"Waitaminute, what?!"
The outburst wasn't due to indignity or any other negative emotion. Rather...It was positive: A happy surprise. She even shot a quick, almost grinning expression towards Cobalt. Letting him know this might've been...No, was good news.
"We're not kidding Miss Paige; there is a brand new tournament calling forth the greatest Trainer's this world has to offer to see who among them is the true Master Trainer!" The voice said enthusiastically, the loud tone catching Cobalt's attention... Even if he didn't correctly hear anything intelligible...
Paige couldn't believe it. She was being invited to a Tournament. Not only was it going to put her skills to the test: It would be a great outing for Cobalt. A trip to Alola itself would probably help the Lucario with whatever bothered him. "Hold on for a sec, please?" she asked the man on the other end. When she got her chance, Paige turned to Cobalt and told him, "We just got invited to a Tournament!"
Cobalt's tilted head was all Paige needed to see in order to know she had his full attention. It had been awhile since Cobalt had properly stretched his skills and muscles in an actual Tournament of sorts, so this was an incredibly welcome change of pace from their normally mundane, busy life in Hoenn... However, there was the issue of Paige's current schedule if this tournament was anytime soon...
Oh! Thanks for reminding me!
Sure.
uh, Young?
Still grinning like a maniac, Paige went back to her phone conversation. Discussing her schedule and the important details she had to sort out.
Cobalt sighed as he was left to collect his own thoughts. He could hear the chatter Paige and whoever was on the other side of the phone conversation were having, and it was clear he wasn't really needed at the moment; he sat down on the bedside and let his mind wander elsewhere to pass what time he wasn't needed...
Soon, the phone call was over with every little detail down. Paige and Cobalt had just over a week to prepare everything and travel to the Alolan Region... and the trip alone would take five days fastest...
And now Paige rushed about their hotel room. Dressing as she packed some important things. You knew she must've been excited about this Tournament; The girl used to be and was still notorious for being on the sloppy side. She stopped briefly, not just to address Cobalt, but also to give her trusty hairbrush a once-over. "T-This is big. I mean...Alola."
Just seeing the one-girl chaos Paige was stirring in their hotel room was something that had to be seen to be believed; people would hardly believe that such a pretty and talented Actor like Paige could be so disorganized, and it only gave Cobalt headaches when he was sometimes left to pick up where she forgot. It was charming knowing how jittery and sloppy could be to the Lucario, it grounded her and kept her from this perfect-girl image her fanbase somehow created around her... That, and he wouldn't admit that he found her quirkiness endearing...
"From what I heard, Alola's only now getting into things like the League. But with them branching out..." A challenge. Kind of like going back to the days of Gym battling, earning her badges; The fun old days. Paige carefully tucked the brush into another bag before continuing on. "We might even get a beach vacation. A real one. If we're lucky."
Cobalt rolled his eyes from the mention of a beach vacation. The last time Paige had time to actually relax was when they went to Undella town in Unova and happened to meet Sinnoh Champion Cynthia; they never had enough time to go to a real beach since... Well, there was always the fake beaches in the studios, but those were just lame...
After everything was neatly stashed away, cleaned up, and such, Paige stood and observed her handiwork. See? Effort could let you do amazing things. Got her this far in life. They weren't leaving for weeks, but she decided to be prepared. "What d'you think? We get everything?"
Cobalt responsed with a light roll of his eyes before holding up his Pokéball in his paw. While yes, it was admirable that she managed to get the room to a near-spotless state, forgetting about their own Pokémon's Pokéball was something else...
"Oh...Oh, my...Sorry." Paige mentally slapped herself. Yeah, good going genius. And the kicker? She had packed the rest of her team away. She walked over to take Cobalt's Pokeball, glancing down at her own feet.
Even a fool could see the emotion hidden by Paige's downcast eyes, and to a Lucario like Cobalt, it was plainer than day and night. Slowly raising a paw, he lifted her head to meet her gaze with his own, the usual cold, piercing blue now a more subdued, calmer marine as he gently laid the Pokeball in her hands. She was hopeless at times, that much he already knew, but he was a partner for a reason. He wouldn't leave her, come hell or high water.
"Thanks, Cobalt." It was always good to know her pal and partner still had her back. Even with the whole distance going on. She lightly gripped the Pokeball in her hands, blushing like he often did. "Good to know you're still looking out for me."
"You want to go in? Or are you staying out?"
Cobalt shook his head "no" in response. He didn't dislike being in his Pokeball, but being inside it for a long period of time was like being surrounded by nothing... It tended to tear at his mind the longer he spent there... But back on topic, Paige seemed to have everything ready to go. Now all that was left was maybe some last-minute shopping for supplies, then it was off to Alola!
(Cut to: Shopping.)