ermwhattehsigma

[ermwhattehsigma]

Finally, day 5! I've been looking forward to this one. For this day, I went with all three prompts! Debris, Pinned Down, and "It's broken." I worry that I might use Eternatus a lot in these coming prompts, but it's just so easy! After all, it was the big exciting incident of the game.

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The air in Raid Dens has always felt heavier and more charged than a normal cave, Hop thinks. It’s imperceptible to some, but he’s always found it to be as obvious as day and night. Gym Stadiums have a similar effect, though not quite as raw, and he only really feels it when a Pokémon’s been Dynamaxed.

Eternamax Eternatus is a different story, though.

He feels like he can hardly stand upright, let alone breathe with how oppressive the atmosphere is. The energy it emits is so powerful and so concentrated that he can literally see it. Flashes of red bolts of electricity dance amongst the flying rubble, like they’re caught in the eye of a lightning-infused hurricane. It sounds like one, too, although Hop wouldn’t know. He’s never experienced anything like this up until now.

The battle is nearing its end, though. Zacian and Zamazenta have made quick work of the ginormous beast, whittling it down with their attacks while Victor and Hop contribute where they can. Eternatus clearly cannot keep up its assault for much longer. Its claws droop, no longer posed in the menacing, reaching manner they had been earlier, and the energy around them is beginning to fade. One last burst of adrenaline rushes through him at the sight, victory now in sight.

“It’s almost down! One last push should do it!” He calls both his friend and the legendaries to action. Victor nods to him, commanding his Inteleon to use another Snipe Shot if it can.

In front of them, Zamazenta and Zacian ready the final blow. Zacian holds the sword in its mouth up high, the blade glowing and changing in size and shape. It runs forth and slashes, dodging in between the lasers fired at it from the tips of Eternatus’ fingers. Then, just as the dragon is recoiling, Zamazenta’s armor plates shift to form a shield. It leaps into the air, practically shooting itself upwards as it charges into the palm of the hand.

A screech pierces through the chaos all around them, Eternatus shrieking despite a lack of any visible mouth. Then, the hand in front of them slumps over entirely. Hop lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. They did it. They won!

Both him and Victor return their Pokémon, knowing they’ve done enough. Zamazenta and Zacian land with steady paws in front of Eternatus. Now that they’ve beaten it, this is their chance.

“Vic!” Hop turns to the other, “Throw a Pokéball now!”

“What?” His friend responds, wide eyed.

“What do you mean, what? Catch it!”

“But what if it breaks out again and gets angrier?”

He really doesn’t think it can get any angrier at this point, considering it literally Gigantamaxed and went into an unstoppable frenzy. However, before he can voice any of his thoughts, a rumbling noise shakes the arena. He cranes his neck upwards, and to his utter shock, Eternatus is shrinking. It compresses in on itself, one size at a time, like how a Pokémon would do after using all its turn of Dynamax. Once the particles have cleared, they can see that it's gone back to its original form.

Eternatus lets out a high-pitched cry, and Hop has to slap his hands over his ears. He watches as the thing turns over in the air, no longer resisting gravity. Realization hits him like a bucket of cold water. It’s falling.

The impact of it hitting the floor shakes Hammerlocke Castle as a whole. Hop throws his arms out, struggling to stay upright. Victor falls to his knees next to him, and Zacian and Zamazenta duck their heads to try and maintain balance. Then, he hears it. Debris falling all around them. The floor crumbling beneath them. Victor gasping nearby. And just like that, the top of the tower they’re on collapses.

Hop blindly reaches out for something to grab, but there’s nothing to hold onto when everything’s coming down. He feels the drop in his stomach, suddenly falling into whatever space is below them. The sounds of the tower caving in all around them and Victor shouting blend together. It feels too fast and too slow all at once. He can’t see anything, dust and rubble flying everywhere.

He hits the bottom, and one sound rings out clear amongst the rest. Crack.

White hot pain erupts from his leg. He screams, but his voice is drowned out by the pieces of the building hitting the ground. It's hard to see what comes next, his head foggy from the pain– A shadow descends on him, and then something heavy lands above him, pressing down on him without flattening him completely. He tries to push himself up, but whatever is above him barely lets him get an inch off of the ground. What’s more, his legs burns in protest, causing tears to gather in the corners of his eyes.

Finally, it stops. The last of the rubble falls, the dust settles, and it's silent. Hop swallows. He’s not in a good position, he now realizes. He’s lying prone on his stomach, the area around him dark due to the massive slab of concrete above him. It seems to be propped up by some rocks and debris, which he would be thankful for if it weren’t for the fact said materials have pinned his leg.

Arceus, his leg. He grits his teeth, taking in a sharp, trembling breath. It hurts badly, worse than he’s ever felt. Trying to shift it even slightly makes him feel like his nerves have been squeezed and wrung like a rag. A tear slips from his eyes as he curls a hand into a fist, trying to take his mind off the pain.

A familiar click breaks the silence. It’s the sound of a Pokéball successfully capturing something. For a moment, he has no idea what it could be, but then he remembers the fact that Victor had fallen as well. Victor, Zacian, Zamazenta… and Eternatus. He must’ve caught it.

“Hop? Hop, where are you?!”

And there his rival is now, calling his name. He has to take a moment before responding, feeling like he can hardly function after such a fall.

“I’m here!”

He hears armor clanking and paws hitting stone before a set of them appear in Hop’s vision. He can’t see much from underneath the slab, but he’s got just enough room to turn his head towards the gap before him. Freedom is only a few feet away from him, yet a few feet have never felt farther than they do now.

Victor’s feet join the legendary’s, then the boy kneels down and puts the side of the head to the ground. His expression morphs into one of panic when he sees where his friend has ended up.

“Hop! Are you alright? Can you crawl out?”

Hop hangs his head, then shakes it. His leg feels like it's slowly being crushed underneath the weight, all while being stabbed from the inside.

“I’m stuck. M-My leg, it’s–” He has to take a moment to breathe, “I think it’s broken.”

“No… Oh, no, what–”

Victor looks up, his head now disappearing from view. Hop can hear a low yet comforting growl, probably from either Zacian or Zamazenta. He’s glad that the legendary dogs are here, otherwise they’d be completely on their own.

“Can you move it? Or, or cut it, or something?” His friend asks, and it twists something deep inside of him to hear his usually level-headed pal sound so desperate. Judging by the lack of audible response, he assumes it’s a no.

“Vic,” Hop calls for the other, his face lowers into view once more. He looks terrified, and Hop gets it, because he feels the same way right now.

“Listen to me, mate. Y-You’ve gotta get help. There are probably people out there right now, a-ambulances an’ such. You’ve gotta bring ‘em here.”

“But– I can’t just leave you like this! That’s–”

“Please,” Hop cuts him off, practically begging. Victor looks at him with his lips pinched in a frown and his eyebrows tightly furrowed. However, he nods.

“Alright. Try not to move too much, okay? I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

If he could laugh, he would. It’s not like he can move much in the first place. He’s far too exhausted to laugh, though, let alone make any other sort of sound, so he just nods. Victor’s face disappears from view now, followed by his legs. He assumes the other has mounted Zacian, judging by the noises he hears, and just like that the two take off.

Hop lays his head on the ground. It must be cool, riding a legendary like that. He isn’t sure how he got Zacian to let him do so in the first place. Did the Pokémon motion for him to get on? He can’t tell from down here. He can’t tell much of anything besides the pain coursing through his leg.

A small whimper nearby catches his attention. He turns his head once more to find Zamazenta laying flat on the ground in front of the gap, eyes set on Hop. Its ears are tilted downwards, and if he didn’t know any better, he’d say it looks pretty sad. Sad for… him? He can hardly believe it, mostly because he would’ve never expected such an old and battle-hardened creature to feel mournful towards him.

They stay like this for an indeterminable amount of time. He isn’t sure how long it’s been, but it’s been long enough his leg is starting to go numb. Is that bad? Is that a sign of it getting worse? He doesn’t know, but at the very least he manages to find some smidgen of relief in the numbness.

There are voices now. They’re far away and difficult to make out, but he hears them. Zamazenta immediately gets to its paws, taking off in the direction of them. Only moments later, the voices have arrived, now close enough for him to parse.

“He’s right here,” Victor says, though he’s not visible from where he’s standing.

“Got it. Leon’s lil bro, you awake? Make any sort of noise if you can.”

It takes an embarrassingly long time for Hop to recognize that voice, but once he does he knows it to be that of Raihan’s. No wonder Victor found him first. He must have been aiding in the evacuation and protection of the city, considering he is the Gym Leader here.

“Yeah,” Hop responds, and he hates how small he sounds. He feels small, too, trapped underneath the debris of the tower and unable to move. He’s awake though, and more importantly– by some miracle– alive.

“Good. I’m going to have Duraludon and Turtinator lift this up, so don’t move when that happens, okay? This is going to take a while, but I promise we’ll get you out.”

This is the most serious he’s ever heard him speak, he realizes. Even during his battle against the other, he had never adopted such a tone, always retaining some of that… Raihan-ness he has. Something between a mix of cocky and playful, or during a heated battle, wild and untamed. There’s none of that here.

So, he remains still as the two dragon types move the slab and the arduous process of freeing him commences.

[ermwhattehsigma]

Day 4, still going strong! This time I've picked the third prompt for the day, the quote, "You in there?" This entry is a little bit shorter than I would like, but I promise I will make up for it with tomorrow's! Further more, I'd like to say, AAAAA!!! My day 3 post was reblogged by the official Whumptober archive blog! I'm so happy :,D The writing won't stop!

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If there’s one thing Hop hates, it’s crying. That’s not to say he hates seeing others cry, or that he hates the sound of it– He acknowledges the fact that crying is a healthy, normal activity. Sometimes it's good to let out your sadness rather than keep it bottled up.

That doesn’t mean he has to like it, though. Crying is uncomfortable, or so he believes. It’s wet, it’s messy, and it’s loud. Once he begins crying, he can’t stop, and he really dislikes that loss of control over himself and his emotions. Besides, crying is synonymous with being sad, and he’s not a fan of that either. Hop is always full of energy, fun and cheerful and ready to tackle whatever is in front of him. Crying feels antithetical to that image he’s crafted, that spirit he brings.

But of course, he can’t help it. Sometimes, something is too much not to cry over, and Hop finds now is one of those times. He’s sitting in a bathroom, face in his hands as tears pour from his eyes. It’s a pretty poor location to find himself sobbing in, but at least he has an ample source of ‘tissues’. He tears off a square of toilet paper and blows his nose.

What strikes him as the most pathetic part of this all is that he’s the only one acting like this right now. Outside, everyone is having a good time, chatting and eating. It’s a party, one that Leon is hosting in the name of all the Gym Leaders, thanks to their contributions towards the Eternatus incident. They deserve it, really, but the fact that all of the Gym Leaders were invited posed a problem from the get-go. Namely, that meant that Bede was there.

Hop doesn’t know why he ever thought it was a good idea to come. Leon had invited Sonia, and naturally she asked to bring Hop along, and of course he said yes. Why wouldn’t he? He has no idea about the animosity between his brother and the newly appointed fairy type Gym Leader, because Hop never told him. It didn’t even register to Hop that he would see Bede there until he was face to face with the smug bastard.

And of course, the other tore him down. There was no pretense of politeness between them, though Hop supposes that’s partially his own fault, with the way he had been glaring at the other before he even opened his mouth. He wishes he hadn’t opened it. He wishes he had kept his piercing comments to himself, and he wishes he wasn’t so weak that he let them affect him.

For all of the bravado and confidence Hop puts forward, it sure does seem to fold easily in the face of criticism.

A knock on the bathroom door jolts him out of his thoughts. He wipes his eyes frantically on his sleeve, trying to compose himself as quickly as he can.

“You in there?”

He freezes. He hadn’t expected a question, nor was he expecting to hear the flat, chill voice of Marnie. His arm lowers as he puzzles over why she’s here. Judging by what she said, it sounds like she was looking for him.

“Yeah, I’m in here,” He answers, feeling uneasy. “Are you?...”

“Your brother was wondering where you disappeared off to.”

Ah. That explains it. He sniffles, his nose feeling stuffy and his cheeks wet. He’s in no condition to face Leon right now. In fact, Leon is the last person he wants to see right now, or even talk to. He had been hoping he’d have more time to finish crying and pull himself together, but he supposes he should’ve known better. His brother has always had a keen eye for details.

“You alright?”

Whoops. He forgot to respond. It’s hard not to get lost in his own head right now, but he should really focus on seeming somewhat coherent.

“I’m fine, sorry. Could you tell Lee I’m going home early?”

“Sneaking out, eh? Back door’s further down the hall, I think.”

That is not the verb he would use to describe what he plans to do, but he supposes now that he’s learnt there’s a less conspicuous exit just within reach, yeah. He pretty much plans to sneak out. Thinking about it like that makes him feel guilty, though, like he’s running away.

“You know,” Marnie continues, “Bede can’t tell a lie to save his life. I asked him if he had seen ya, and he just about spelt it all out for me. Only a matter of time ‘til Opal finds out he misbehaved and gives him an earful.”

Admittedly, the mental image of Bede being chewed out by an old lady such as Opal does make him feel marginally better. Whether that was the intended effect or not, though, is unbeknownst to Hop. Surely Marnie isn’t trying to cheer him up right now, right? They haven’t interacted much before now, but he has heard many good things from his rival, and she is quite the strong trainer. All in all, he thinks she’s a cool person.

“You think so?”

“Oh, I know so,” She answers, then pauses before adding, “If you stick around, you could see it for yourself. She might even make him apologize to ya.”

He huffs good naturedly at this.

“It wouldn’t be genuine.”

“No, but you could rub it in his face.”

Marnie is strong, unflappable, and extremely convincing, it seems. His face no longer feels wet, though it’s a bit cold from the tear stains having dried on his skin. A splash of water from the sink should help to hide the remaining evidence of his sob session. His eyes might still look a little red, but that should be easy enough to wave off.

So, that begs the question: Would he rather go home and wallow in his misery, or go back out onto the party floor and watch Bede receive the scolding of a lifetime?

The choice is obvious.

“I’ll be out in a minute.”

[ermwhattehsigma]

Another day, another whump! This time we've got prompt #2 for Day 3: Solitary Confinement. I'm having a lot of fun writing these so far, and I hope you all are having fun reading them!

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The elevator ride to the top of Rose Tower had been going smoothly up until this exact point in time. Him and Gloria had taken out the first two pairs of Macro Cosmos employees no problem. They only had a Pokémon each among the four of them, but even if they hadn’t, he’s sure they would’ve been fine. They’re Gym Challengers, after all, and Gloria had been strong enough to make it to the Champion Cup. With them fighting side by side, there’s no battle they could lose.

No Pokémon battle, that is. 

He raises his hand to his chin, interrupting himself to rub just underneath his ear. Ascending so high at such a fast pace has caused his ears to clog, and it’s beginning to feel uncomfortable. He hears Gloria snicker next to him.

“Motion sickness?”

“Sick of this tower, more like it,” He gripes back.

The hum of the elevator slows as it comes to a stop. Both of them go quiet, eyes fixed on the door ahead. Hop drops his hand to his belt in order to grab a Pokéball, only to freeze when he hears multiple swishing noises.

 

All six doors have opened simultaneously. Macro Cosmos employees pour in from all sides, easily outnumbering the two of them. He feels Gloria’s arm bump into his as she takes a step back.

“Challenger Gloria and Challenger Hop,” One of the uniformed staff members addresses them, “Please come with us peacefully. You are not permitted to meet with Chairman Rose at this time.”

“Like we want to see him!” Gloria retorts. Hop nods at her words.

“Yeah, we’re here to rescue Lee!”

They don’t seem to take kindly to this, now closing in slowly like a pack of Mightyena. Then, just as he’s about to grab Dubwool’s Pokéball, one of them makes a move first.

“Bronzong, Psychic!”

The bell Pokémon hits the field, floating before glowing with psychic energy. Hop throws his Pokéball, Gloria doing the same, but neither of the balls open. They hang uselessly in the air, held in place and kept shut by the Psychic. His jaw drops at the sight.

“What?!”

That’s the only thing he manages to say before suddenly, the employees rush them. All hell breaks loose. One of them grabs his arm, and although he tries to pull himself free, another soon has his shoulder and is pushing him to the ground. He shouts as his knees buckle and his head hits the glassy, well-polished floor of the elevator. He’s left disoriented for a moment, which is long enough for someone to pull his bag off of him and take his Pokéballs from their holsters.

The sound of skin hitting skin snaps him out of his stupor. He looks up and sees Gloria pulling against a pair of employees trying to hold her back, her fists balled and a man clutching his nose.

“Get off of me, you arseholes!” She yells, thrashing her arms.

He’s half a second from doing the same when, all of a sudden, he’s tugged off of the floor and back upright. The employees at either side of him force him to walk to one of the doors, although it’d be more accurate to say he’s being dragged, what with him trying to dig his feet into the ground. He hears Gloria behind him, her tone frantic.

“Stop! Let go of him!!” She shouts across the echoing chamber, “Hop!”

“Gloria!” He calls back, but it’s hopeless. Without his Pokémon, he has no chance of freeing himself from their grasp, especially not with two grown men holding his shoulders. They don’t escort him very far, either, stopping in front of a door that one of them opens.

The Macro Cosmos staff quite literally toss him in, his shoulder meeting the floor as he falls on his side. He scrambles to get up, but by the time he’s on his knees, the door has been shut. A click follows right after. He feels his heart drop into his stomach as he runs to the door and turns the knob.

Locked. He grips it tight, pulls and turns and shakes it as he tries to force the door open. Nothing works. Low voices on the other side converse with one another, but he can’t make anything out with his ears clogged and his heart rate going a mile a minute. He bangs his fist on the door.

“Let me out!”

The murmuring stops now. He strains his ears to pick up on whatever might be said next, but no response to his cry for help comes. Instead, all he hears is the sound of shoes. They’re leaving.

“Hey! Y-You can’t do this! Come back!”

He bangs against the door harder now, even kicking it a few times to do… Something. Displace it, knock it down, break it, whatever gets him out sooner. None of that happens, though. The door remains sturdy no matter what he does.

Hop steps back now, panting. The sides of his hands are slightly numb from pounding them against the door, but that’s nothing compared to the ice settling into his veins. He takes a deep breath, then holds it so he isn’t making noise. Sure enough, he can’t hear anything. He’s completely alone.

He breathes out shakily. The reality is he’s locked in here with no way out. Where is here, anyways? He does a full turn, taking in his surroundings. It’s a storage room, and a small one at that. There are metal shelves with many stacks of papers on them, boxes full of what are presumably office supplies, and what seems to be a broken printer in the back. It’s barely half the size of his room at home, made even more claustrophobic by all the space the shelves take up.

All at once, exhaustion hits him like a rampaging Tauros. He stumbles backwards, meeting the door and sliding down it into a sitting position. Instinctively, he pulls his knees up and hugs them, trying to make himself smaller.

There are no windows, he has no Pokémon, his Rotom Phone was in his bag that the employees took, and worst of all? He’s starving. That’s the whole reason he and Gloria had come here in the first place, what with Leon promising them dinner, only to apparently be held up by Chairman Rose. He hadn’t eaten much for lunch, either, having been too excited to eat a proper meal before his battle in the semifinals against Gloria. Why couldn’t he have grabbed a snack at the hotel while he still had time? Stupid, stupid.

He drops his head into his arms, which he now moves to fold above his knees. Surely they can’t keep him here for long. What they’re doing– Well, he isn’t entirely sure what crime exactly they’ve committed, but he’s certain they've committed one. People can’t just lock each other in storage rooms and steal each other’s things. That is absolutely against the law. That he’s sure of.

Time passes. His stomach growls and he grumbles back at it. There’s no clock on the walls for him to glance at, so he has no way of knowing how long he’s been trapped here for. The longer he sits and waits, though, the more his confidence wavers.

Someone has to come for him, right? Leon and Rose can’t possibly hold a conversation all the way into the night. Though, they’ve already been talking for a ridiculous amount of time already, so maybe. But then where’s Gloria? Is she still here? Did they take her and lock her in a room as well? No, there’s no way they did that. She’s meant to battle tomorrow in the Champion Cup. If they held her hostage here, she would not participate in the tournament, even if they let her go by the next morning. Her disappearance would be impossible to ignore.

But… He’s not Gloria. He’s not the one going into the stadium tomorrow and facing the last round of trainers, as much as he’d like to be. He could not show up in public whatsoever, and the only person who would be any wiser is Gloria. Leon would also get suspicious, this he is aware of, but how could he possibly know Hop is being held against his will in Rose Tower? Not to mention, it’d be easy to assume Hop simply went home after being defeated, overwhelmed by his loss.

Time passes, and his stomach growls once more, louder this time. It’s starting to get painful, just how hungry he is. He’s also finding it difficult to keep himself calm. Sitting here, he has nothing to do but think, and the more he thinks, the more he spirals. He has no idea what’s happening out there right now, what time it is, or when someone will come for him. If anyone will come for him. He’s not sure which scares him more; The idea that he might actually spend the night here, or the idea that the door will open to more abrasive Macro Cosmos employees looking to take him away. Where they could possibly take him from here, though, he cannot imagine.

His fingers curl around his elbows as another pang of hunger rolls through him. All he can do is wait. He has to trust his rival and his brother, trust that they will figure out what has happened and where he is.

All he can do is wait.

[ermwhattehsigma]

Wow, Day 2 already! For this day, I chose to go with all three prompts: Thermometer, Delirium, and "They don't care about you." This one's a bit longer than Day 1 and definitely more feely. I don't think Leon's and Hop's mother is bad per say, both as a parent and as a person, but... C'mon. We've all seen their living room in game. There is a clear favorite child!

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Above him, below him, beside him, all around; The room is spinning. Colors and shapes swim on the wall, like water types floating by the glass in an aquarium, mindless and untroubled. Hop is very troubled, though. He licks his lips and tilts his head to the side, glancing at the door. It’s solid, thick mahogany, and it’s closed. He squints his eyes. He can’t tell for certain, but it feels like every time he looks away and looks back to the door, it’s gotten a bit farther away. Slowly, inch by inch, it’s escaping him.

He groans and turns his entire body, facing the wall. He’s laying in bed, still in his pajamas and with the blanket covering him, but he’s cold. His body trembles as he wraps his arms around himself. He squeezes his eyes shut, trying to block out the shapes swimming on the wall, but it doesn’t work. Flashes of light and small spots dance across the inside of his eyelids, making him feel nauseous. When he opens his eyes, the room is darker than it should be, then brighter, and then back to normal.

The doorknob turns with a click. He realizes, belated, that this means the door has opened, and that furthermore, someone has entered his room. He turns onto his back once more and watches as that “someone”, his mum, approaches. She’s holding something in her hands.

“Open your mouth.”

He does so without resistance. Something long, thin, and cold is pressed underneath his tongue. Oh, a thermometer. He closes his mouth. That’s right, he remembers now. She was in here earlier, feeling his forehead, and said she would return to take his temperature. And if she’s here taking his temperature with a thermometer, that can only mean one thing: He’s sick. Really sick.

“Opunagn.”

What? His eyes wander to his mum, standing over him. Surely those weren’t words she just said. He makes a small noise, confused.

“Open again.”

Oh, those are words. He opens his mouth and the thermometer is taken. It helped to make his mouth feel cooler, so he’s a bit mournful that it had to be removed, as well as baffled. Why is his mouth so hot when the rest of him is freezing?

He hears someone click their tongue. It wasn’t him who did it, which means there’s only one other person who could’ve.

“39.1… That’s much higher than it was yesterday.”

Yesterday? Yes, yesterday. He had been sick then too, although his fever wasn’t nearly as bad at the time. It had started out with a sore throat and feeling somewhat more lethargic than normal, only for him to be bedridden by the end of the day. But how can someone be bedridden at nighttime? Isn’t that when you’re supposed to go to bed anyways?

It’s not nighttime, though. It’s afternoon of the next day, and he feels awful. His eyes slip shut. The last time he was this sick, he was much younger than he is right now. Still just a baby, as he might address someone of that age today, or as Lee might say. Speaking of his brother, he remembers distinctly that he was there the last time Hop was sick. Even though he was 13 at the time, and he was 5, he had been the one to take care of him. It was great. Well, being sick wasn’t, but being able to spend so much time with Lee was. He’s 16 now, so he’s a lot busier, what with him being the Champion of Galar. He doesn’t have time to be home and take care of Hop when he’s sick.

He wishes he did, though. He misses the way he’d brush his bangs out of the way when they got messed up from his tossing and turning. He misses how he would read books at his bedside so that he didn’t get bored, or if he was worried about contamination and couldn’t be in the room, he’d leave with him a game to play. He misses his brother, but even more than that, he misses the way he would care for him like he’s the most important thing in the world. It might be selfish to think such a thing, but he isn’t sure he can even define that word right now, let alone apply it to himself. His head feels like it’s stuffed full of Wooloo wool.

“You got that?”

His eyes open. It takes him a moment to adjust to the light to realize his mum is still there, and that she’s been talking his whole time. He flounders for a bit before remembering how to speak.

“H-Huh?”

“I said, you should stay in your room for the time being. Otherwise, Grams and Gramps might catch whatever you have.”

He stares up at her blankly for a moment, then glances at the door. It’s farther than it was last time, he’s sure of it. How is he supposed to leave when the door keeps running away? Not only that, but Lee was always quick to remind him that sick kids need plenty of bedtime whenever they’re not feeling well, even when they get restless. He doesn’t want to go against his words.

Hop nods. The movement is sluggish, his head feeling heavy.

“Good. I left some water for you on your nightstand, alright?” She tells him, and much to his surprise, she’s right. There’s a full glass of water on the table next to him. When did that happen? Did she bring a glass with her when she entered the room? He doesn’t remember that.

“Yell for me if you need anything else,” Her voice is quieter now, he thinks, but he can’t really tell since everything she says sounds muffled. “I love you.”

Now she’s just being silly. Leaving the room is one thing, but he’s fairly certain he could not yell right now even if he wanted to. He can hardly bring his voice above a mumble, really, let alone form coherent sentences. As she turns to leave, though, he realizes it’s now or never. He pushes himself up slightly, arms already shaking from the strain as he tries to sit up.

“Wait,” He manages to say at a decent volume, causing her to pause and look at him. He has to swallow, feeling his throat protest at the action as he asks, “Can you read me a story?”

Her expression is unreadable, not because of the way she looks, but because his eyes are playing tricks on him. He sees that now. Or, rather, he can’t see anything that’s too far from his bed. His mum is blurry and out of focus.

“A story? I thought you didn’t want me to read you those anymore.”

Such a notion strikes him as preposterous at first, but after a moment, he realizes that she’s right. He remembers having said such a thing to her recently about being too old for bedtime stories. Why he said that, he has no idea, especially considering nobody has read him one in a while. The last person to do so was Lee.

… The last person to take care of him while he was sick was also Lee. When was the last time his brother visited home? Trying to remember dates and numbers has become a monumental task. All of them are jumbled up in his head, just like his words.

He flops back into bed, his weak arms giving out. The impact makes spots appear in his vision, though only briefly. Apparently his mum takes this as an answer to her comment, which is great because he isn’t sure he’d be able to give her a proper response.

“Just get some rest. You’ll feel better with some sleep.”

He just woke up, though, Hop wants to complain. He’s only been awake for… a while! How long exactly, he has no idea, but he’s sure it’s been at least a few minutes. No, perhaps an hour? It’s hard to tell.

The door shuts. His mum has left. He wishes he had asked where she was going, or perhaps insisted she stay, but he didn’t. Speaking takes too much energy, and he gets the feeling his mum didn’t want to stick around any longer than she needed to. She must not want to get infected, he figures, or perhaps she’s worried about spreading any germs to Grams and Gramps. That’s why he’s alone right now, staring up at the ceiling, watching it shift and bend.

They don’t care about you.

The thought is sudden and frightening. His fingers clutch at the sheets, hands tightening into ironclad fists. He doesn’t like thinking about scary things like that, especially not now. Not while he’s exhausted and ill.

So, he won’t think about it. He loosens his grip on the sheets before pulling them over his head. He turns onto his side, bunching the fabric around him until he’s practically cocooned himself in the soft material. His head hits the pillow and his eyes shut.

There, he waits for sleep to overtake him, breathing gently as the shivering returns.

[ermwhattehsigma]

Day 1 of Whumptober is upon us! I wanted to start really simple and short for the very first day, hopefully you all don't mind. I also may be pre-planning all of the plots for each prompt... I can't help it! I'm so eager to write! Anyways, here it is, Day 1. The prompt I chose: "How many fingers am I holding up?"

——————————————————————————————————

“Ow!”

Hop rubs his head, his other hand planted on the rough stone beneath him. He had been standing just a moment before, but now he is sitting on the floor of Galar Mine No. 2 after being knocked over. The Pokéball he had been pelted with rolls at his feet, then comes to a stop.

He removes his hand from his forehead in order to look up, even though he’d much rather keep it there. All he catches sight of are some blobs of pink, black, and white flailing away. Shaking his head, he blinks. The Team Yell grunts they had defeated have run off entirely now, though not before one of them had thrown a Pokéball at his head and caused him to fall down. He’s more surprised than he is hurt, if only because he’d never expected any Team Yell members to resort to physical action. That isn’t to say he isn’t hurt, though. The dull ache in his head serves as testament otherwise.

“That’s right, get lost, you tossers!” Gloria shouts next to him even despite the fact that the grunts are long gone. She then turns to him and crouches, holding out a peace sign.

“Quick, how many fingers am I holding up?”

Hop rolls his eyes. It was a Pokéball, not a rock or something. At most his head will probably hurt for a little, if even.

“Glo, I’m fine. It’ll take more than that to put me out of commission!”

This seems to satisfy her, judging by the small smile she gives. She then holds out her hand for him to take, which he gratefully does, and helps him to his feet. Now standing up, he bends down and plucks the Pokéball off of the ground. It has a small scratch in the red casing of the top half, probably due to landing on a rock.

“What a pair of jerks, huh? I can’t believe they did that!” Gloria grumbles next to him, clearly still cross at the two.

“You said it,” Hop agrees, although he isn’t nearly as angry as his friend is. It’s annoying, sure, but he isn’t going to let something so small get him down.

Well, emotionally down. There’s not much he can do now about having been knocked off his feet.

He puts the Pokéball into his bag (because free Pokéball, right?) and looks at his rival.

“Well, c’mon! We’ve wasted enough time here. Let’s head to Motostoke and challenge Kabu already!”

He charges forward, not giving the girl any time to protest. Soon enough, they run into the fire gym leader himself and learn he taught the retreating Team Yell grunts a lesson. And so, they continue on with their journey.

[ermwhattehsigma]

Hey everyone! To further expand on yesterday's post, I wanted to put here the list of prompts for Whumptober and explain how I'm approaching it. I'm not actually that big a fan of whump, if you can believe it. I'm much more of a hurt/comfort girlie! However, I'm always eager to write, and the prompts listed at @whumptober are just what I need to get myself back into the swing of things.

For every day, there's actually four prompts that can be chosen: A lyric, an object, a trope, and a quote. I'll only be focusing on the last three, since I'm not very good at creating ideas based on songs. On any given day, I'll choose one, two, or three of the prompts listed and write a story based on them. I plan to write out the plots for most days in advanced just to make things easier for myself, but if any of you want to see a specific scenario for a prompt, please let me know.

Lastly, as is to be expected with me, most of the stories will probably be about Hop. :P Sorry! I can't help having a favorite.

Happy soon-to-be-October! Let's all get spooky!

[ermwhattehsigma]

Hello everyone! It has been a while! My apologies for seemingly dropping off the face of the Earth. I have been busy lately with real life, as I feel everyone has been lately. Everywhere I go and anyone I talk to, school and work gobble up their time!

I didn't make this post to complain, though. I actually bring good news. Even though I haven't received any asks recently (please, never hesitate to send them in!) doesn't mean I won't be writing. October is coming up soon, so it'll be the season of [blank]-tober prompt lists! I have my eyes set on Whumptober, although I don't think I'll be able to get around to every prompt, and especially not every day. I will do my best to keep pace, though!

Thank you all for baring with me. I cannot wait to receive more asks in the future, and even more so to share what I come up with for October. Prepare for feelings and pain!!!

[ermwhattehsigma]

Hi!! If you're still accepting prompts, can I ask one where Hop takes care of Leon? I imagine Leon did a lot of that to his baby brother before he became.champion so Hop can return favor! Thank you! (ᵔ◡ᵔ)

Of course! I love these two dearly, so I can never say no to a request featuring them. Also, I hope that you don’t mind me taking your idea and running with it. I am a fiend for suffering.（'̀ω'́）

——————————————————————————————————

These past few days have been a whirlwind of emotions for Hop. Between losing to his best friend in the semifinals of the Champion Cup, having to deal with Rose unleashing the second Darkest Day, and watching as his dream of defeating Leon falls into the hands of someone who isn’t him, he feels like a rag that’s been wrung dry. He is proud of his rival– immensely so– but their continuous triumph over him combined with the insanity that was Eternatus has left him emotionally drained. He doesn’t think he has the capacity to go out right now and congratulate his friend, who is likely stepping off of the field at this very moment to a swarm of buzzing reporters and adoring fans.

Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately), he doesn’t need to go and face that reality quite yet, because where there’s a winner, there’s a loser. Since he himself was a challenger, Hop is allowed to go where he wants within Wyndon Stadium, to a certain degree. So, the moment the battle has concluded and the screens switch to the broadcasters, he legs it towards Leon’s locker room. He’s the only one outside of it when he arrives, which he takes as his sign to head in without any repercussions.

He is immediately met with the sight of his brother, sitting on the bench closest to the field entrance, with his cape and his cap resting next to him. Leon is hunched over where he sits, and at first Hop thinks he might be crying, but as he steps forward he realizes he’s clutching his abdomen in pain. Alarm bells immediately go off in his brain.

“Lee? Are you alright?”

His abrupt question seems to startle the now former Champion, who pulls himself straight and looks to the side. He visibly relaxes when he notices the person with him is Hop.

“Hey, little bro. Yeah, I’m alright. Just a bit sore is all.” As if to prove his point, the other tries to stand up, but doing so causes him to wince and grasp his side once more. Hop rushes over when he hears him suck in a breath through his teeth, forcing him to sit back down so he doesn’t hurt himself further.

In hindsight, Hop should’ve known Leon hadn’t fully recovered from the injuries he received during his battle with Eternatus. He had been unconscious for almost two days, for crying out loud, and barely allowed himself an extra day of rest before insisting the championship match be held. On top of that, Hop had noticed some unusual behavior during the match, whether that be a twitch of the eye or hand from him. It might not have been noticeable to others, especially when everyone’s attention was fixed on the battle itself, but Hop has watched all of Leon’s matches multiple times over. These sort of discrepancies stood out like a sore thumb to him.

“You haven’t healed at all, have you?” Hop asks, frowning at his brother. All he gets is a guilty smile in return, so he goes on, “Didn’t you think about whether you’d be able to have a proper battle like this?”

“I was certain my team and I can weather anything, and we did just that.”

“That’s rich, coming from the bloke who can hardly stand right now!” He scolds him, then scoops up his cape and cap, “Come on, let's get you somewhere you can rest. You have a penthouse here in Wyndon, don’t you?”

Leon looks at him like he’s just suggested heresy, reaching to take his cape back from the other, only to have his hand slapped away.

“Ow!- But what about everyone waiting outside? They’re surely going to want a word from me, as well as some pictures-”

“They can wait until later. Besides, you don’t exactly look picture ready.”

He frowns at Hop for saying that, but upon feeling his forehead and finding it caked with sweat, he relents. The two of them sneak out from the locker room, Hop holding his cape in one arm and his cap in the other, taking a path through the stadium that would ensure they remain unbothered by the public. It takes longer than it normally would have due to Leon’s condition, but they eventually exit through a staff-only back door. From there, Hop lets out his Corviknight to fly them both, since Leon’s Charizard would be far too conspicuous.

After all of that, they finally arrive at Leon’s penthouse. Hop has always known of its existence, and he’s seen a couple of photos of the interior, but this is his first time actually visiting it in person. From what he remembers, the only reason Leon got it was because Rose insisted he had a base of operations here in Wyndon, where he spends a majority of his time. Rose is behind bars now, though, so Hop wonders faintly what Leon plans to do with the place now.

He pushes the door open the moment Leon’s turned the key to unlock it. The flat is far more spacious than the photos had led him to believe, and the overall design of it is quite modern and sleek. The living room and kitchen are joined together, with a marble countertop island separating the two. It’s about what he’d expect from a penthouse in Wyndon, but it doesn’t feel like the sort of place he can see Leon living in. His brother is the kind of person that can subsist off of the bare minimum, so long as he gets to continue facing strong trainers.

Hop makes a beeline for the couch, dumping the cape and the hat onto it. Shortly after, Leon collapses onto the articles of clothing, then lets out a grunt as he pulls the cap out from underneath his torso and tosses it aside without a care. Hop picks it up, not wanting to leave it on the floor. It feels like an important item, being Leon’s signature cap and whatnot.

“Lee, which way’s your bedroom?”

The other turns his head so that his face is no longer pressed into the couch and points down one of the halls. Hop quickly thanks him and heads that way, finding the bedroom door easily thanks to the fact it's open. He puts the cap somewhere it won’t be bothered before taking a pillow and a sheet from the bed. With those items secured, he returns to the living room.

Surprisingly enough, Leon has managed to wrangle himself into a sitting position now, and is reaching for the remote. He stops when he notices Hop approaching with the sheet and pillow, giving him a weak smile. “Aw, you don’t need to do all this for me, Hoppet. I can take care of myself, you know.”

Hop rolls his eyes. He’s been hearing that nickname ever since he was little, and even now after losing his Champion title and fighting a millennia old dragon, he’s still calling him that. He tosses the pillow into Leon’s lap, then spreads the blanket over him.

“Yeah, well, I want to do this! ‘Cuz if I don’t, who will? And don’t say yourself, because you’ve clearly not been doing so.”

“Touché.”

Leon glances once more at the remote, then decides against it, putting the pillow underneath himself and sprawling across the couch once more. Hop tilts his head at the other.

“You can turn the telly on if you want.”

“Nah. Probably better if I don’t. I was just curious what’s on the news.”

Obviously the only thing the news would be covering at the moment is the Championship match, Hop wants to say, but he supposes that’s the point. Every single detail of the event has probably spread like wildfire by now, from how many Pokémon were left on each side to Leon seemingly disappearing the moment the battle concluded. He’s certain his brother is probably fretting about what the public has to say on the matter, when he really shouldn’t. His health comes first and foremostly.

Speaking of, he walks over to the kitchen and begins searching through Leon’s cabinets. He eventually finds what he was looking for, taking a glass from the shelf and filling it with water. As much as he would like to watch Leon drink it right now, he can’t exactly force him to hydrate, so he just leaves it on the coffee table in front of the couch instead.

“Heh,” Leon lets out a chuckle, “This sort of reminds me of when you were little and I’d take care of you. Do you remember that?”

Hop looks to the other and racks his brain for what he’s talking about. It sounds like he has a specific scenario in mind, but he can’t recall any where Leon had been taking care of him like how he’s doing now.

“Was this before or after you became Champion?”

“Before. You’d caught the flu, which freaked Mum out. You were also pretty young at the time, so I suppose it makes sense you don’t remember.”

He does not, in fact, remember having gotten sick at that age. He’s a bit miffed about this as well, mostly because he already gets so few moments with his brother. Knowing there was a period of time they shared that he can’t recall is bothersome to him. Though, now that Leon isn’t Champion anymore, maybe they can finally make up for lost time.

Once he’s recovered from his injuries, that is.

“Guess so. By the way, you need anything else?”

The older of them lets out a noise that's halfway between a hum and a sigh. He seems to think about it for a moment, then answers.

“Some pain medicine would be nice. There should be an orange bottle behind the bathroom mirror. It’s the door across from the bedroom.”

“You got it!”

Hop is about to take off down the hall once more, but a tug on the hem of his jacket causes him to freeze. He looks towards the couch. Leon has a handful of the cream colored fur of his jacket, which he lets go of once he’s gotten Hop’s attention. Despite being the one to initiate, the ex-Champion hesitates.

“... I wanted to say thanks. For everything.”

He stares at his brother for a moment before smiling.

“Of course, Lee. Anytime.”

[ermwhattehsigma]

Ay another swsh AND Hop fan!! So I have a short prompt!*

Due to Hop's diligent work at the lab, Sonia gives him a short break off! When she asks what his plans are; all he says is that he'll be off camping. Sonia assumes he means the Wild Area- but when his phone is out of service and no one can find him in said wild area, it throws everyone in a panic (prolly Leon especially lol)- that is until 3 days later when he comes back from the Slumbering Weald perfectly fine lol

*(i..think this is a short prompt; sorry if it isn't lol)

Short enough for me! Besides, I love to write. ^w^ Thank you for the first ever prompt!

——————————————————————————————————

“Say, Hop, how would you feel about taking a break?” “A break? What for?” Sonia pouts at the young trainer sitting across from her. It’s been a few months since Hop has become her assistant, and since then, she’s gotten more than she could ever ask for in a regular employee. For one, he hasn’t stabbed her in the back and given dangerous materials to a pair of lunatics, as her last one did. Not that that’s a very high bar to clear. 

His drive and work ethic, on the other hand, are not to be understated. He has gladly been conducting all of the fieldwork Sonia loathes, heading out into the wilderness and to raid dens in order to collect data and observe Pokémon, not to mention helping out around the lab.

If it were her doing all of this on her own, or even his share of work alone, she would’ve all but rioted for a day off.

“What do you mean, ‘what for’? I’m surprised you haven’t asked for one already! Don’t you have somewhere else you’d rather be than here? Or better yet, something else you’d rather be doing?” He seems to consider her words carefully, tapping on the mug in his grasp while he thinks. The two of them are sitting down at the table in the small kitchen area of the lab, sharing a cup of tea each before going back to their assignments. Sonia watches him expectantly, taking a sip as she does so. Eventually, he comes up with an answer that seems to satisfy him.

“I suppose I wouldn’t mind going camping sometime soon.” She frowns a little at this, not nearly as understanding about his decision. “Why would you wanna do that? You already camp enough when you’re out studying in the field.”

“Yeah, but it’s just not the same, y’know? I miss the kind of camping I’d be doing during the Gym Challenge, with my team hanging around and a pot to make curry in. It just can’t be beat!” It makes sense when he says it, but she simply doesn’t see the appeal. He already spends a good amount of time on routes and in the Wild Area, so she figured he’d want to step away from that, perhaps visit some cities and shops. Then again, he’s already toured the whole region as someone who’s completed the Gym Challenge, not to mention he got farther than she ever did in the circuit. “If you say so,” She says with a shrug, then asks, “How does three days off starting tomorrow sound?” Hop grins at this, visibly excited at the prospect.

“Sounds brilliant! Thanks, Sonia!”

She returns the smile, taking a final swig of her tea before setting it down.

“Anything for my favorite assistant. Now, let's get back to it!”

. . .

In hindsight, perhaps she shouldn’t have been so quick to offer Hop a few days off when he didn’t feel compelled to ask. Having to complete all of the paperwork on her own is one thing, but as the clock ticks on and time passes, she realizes just how bowing it is to work on her own. Usually by now, Hop would be well into the meat of a topic by now, gabbing into her ear while they work on their separate tasks. It’s a good dynamic they have going on, she thinks– He gets someone to talk to about whatever it is that has caught his interest that day, and she has some background noise for her brain to latch onto instead of having to write in silence.

Now, the only sounds she has to accompany her are her nails tapping on her keyboard and the Rookidees chirping outside. In short, with Hop gone, the lab is agonizingly dull.

She throws back her head and groans. Trying to get any writing done like this is impossible, so she decides to throw in the towel. If it isn’t happening, it’s not happening! Simple as that. She takes this opportunity to stretch, clasping her hands above her head and pushing them out as she bends her spine. A knock at the door startles her, and she yelps as she nearly falls out of her chair, just barely holding on and righting herself.

“Coming, coming!!”

The red-haired professor gets out of her seat, smoothing out whatever wrinkles may have formed in her lab coat before rushing to the door. She wasn’t expecting a visit from anyone today, which is why it comes as a surprise when she finds Hop’s mother standing with an anxious look on the doorstep.

“Elena! What brings you here?” She asks the woman, who rings her hands as she glances past Sonia. “I was wondering if you’d know where Hop is. He took off this morning in a hurry, carrying a pack. I’ve tried to get a hold of him a few times since then, but I can’t seem to reach his phone.”

Sonia hums, puzzled by this development. She isn’t able to reach him? That doesn’t sound right. When in doubt, test it out! She summons her own phone, the Rotom phone flying out of her pocket and hovering a few inches in front of her the moment she gives the word. From there, she pulls up her contacts and dials Hop’s number. Sure enough, after only a moment, her phone beeps.

“Zzt! Number currently unavailable. Please try again later.”

“Huuuh? What do you mean, unavailable?!” She exclaims, to which the Rotom inhabiting her phone makes an ‘eep!’ noise and flies back into her pocket.

Without any real answer to go off of, Sonia crosses her arms, unsure of what to tell the fretful mother in front of her. She also isn’t sure what to tell herself, now feeling a bit worried as to her assistant’s whereabouts. Surely he hasn’t broken his phone in the short timespan he’s been gone, right? Then again, if he’s roughing out in the Wild Area, there’s a chance that might be the case.

Whatever may be going on, it can wait until after she’s reassured his mom. Sonia puts on an unbothered smile and waves her hand.

“Not to worry! I’m sure he’s just somewhere with a spotty connection. I told him he has three days off, so he’s probably out making the most of it right now.”

This seems to work in calming the other down, who lets out a sigh of relief and thanks Sonia. She heads back down the road to her home, Sonia smiling and waving as she goes, only to drop face soon after.

Just what is Hop up to right now, she wonders.

. . .

The second day alone isn’t nearly as boring as the first, though frankly, she sort of wishes it were. She’s been outside nearly all day now, having taken a train up to Motostoke that morning, then a Corviknight Taxi to Hammerlocke from there. All of this travel just so that she can bumble about in the Giant’s Cap in the northern half of the Wild Area. She is supposed to be documenting how wild Mimikyu interact with the Pokémon around them and each other, but she’s yet to even encounter one, let alone watch it for long enough to see how it acts.

And to make matters worse, she can’t get her mind off of the interaction she had yesterday with Hop’s and Leon’s mother. Although Hop is an extremely capable trainer with a strong team of Pokémon, she can’t help but worry over his safety now that there is seemingly no way of reaching him. That part bothers her as well, because there shouldn’t be any reason for them not to be able to contact him unless his phone got wrecked.

She finds a nearby rock and sits down, holding her chin in her hands. All of this overthinking isn’t like her, nor is she a fan of it. Surely Hop isn’t in any danger, right? He can handle himself just fine. He’s probably out there having a great time, playing with his Pokémon at the Giant’s Seat or enjoying the view at Lake Axewell.

“Boo!!!”

Sonia shrieks, jumping up from where she was sitting and spinning around. Standing behind her with a cheeky expression is Gloria, who is followed not long after by an exasperated looking Victor.

“Did you really have to do that? Sorry about her, Sonia.” “You’re not the least bit sorry. Otherwise, you’d have warned her!”

She stares blankly at the two for a moment with her hand over her chest before letting out a breath she was holding. Then, she pouts at them.

“Way to scare the wits out of me! Haven’t you two got something better to do than sneaking up on unsuspecting people?”

“Nope!” Gloria responds cheerily.

“Oh,” Victor says, looking like he’s suddenly remembered something, “Why don’t we ask Sonia as well? She’s got to know where he is.”

“Oh, yeah! Sonia, have you got any clue where Hop is? We’ve been trying to call him all day, but with no dice.”

So even they can’t reach Hop? Great. Now her worries, which she had been attempting to tell herself were unfounded, have only returned tenfold. She raises a finger to her hair, toying with her ponytail as she thinks of an answer.

“I’m pretty sure his phone is busted. I gave him a three day break, and he told me he’d go camping, so I figure he’s probably somewhere out here in the Wild Area doing just that.”

Victor and Gloria react in tandem to her words, giving each other a tense look before returning their attention to Sonia. The former speaks.

“We’ve been up and down the Wild Area, and we haven’t seen him at all.”

Her jaw drops at this. She quickly shakes her head to get rid of the expression, looking wide eyed at the two of them.

“Wait– Seriously? The entire Wild Area?”

“Yeah! We’ve been on a Raid Den battling spree, so we’ve covered just about everywhere there is he could be!” Gloria adds.

Upon hearing this, Sonia feels a pit form in her stomach. If Hop isn’t in the Wild Area, then where could he possibly be? He could be in one of the various camping spots found on some routes throughout the region, but if that’s the case, she doesn’t understand why none of them are able to call or message him at the moment. She can’t see him having broken his phone in an environment as undisturbed as a route campsite.

“That’s… I don’t get it. He should definitely be here.”

“M-Maybe we missed a spot! Right, Vic?”

“I dunno… I definitely think we would’ve spotted him at some point.”

An uncomfortable silence hangs between the three of them, interrupted only by the chittering of Pokémon in the distance. Gloria, apparently unable to stand the pregnant pause, shakes her fists.

“Nobody panic! I’m sure he’s safe. Until we know for sure, though, me and Vic will do another look around.”

“We will?” He asks, sounding quite reluctant, only to be met with Gloria jabbing him with her elbow.

“Yes, we will!”

“Good luck with that, you two. And thanks,” Sonia tells them, doing her best to convey her gratitude.

Gloria and Victor depart soon after, with the young girl practically dragging him by the hand as they head back the way they came. Sonia watches as they leave, not taking her eyes off of their direction until they’ve disappeared from sight. With them on the case, she’s certain Hop will be find in no time.

That’s what she tries to convince herself of, ignoring the gnawing feeling in her gut as she heads back for the day.

. . .

It’s now been a full 48 hours since anyone’s last seen or spoken to Hop, and Sonia is in full crisis mode. Gloria and Victor’s search yielded no results, and even after splitting up to check some routes around Galar, they’ve still been unable to find her assistant. She’s tried everything she can on her side of things to get in contact with him, even going so far as to email him, with no success.

She drops her head into her arms, folding them over her desk. The Rotom phone floats to stay in her peripheral vision, the screen displaying her contacts list. She’s been staring at it for a while now, hoping for a notification to appear. It’s got her feeling like she’s at the end of her rope, not knowing what else to do or how else she can help look for Hop. She could file a missing persons report at the station, but there is the off chance he may be perfectly fine. Besides, she feels as though it isn’t her decision to make.

Her eyes wander to the screen again, looking at the names listed. One in particular speaks out to her. If there’s anyone who deserves to know what’s going on, not to mention who could lend a hand, it’s him.

She grabs her phone from where it hovers in the air and presses the call button next to one of the contacts. It only takes four rings before she hears a voice on the other end.

“Sonia! What’s the sudden call for?” Leon asks with a chipper tone. If this were a normal day, she’d probably badger him for not having given her a ‘hello’ first, but today is anything but normal.

“You haven’t heard yet?”

“Heard what?”

She takes in a deep breath, bracing herself.

“Hop’s sort of… missing.”

A beat.

“Missing? What do you mean he’s missing?!”

“H-He’s probably fine!” She quickly blurts, then explains, “Y’see, I gave him some time off, about three days worth. He said he’d go camping, but since then no one’s been able to ring him, nor find him. He’s definitely not in the Wild Area, at least…”

She hears a noise on the other end that sounds like Leon sinking back into his chair. When he got up, she has no clue.

“And you didn’t tell me this until now, why?”

“I didn’t even know myself until yesterday! And even then, I still had my doubts. Since then, though, Gloria and Victor have been looking all over for him.”

“They have? They’re good for that,” He says, then there’s a pause before he asks, “Do you know where they haven’t looked so far?”

“A couple of routes, probably the Glimwood Tangle… Why?”

“I’m going to join them.”

“You’re— What?! But don’t you have Chairman duties to attend to?”

She can practically hear him rolling his eyes from wherever he is, with a small scoff under his breath.

“Those can wait until after I’m certain Hop is safe and sound. I won’t be able to concentrate without that peace of mind anyways.”

Sonia raises her head down, leaning back in her chair.

“I feel you there. I think these have been the most unproductive three days I’ve ever had, with him gone. I just hope he’s alright…” She admits, allowing her worries to seep into the conversation.

“I have faith in him. He’s able to take on anything thrown his way.”

“Are you telling me that to make me feel better, or for yourself?”

Leon chuckles.

“A bit of both, really. I’ve got to go now, alright?”

“Alright. Take care, and let me know if you find him.”

“Will do.”

She hears the sound of a Pokéball summoning a Pokémon, followed by the familiar roar of Charizard before the audio cuts out as the call is ended. The phone clatters onto her desk shortly, dropped there without a care.

Her eyes wander to the unoccupied space of the laboratory around her. She sincerely hopes that Leon’s hunt bears fruit, for everyone’s sake. Otherwise, she’s confident Leon will flip the region upside down looking for his little brother.

. . .

“Thank you again for letting us stay the night, Elena.”

“Oh, there’s no need to be so formal. We’re all family, aren’t we? And you’ve all been working so hard…”

Sonia lets out a small hum of acknowledgement at her words, taking a sip of her coffee. It’s been a full three days now. Leon had reached out to Gloria and Victor shortly after his and Sonia’s conversation yesterday, asking what areas they haven’t explored that he could check. No luck in any of them. Apparently he even called Mustard and Honey over on the Isle of Armor, on the slim chance Hop had possibly gone there for his break. They told him they hadn’t seen him.

At some point, Elena asked for Leon to come home, and then extended that invitation to Sonia, Gloria, and Victor. Eventually they had all gathered that night, being treated to a hearty dinner and sleeping under the same roof. It’s a bit silly considering they all live so close to one another, what with Sonia not too far off in Wedgehurst and the twins residing literally right next door, but none of them bring it up. It felt nice to be together during this time of uncertainty, where they’re missing a part of their group.

Sonia takes another sip of her coffee before setting it down.

“That’s a given. We want to make sure he’s okay just as much as you do— And I’m certain we’ll find him soon.”

“Yes… yes, of course. I just wish soon would come sooner.”

She doesn’t know what to say to that, having no consolations to provide to the other. None that are truthful, that is. So, she doesn’t say anything, instead lifting her cup to her lips.

As it turns out, she doesn’t need to, because not even a minute later the door swings open.

“I’m home!”

Sonia nearly spits her drink out, covering her mouth as she slams the mug down. She whirls her head in the direction of the door, and sure enough, standing there with a duffel bag over his shoulder and a grin on his face is Hop.

“Hop?!” She cries.

“Hop!” Comes Gloria’s voice from the living room, as well as the sound of her feet pounding against the floor as she charges into Hop. He yelps in surprise, nearly being bowled over from the force of her tackle. His bag drops to the floor as he takes in an armful of his friend.

“Glo! What are you doing here? And Vic, and Sonia?”

“Who cares about that! Where have you been?!”

“What’s?...” Leon begins as he comes from upstairs, rubbing his eyes with a fist. He doesn’t even finish his sentence, eyes widening when he sees what all the commotion is about.

“Lee! You too?”

The older of the two doesn’t answer, instead hurrying down the rest of the steps and throwing his arms around both Hop and Gloria. Gloria giggles, looking incredibly relieved, as opposed to Hop and his confusion.

“Okay, seriously, why is everyone here?? What’s going on?”

“We should be asking you that,” Leon tells him as he finally lets them both go, “Where were you?”

“What do you mean where was I? The Slumbering Weald, of course!”

“What? Why were you there?” Victor asks, now joining the group.

“Because, it’s scenic, and I figured Zamazenta would enjoy visiting it again.”

Sonia gets up from her seat now, having recovered from almost choking on her drink. She almost can’t believe it, the fact that he’s turned up without them needing to do anything. His explanation doesn’t answer some of her lingering questions, though.

“We’ve been trying to call you this whole time! Why didn’t you answer?”

“Huh? You were?” Hop asks, seeming none the wiser. He takes out his phone and checks his calls, and sure enough, there are now a ton of missed calls that weren’t there previously.

“That’s odd. I didn’t get any of these while I was in the Weald. I guess the connection there wasn’t great? You know how weird and fickle that place can be.”

Sonia rubs her temples. She sure does know, having gotten lost there once and stripped of her sense of time. It’s not hard to imagine, then, that the Weald would have no reception to speak of.

Leon claps a hand onto Hop’s shoulder, not looking nearly as pressed over the circumstances leading to his seeming disappearance.

“I’m just glad you’re alright. You didn’t run into any trouble while you were there, did you?”

“Nope. I had a grand time!”

With those words, it feels like everyone can breathe easily again. Gloria ushers Hop into the kitchen, at which point his mom welcomes him home and tells him to never run off without letting them know where he’s going again. He apologizes, and soon after they’re all treated to breakfast by her. Chatter and laughter fills the room as they recount the needless worry of the past few days.

From outside the window, fog rolls off of the tree line from the Slumbering Weald, as though the forest is alive and breathing.

[ermwhattehsigma]

Hello Tumblr SWSH Fans!

I am Stea, your humble servant of writing. I've made this blog so that I may receive prompts from you all. This is my first time doing something like this, so please be patient with me. That said, do not be afraid to send asks!

WHAT I WILL DO:

My current fixation is on Pokémon Sword and Shield, which means I will primarily answer to prompts relating to that game. My all time favorite character is Hop! I am also able to write other characters such as Leon, Raihan, Sonia, Gloria, Victor, Marnie, and others.

WHAT I WON'T DO:

Canon x reader, NSFW or 18+, gore, and asks about similar topics will be deleted. I reserve the right to refuse any requests.