Chapter Text
Crossing the Line
Aka: They Were Roommates (oh my Arceus they were roommates)
Dedicated to Nartothelar and Pyrachan!
Chapter One
Nimbasa City College
Although his backpack was twice his size, and it felt like the very world was resting on his shoulders, Volo could not stop smiling as he trailed through the open entrance of Nimbasa City College. The gardens were beautiful, as was to be expected from such a prestigious campus, and the scent of roses made his victory all the sweeter. He could spy some Pokémon working amongst the gardens to keep them pristine, all wearing sashes with the college’s emblem on. He recognised Pansage, but the other Unova Pokémon were unfamiliar to him.
Some wild Pidove - another Unova Pokémon he did recognise - hopped around the grass, sticking close to areas where trainers were sitting down with lunch, perhaps hoping to steal the scraps.
Volo stopped and stood a moment, letting the atmosphere and the fresh air wash over him. Studying here was going to be a dream . Things were going to turn out a lot better here than they would’ve if he’d been forced into going to Hisui University…
His smile nearly faltered at the thought of that place, but thanks to a talented and discrete tech specialist, Volo had secured his position in Nimbasa City. Who said money couldn’t buy happiness? Volo almost felt sorry for the poor fool whose mark had been swapped at random with his, but he just told himself they would do fine at Hisui, considering it had been their second choice anyway.
Besides, Volo had a tradition to break. For the first time in twenty-one years, Volo was far, far away from Sinnoh, and if his dream came true, he’d never have to go back again!
He breathed deeply, felt the wind whistle through his blond bangs, and took a step forward, just in time to walk straight into someone who had not been there moments before.
Unsteady on his feet, thanks to the ridiculously massive backpack, Volo tipped over. Whoever he’d walked into didn’t try to help him as he crashed onto the path, the sight earning a few curious glances from the other college students who’d been hanging out around the entrance.
His face burned with mortification as he pulled himself from the dirt, the pack feeling far heavier than it had moments before. He turned his eyes up to glare at the stranger who’d ruined his first day of freedom.
The sheer height of the human lamp-post made it so Volo had to crane his neck to properly see him. The words ‘dull’ and ‘colourless’ flashed in his mind. The stranger looked down at Volo from where he towered, with a wide smile that didn’t quite reach his impassive grey eyes. Even his hair was grey and devoid of any flare, besides two points that hung on either side, which could’ve been anything from bangs to sideburns.
“Watch your step,” said the man, his sentencing lacking any particular inflection. He sounded like an announcer, but lacked all sense of excitement or flare. “Safety first.”
The man did not offer Volo a hand, not that he would’ve accepted it anyway. He pulled himself to his feet, rage burning inside, although he forced it down beneath his own false smile. “I’m so sorry!” Volo said, pretending his sheer mortification was only simple embarrassment. “You really came out of no-”
Before Volo even finished the sentence, the man abruptly turned and walked away. He looked utterly ridiculous when he walked, with a wide gait that had his arms mirroring the geometric movement of his legs, like some sort of machine. If he hadn’t said anything earlier, Volo might’ve assumed he was actually a Pokémon poorly impersonating a human.
Volo’s smile nearly fell, but others were still watching him after his abrupt tumble, and he couldn’t risk losing face further on his first day. He brushed himself down, pretending to be as sheepish as he possibly could for whoever was still watching, and then he hurried on to the information centre so he could find out about his stay. Everyone else he talked to was far more helpful than the human lamp-post who’d ruined his morning, so he gradually forgot his mortification, assuring himself he’d never see the irritation again.
The information area wasn’t especially outstanding, with a main desk and a few smaller terminals for one-on-ones with helpers. There was a pinup board that was already full of flyers, some requesting trades, some offering work, and even one that advertised an end of semester ball to raise funds for a charity he’d never heard of. After a quick cursory glance, Volo lost interest.
The front desk gave him a crisp yellow envelope that contained everything he needed to start the year off: a map, his timetable, a packet of school information he definitely wasn’t going to read, contact information, a bunch of cheap freebies with the college logo on, and finally his room key.
Unfortunately, there were no single dorms on campus, but at the very least he’d managed to secure a room for only two, rather than one that accommodated even more students. Hopefully he would get paired with someone who wouldn’t become an annoyance, and if he wasn’t that lucky, then…
As if they could read his mind, the front desk worker quickly assured him that if there were any problems with his roommate, he could request a swap, and his good mood was not only restored, but lifted higher than before.
Volo carried his pack and his crisp yellow envelope to the other side of campus, where tall buildings stood for the dormitories. It took him a while to figure out the coding system, which was in the form of some basic Pokémon types. He was in Dormitory Fire, which should have been easier to find considering the entire exterior was painted a cringe-worthy red, with some flat flames spray painted on the side for more ‘flare’. The word he wanted to use, however, was ‘tackey’. At least the inside was nicely decorated, and the red carpets suited the wooden panelling of the hallways.
The elevator up to the correct floor was slow, but it was better than walking the several flights of steps, and at least his door wasn’t far from the floor’s small lobby - or from one of the floor’s shared bathrooms. Volo took a moment to glance up and down the hallway, taking notice of the general atmosphere. There were a few other college students milling about with their Pokémon, but they weren’t close enough for him to bother forcing a greeting. Some doors were also left open, perhaps as a gesture of welcoming, or for the ease of shifting furniture about.
The door to his room was firmly shut. Perhaps Volo’s roommate hadn’t arrived yet, or maybe they were just cautious about leaving the door open for strangers. Or, third option, there had been a freak accident and Volo’s mysterious roommate had tragically dropped out of the college and Volo wouldn’t be forced to play nice with someone for three years while they ignored his personal space!
With a dreamy smile, Volo removed his shoes and opened the door to his room. He’d expected the rectangle of space to smell musty from disuse, but the window was open, allowing a soft wind to enter through the fly screen. Unfortunately, his first and third theories were instantly disproven. The left-hand side of the room had already been set up in a way that was pedantically perfect, and there was the lingering scent of strong cologne.
The bed had been made without a single crease in the white sheets, the study desk was already set out neatly with documents, stationery, and an outdated laptop that made Volo’s lip curl. The only part of the left-side’s decor that offered some hope that his roommate wasn’t some anal-retentive control freak was a small black cushion beside the wall. Next to it were two small bowls for water and kibble.
At the college, each trainer was only allowed to bring one Pokémon, which had to be expressly approved before Orientation Day. Volo had brought something powerful, to prove his capabilities above the other students, but by the look of it, his roommate must’ve brought something stupid, like a Glameow. Even then, it must’ve been a runt, for the pillow and dishes were so small…
Volo brushed off any further consideration on the topic as he placed his shoes by the door, deciding he was desperate to just put his bag down and set up his bed enough so he could crash. Unpacking everything else could come later - far later. His yellow and white striped duvet was quickly unrolled from the top of his pack and half-heartedly draped over his mattress. There was no need to compete with the sheer precision of his roommate’s bed-making-skills, since Volo knew that was a competition he wouldn’t even want to win. A pillow was wrestled from the top of his wardrobe, and he at least managed to hang up a few clothes before he was troubled by the feeling of being watched…
A quick glance of the room told him he was alone. Even so, the sensation didn't abate, and he was left feeling unnerved.
He shook his head and returned to packing clothes away, although he only got through his shirts and half of his jackets before he decided he’d done enough for one day. The rest of his clothes were abandoned on the floor, from when he’d pulled them all from his bag, and Volo set his favourite cap down on his bedside table - a place of honour.
The mattress was firm and would require some getting used to, but after carrying his overloaded backpack for too many hours, Volo thought sleep would find him quick enough…
He was wrong.
The feeling of eyes on him refused to disappear. He rolled around a few times, his jacket rubbing against the blanket as he tried to find a position that was comfortable. Then he felt something on his chest.
Volo opened his eyes. Something small and yellow stared back at him with four eyes: small, beady, purple eyes. Despite the strange colouration, he recognised the type of Pokémon that had latched onto his jacket almost immediately: a Joltik.
Volo waited to see if the Pokémon would do anything, but it simply sat on his chest and squeaked. Presuming it was a wild one that had somehow hidden in the room over the end of year break, he figured he could move it off him and then catch it in a Pokéball so he could release it outside. However, when he tried to pick it up, the Joltik was not pleased.
A shock of electricity coursed through his hand - not enough to really hurt, but certainly enough to startle him. Volo flung the bug on the floor and watched as it scurried beneath the bed of his roommate, where the thing had probably been watching him earlier.
He was about to search for a spare Pokéball, but his quest was stopped when the door to the room rattled. The knob turned with the assistance of a key, meaning the one entering could only be his new roommate, and Volo did his best to look as presentable as possible.
First impressions were everything , and he was intent on making the best first impression he could!
Then he saw his new roommate and his chest fell through the floor.
The man who entered looked the same as he had earlier that morning, when he’d walked directly in front of Volo. He shut the door and met his gaze, although this time his eyes did not seem so impassive as they swept him over like an examiner. His pointed smile was still in place, although there was a sense of neutrality about the rest of his countenance that caught Volo off guard.
His outfit was as white and pristine as his bedsheet, with a look that screamed nerd, but with a rounded hat that reminded him of a train conductor. It was all completed by a lavender tie, a single splash of colour that wasn’t quite a saving grace, and immaculate white gloves. The man hadn’t removed his shoes to enter the room, although Volo reminded himself that was a cultural difference between Sinnoh and Unova, rather than poor manners. Earlier, Volo had compared his height to a lamp-post, but his stance was also very reminiscent of one. His limbs were straight, his back was even straighter, and his chest was puffed out in a way that oozed bravado.
“I am Emmet,” said his new roommate, words sounding as clipped as a newspaper headline. “We are roommates.”
His grey eyes flicked to the mass of clothes that hid half of Volo’s flooring, and he swore he saw an irritated twitch. From his pocket, Emmet whipped out something peculiar: a white piece of chalk. With one movement that should not have been as fluid as it was, he cut a line directly through the centre of the room, separating it into the left and right zones. It started right in the centre of the doorway, and stopped at the foot of the couch - a strange no man’s land that crossed both sides of the now divided room.
Volo was still marvelling at how the man had drawn such a perfectly straight line without the aid of a ruler, until Emmet straightened again and pointed his right hand at Volo, and his left at his own side of the room.
“Unless exiting the station,” Emmet announced, “do not cross the white line.”
…Well, it was settled.
Volo was going to request a different roommate.