Time and Time Again
After looking through her bag a few more several, frantic times, the girlâs panic began to team up with the intense heat, draining her even more. This was a mystery, indeed. She knew that she had packed water, she always does! Whether it be for a brief walk to the Cerulean Cape, or an expedition such as this one, she never forgot to stay hydrated. Yet here she was, rummaging through her bag with no hope in sight.
She was so concerned with her dilemma that she had stopped right in her tracks, without telling Touya to wait up for her. Great, now sheâll probably have to run to catch up with the jerk. Just what she needed. But when she looked up, to much relief, Touya had noticed she wasnât walking alongside him anymore, and had been watching her, waiting. He was also holding something out to the girl, something that brought even more relief- water.
Though his tone wasnât very pleasant, Misty was grateful to the boy. But instead of giving a âthank youâ, without thinking, the snatched the canteen out of his hand, throwing her head back, and guzzled. She didnât think about saving any for him, either, until there were about three good swallows left of it. She suddenly stopped herself and looked at Touya as she wiped her mouth. She could feel her body becoming replenished fairly soon after. She put the canteen back in his hands, and continued ahead.
"Letâs keep going."
The stairs were even closer in sight, though they were a bit distorted from the visible heat waves. And in no time, the doorway was only a few steps away. The moment Misty stepped through, the tug of the heat set her free, only pressing against her back now, then not at all.
âPhew..â Misty whistled under her breath. âIt sure feels good to cool down.â
She began up the stairs with Touya. From where she was standing, she could see the entrance into the next room, but not what was in it. After seeing what looked and felt like a freaking sun in the room before, she didnât know what to expect.
As they got closer, Misty could feel the temperature dropping. Which, at the time, she wasnât complaining. Then, she felt something ice cold and moist hit the side of her face. Suddenly, more of the same sensation hit her, chilling her plentiful amount of bare skin. She reached the top step, and stared in shock at the atrocious blizzard waiting them in the next room.
Misty certainly wasnât prepared for this. She wasnât dressed for cold weather, let alone a snow storm! Winter was a while away, how would she have known sheâd be up against this?
Regardless, the girl trekked on. As if sheâd prove that stupid boy right! She was ready for anything thrown at her! Heck, bring on the snowballs!
Her triumphant marching began to wither away from the deepening snow over time. Her knees bumped into one another as she started to violently shiver. The snow went halfway up her calves when she stepped into it. The best way she could cover herself up was crossing her ice-cold arms over her chest.
So maybe that idiot was right about something. She certainly wasnât prepared for this. And every skilled traveler knows to expect the unexpected.
She gave a spiteful glare to Touya. It made her furious that he was right. How dare he be so smart! And boy, did that horrid jacket look warm and toasty at the time.Â
Touya allowed his eyes to wander aside when Misty indulged herself on his water. As much as she aggravated him by seemingly thrusting him into the role of the responsible one among the two, he had no intention of policing her or staring at her while she drank. That would have been rude. Heaven forbid Touya from being rude to the... girl.
Instead, he gazed at the dunes stretching around them, and for the first time found himself wondering about the nature of this bizarre tower.
Only once the canteen had been returned to him did Touya snap out of his reverie and move his attention back to Misty. If not for the fact that the gym leader was already pressing onward, rejuvenated, Touya would have inquired why his canteen felt so much lighter all of a sudden. Surely Misty hadn't drank it dry? However, the male trainer could hardly register the reduced weight, forced to stuff the canteen back in his bag as quickly as possible and follow the redhead lest he was left behind.
Although, once the two reached the next room, Touya almost wished he had been left behind.
He hated the cold. Heat was manageable, but cold was the silent killer. Granted, taken to extremes, both ends of the temperature spectrum were unhealthy... but there was a reason Touya wore that blue jacket of his more often than not. He was sensitive to the cold on a level that did not extend the same way to heat.
Immediately huddling into himself upon entering the frozen tundra, Touya felt tremors begin to pass through his body. And, on reflex, his eyes fell on Misty. More accurately, he looked at what she wore.
That... that stupid girl! He told her earlier that the way she was dressed wasn't fit for this expedition. They didn't know what they were up against. Now she was going to freeze to death unless they made it to the next floor posthaste.
Touya already opened his mouth, about to say just that -- telling Misty to make it to the stairs as fast as she could -- when a single thought flashed through his head and petrified his tongue. 'Don't let her run off ahead,' it said.
The words dying in Touya's throat, the young man started marching alongside the redhead, grappling with his growing inner turmoil. He didn't know why, or how, but the idea of letting Misty rush onward raised an ever growing number of red flags in his head.
'Give her the jacket,' his mind urged him, and Touya visibly balked, tensing up even more around himself. To part with the one thing keeping his body heat contained? For her?! But with each step, it seemed something far stronger within Touya had already made up the young man's mind for him. It was an abstract feeling, one Touya couldn't quite put his finger on, but the dread in the pit of his stomach told him was that letting Misty run to the stairs was a bad idea.
It would only make things worse.
Consciously, Touya tried to make sense of it all by deciding he felt too responsible for Misty and her amateurish ways. Yes, that's what it all was - a sense of responsibility. Subconsciously, though... who knew where these flashes of insight stemmed from...
Without warning, the sound of a zipper pierced through the crisp air, followed by the rustling of fabric. With much trepidation and disdain, Touya shook off his jacket and tossed it at Misty.
"Wear that and let's just-- just get outta here!" Already he felt the unbearable chill numbing him to the bone.
Granted, the jacket would have done nothing to keep Misty's legs protected, but it was at least something. And the most important thing was, it kept Misty from running ahead to the next room. The very same room Touya was now hurriedly making for. The very same room that, once the two entered it, would very nearly knock Touya off his feet.
For it seemed the next room deposited the duo straight in the middle of a violent storm, the unrelenting wind howling in their ears, vision obscured by a dark fog.
