From: RobfromVoid <RobfromVoid@prodigy.net> Subject: [PW!] Happy Birthday, Rilli! Date: Sunday, January 02, 2000 7:45 PM Mithril-rama awakens when she feels a pleasant sensation on her feet. She sits up in bed and looks ahead to see the cause of the sensation - Robert, the self-proclaimed massage therapist, is kneeling before the bed, giving her a foot massage. Rilli notices something else- though she went to bed wearing only socks to protect her feet from the cold, she is now wearing fuzzy Nidoran slippers! The left one is purple and has the image of a male Nidoran's face as the bulbous part of the sandal, long pointy ears and everything, and the right one is blue and resembles a female Nidoran. Rilli smiles, "What's this for, Robert?" "I wouldn't want you to get cold feet, especially not on your birthday!" Robert stands up and joins Rilli at her bedside. He gives her a hug and a kiss on the lips, then with his arm still wrapped around her back, he exclaims, "Happy 15th Birthday, Rilli!" "Thanks..." Mithril-rama stretches, having just woken up, "But I told you not to buy me any extra presents. Where did you get these slippers? When did you get these slippers? It's not that I don't like them, they're beautiful, but..." Robert places his finger on Rilli's lips and explains, "I woke up at 8 AM and went out to buy presents to make your birthday more special. I got these at an after-Christmas clearance sale. They were all out of pairs of male Nidoran slippers and pairs of female Nidoran slippers, but there was one left of each, fortunately a left one and a right one! I guess it's too tacky for most people. I figure that since you'd only be wearing for me, and since I think they're cute, that's okay! Do you like them?" "Yeah, they're great, but the Clefairy doll you gave me for Christmas was enough. I don't need anything special..." Mithril-rama pauses, just soaking in what Robert had told him, "Did you say *presents*? As in plural? Oh, Robert, you really shouldn't have spent that money on me. The money that Blaine gave you should go towards funding your Pokemon Journey's expenses..." Robert shrugs at the loss of money, "The way I figure, my Pokemon Journey will be over today. We're on the road to Viridian City, which means that later today, I'm going to challenge Giovanni for an Earth Badge! With your help, I think that I can defeat him. When I do, I'll have earned all eight Badges - my goal since the day that I started my quest. The Elite Four will have to wait until I have trained my Pokemon more. The Elite are probably busy with that Indigo Plateau Tournament now, anyhow. Besides, one Pokédoll, no matter how cute it might be, cannot compare to the gift of love you gave me on my birthday!" Rilli tries to remember the gift she gave Robert on his birthday, "The dragon pendant? I got that for you at the last minute..." "No." Robert shakes his head, "The dragon pendant was great, and it has come to symbolize the love expressed on that day. That was the day that you finally kissed me on the lips for real. Not like that fake time in the Hedge Maze... I hate that Ditto. But the real kiss came only after we mutually expressed our love for each other and finally became boyfriend and girlfriend. That was the best gift I have ever gotten, and though I can't fathom to match the greatness of that gift, I can try by getting you many presents, each more special than the last." Robert smiles at her, seeing that her eyes are watery, "And now, get dressed for your next gift... We're taking a very special romantic 'road to Viridian City', one rarely traveled by most..." After treating Rilli to a delicious breakfast at the Celadon City Pokemon Center, Robert and his girlfriend head out into Celadon's streets. Floating right behind them wherever they go is a ghostly purple couple - Robert's male Gengar and Rilli's female Haunter, who carries their lavender egg. It isn't as cold as it was yesterday, but snow remains on the ground. Robert is wearing the dark blue ski jacket that Rilli gave him for Christmas, and Rilli is hugging the Clefairy Pokédoll that Robert gave her for Christmas. Robert leads Rilli towards the west. On the way there, Rilli argues, "This is the way to Fuschia City..." "Usually, but not if you take a detour westward through the woods..." Robert grins, entering the Bike Outpost, where the guard is instructed to tell people that they can only use a Bike to head down the slope west of here. Mithril-rama remembers the place from the first time they were here and had to ride a strange bike, "Oh no. Robert, are we going to ride a bike in this snowy weather? I don't think that's a good idea, even if that was a happy memory for you..." Robert shakes his head, not offering any other response. He shows a small ticket stub to the man behind the counter, who nods and allows Robert to proceed without a bike. When Robert leads Rilli through the door to the snow-covered bike slope, a skiers dream, he points to the method of transportation that they are going to take to reach Viridian City, "Happy Birthday!" Mithril-rama's jaw drops a little when she sees a majestic blue one-Rapidash open sleigh, an old white-haired male driver at the reigns. The Gengar floating behind Robert claps his hands and races his egg-carrying girl friend to the back seats on the sleigh. Rilli follows after the ghostly couple, Robert running alongside her. They sit on the front bench, their ghosts floating behind them. Robert hands his ticket stub to the old man who commands the Rapidash that pulls the sleigh. He nods and pulls on the reigns a certain way that the Rapidash stomps forward, towards the snowy slope. Bells on a wreath around the Rapidash's neck Jingle as he walks up to the slope. He takes one step forward and increases speed as he races down the slope! Robert strokes his chin and raises an eyebrow, "Hmm, this sleigh reminds me of a song... too bad that I can't remember what it is... Oh yeah, I remember! On the Road to Viridian City! We're on the Road, we're on the way, we're on the road!" Mithril-rama giggles and looks around at the scenery zipping past them as they quickly head down the slope. Alongside the sleigh are people on motorbikes, snowboards, and skis, all headed down the snowy hillside. She kisses Robert on the cheek and hugs him closely, mainly out of love, but also for the added heat. She whispers, "Thank you, Robert. This is wonderful!" "Yep, and we're probably going to make it by noon, giving me time to prepare for the match with Giovanni..." He checks his watch, which reads 11:40 AM, then looks up at the sun... but the sun doesn't correspond to his watch. The sun is rather far to the west, the place it usually is when the time is 5 PM. Robert is shocked when the sun heads towards the east, instead of towards the west. He points at the sky and exclaims, "I knew your birthday was special, Rilli, but I didn't know it was so special that it can change the rotation of the Earth! The sun is heading eastward across the sky... That doesn't make sense!" Mithril-rama looks towards where Robert is pointing and squints, "That's not the sun, Robert..." She looks straight up and points at the fiery ball of gasses thousands of miles above them, "That's the sun, which means that thing that you thought was the sun must be some sort of Pokemon." Rilli reaches into her purse and pulls out her Pokepedia. She points it at the unidentified flying object and the Pokepedia zooms in about thirty times, until it shows on the screen that it is an orange bird on fire. The Pokepedia explains, "Moltres, the Legendary Bird of Fire. Usually found roosting on mountains or in the cave on Victory Road, this Pokemon occasionally visits the area around Viridian Forest to scorch Pokemon when it is frightened. Famous for lighting the torch years ago at the Pokemon League Games, this Pokemon cannot be caught by order of the Pokemon League." Robert looks up at the fire in sky with a sense of awe, "Moltres... I didn't plan this birthday present, Rilli, but it's not every day you get to see a Legendary Pokemon! All the activity on the Indigo Plateau must've scared it away from Victory Road." Suddenly, the one-Rapidash open sleigh halts before going down the seaside bridge leading to Fuschia City and turns westward, towards the Viridian Forest. The sleigh continues until the edge of the forest, where it drops Robert and Rilli off. Gengar and Haunter float away from the carriage, following closely behind their trainers wherever they go. Mithril-rama holds Robert's hand as they head into the city, "What now, Robert? Any more surprises I should know about?" "Not until later tonight..." Robert grins and winks at Rilli while they walk through Viridian City, "...but right now lets head to the Pokemon Center so I can use the computer to exchange my Pokemon with your assistance for selecting the right ones. Before we do that, can you please trade me back Golem for Venonat? I get Psyduckbumps just from having the Bug's Pokeball on my belt!" Robert shivers as he heads into the Viridian City Pokemon Center, for once with his girlfriend at his side. (( NS: You might be wondering: Hey, isn't Rilli's birthday on December 26?! [If you read Nendil's posts religiously, that is.] In case you are, check out today's Pokewars Comic Strip, found at "http://pokewars.upnetwork.com/fanart/comics/" )) -Robert