Opportunities are Granted, but Dreams are Earned
Flashback
Yume dropped off Haya's back, landing lightly on the surface before the large Silph Company building and returned her Rapidash to its pokeball. Her heart desperately tried to find a way to escape from her chest, but Yume gracefully and instinctually led a hand to grasp the pendent lying around her neck to subdue her nerves. Its chain rattled at the sudden inhibition of movement, but Yume's full attention rested on the proud building that stood before her. Holding the pendent only flooded more thoughts, however: What would Mother say if she knew I was going to work here, of all places? I-I'm doing this for her… She convinced herself the second was justification enough for allowing herself to stoop to the villainous level that Silph had become infamous for. She looked up and sighed out some stress. The day was beautiful outside, the sun shone behind intermittent clouds that disrupted the light blue sky's everlasting reach beyond both horizons. Although she was in the middle of a city, looking to such happy scenery allowed her to escape to a peaceful meadow, leaving behind all her worries. She closed her eyes and smiled, but a man rushing to his job interrupted this short moment. He bumped into her, glared, and continued walking, ignoring all of Yume's pleads for forgiveness. She breathed out one last sigh and stepped into the building.
Inside, the Silph Company had little color. It had a modern feel to it, mainly adorned with black furniture, deep brown mahogany tables, and different cubical shapes. The place seemed so tidy; Yume almost felt guilt stepping onto the iridescently sparkling floor. As she entered, the receptionist motioned for her to sit on one of the couches in the corner of the room, and Yume required no further prompts. She didn't want to make any mistakes, knowing this could be her mother's last chance. Her eyes watered at the thought, but she blinked them away, frowning in determination; this was only more of a reason for her to take the job. She sat on the edge of the black-leather couch, crossing her legs, and scanning the room. I must stick out like a sore thumb… Yume looked down at her outfit. It consisted of what it normally would, just a little bit nicer for the job interviews. A dress, reaching to about her knees, adorned her along with a matching purse of bright blue. A contemporary, brown leather belt held the dress to her waist and she wore shoes with mixtures of the green and blue in them. Today would be the day she could gain the opportunity to save her mother's life.
The door in the back of the room opened slowly. Yume jolted her head towards it to see a man in a suit with a black tie standing in the doorway. He smiled – no – smirked at her. "Ah, you must be…" his voice trailed off as he glanced towards his clipboard, "uh… - forgive me if I pronounce this incorrectly – Kazuyaki, Yume?"
She arose at full attention, obviously nervous, bowed respectfully, and spoke in a quickened tone, "Yes… that's correct!" She obviously seemed new at this, "B-but you may call me Yume, if you'd like!"
End Flashback
She was lost in town. Yume frantically glanced around each and every corner of Saffron City, but nothing seemed familiar to her. Each alley had the same, yellow buildings; each corner held another alley. With newly purchased bags in tow, Kazuyaki desperately sprinted around the city, looking for some sign of her apartment buildings. She stopped near one street; something about it seemed familiar, or maybe something drew her to it. Whatever it was, she calmly walked down the ominous alley looking for fate to guide her. The buildings on either side rose above the sun, bringing a dimmed light to it. Then, suddenly from behind her, two men stepped from the corners, eyeing her up and down.
"Oh, look what we have here." The first said, he was a tall, scrawny kid that seemed about Yume's age. He wore a beanie and a tarnished vest over a black shirt with jeans containing holes in them. Yume rolled her eyes at the pathetic site; he looked like the generic troublemaker. The other was a bit more brawny but equally as annoying. He retained a stupid grin on his face and appeared to be the lackey of the former.
"Not a bad lookah, 'eh?" said the second with a heavy city accent. He reached a hand to Yume's face, but she sharply knocked it away, "…and feisty, I like tha'."
"Listen, you two," Kazuyaki shot a sharp glare at both of them, "all I need to know is where the Saffron Hotel is." She glanced at her pokegear; it read 11:30. I don't have time for this…
"And what makes you think you have the right to demand that information?" The scrawny one said, his face slowly forming into a grin, "I got an ide'er: How about if you beat me in a pokemon battle, I'll give you directions." His face contorted, showing more evil, "an' if I win…"
Yume frowned, "And if you win…?" She prompted him.
"Then you gotta gimme a peck, right 'ere." He pointed at his lips and puckered disgunstingly.
"And if I refuse?"
"Then ol' Chumley 'ere'll make sure you don't leave this alley." At the mention of his name, Chumley punched one of his palms with one of his fists and grinned wider. "I'll even be a gentleman an' let you see which pokemon I choose."
10:42. "This won't take too long," Yume replied smugly. The kid summoned a Houndoom at her response, which yawned, releasing some flames as it exited its prison. "Go, Furaito! Make this quick!" Altaria emerged in a blinding light, stretching its vocal chords as it was freed.
The boy held a straight face, "Now ai'nt that just the cutest pokemon?"
Yume beamed, forgetting what the kid had been forcing her into, "Isn't he?!" she exclaimed. The others burst out laughing, of course, which only angered Kazuyaki. "Furaito, use Dragon Dance!" She cried, and Altaria followed the command exquisitely.
"Oh, we're terrified! A dance taking down 'oundoom? Get real! 'oundoom! Use Inferno!" Houndoom breathed in preparation for its strongest attack, releasing a raging fury of fire towards Altaria. However, with its newly improved speed, Altaria could dodge such a reckless attack with ease. In retaliation, Yume ordered it to use Dragonbreath, which hit its mark with ease since Houndoom was still releasing flame from its mouth. That one hit seemed to shut the city dwellers up well. They stood stunned at Furaito's ability to dodge the attack and inflict so much damage upon their Houndoom with a single attack. It seemed as though they had misjudged their opponent, and they were ripe for payback. Next, Yume commanded her pokemon to swoop in for a sky attack. This snapped the troublemaker out of his awe-struck trance to call out for his pokemon to use flamethrower. The fire spewed at the hurtling dragon, but seemed to go around him as he remained unflinching through his dive bomb. Just before hitting the ground, Altaria changed direction straight towards Houndoom, providing ideal damage and toppling the dog. This knocked Houndoom out, but Altaria's endure of his attack severely burned the bird and sent him into a state of delirium. Both returned their pokemon.
"She was a lot more powerful 'an we expected, boss!" Chumley explained the obvious to his awe-struck 'boss.'
"So you gonna lead the way to the hotel? A man's only as good as his word," Yume smiled and said cheerfully at the end of their skirmish. She was back to her old self again. Still, all the scrawny kid could do was nod slowly and motion for her to follow. She looked down at her watch… 11:55?! I'm going to be late thanks to these bums!
The hotel was only about 5 minutes' walking distance from where they were, but the bus had already arrived. She sprinted upstairs and threw all of her newly purchased supplies into a sack to take on the bus and looked around for any other "medical necessities" quickly. She decided to swipe all of her makeup and perfume that'd fit into the bag. These are certainly medical necessities! She looked at her watch, saw it was 12:07, and sprinted toward the bus in front of the hotel, hoping she wasn't too late. When Yume mounted, 6 people were already on the bus, but she was relieved to have made it before it left. "Sorry I'm late, everyone! Heh, I was kinda forced into a battle by some people…" Her voice trailed off as she rubbed her neck and closed her eyes to divert eye contact. She walked to a seat in the front of the bus and sat down by herself, looking out the window. This was the opportunity that was given to her… and she almost blew it.
Flashback
Yume left the interview; her head was still light, hands still sweaty. "You seem like a decent candidate for the position. You will receive a letter in the mail if we see you are worthy for the position," were the words that replayed in her head for the remainder of that day.
She lived in pure anxiety for the next few weeks until she received her letter. She read the letter over and over in disbelief. But then, one line alarmed her. "In one week, a private bus…" One week?! How will I ever make it all the arrangements in a single week? I need to get a haircut, get my nails done, move from Johto to Kanto, say goodbye to Moth—What will I tell Mother? I need to call her now…
Yume picked up the phone and dialed the familiar hospital phone by now. She tapped her foot quickly as thoughts raced in her mind. Should I tell her the truth? That I'm working for Silph Co.? That would break her heart, though… Maybe I'll just— "Hello?" a familiar, calming voice emitted from the phone, interrupting her thoughts.
"Mom?"
"Hey! How's my Dream been?" Yume's mother always called her 'Dream.' After all, that is what her name meant from some language.
"I've been wonderful, and… I should tell you something…" Yume's voice trailed off into a confessing tone.
"What is it?" Her mother's cheerful voice was weighted with worry.
"I..." Yume began with regret, but gained happiness as she told the good news, "I got a well-paying job that'll be able to pay for your surgery!"
"A-are you serious?"
"Yes, Mom, I can finally help you," Yume's eyes welled with tears of joy, "you'll get the surgery."
"Honey, I don't know what to say, that's wonderful!" She also seemed close to crying.
"The only problem is it'll involve a lot of traveling, so I won't be able to see you after today, but I'll always be sending you money and calls. I'll stop by the hospital today to say 'goodbye.'"
"Honey, I'm so proud of you…"
After the phone call, Yume felt regret for not saying the whole truth. Would she really be proud if she knew Yume was working for Silph Company? Whatever the case, dreams had to be earned: one way, or another.
Flashback End