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"Miss Diantha, you're needed for the post-"
The public relations manager was swiftly ignored, as Diantha walked past her, opened up the doors to her office, and slammed them shut behind her. She didn't even go to her chair, instead sitting on the couch that was up against the wall on one side of the room. She fiddled with the part of her outfit on her back which looked like wings, pulling them off and throwing them to the side. Diantha also took off her jacket and just draped it over the armrest of the couch.
After doing so, she sighed, leaning back and driving her fingers through her hair. She was breathing heavily, due to two things, her being out of breath from rushing back to her office from the stadium, and also the overwhelming stress that has loomed over her for the past few months.
It was only those few months ago that she conquered the Kalos League and became the region's new Champion, and it was only those few months ago that her life began to spiral out of control. She had been able to hang onto it with thin threads, and even those were now beginning to snap. Thinking about it all now, her heartbeat sped up even more. She placed her hand on her chest, the thumps reaching her palm only worrying her more. The windows were open, but she was sweating profusely. It had taken a lot to hold in these emotions all day, and she almost cracked when she was running late to her battle from the movie set.
There was a moment where she stopped in her tracks, asking out loud to herself if it was even worth it to continue, straining her body before an intense battle. She wondered if she should just call it there and try to reschedule things for later, but something in her head told her not to, that she was better than that, so she kept on going and actually made it on time. She won the battle and then immediately left right after. Normally she would be involved in post-battle interviews, but right now she didn't care. Her mind was racing at a million miles a second and the thought of her ignoring others causing problems was lost in the sea of issues. Even though she wanted to do that, she wanted to go out there and explain what was going on, but she just couldn't.
Diantha gripped her shirt with her hand and closed her eyes, wishing for it all to be over. But this wasn't a fairytale, this was real life, and real life just wasn't fair sometimes. Impulsively, she took out her phone and began to scroll through her contacts, but in the frenzy, she dropped it onto the floor. It hit the ground and slid across to the middle of the room.
"Miss Diantha, is everything alright in there?"
Hearing the manager's voice, Diantha realized that only around fifteen seconds had passed since she entered the room when it actually felt like hours. Suddenly, her Gardevoir teleported into the room. She had been with Diantha once the battle finished, but instead of telling Gardevoir to teleport them back, she just ran away. She didn't want to admit to Gardevoir that something was wrong so felt it would just be better to go alone and run back.
Gardevoir floated over to Diantha and rested her hand on her trainer's shoulder. The two locked eyes and Diantha felt a calmness emanating from Gardevoir, so she just let this happen. She sank into the couch, just trying to feel the moment with Gardevoir. Her breathing slowed down a bit, which allowed her to focus better.
"I-I'm...give me a moment!" she called out suddenly.
Scrambling for her phone, Diantha picked it up and fell back onto the couch. Trying to be as careful as she could, she scrolled through her contacts with her still slightly shaky hand, finally landing on the one that she was looking for, and pressing on it, initiating a call. It took a few seconds, but eventually, the other person picked up.
"Diantha?" the voice asked. "What's going on? I saw your battle, are you postponing the interviews for later?"
The Kalos Champion took a deep breath before speaking. "No Cynthia" she stated softly. "I was supposed to, but, I couldn't"
"Why not?" Cynthia asked. "You looked pretty amped up when you exited the stadium, you were pretty fas-"
"That's...not why I left quickly..." Diantha interrupted her. "I wasn't excited, I was...terrified"
The tone of Cynthia's voice immediately changed. "Diantha what happened?" she questioned. "You can tell me, although I guess you already know that since you called me"
"Cynthia, what was it like, becoming the Champion of the most battle-heavy region in the entire world?" Diantha asked. "The region with the most feared historical Champions? How did you feel when you realized you had to live up to that? How much it would take to live up to that?"
Cynthia was left silent. She was not expecting this to be what Diantha needed to talk about, although at the same time, she couldn't say she was totally surprised. When Diantha became the Champion of Kalos, Cynthia was quite surprised that she decided to continue her acting career. She thought that it would be too much for a Champion, especially a new one, to have a completely other job, she knew first hand anyway how busy a new Champion could be, considering it wasn't too long before that she had just become the new Champion of Sinnoh.
"Well, it certainly was a rollercoaster ride of its own" she admitted. "Before I even went out to battle I already had doubts and worries, but my Pokémon were the ones to comfort me in that moment. I went out there and we gave it our best battle, and wouldn't you know it, we won"
Diantha looked to Gardevoir, thinking about what Cynthia said about her own Pokémon.
"And honestly, the moments after I won, those doubts and worries returned, because I realized I had to, like you said, live up to Champions who were feared globally for their strength. Palmer was a worldwide figure, he was a Champion during the same era that Alder was and still is, and you already know how much of a legacy that man has. I haven't stopped working hard a minute since I won that battle, and yeah, it's been hard, I'll admit it"
Turning to a poster in the office that was promoting a movie she would be in soon, Diantha looked down to the ground with a frown. "Balancing being a Champion and an actress is just so difficult, Cynthia, I was almost late to my battle today because I left the set too late! And worse, I almost gave up on the way to the battle! What if that happens again and I actually decide t-"
"Stop!" Cynthia shouted over the phone. "Don't say what you were about to say. Don't even think for a second about if you gave up, because I know you, and I know that would never happen, even if you think it would. Diantha, you're strong, honestly, stronger than me when it comes to stuff like this. I talk to no one about the stress I deal with when it comes to being a Champion, so I'm glad that you at least don't do the same thing I do"
"Gar!!!"
Diantha chuckled, her voice cracking. "Garchomp's with you, right?"
Cynthia laughed along with her. "She's just telling you the same thing I am. Hey, is Gardevoir there with you?"
Diantha looked back at her partner with a smile, with Gardevoir still having kept her hand on Diantha's shoulder, placing her other on Diantha's free hand. "Yeah, she's here, she's helping..."
"Ohh, I wish I could be there right now to hug you and tell you that everything will be alright! So I'll just tell you what I want to say and Gardevoir can give you the hug from me" Cynthia said. "When it feels like everything is too much, take a step back and figure out what you are doing when things are going right, when you do have that balance, and try to replicate that at all possible moments. Obviously, things will happen, that's life, and you already know that so I don't have to repeat it. But when you can, take action, and try to fix what is creating these problems. Diantha, you're the Champion of the region, I think that you can talk to your managers and producers if there are conflicting schedules, don't be afraid to. You are amazing for being someone who can entertain people both through film and through battles, and you shouldn't lose that charm just because of some scheduling issues. But if anyone gives you any problem, just give me a call and I'll be there quicker than you can say 'best friend'"
Cynthia couldn't see it, but she could clearly hear that Diantha began to cry through her slight whimpers and sniffling.
"Gardevoir, you can give her that hug now"
Diantha stood up and wrapped her arms around Gardevoir, letting out all of the tears. But as she did so, she smiled, because she had such good friends.