a clear path to the summit carved out, Red starts to work on the last phase of his plan. In the case that the Larvitar, Misdreavous and even Moltres aren’t enough to deter people from bothering him, he has to make other preparations. He has no doubts that Blue could make it up here, and Leaf would certainly be hot on his heels. Either of them could probably physically drag Red back down Mt Silver.
It’s easy to set traps. He ties blades of grass together – a tripping hazard, but nothing too dangerous. He enlists the help of some local Raticate to chop down a tree, placing it at an awkward angle so that it’s too high to climb over and too low to crawl under. With some escape ropes he no longer has a use for, he makes loops that will catch anyone that gets too far up by their ankle.
Most people aren’t stupid enough to climb Mt Silver. Red knows this, which is why he’s here in the first place. But he can’t be too careful, especially with the friends he has. Blue is too stubborn to let something like this go, and Leaf is too curious. Even if he wasn’t up here, Red is almost certain that she would make her way up here at some point.
But he can’t be too careful. He doesn’t want to go back down to civilisation. If he can withstand the snow he can withstand anything – whether that be people coming up to drag him back home or something that might be worse. He’s not sure if he can think of something that would be worse than going home at the minute, though.
As the sun sets, he scales the mountain again, heading back up to the summit. Tomorrow, he will finish his traps and look for some food. At least with all the snow, he knows there is a constant source of water, so he’s at no risk of dying from dehydration. He clears some snow from a spot not too far from where he’s pitched his tent, and after making a circle out of stones, he deposits some wood there he collected further down the mountain.
Charizard uses its tail to light it, and settles beside Red as they look off into the distance. It’s not too bad up here, Red thinks. He’ll get used to it in no time. And it’s not like he’ll never come down. But when his name has disappeared from memory, maybe he can brave the outside world again.
It takes a few weeks before Red is disturbed. He can sense it almost before it happens – a disturbance in the environment itself. He doesn’t dare go down the mountain, simply waiting for the intruder to come to him. He hopes beyond hope that his traps work, but after a few hours, someone appears in the distance, a shadow, one that definitely doesn’t belong to Blue or Leaf.
He stays still, paralysed by fear. It’s not his mom – he would recognise her a mile off. And he doesn’t think it’s any of the gym leaders either – so who does that leave? When the person is a few feet away from him, they lower their hood, and Red’s eyes widen.
Nurse Joy’s familiar pink pigtails collect snow quickly, her nose and cheeks flushed from the cold. But she wears that ever familiar smile as she catches her breath, her little Pokémon catching up beside her. It’s not one that Red recognises – an orange Pokémon with a shell on its back, presumably a fire type thanks to the way it’s melting the snow in a trail behind it as it crawls.
“We thought you’d be up here,” she says. “I’m glad to see you’re safe.”
Red doesn’t answer, merely staring at her. His hand rests on the Pokéballs on his waist, ever at hand, before he notices that unlike all the other Nurse Joys he’s ever met, this one has her own belt of Pokéballs – six of them. He stuffs his hand into his pocket, not willing to start a fight up here.
“It was Professor Oak that figured out where you might have gone. I used to run the Pokémon Centre at the bottom of the mountain, which is why he asked me to come and look for you.”
“…”
“We know that you came up here for a reason, and I’m not about to ask you what that reason is. But I was a good trainer back in my day too in Johto, and I like to think I can help you. Will you let me?”
Red still doesn’t answer. Nurse Joy looks earnest, but he doesn’t exactly know what he’s supposed to say to this offer of help. He doesn’t need any help. He came up here for that reason and that alone – he has no intention of asking for help now when he’s been doing fine for the few weeks he’s been here.
“Let me tell you what I have in mind, and then you can let me know,” she says, a smile wide on her face. “I’ll stay right down the base of the mountain in the Pokémon Centre, and if you need my help, you can come to me. For food, or if your Pokémon are sick, or you just want to get out of the cold. It will be just me. That’s what the Pokémon Centre is for everywhere else, so I reckon that’s what it’s for here on Mt Silver too. Sound good?”
Red nods hesitantly. It doesn’t sound bad at least.
“Great! I was also talking to Professor Oak about this place, and how dangerous it is. And with you here, it may provide a draw to trainers that would like to challenge you. To keep everyone safe, including you, Red, Professor Oak and I have agreed that the gate here will be closed to all trainers from Johto and Kanto unless they have all sixteen badges from both regions. That way, only trainers that are very strong, and will manage to get around Mt Silver safely, will get through. I can’t imagine that there are that many people that will be able to achieve that!”
Red nods again in understanding – so he won’t ever be bothered, unless it’s by a really strong trainer? He doesn’t mind the sound of that. And truthfully, the Pokémon Centre being open to him, and mostly only him, sounds good too.
“Excellent! Well, for now, I’ll be off. If you need anything, and I mean anything, Red, you know where to find me. Come now, Magcargo!”
The Pokémon by her feet grumbles in assent, and the two of them take off down the mountain. Briefly, Red wonders if he should follow her, but for now he stays where he is. Living in the Pokémon Centre wouldn’t be too bad – it would be warm, and he would be guaranteed a hot meal from Nurse Joy at least most of the time. It’s a decision he can make at any time, he supposes, if the wild living gets to be too much for him.
Pikachu chirps from inside the tent, and he makes his way over to stroke the Electric Type under its chin. Pikachu has been his constant companion from very early on in his journey, and if it weren’t for Charizard and Pikachu he certainly wouldn’t be where he is now.
Carrying the little Pokémon in his arms, with Charizard stomping through the snow behind him, Red makes his way to the edge of the mountain, gazing down through the cloud. Not once has he been able to see anything in the valley below, but today, for the first time, he can. Far off in the distance, the lights in the Pokémon Centre switch on, its luminous orange roof a beacon of safety for Red.