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He had done it. Made it so far, with no one’s help. Not his grandfather's. Not his sister's. No one to hold him back. He’s the champion of the Kanto region. The first. This big room is all his. He takes a deep breath and spins like a little kid with his arms outstretched. His playful footsteps echo off the walls of the empty, sullen champion’s hall.
Blue was told to wait here for the next challenger. So he does as he’s told- stands and waits under the blinding lights, convinced that any second now he’d be greeted with someone who could actually put up a fight. Lance was nothing. None of the Elite Four could cause him to falter. Whoever made it past them would face the true challenge of Blue Oak. Champion of Champions.
No one ever came.
He waited and waited. Waited till he felt like something might be wrong. Waited until he felt the need to speak through the door to the man he had just handedly defeated.
He cups his hands against the cold heavy entranceway and yells. “Hello? Lance?”
No response except for his echo. He waits a moment before carefully placing his ear against the door, shivering. Nothing, as if this building were made of dense, still clay.
“Hello? Anyone?”
He tries to look through the gap, but either the lights are off in the other room or the gap isn’t there at all.
Frustrated, he resorts to going against orders, grabbing at the handle and pulling with all his might…but it doesn’t budge. It only rattles with a dull, metallic sound as he tugs at the hinges again and again and again.
Eventually, his arms grow too sore, and he stumbles dully away from the entranceway. Blue know he should feel alarmed that he’s trapped in here, but he doesn’t. He only feels faint confusion.
Someone has to come. Has to. All he can do is wait for whoever it'll be, sitting on the stairs up to the arena, cheek resting on his hand. Staring straight ahead at the unmoving pair of doors.
He’s not hungry. Not even thirsty. His Pokémon don’t make a sound. It’s just boring.
He stares and stares and stares until it feels like a whole day has passed without him moving, until the image of those doors stay put when he closes his eyes. Until he’s passed the pendant hanging around his neck through his fingers a thousand times over. The lights eventually go out.
He doesn’t consider the idea of no one ever coming. The thought doesn’t even dare to cross his mind. Blue knows whoever he’s waiting for is just beyond those doors, if they’d just… win. C’mon. Win already. What’s taking you so long?
And his certainty leaves him confused, sitting there in the dark, because no gym proved unconquerable. No type matchup faced him that he couldn’t adapt to. No trainer on his way here defeated him even once. No one in this region can take this title away from him.
So why am I so certain someone could?