"What?"

"You asked me what my story was about. It's about a boy who survives Mount Vesuvius's eruption and tries to journey somewhere safe, but he is crippled by his new disease, pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanokoniosis."

Ruby Concord and Sapphire Birch were notorious amongst their school's literary department as the dueling duo. They were the two most talented writers of their class. Teachers raved about each of them. In fact, they had decided to become rivals before they'd even met; they heard about each other through other people—friends, teachers, et cetera—and when they actually did meet for the first time, they were instantly enemies. Sapphire's bashful friend Yellow often retold the story of their first encounter in the school's library and how sparks almost literally flew.

Because there were many very significant differences between the duo.

Ruby's tales were always possible. All of his works were quite realistic, including his current historical fiction, which dated back into 79 A.D. He wrote articles for the school newspaper, entered essay contests, things of the sort. His knowledge of history and philosophy and science could put even an ancient Greek to shame.

Sapphire, on the other hand, wrote stories. And they were just that. Stories. She was famous for her wide array of poems, Fanfictions, and, of course, just plain old stories. Since she discovered her love of storytelling, scenes and characters had spun around her head, like idea-bugs caught in the intricately-woven web of her mind. Her goal was to write a novel sometime soon. Even though she was just a high schooler and it wouldn't be famous, she wanted something published for real.

And that would be so much easier with the grant from the Azure Auction.

Each year, Blue Cupcake Publishers (a successful publishing corporation founded by a very famous and talented author named Penelope Joy) sponsored a contest called Azure Auction that offered grants and publishing opportunities to exceptional young writers. Sapphire had entered the branch of the contest that included her school's area.

Of course, Ruby had entered as well.

Which was why they were constantly asking about each others' stories, trying to see what the competition was like. Frankly, Sapphire thought they had made it more of a competition with each other than it actually was with other student writers, even if they were only in the preliminary rounds currently. Still, Sapph wanted to try her best from the start.

So naturally she asked, "What in the hell is that?"

Ruby bristled. Sapphire's questions often sounded more like accusations. "A lung disease caused by silica dust from volcanoes."

Sapphire rolled her eyes at his extensive knowledge and inwardly thought: Bo-o-o-o-ring. If that was the best that even Ruby could come up with, she was a shoe-in.

"Alright, well if you're going to roll your eyes, your story must be so much better," Ruby retorted sarcastically. "What's it about?"

Sapphire stuck her tongue out. "No way am I gonna tell the likes of ya!"

"I still cannot believe that a girl who speaks like a barbarian can write so well."

"And I can't believe that a prissy boy like ya actually can wrap his mind around something more than fashion."

It was a well-known fact that Ruby was in the school's Sewing Club. Of course, Ruby wasn't gay. He was just fabulous.

"Birch. Concord. Stop bickering," ordered their English teacher as she passed back an old test. Both Ruby and Sapphire obliged; Miss Roxanne was not an instructor to be reckoned with. Jokingly, she had a ceramic jar on her desk that read "ashes of problem students" (though some people questioned how much of that was really a joke.)

From in front of Sapphire, Gold Aurum remarked, "Miss Roxanne, I hope this test wasn't as depressing to grade as it was to take."

Miss Roxanne handed him his paper. "It pretty much was."

At lunch, a strange happening occurred that only further stretched the oddness that the writing competition ensued; Ruby and Sapphire sat together at lunch, as if trying to spy on one another to see if they'd give away clues.

Now, Ruby and Sapphire ran in relatively similar circles (as cruel as that was.) He knew most of her friends and she knew most of his (she was rather boyish and he was rather girlish, so they found it easy to make friends with almost anyone—except each other.) But although they had many mutual acquaintances, they had never sat at the same lunch table, and with so many people it got rather crowded. All of Sapphire's friends seemed fine with it, though. But not everyone from Ruby's bunch was pleased.

"Tell me again why I'm seated next to this?" Crystal Stellae, a fellow Sewing Club member, asked, jabbing a finger in the direction of Gold Aurum.

Sapphire cocked her head curiously at them. She was sitting next to Crystal, and although they had often done partner work with her in classes past, she'd never really thought she had known Gold. Apparently she did, though, and apparently the two did not exactly get along.

Nobody answered Crystal's question, though, and while Gold continued to mess with her, Sapphire glanced across the table. "Hey Red," she called to her friend, halting his *ahem* not stalker-ish gawking at Blue Argentum (and thus ceasing Silver Argentum's pointed glare in Red's direction.) "What's the strangest pet you've ever had?" Sapphire asked.

Red narrowed his eyebrows. "Um…oh! My old cat was really fat and only had one ear."

Sapphire nodded. "Hm…and what about you, Yellow?"

Yellow flinched, as if having attention on her physically jolted her. "My mouse."

"How is that strange?"

"He was a mouse and his name was Ratty."

"Ah." Sapphire turned back to the bluenette beside her. "How 'bout you, Crys? What's the strangest pet you've ever had?"

Crystal considered for a moment. "Gold."

"…"

"…"

"…Alright then." Sapphire saw out of the corner of her eye that Ruby was watching her suspiciously. Her lips curved into a smile. She was only asking all those strange things to throw him off. Her real story would be much better than that.

Sapphire submitted her completed short story that afternoon, and received an email from the Azure Auction House just two days later as she was opening her locker. She opened it on her phone, frazzled with nerves and anxiety, and her breath caught.

So all the teachers and peers who had ever complimented her on her writing had not been lying. All of her reviewers and subscribers and followers had a reason. She was officially a decent writer. She was officially moving on.

"YES!" she screamed aloud and thrust a fist into the air. She couldn't wait to gloat to Ruby, regardless of whether he'd moved on or not. Quickly she scrolled down and read the comments of the panelists who'd read her work: her story of a futuristic world in which the planet was covered in metal and lacked nature was apparently compelling and thrilling. She couldn't believe it. Someone real and official liked her work!

Below read the challenge for the next round. The first had just been a free write, but now they would have rules for their pieces. Sapphire's elated feelings dropped right down to her feet.

Partner up with a fellow competitor from your area (or contact us for an assigned partner you can work with through email) to write a story. You will both write separate stories—so you both will be judged separately—based off of the same scenario. Submit your work together so that we may also evaluate your combined ideas. This encourages the teamwork that will strengthen you when you have to work on projects with multiple people in the future. Best of luck!
—Azure Auction House

Sapphire stared at the screen for a long time. Writing a story with someone she didn't even know through email would just be troublesome. And there was only one other competitor in her school. Which meant…

"Sapphire."

She spun to see Ruby and wrinkled her nose. "So I guess you've heard."

He held up his phone. "I moved on too."

"So we're going to have to find a way to work with each other."

"We're going to have to."

The library was calm and quiet in the hours after school.

Except for one table…

"I refuse to write this garbage."

"Excuse me? I don't see the problem! Ya're the problem!"

"Oh, right, because it's completely logical to have the setting be in a city on clouds."

"Do I smell sarcasm?"

"You can't smell sarcasm, bozo."

Sapphire groaned and shoved a fist through her messy caramel locks. The two simply could not agree on a topic for their story. She knew it would keep going like this, until the deadline got closer and closer and they still didn't have a clue of what to write, much less their individual parts. Ruby wanted to write something plausible, as always; some realistic fiction that could actually occur. Sapph wanted something more exciting with more spark.

She splayed her hands across the table, crinkling the draft papers she had out before her. "Okay, we need more time to think, and we need to clear our heads. We're getting nowhere by just sitting in this musty old place bickering. Let's go somewhere else and talk. Maybe a fresh setting will open our minds so that ya don't snap at everything I say."

Ruby sighed and conceded. "Fine."

"Of all the things to do on a Friday afternoon, and we're doing this?"

Ruby had thought it was at least a little normal that Sapphire dragged him to get ice cream cones, but the event twisted until she was leading him down the bike trail. They would end up in the park, but not for a while.

"This place clears my mind. I don't know about a stuffy sissy like ya," Sapphire shot back. She'd finished her ice cream long ago though Ruby was just getting down to the cone. She didn't have to make any witty comment, though; her withering look said it all.

Ruby tried to take in what Sapphire meant. He'd once been outdoorsy. The way that the canopy of leaves above let in fractured rays of sunlight had always fascinated him, and fresh air was good for the lungs, but he couldn't stand the bipolar weather of April; one moment it was sweltering warm, and the next he was shivering. Plus, bugs. He cringed just thinking about all of the ants and gnats and flies and spiders…

And yet Sapphire was completely in her own element. She only seemed to flourish in the sunlight.

Ruby scoffed inwardly as he slowed to wait for her; she was twirling, staring up at the pockets of cerulean she could see through the trees. I guess we really are opposites, he thought. Like reality and daydream. Day and night. Fire and water. Sky and sea. And as he watched the light play on Sapphire—the sun catching her hair and turning it fiery red for a fraction of a moment—he realized that just because they were opposites didn't mean they couldn't compromise.

He stopped dead in his tracks and reached out to grab her wrist. She whirled around, messy hair flying, eyes glinting. Her hand slid into his. "What?" she barked, her wolf-like fangs visible.

"Sapphire…what if the city wasn't in the sky?" he asked. "What if it was under the ocean?"

Her eyes widened, gleaming and shining and shifting like the churning waves of the sea. He could see everything in them; the wide ocean, the open skies, and most of all, her. He could read her eyes like one of her stories as they changed from surprise to comprehension.

"That's perfect!" she shouted, and suddenly, her arms were around him. "Ruby, you're a genius!" He didn't see exactly how he was a genius for just turning her idea around, but he wasn't about to argue. Frankly, he didn't think he could form an intelligent word even if he tried.

Sapphire pulled back and held him at arms' length. "You can write about something realistic or whatever. Like people investigating some rumoured city underneath the sea—Atlantis, or something. And I can write a fantasy about the people who live there, who dodge your characters and are sea people or mermaids or something and live in this city…oh, it's perfect!" Her beam was wide and toothy and Ruby felt something shift deep inside him. Like a flower buds in spring, something in his heart was blooming.

Sapphire nervously tapped the edge of her locker. The pieces were submitted ages ago. What was taking the judges so long? She'd never been a phone-obsessed kid, but now she checked her email relentlessly.

Then finally—an email. From them. The results were in.

She opened the message tentatively. It had to be okay. It had to. She and Ruby had spent hours in the library and at their own respective computers, going through drafts and editing and proofreading and adding details.

They had worked so hard for their idea, and she had to admit, when she wasn't spending all her time arguing with him, there was a side to Ruby that…wasn't unpleasant. And who knew? Maybe the feeling was mutual. She had watched a few times in the library as Ruby would sneak peeks at her from behind books or above his laptop. Maybe, even if they didn't make it further, they wouldn't despise each other so much anymore. Maybe they could work together again. Just the thought made Sapphire strangely jittery.

But first came the contest at hand. Sapphire read the email. And then read it again. And again.

And then she dropped her phone.

All of the air was sucked out of her lungs.

…

…

…

After just a few seconds of numbness, Sapphire moved quick as a cat. She scooped up her phone, threw it in her locker, slammed the door, and turned to go into her class.

But just as she was about to duck into the room, she caught sight of Ruby. He was back in the hallway. He didn't look like someone who had just been eliminated. They judged him differently, she reminded herself. Maybe he's still in the running. She told herself that she should be happy, but she couldn't bring herself to conjure anything but a piercing jab to her heart.

Ruby's eyes read: Did you make it?

And the tears she was blinking back must have sufficed as an answer, because his garnet eyes widened in shock. Before he had time to approach her, she slunk into her class.

Sapphire couldn't bring herself to talk to Ruby all week. It wasn't too hard; for people who ran in similar circles, they certainly ran in wide enough circles that they didn't have to see each other. Ruby probably pitied her. He probably didn't want her to feel bad. Or maybe he thought she was below him. She knew what a prissy brat he could be sometimes; maybe he decided she wasn't worth his time anymore. And just when I thought we were becoming friends…

But the following week, his voice startled her. She turned to find him barreling down the hallway at the end of the day, screaming, "SAPPHIRE BIRCH!"

Well, there was no avoiding him now. She shouldered her backpack and regarded him stiffly. "What?" She worried that it came out harsher than she'd meant.

"You need to come with me," he told her, severity flashing in his namesake eyes. He reached out for her arm.

Sapphire recoiled. "I don't need to do anything."

"Fine. I need you to come with me. Please."

Sapphire puffed out a breath. "Fine."

Ruby instantly grabbed her hand and pulled her along. (And if Sapphire wasn't completely focused on the warmth of his hand pressed against hers, she probably would have noticed an uncharacteristically nervous Red stuttering out, "Blue, will you go out on a—" before unfortunately getting cut off with one of Gold and Crys's quarrels.)

Ruby apparently had no idea where to go really, so they ended up outside of the library on an old wooden bench, staring at hedges, blossoming flowers, and the general stony landscape of the grove between the library and the municipal complex.

"Okay," he started, "so I got kicked out of the contest today. The latest task was to write about someone or something that's inspirational to you. And I guess I wasn't really focused on making my writing sound good. I was just basically focusing on writing. It's a true story about someone out of a daydream. This amazing, fantastical creature who looks like a human, but she's not. She's so much more. She doesn't try to be anyone else but herself. She walks on dirty trails outside and while other girls would be shopping or doing almost anything else, she spins in the sunlight. And she comes up with these impossible stories. I swear, there's a whole universe in that head of hers. And I guess some people don't really get it; she isn't perfect, but whatever she is, she's worth it. My story was called 'Wild Girl'. And even though we got off to a rocky start, I want to know her. I want to know her better than anyone else. And I want her to tell me I'm not crazy for feeling something so suddenly. But I feel like it's like a flower in the winter, waiting to sprout. Or a dormant volcano just waiting to blow its top. Sapph, tell me I'm not crazy. Tell me I'm not imagining this."

Sapphire's chest felt so tight. She felt like she had silica dust in her lungs. Tentatively, she leaned forward and reached her hands up. Then, just like that, the volcano exploded, and she threw her arms around him, pressing her lips against his. A zillion sparks flew, and not the kind that they felt when they first met. The opposite, in fact. Rivalry turned into affection like night turned to day—slow and steady, and then suddenly the sun was racing up the horizon, streaking the sky with colours that no paint could mimic.

Sapphire leaned her forehead against Ruby's. "If you're crazy, then I am too."

A/N:

HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY BLUE-SAN~!
DID YOU THINK I WOULD FORGET? I WOULD NOT. IT'S ON MY CALENDER XD

Okay so I'm pretty sure you like Franticshipping (yes? no? maybe? too late now I already wrote this :P )
Anyways, you are a FABULOUS person; it was so awesome to work with you for PokeFanficStudio's very first project, and I'm really looking forward to chatting with you & reading your stories in the future! :D
And did you see? I put two Luckyshipping hints in here. TWO. Only for you, and only 'cos they're your OTP. Like it literally went against every fiber of my being, but hey, it's your birthday XD
And I don't know what time it is where you are, but here with me it's 11:18 PM on April 25, 2014. SO it's still your birthday over here. ;)

Anyways, thank you all for reading! Go read Blue-san's stories my lovelies (she's CupcakePenelope on YouTube and bluey-bear here on FF) if you want da quality stuffs (be warned, she's a Luckyshipper owo)

Rant over! Thanks for reading!

-Silvia

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or anything else!