#grand olivine

[arogoldpika123]

I watched Pokemon Horizons Finally

Here are jumbled thoughts! On the 1st twelve episodes

Pros:

-Roy and Liko are fun, if very much 10 years old. They feel extremely young, and new to the whole pokemon trainer thing. But its fun! Like, the training episode was interesting, because it made me realize how we kind of took Ash's battle style for granted, as we see people who have never fought before learn how to think differently!

-Friede is a cool old man. I also like all of the crew's designs and pokemons, feels like a diverse cast of people from different regions. Also, Punk Nurse Joy.

-The ancient Pokemon plotline is honestly pretty cool!

-Nemona is just as battle hungry as usual, which is great

-The explorers are a fun bunch

-Fun fact: The guy with a Rhydon cameos in Nidothings livestream, which was a fun thing. Nidothings videos are a pretty fun bonus

Cons

-Dot is kind of just super rude so far, not too likable yet. I assume she'll warm up, but I'm not really feeling her too much yet.

-Gods, so much Leafage and Ember spam. In the aformentined training episode, I was practically begging to them to frigging use Tackle or something.

-Related, but even the Explorer main villian spammed Psycho Cut. Forgot his name. ....The battles aren't very interesting yet...

-Slow start, as still both main characters only have 1 mon, and Liko still hasn't figured out much about her career choices or whatever

All in all, pretty good! I liked it! 7/10

[ask-the-monster-nest-xxx]

Send a 🌂🐍 for a starter with Yakumo in the fairy tale au.

Send a 🏰📖 for a starter with Olivine in the fairy tale au.

Send a 🐇⏰️ or 🍑♨️ for a starter with Eiden in the fairy tale au.

Send a 🐈‍⬛️👠 for a themed starter with Rei in the fairy tale au

Send a 📖🦊 for a themed starter with Kuya in the fairy tale au

[ask-the-monster-nest]

Picrew game

Eiden

Rei

Olivine

Blade

Tagged by @rapid-as-sass-in-nation-team

Tagging @within-the-resort @heromuses @the-silver-peahen-residence @lightning-will-bovino @reborn-demon @ghostprince-rule @watchfxrthefangs plus anyone else

[a-not-so-clean-blog]

Nu carnival what's their ABO, what ABO they like, and their scent

Yakumo

Alpha. He's an alpha who likes omegas, but he's still a submissive partner. His scent is earthy, like good soil. His scent is also pretty subtle unless his snake power takes over, than it smells strong and as a iron tinge to it.

Edmond

Omega. He has a ton of really hard to get drugs that mask his omega status so people just think he's a beta. His scent is sweet like icing. I think he spends all his time eating sweets so people think they are smelling his snacks and not him. He wants an alpha but will not actually pursue someone.

Olivine

Omega. He really wants an alpha partner who can take care of him. He smells like sugar water. It's a subtle scent but when he goes into heat it gets strong like honey.

Quincy

Alpha. He's an alpha who likes alphas. He likes when his partner can take care of themselves and he dislikes when people are too clingy. So the personality type he winds up going for is usually another alpha. He smells like the woods, like tree bark, pine sap, and musk. It's a strong scent that feels out of place anywhere but his forest.

Kuya

Omega. He's an omega who loves to taunt his alpha. Most people think he's a Beta because he has no scent, but in reality he has an extremely faint floral scent.

Blade

Beta? Beta is his default but he has the ability to change his secondary gender to fit his partner. His scent is like berries and will be sweeter or tarter depending if he changes presentation. He doesn't care what his partners secondary gender is because he can always change his to fit.

Garu

Beta. His kindness and sweet scent make people think he's an omega but he's not. He does like alphas though, witch doesn't help peoples confusion.

Karu

Omega. He's still mad about being an omega. Thankfully he normally just sleeps through his heats and lets Garu take control. He smells like bone marrow so people think he is an alpha. He will not admit that he also likes alphas.

Dante

Alpha. He prefers betas though. I feel like he appreciates alphas and omegas but ultimately wants someone with a level head that isn't controlled by hormones. Though he wouldn't mind being with an alpha or omega if they can control themselves. His scent is like hot fabric and dragons blood. Warm and strong.

Rei

Omega and very angry about it. Half of his research is on the gems but the other half of his research is on trying to find a way to change a secondary gender. He doesn't like alphas because it gives him an inferiority complex, he doesn't like omegas because it reminds him of his own ‘weakness’. Betas are probably going to be the only people he can be with comfortably.

Eiden

Alpha. His presentation is more like an omega but it's very surprising that he's actually an alpha. He doesn't care what somebody's secondary gender is, and if he thinks you're hot he is going to let you know. His scent is almost electric, like the smell of rain before a storm hits. It's clean and powerful but not a strong or overpowering scent.

Aster

Beta? Honestly I'm not sure what to do with him. He likes alphas though because both Eiden and the grand sorcerer were alphas. His scent has an iron overtone with sweet undertones.

Morvay

Omega. The perfect specimen of an omega. He just needs to be taken care of by a good alpha. His scent is tangy, almost like a cologne. His scent is heavy to begin with but becomes thicker when he's in heat.

[idololivine]

one thing I want to know about you: what are your thoughts on the role of religion in Olivine's character arc?

omfg. I've written so much about it scattered across a ton of untagged analysis posts... let me see how many of my past thoughts I remember off the top of my head

so, let's first break this down into broad strokes:

there's the tropes of religious (Christian coded) characters in BL and hentai and how Olivine compares to those standard tropes

there's how religion shaped Olivine's upbringing and trauma

there's how religion continues to shape Olivine's healing and how he's examining what about faith and religion does and doesn't work for him

in general, Christian coded characters in BL and hentai follow a certain template. it's typically a corrupt nun/priest who looks the part but disregards actual faith in favor of debauchery, or it's a devout nun/priest who learns the pleasures of sex (consensually or otherwise) and stops being faithful, or it's a religion that is aesthetically Christian but the entire church is horny as fuck. the first two essentially posit sexuality and (Christian) faith as incompatible, while the third one just sidesteps the entire issue.

Olivine takes a fourth route: his narrative is about grappling with reconciling his sexuality with his faith. his church is anti-sex... but does that mean his faith has to be too? what is the relationship between organized religion and personal faith?

we see a little bit of this in Idol Fest's main story; part of the conflict is that the church is officially anti-idols, but then Olivine and Eiden discover that a lot of clergypeople are secretly Tidal Wave fans. when Olivine suggests holding the Idol Fest finals in front of the temple of water, the top officials at the church acquiesce surprisingly quickly. the church is hypocritical, and Olivine is not the only member who's been hiding desires that go against official church policy. when faced with this realization, Olivine's answer is this: then we change the church to allow us to be freer. our current doctrine need not bind us forever.

for his personal upbringing, I think it's interesting to compare Olivine's behavior to his siblings', and infer the differences between how they were raised from there. we see brief glimpses of his brother and sister in his Zest for Life and Fanciful Cappriccio rooms, and I think that his siblings seem... really carefree? they're mischievous in the way little kids often are, and I just can't imagine Olivine ever being allowed to act like that as a kid.

there's almost no chance Olivine's siblings weren't also raised religious, so we can reasonably infer that although religion had a huge influence on how Olivine was raised, it wasn't the sole reason. in fact, Olivine says in chapter 4 that his parents raised him so strictly was... because of his gemstone. more specifically:

Olivine My parents told me that my innate special powers come from the Grand Sorcerer of legend. This gemstone in my abdomen is proof of that. So, in order to show my gratitude to the God of Klein for this gift, I must devote my life... to the temple.

which I find interesting, because... it's less that the religion is inherently abusive, and more that the religion was used as an excuse to abuse him. if it wasn't religion it would've been something else. that doesn't at all absolve the church nor its doctrine, but it's a little bit more nuance to an already nuanced narrative about religious trauma, and it gives more insight into why Olivine is trying so hard to reconcile with his faith instead of throwing it all away. it was used to hurt him, but it doesn't have to be hurtful forever.

there's also how Olivine attributes elements of his path towards healing to the God of Klein. another quote from chapter 4:

Olivine As a disciple of the lord, I'm always happy to help those in need. Even our chance meeting and the events that followed - I'm sure it all happened by the guidance of the God of Klein. Eiden Your faith really is super strong! Olivine My soul has been saved. There's no reason not to have the utmost faith in the lord. Wouldn't you agree, Eiden?

it's interesting, also, that it's Eiden's actions that ultimately reaffirm Olivine's faith. if you want to be poetic about it, Eiden is Olivine's redemption.

it's not that Olivine never doubts. smearing monster cum on the gemstone altar in the hopes of destroying the temple is, uh, pretty doubtful. but there's something touching about Olivine getting the space to doubt and question and still deciding that he believes, on his own terms, in his own way. faith that has been questioned and reaffirmed is stronger than faith that is never questioned.

there's other stuff that I haven't covered because, look, I chose the subject I'm currently studying explicitly because I can't write essays for shit. but there's also interesting stuff in Olivine's belief that everyone deserves the chance to repent, the way Klein nobility performs religion without believing in faith (see: Classy Affairs, Festive Glimmer), and the absolute clusterfuck that happens in Chimes of Darkness.

[bungalowbear]

ten.

ranger!nanami kento x psychic gym leader!reader, pokemon au, wc: 970

thanks to @strawberrystepmom for inspiring this series!

“Welcome back,” Yu greets warmly as Nanami and Yuji step into the station.

Yuji waves at the Ranger behind the counter. “Hey, Haibara.”

“How was your journey?”

“It was awesome.” Yuji’s expression brightens, gripping the edge of the counter and leaning forward. “We met a psychic.”

“Oh?”

Nanami meets Yu’s eyes, and the latter raises his brows in surprise. Nanami says your name.

“Wait.” Yuji looks between the two men. “Haibara knows her, too? She didn’t mention that.”

“I’m sure she would have if it came up,” Nanami reasons. He lets out a tired sigh as he adjusts his glasses, which now have a thin crack on the right lens. “But right now let’s focus on completing our reports so we can go home.”

“Right.” Yuji’s head dips sheepishly before he steps around the counter, Growlithe hot on his heels, and toward the office in the back, hand raised above his head. “Good seeing you, Haibara.”

Yu, Nanami, and Breloom remain in the lobby. Nanami can feel the air getting heavier with questions Yu is holding back. When his lips part, he doesn’t gets the chance to ask because Nanami already lets loose his own inquiry.

“Were you actually sick?” Nanami walks up to the counter, unzipping the front of his utility vest. “Or was this another one of your schemes?”

“I wouldn’t call them schemes.” Yu rubs the back of his neck, a slightly guilty look crossing his features. “I’m just looking out for you.”

Nanami arches a brow.

“I really was sick though,” Yu adds. “I’ve been following the activity of those poachers for a couple weeks, so I was bummed I couldn’t go and catch them myself. But I never imagined you’d actually run into her. Lucky, right?”

“Right.”

“Did you talk to her?”

“Not much,” Nanami admits.

Yu pouts. “No grand reconciliation, then?”

“Sorry to disappoint.”

“Now that you know where she is…” Yu treads carefully, eyeing his friend before continuing. “Maybe you can go visit her again.”

Nanami shakes his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Why not? I still try to see her when I’m in the area.”

Nanami had realized fairly quickly that Yu knew you were in Johto. With him having gone on so many missions in the east, Yu was bound to come upon you. Nanami would be bothered if he’d been the only one left in the dark about you three living in the same region again. However, you’d been just as surprised to find out as he’d been. Normally, two long lost friends would jump at the chance to reconnect, but this situation is anything but normal.

Breloom leans into Nanami’s leg, looking up at the man with knowing eyes.

“It just isn’t,” Nanami says.

Yu doesn’t push any further. After a few moments of silence, Nanami makes his way to the back to write up his own report.

After completing their reports, Nanami and Yuji set off for home in a jeep they borrowed from the station. Olivine City is just as they left it. The main street is bustling with traffic from the port and people are making their way in and out of shops and the Olivine Café.

Nanami’s eyes glance in the rear view mirror and see Yuji, Growlithe, and Breloom fast asleep in the backseat. The trek from your gym took a few days. The provisions you packed for them were sufficient for the journey, but not much could be done about the fatigue after a long journey. Thankfully, their home was a short drive from the station, just on the outskirts of the city.

It’s golden hour when they arrive. Nanami leads the jeep up the familiar dirt path that doubles as the driveway leading to the house. The quaint little home, painted blue with white trimming, is a beacon of warm comfort as it stands waiting in the orange hues of the setting sun. The barn Nanami and Yu built themselves to house his Pokémon looms tall behind it.

Once parked, Nanami takes a moment to himself. The sounds of insects chirping and little creatures stirring along the tree line remind him he’s home. He’s not buried under rubble. He’s not cooped up in your gym’s infirmary. No, he’s mere feet away from the familiar comfort of his home.

Yuji begins to stir, and so do Growlithe and Breloom. Nanami gets out of the car and leaves the door open for them to hop out while he gathers their bags.

They barely makes it onto the porch when a small crowd of Pokémon come barreling around the corner of the house. Pawmot leads the pack and launches herself at Yuji, who opens his arms with lightning quick reflexes to catch her before landing on his back with a thud. The porch is packed as the entire welcome party gathers.

Poliwrath and Lucario welcome Growlithe and Breloom while Hitmonchan stands beside Nanami. He places a hand on the Pokémon’s shoulder and receives a good-natured bump of his friend’s gloved hand against his side as a greeting.

The chaos suddenly halts when Nanami unlocks the front door and says it’s time to fix dinner, but then it’s quickly replaced by a new frenzy. Yuji leaps to his feet with a cheer, Pawmot still in his arms, and rushes inside with a trail of Pokémon following after him.

Nanami lets out a short chuckle. They’ve been gone a while, so he understands the excitement. He’ll have to thank Yu later for looking after his Pokémon. Maybe he’ll stop by the bakery before going into work tomorrow.

Nanami takes one last look across the yard, toward the mountains in the east, and tries not to think about how far away from here you also must be settling down for the night. You and your Pokémon in your peaceful gym.

series masterlist

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[hagofbolding]

Fairmeadow update: in which we reveal Olivine's grand plan to murder Goma via cardiac event

Read here | Start from beginning | Read Ahead?!

[lovelynim]

My fanfics

Here you can find all the fics I wrote so far! The fandoms are organized by alphabetical order, while the fics are listed from the oldest to the most recent one!

If you find anything that it's not linked here, send me a message and let me know!

Updated in: May 18th, 2024

ALIEN STAGE

Take 9, recording! - Ivan x Till

Blue Period

Artistic Struggles - Yotasuke x Yatora

Eighty Six - 86

Daily Report - Shin & Theo and Raiden (feat. Lena)

Fate Series

Smile, my king - Gilgamesh x Enkidu

Genshin Impact

Turning Tables - Chongyun x Xingqiu

To Aid Lupical - Bennett x Razor

Young master’s free time - Ayato x Thoma (w/ art)

Daily Chores - Ayato x Thoma

Good Morning, my lord - Ayato x Thoma

Important Meeting - Ayato x Thoma

Loyalty - Ayato x Thoma (N$FW)

Enough Bad Jokes - Cyno x Tighnari

Thesis - Alhaitham x Kaveh

Reddish - Cyno x Tighnari

Bubbles - Thoma x Ayato

Kaveh’s Key - Alhaitham x Kaveh (feat. Mehrak) (w/ art)

Don't make a noise - Alhaitham x Kaveh

No more secrets - Tighnari & Kaveh

Maid Day... at the Dawn Winery - Diluc x Tartaglia

Losing count - Alhaitham x Kaveh

Begging - Aether x Heizou

It's today - Cyno x Tighnari (non tickle fic)

A jealous hound - Cyno x Tighnari

Dangerous Collection - Diluc x Childe

Pocky Day - Lyney x Aether

That Time of The Year - Cyno x Tighnari (N$FW & non tickle fic)

Nature's embrace - Albedo

(Un)wanted company - Heizou x Kazuha x Scaramouche

Grand Chase

Unusual Interrogation - Rufus & Lass

Mornings - Ronan x Harpe

Honkai: Star Rail

The One That Got Away - Gepard x Sampo

Noises - Himeko (it's actually Caelus x Dan Heng but shhh)

It takes a raccoon to pester a dragon - Dan Heng x Caelus

The Dragon's Lesson - Dan Heng x Jing Yuan

Silly Little Brother - Gepard & Serval

Thrilling Bet - Aventurine x Dr. Ratio

Vidyadharas' Special Training - Yanqing & Dan Heng

Too popular - Dan Heng x Caelus

Play a player - Dr. Ratio x Aventurine

Tiny Problems - Dr. Ratio x Aventurine

Bad day - Aventurine x Dr. Ratio

Another round - Caelus x Luka

League of Legends

Move over - Kayn x Ezreal

Nu:Carnival

Old friends, old habits - Kuya x Quincy

How to tame a human - Eiden x Garu

Wishful Thinking - Eiden x Olivine

Obey me!

Purring Demon - Satan x MC

Dreamy Confession - Mammon x MC

OCs

Just Like a Human - Yomei x Kyo

Sk8 the Infinity

Hissing Cat - Reki & Miya

Hardest Boss Fight - Reki and Langa & Miya

The Love Hotel - Tadashi & Reki

Skate With You Forever - Reki x Langa

Slimes vs Hero - Reki and Langa & Miya

Sleepyhead - Reki x Langa

Pay Attention - Reki x Langa

Bratty Cat - Miya & Joe and Cherry

Stars Align

Something to laugh about - Maki & Yuu

Tower of God

Turtle’s Things - Khun x Bam feat. Rak

Vtubers

Celebration - Shxtou x Reader

[tired-apa]

Playing nuca bliss rn and rereading the whole story (apart from wanting to hear it full voiced) it feels nice to go back and see how eiden acted after being laid down with the task of being a grand sorcerer and how he acted towards the clan members when he first met them. I feel so full, but wont deny the fact eiden is such a silly ass dude😭😭 he's such a dork saying those stupid shit towards the first 3 he met (yakumo, edmond, olivine) he's so funny i can't stop laughing 😭😭

I love nuca's writing so much it is so funny and good but makes you feel emotional at the same time ueueueue going back to the chapters after playing for 2 years hits so different fr

Ialso love the fact how different he is from the recent eiden bcs all he cared abt is work, that's why he wanted to go back to his own world, the man literally said he wants to return to clear his name and won't be called a theif bcs he has the gemstone of the client he was assigned too😭😭 this is too realistic i can't fucking hxnqjxjqjfjqnd the devs are rlly on point when they mentioned at the artboom saying they want eiden to be relatable, they are doing a good job fr

[zorritoenllamas]

Birthday Gift [ Quincy x Olivine ]

Warnings: Top Quincy, Bottom Olivine, NSFW, Explicit content. Just Olivine getting his birthday gift from Quincy ;)

You've been warned ;)

"Olivine, your bottom looks as flashy as ever, but would you please go sit the hell down?"

The young auburn man spoke to the priest from behind, who was bent over moving some logs in the fireplace to keep the fire burning, offering his rear end to public view. At the unsubtle comment, his cheeks reddened, embarrassed. By now he should be used to the Grand Sorcerer's ways, but somehow, Eiden still managed to make him blush. He was so blunt...

"Eiden!" he reproached him fondly, as if to a child, followed by a chuckle. He didn't mind that kind of comment coming from someone as close to him. "I'm sorry, I... I'm not used to..."

"I know, everyone knows that, but the main idea of all this was precisely to be able to make a celebration for you", Eiden frowned a little and folded his arms. It was the eve of Olivine's birthday, and all the clan members had made an effort to gather that night to celebrate together. "You haven't stopped helping with everything, even though I explicitly asked you not to.... Come on, even Kuya and Quincy came! You don't even want to imagine what I had to do to get those two to attend", the chestnut felt a shiver run down his back. 

Quincy hadn't complained too much, promising him a comfortable place to sleep and dried meat for Topper had been enough to persuade him. Kuya, on the other hand...

"Oh? I could have sworn I just heard my name landing on your lips, young Master...", as if materializing out of nowhere, a thin man accompanied by a strong smell of incense appeared leaning against the wall where the fireplace was recessed. "Kuya! God, someday you're going to kill me with a heart attack", Eiden put a hand to his chest, he had indeed been startled. His reaction made the yokai smile with delight. 

"Young Master, anyone listening to you might think my presence is becoming a threat to you...", he paused for a moment to chuckle with satisfaction. "It is not to my liking to interrupt other people's conversations, even if they are about myself, but.... Certain characters are becoming incredibly irritating...", still slurring his words and with his usual bored tone, Kuya directed his gaze towards the center of the room.

The huge table was overflowing with food, a veritable feast. Aster had spared no expense. The cooks had put special care into Olivine's favorite dishes, following the list that Eiden had personally given them after asking all the priests of the church what food the Father usually preferred. It had been a nice surprise for the olive-haired young man.

At the end that was closest to the fireplace....

"Not yet, Father Olivine must be the first to taste everything", Yakumo was interposing himself between the table in front of Karu and Blade, arms outstretched. The wolf boy was visibly salivating, ready to jump on top of the desserts at any moment, while the e-droid had his arms full of jars with various types of spices and sweeteners, "but little Yakumo, the last book I read clearly said that to make your meals tastier, you have to give them explosive contrasts of flavors! Look! Little Rei was kind enough to give it to me so you could read it too!" he said, smiling charmingly as always, as he waved the blissful book in front of the young chef's face. Nearby, the alluded one watched the scene with interest, as he offered pieces of candy to the owl on his shoulder, who was also watching expectantly.

Meanwhile, at the other end...

"Idiot incubus! That's not how birthday cakes work!", Aster was reprimanding Morvay, accompanied by Edmond and Dante, who had apparently commandeered a small vial containing a bright, pink liquid of unknown provenance. "I just want to help! Everybody knows that a little bit of incubus essence is more than enough to light things up a bit, so the party will be more fun!", the young incubus was arguing as he tried to take the vial from the hands of Dante, who was holding it firmly over his head. Edmond only sighed, clutching the bridge of his nose between his index finger and thumb.

Eiden and Olivine understood at once the urgency of the situation. 

"Alright, let's not keep them waiting any longer", the priest immediately joined them, heading towards the head of the table. The place of honor. He was a little embarrassed to sit there in front of everyone, but Eiden had urged him to agree to have a little more of the limelight for once, for a change. The celebration was for him, after all.

Once he was seated, everyone took their places one by one. Looks of anticipation, others hungry and others bored, but all with a certain warmth that was impossible to hide in its entirety. He could even recognize a distinct gleam in the eyes of a certain bird who was also seated at the table next to his usual companion. They were all present...

Everyone?

"Does anyone know where the hell Quincy is?", the Grand Sorcerer looked all around the room unable to find the huge hermit or his furry companion. "I saw him leave in the direction of the kitchen? Perhaps he went to steal my food taking advantage of the fact that I was distracted?", Karu mumbled fully audibly, grunting in the process. "Of course not, Quincy wouldn't do that, he was probably just looking for a quieter place to sleep", Eiden shook his head. After all, he understood that the hubbub of the other members could be a nuisance to the blond who was used to the peaceful and undisturbed silence of his cabin in the woods. "Okay, get started, I'll go after him and be back in a few minutes", the chestnut added. "I'll go", Olivine interrupted him with his usual warm smile, grabbing his arm just in time to prevent him from getting up. "Oh? No need, you're the guest of honor. I'll just go and hurry back---", "Eiden", the priest spoke again, giving his arm an affectionate squeeze before releasing him. His tone was as gentle as ever, but at the same time, he spoke with enough authority that no one dared to contradict him. "I'll go. I'll be right back, please eat", he stood up leaving the boy somewhat confused. "Okay, we'll wait here", he finally replied. The other members started eating, all except Kuya, who just watched the scene while arching one of his eyebrows thoughtfully.

"It's only a few minutes to midnight! We'll wait for you, Olivine!", Eiden shouted at his back, and it was the last thing the priest heard before closing the door behind him.

The father made his way to the kitchen, quickly descending to the second floor. In the last stretch, where there was only a long, earthenware-floored tunnel, the echo of his footsteps thundered loudly against the bare walls. There were several doors on the sides, as the castle had many cellars for food, wine, and other things Olivine did not know about. Everything was lit by large hanging candle chandeliers, and a couple of lanterns in the corners of the passageways that led to the other storerooms.

He looked to the sides, searching. Not a soul was to be seen.

He headed for the last door at the end of the hallway, the kitchen door, when he suddenly felt a strong grip wrap around his waist and a hand on his lips. In less than a second, his feet were off the floor, and a tall, warm body crushed him against the cold stone wall, depositing him on the floor again. Air escaped his lungs as his back hit the wall.

Strong, calloused hands slipped through his clothes, taking advantage of the slit in his suit at the level of his abdomen, touching every inch of his exposed skin as much as they could, eliciting several gasps from him. When the volume of these began to rise, his lips were silenced with a hungry kiss, and much rougher than he expected. Olivine could immediately feel his member hardening, instantly dampening his underwear at the brutality with which he was being treated. He had been waiting for this moment for days.

"You were taking too long", a deep, rapping voice said between kisses to the young priest. The man in front of him brought his lips to his right ear, biting his lobe, wrenching a moan of pleasure from him. "Eiden said... You didn't want to come", Olivine rested his chin on the blond's shoulder, smiling. "And he's right. How much time do we have?", Quincy asked him in a whisper, causing Olivine's legs to tremble with excitement. "Long enough", the father answered him, entwining his fingers in his blond hair, tugging his head up to kiss him once more.

They kissed deeply, biting their lips from time to time. Strands of saliva soon slid down the corners of the priest's mouth, who wrapped his arms around the man, rubbing against him in desperation. He could feel his whole body boiling, clouding his good judgment and making him completely forget where they were, that someone could discover them at any moment, or that his moans could easily be heard.

Honestly, he didn't care too much.

"So impatient...", Quincy bent down a little, just enough to reach for Olivine's ass with his hands and squeeze his buttocks, gripping it firmly. "Ah... Quincy, please...", the priest looked up at him pleadingly, depositing kisses on his chin, following the line of his jaw, "please," he repeated again, as he licked along the skin of his neck. This time, it was the blond's turn to let out a hoarse moan. Who was he to refuse in the face of such a plea? "Come here", the man lifted him up easily, letting his legs wrap around his waist, and opened one of the hallway doors, stepping into the nearest cellar.

Inside the room were many barrels of different liquors, a wooden table in the center, and a few shelves with cookbooks. The smell of wine sweetened the atmosphere just enough, without being a nuisance.

Quincy closed the door, leaving the warehouse in almost total darkness except for the moonlight that was filtering through the only window in the place, located at the top of the wall.

Carefully, he set his companion down on the table, which creaked under the young man's weight. The halo coming through the window reached directly over the father's green eyes, making them resemble a pair of sparkling emeralds. The priest was so beautiful that it left Quincy speechless at his beauty, even though the man himself was not particularly talkative. Noticing the older man's scrutiny, Olivine smiled tenderly and contentedly. The blond's intense gaze could say and hide many things, but the immense respect and admiration with which he always watched him stole his breath every time. 

The older man moved closer to the young one, kissing his jaw, tracing a path of kisses down to the base of his neck, causing Olivine to sigh in pleasure. "Topper?", he asked, as he wrapped his arms around the blond's shoulders. "With the others", it was more of a grunt than a murmur. Quincy didn't like to talk more than necessary. The young one grinned again. He found the hermit's moodiness adorable.

The priest opened his jacket and shirt, exposing his chest and his trademark piercings. Quncy didn't need any extra prompting. As soon as he had access, he used his hands to willingly caress the young man's bulging pecs, fiddling with the chains that linked his nipples to the gem of his abdomen. "Ah... Yes, like that...", Olivine bit his lip as he watched his companion. His body was sensitive, but his reactions to this man in particular made him feel like he could melt at any moment. They continued like this for a few more minutes, amid moans and pleas escaping the lips of the younger man, who grew more desperate with each passing second.

"Ah... Quincy...?", the blond was sucking on one of Olivine's nipples, delighting in its soft touch, however he stopped when he heard the young man's tone. Something was bothering him, his tone gave it away.... Or it could be that Quincy already knew him too well to notice such subtleties. He paused his caresses, to concentrate on watching his expression, and waited. 

"You... What Eiden said...", the Father averted his eyes, staring at the floor. What Eiden had said? What had the little devil said? Quincy could no longer remember.... "About you not wanting to come...", the priest felt like a teenager, but he couldn't help but ask; He'd rather ask than be left in doubt. If he really didn't want to be there... "Did you really mean---? Mmmh!", he didn't manage to finish the sentence, as the man had pinched his two nipples hard at the same time. 

The man grabbed him roughly, lifting him off the table to turn him over and leave his abdomen resting against the cold surface. He didn't give him time to react, as a sharp smack on the priest's ass made him shudder, trying to stifle the cry of pleasure that threatened to escape his throat. "That's enough", Quincy bent over him so he could unbutton his pants, yanking them down along with his underwear. Olivine's erection bounced embarrassingly, bumping against the table. The blond took his time to admire the firm buttocks in front of him, so majestic that they made him believe that there must definitely be some deity capable of creating such a marvel.

The only thing that could be heard in the midst of the silence was the gasping breath of the priest, who waited obediently, helpless and exposed. That feeling of being the prey captured by a predator, totally at the expense of whatever Quincy wanted to do with him, turned him on to levels he had never known before, completely forgetting the talk they were having. The man was a perfect sexual match, without ever needing to have asked him for anything, absolutely nothing. They had complemented each other like two puzzle pieces from the start.

 The sound of another spank and another muffled cry cut through the silence like a sword. "Quin...cy...", Olivine looked back, his eyes watering and his tongue hanging out of his mouth, lasciviously, expectantly. "Please, please...", he rubbed his legs together, wiggling his ass, inviting the man to take him at once. How was it possible for a priest to be so devilishly sensual? Quincy certainly had had a long time in his life to bring his stoicism to bear in the face of all sorts of events, but there was something about the young man that managed to awaken his purest and deepest animal instincts. "Spread them apart with your hands", he commanded. The father groaned and immediately grasped his buttocks firmly, doing as he had been instructed, embarrassed and even more aroused, if that was possible.

His entrance was already glistening with essence, fully moistened and dilated. 

"A man of God shouldn't behave like a whore in heat", Quincy slipped one of his fingers in without warning, causing Olivine to arch his back and lift his ass even higher. "Ahh... the God... of Klein.... will forgive my sins...", needing no further action, the priest began to move back and forth slowly, impaling himself around the blond's index finger as deep as he could, moaning sonorously with each movement.

Quincy's erection, which was already throbbing painfully inside his pants, seemed to reach a new level of thickness as he watched the father's lustful actions. His moans were increasing, and the blond hadn't even moved. With his free hand, the man delivered one more spank, grabbing his ass to keep him from moving, ignoring his whimpers. "Hold still", he knew they didn't have time, but he couldn't help but provoke him as much as he could. It took a moment, but Olivine again obeyed the command.

As soon as he calmed down, Quincy inserted another of his fingers, beginning a torturously slow back-and-forth motion. "Ahhh, Quin... cy...", Olivine was dying to increase the pace, but he knew that if he moved the man would stop on the spot. "Quincy, Quincy...", he repeated like a mantra, like the prayers he repeated every morning upon waking to thank the God of Klein for the gift of a new day. The hermit continued, unchanging, leisurely. 

By the time he inserted his third finger, the priest's anus was already beginning to leak obscenely. Quincy was purposefully avoiding his most sensitive spot, and Olivine felt that at any moment he was going to explode. "Please... Please, I'm going to... I'm going to...", his companion briefly caressed his ass, trying to calm him down a bit. "Just a little more", he murmured, keeping the same leisurely pace. He too was reaching his limit, but it wasn't time yet. 

The priest had already released his buttocks and was clinging to the table as best he could, his voice breaking into long, vibrating moans. A small pool of saliva had formed where his chin touched the wood. Quincy had played with him for hours before, so he knew perfectly well that the man could take all the time in the world until he was satisfied with his actions. On a normal day, Olivine thought those qualities in his partner were like a blessing straight from heaven. But now they were somewhere else, and worse, the other members of the clan were waiting for his return. How long had it been since he had left the dining hall? Would they send someone to look for them?, anyone who came a little closer could spot them right away thanks to the moans of his Holiness.

Suddenly, the quiet of the night was interrupted by a loud ringing bell.

The church tower, far away, announced that it was midnight.

Quincy withdrew his fingers immediately and, without further ado, unbuttoned his pants, pulling out his member and positioning his glans against the young man's entrance. 

When the bell rang again, Quincy penetrated Olivine's rear with a single movement, working his way between his tight buttocks. The father screamed at the top of his lungs in surprise, feeling like he was going to split in half. The blond was huge, and although they had been through this many times in the past, the young man thought he could never quite get used to it. 

Quincy didn't give him a second to catch his breath. The man began to lunge furiously at the priest's anus, abusing it as much as he wanted, while the chimes continued to echo off the walls. 

"Coming here... it's troublesome", he gasped, feeling that he would soon be hit by his orgasm as well as the young father, who seemed on the verge of cumming. "It's troublesome", he repeated, "but you.... You're not... Don't forget that...", he rammed him hard, punctuating each sentence with a new thrust. Olivine had leaned completely against the table, no longer able to hold back his cries at all, which echoed in tandem with the bells. His mind was totally seized by the sensations of pleasure, unable to respond to Quincy's words.

They continued like this until the clock announced twelve bells, making Olivine's birthday official. Quincy quickened the pace as much as he could, and the priest moaned out his name with relish as he was, at last, pounded hard by his orgasm. Before long, the blond also climaxed, filling Olivine with waves of hot semen. Soon, both men found themselves panting to catch their breath, one on top of the other, the older being careful not to deposit his full weight on the father so as not to crush him.

Silence once again reigned in the basement, only being interrupted by their breaths.

Seconds, minutes passed, until finally Olivine managed to regain enough composure to speak with a trickle of voice. "That was... the best birthday present...", he laughed with effort, still struggling to resume calmer breathing. Quincy didn't respond, but deposited a kiss on the back of the young man's neck.

They allowed themselves a few more moments to enjoy each other's company, the warmth post termination, until reality was inevitably crashing down on the priest's shoulders. They needed to return as soon as possible... Not without first making a brief and much needed stop in the restroom...

Promising himself that he would return to clean everything properly before the night was over, the priest turned his face to meet the hermit's, catching his lips in a kiss, before starting to move.

_______________________________________

"Olivine, where the hell had you been, we were just about to go out and look for you guys! Kuya's been commenting on strange things since you left...", Eiden had been going around in circles for the last 20 minutes, debating whether they should go find the priest before eating the cake, seriously doubting several of the diners' capacity for self-control at that point in the evening. The alcohol had taken its toll on most of the guests, and the Grand Sorcerer was no exception. "Eiden, I'm so sorry, I couldn't find Mr. Quincy and he ended up finding me, I have yet to fully memorize the mansion...", Olivine apologized, feeling somewhat guilty. He could see out of the corner of his eye a speck of white hair approaching at full speed, dodging everyone present, giving little squeals of excitement. 

Topper circled him and quickly climbed onto his shoulders, rubbing his head against the priest excitedly. Olivine stroked him gently behind the ears, feeling tender at the animal's obvious show of affection. "No, don't apologize, it's just that it's past midnight and.... Quincy, you just got here!" the chestnut exclaimed in exasperation. The blond had ignored the entire crowd to go lean back in one of the plush lounge chairs, automatically closing his eyes. "He's so inconsiderate", the young man added, embracing the father by his shoulders effusively, to lead him towards the table. "Come, come, you have many presents to open!", he told him with his usual infectious smile. "Presents?", the priest asked curiously.

In the middle of the table was a small pile of gifts. In the distance, Olivine could recognize a stylized handwriting that undoubtedly belonged to Edmond. The brightly wrapped package with a bunch of different ribbons had to be from Blade. Another with a visible homely touch bore Yakumo's aura all over it. And so, he identified one by one, without needing to open them, including one with a notoriously violet color scheme, and another that came adorned with an owl feather. His heart was softened. "Eiden, it wasn't necessary...", "we knew you'd say that, but we did it anyway. Here!", he offered him a package accompanied with an envelope, a letter. "This one is from me. It's not much, but I can assure you I put my all into it", he told him before hugging him warmly. 

Olivine was about to take the gift, when Topper jumped on him again. He was carrying something in his muzzle. The priest reached out to take the package.

It was a box wrapped in a simple dark green cloth, which gave off a pleasant smell of herbs. He didn't think about it for a second and opened it.

Inside he found a small talisman, very rustic, with intricate leather and vine designs, adorned with a tiny hand-carved wooden figure. It was a bear.

"Oh? Is that...?", Eiden glared at it, approaching the talisman for a closer look. Olivine could only smile, as he turned his gaze to the other end of the room, from where Quincy watched the scene silently.

Their gazes met, and the man smiled at him before closing his eyes again to drift off to sleep. Feeling like he was floating again, Olivine struggled to return to the real world. He could thank him properly later.

This had definitely been the most beautiful birthday he had ever had in his life.

[kalosstarters]

Fic: Coordinators’ Christmas Ball

Summary: Dawn is attending the Coordinators' annual Christmas Ball for the first time, and she asks Zoey to accompany her there.

Ships: Appealshipping, a teensy bit of bg contestshipping and Serena/Lisia (no, I will not go check what their ship name is, there are too many ship names in this fandom :’D)

Characters: Dawn, Zoey, Piplup, May, Drew, Serena, Lisia, Kenny, (Ash mentioned)

A/N:  This was written as a Christmas present for my good friend, @piplupsbubbles, who loves Appealshipping (and thinks there are not enough Appeal fics out there, which is true). The story is mostly canon compliant, as in Ash is the Alola & world champion in this universe, but unlike the anime, I allow these characters to get older. Dawn and Zoey are somewhere in their mid teens (15-17) during this fic.

words: 4600+

genre: just some silly fluff

AO3

...

A letter from Dawn to Zoey, November 20xx:

Hi Zo!

I hope you’re doing fine! I saw you getting your third ribbon the other day; congrats on that! I promise to follow you soon; can’t let my best rival get too much ahead of me! ;)

I’m also happy to report I finally made it to Olivine City! Ash really wasn’t lying, the road here was long and /tedious/. I guess I could have rented a bike – /rented/ since a certain someone fried mine a long time ago and never got me a new one – but Piplup prefers staying out of his Pokéball so I wanted to let him stretch his legs too… And now he’s mad at me because I refused to carry him the whole way. The whole way! (He’s looking at me right now, ready to peck…) It took me two weeks to get here! No need to worry, though, I’m sure Piplup will forget all about it as soon as I pull the poffins out of my bag. I’m lucky he doesn’t hold a grudge for long…

That’s not why I wanted to write to you, though! You know how every Christmas there’s this ball thing for all the coordinators – and this year it happens to be organized here in Olivine City. I’ve thought about staying here until the ball; since I already have 2 ribbons, I have plenty of time to gather more by the next Grand Festival. And the extra time for training will be good for my team; Piplup seems to be thinking that his Bubble Beam could still be improved even though he always gets such high praise for it from the judges. And I promised Lopunny we’d go shopping soon; her old vest is way too small for her now that she evolved. Who knows, maybe I’ll even come up with a new combination move while we’re here…

Sorry, I got distracted there for a bit! But I meant to ask if you are coming here too? It would be lovely to see you, it’s been a while since we’ve last run into each other here in Johto. To be honest, I’d prefer going to the ball knowing that there will be at least one familiar face there; Kenny and Ursula don’t count because you know how they are. They /still/ call me Deedee even though I’ve told them to stop doing that about 13246 times…

Well, that’s all for now, I think? Please write back to me soon, you need to sign up for the ball by 12th December and I’m still not fully sure I’ll be going without you.

Hope to see you soon! xx, Dawn

…

It was Christmas Eve and Dawn was practically bouncing on her heels. The coordinators’ annual Christmas ball was about to start and she was supposed to meet up with Zoey any moment now. Zoey had had to get a room from a nearby hotel because the Pokémon Center where Dawn was staying had already been full of tourists and coordinators by the time she had shown up in Olivine City. That’s why the girls hadn’t had a chance to see each other prior to the ball, but they had talked on the phone and had agreed to meet up at the contest hall.

Dawn didn’t really understand why she was feeling nervous; she had hung out with Zoey dozens of times before this and they had always enjoyed each other’s company, so why would this time be any different? She tried to explain the Butterfrees in her stomach with the fact that it was Christmas and also her first time participating in a ball like this, even though she had gotten invitations for several years now. She had just always been too far from the venue to participate.

Dawn was pulled back from her thoughts by Piplup who was starting to get annoyed by her restlessness. He was chirping and waving his wings loudly, and Dawn realized that he must have been trying to get her attention for a while now.

“What is it, Piplup?” she finally asked. “Is something the matter?”

“Piplup pip piplup piplup!” the penguin Pokémon announced, and somehow Dawn understood exactly what he meant.

“I know. There’s no need to worry. I’m just not used to this kind of event.”

“Piplup piplup pip!”

“What? You think I’m nervous because of Zoey? That’s crazy talk,” Dawn attempted to chuckle at him nonchalantly, but she could feel her cheeks heating at the implications of Piplup’s statement. “We’re friends… And besides, we’re both always busy, there’s no time for much other than traveling, training and doing the contests…”

“Pip…” the pokemon sighed, palming his face with his wing.

“Whatever,” Dawn waved her hand. “Oh!” her face reddened further when she spotted a familiar figure approaching them. “There she comes!”

Piplup jumped from Dawn’s arms and was the first to greet the newcomer.

“Hi there, Piplup!” Zoey said happily and gave him a couple of pets on the head. “It’s good to see you again! You look great!”

“Piplup pip!” the Pokémon responded, puffing his chest and looking rather smug thanks to the compliment. Dawn had made the penguin Pokémon a tuxedo matching Empoleon’s colors for the ball and he was proud to wear it.

Zoey raised her gaze from Piplup back to Dawn and the latter wondered if she had accidentally swallowed Pokéballs in her sleep because her stomach felt like dozens of Butterfree were wreaking havoc there. She couldn’t help but notice that Zoey looked rather dashing in her new contest outfit she was wearing for the ball; it was made of white, fancy looking fabric that had golden embroidery all over the front, reminding Dawn of the very first contest she had participated in in Jubilife City, the one where they had met for the very first time.

Before Dawn could do anything but stare, Zoey had already stepped closer to her, a wide smile on her face and arms spread, ready for a hug.

“Dawn!!” she exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around her, and Dawn tried her best to make her brain function enough to be able to return the hug.

“H-hi Zoey!” she stammered. “I’m… I’m glad you could make it!

It wasn’t normal for Dawn to stutter like that, but she hoped that Zoey didn’t pay too much attention to it.

“Of course I did! You do need better company here than Kenny and Ursula, right?”

“I… I think I would have survived, but… definitely better this way!” She attempted to smile at Zoey but was afraid her smile looked more like a grimace than anything else. “Really, I’m glad you’re here.”

“Likewise. I know I already told Piplup the same thing but you do look wonderful! The blue makes your eyes stand out,” Zoey said happily as she glanced at her dress. Dawn indeed had decided against using her usual pink dress, instead using one she had obtained recently for some fancier events. It was made of light, blue fabric, with a bit of lace in the hem. She had also picked some moon shaped silver accessories with it.

“You think so?” Dawn asked nervously. “I wasn’t sure if it was gonna be too much blue… With my hair and all…”

“No, not at all!” Zoey reassured her. “It reminds me of the night sky. Which is obviously a good thing!”

“Thanks, then! I like your outfit too! It reminds me of our first contest together,” Dawn said.

“Oh, yeah, I was thinking of that contest too when I saw this in the shop’s window. It felt nostalgic somehow and I just had to get it.”

“Well, it was a good choice,” Dawn nodded encouragingly, hoping she wasn’t coming across too enthusiastic.

“Thank you. So, do you know if anyone else we know is here?” Zoey asked as they started walking towards the ballroom.

“I think Nando is currently in Unova and May has some business to attend to in Hoenn so they’re not here…” Dawn replied. “But I’m hearing that Wallace himself is coming! And he has also invited Ash’s friend Serena and her friend Lisia, but I’m not sure if they’re going to make it. It’s possible.”

“Oh, I’ve heard of that Serena… She’s become quite a hit in Hoenn, hasn’t she?” Zoey asked.

“Yep, I think so. A lot of contest magazines and TV shows are talking about her… I myself haven’t met her yet but May has and she says Serena is nice. I’ve heard from our friends that she used to have a huge crush on Ash when they were traveling together. But I’ve heard some rumors - well, from Coordinators Weekly - that she might be seeing someone else these days.

“Well, you know how Coordinators Weekly is,” Zoey rolled her eyes. “Just the other week they had rumors about me and Candice in that magazine… Apparently you can’t even be friends with anyone anymore without being connected to them romantically. I mean, c’mon! I’ve known her since our childhood; she’s practically a sister to me.”

Dawn felt a weird sense of relief that she couldn’t quite explain as she registered Zoey’s words.

“Ugh, that must be so annoying!” she replied. “I think Kenny once thought that Ash and I are a couple because we like to do our ‘high touch’ thing when we meet or wish each other good luck or whatever but that couldn’t be farther from the truth! Ash is like an annoying little brother that I never had.”

“Then you know perfectly how I feel about those rumors,” Zoey nodded. “But hey, I think we should go and check out the ballroom.”

“Oh yep, I hope they have some food there. I’m getting hungry!” Dawn exclaimed. “And so is Piplup!”

The penguin Pokémon tried to pretend like his stomach hadn’t just rumbled loudly and the two girls laughed at his innocent expression.

“Don’t worry, Piplup, you’ll get your dinner soon,” Dawn promised, scooting the Pokémon into her arms again and leading the way to the ballroom.

…

Some time later Dawn and Zoey got separated as Zoey saw an acquaintance of hers with whom she wanted to catch up quickly while Piplup was still finishing up his meal by the snack tables. Dawn was looking around curiously, a little more relaxed now than during the arrival, hoping to see some familiar faces. And sure enough, it wasn’t long before Kenny spotted her and Piplup and stopped for a chat.

“Nice to see you, Deedee!” (Dawn rolled her eyes at the name he was using.) “Did you come here alone?”

“Huh? No, I’m never alone. See, I have Piplup with me,” Dawn gestured towards her starter.

Piplup just lifted his free wing in the air as a greeting of sorts while continuing to enjoy his meal.

“That’s… not really what I meant,” Kenny mumbled awkwardly. “I was wondering if you came here with… another coordinator or something.”

Dawn finally understood what the boy meant. “Oh!” She blushed ever so slightly as she thought of her companion for the night. “Yeah, I came here with Zoey. She’s over there talking to a friend.” She nodded in Zoey’s direction. “Piplup was hungry so I’m staying here with him but I’m sure Zoey will join us soon…”

Kenny seemed to relax a bit at the mention of Zoey’s name. “Oh, she probably won’t mind if I ask you to dance with me, will she?”

If Dawn was perfectly honest to herself, she did not feel like dancing with Kenny, but she didn’t say that aloud.

“Oh. Hmm. I guess she won’t. But I shouldn’t stay too long, I haven’t seen her in a while and we haven't had a chance to catch up much yet…”

“Alright, I understand,” Kenny said. “Don’t worry, I’ll return you after one dance. Piplup, do you mind if we leave you alone for a moment?”

Normally, Piplup might have protested more but he was still too focused on eating the poffins, poke puffs and other goodies they had made for Pokémon so he merely made an annoyed ‘Pip’ before continuing to eat again. Dawn threw him a betrayed look as Kenny started to pull her towards the dance floor.

…

It turned out Kenny had actually practiced pair dances before for he wasn’t half bad at waltzing. However, Dawn still kept looking over her shoulder to see the person with whom she actually wanted to dance.

“Um, is something the matter?” Kenny asked after Dawn had done the same thing at least 10 times during the same song. “You seem distracted.”

“What, me, distracted?” she attempted to chuckle lightly. Kenny raised his eyebrow questioningly. “Eh, I was just wondering if Zoey’s wondering where I am…”

“She seems pretty busy at the moment,” Kenny noted rather coolly.

“You might be right,” Dawn replied, resigned. So much for getting rid of Kenny.

They kept dancing silently for a little while, until Kenny nudged his head towards a group of people near the drink table. “Hey, isn’t that the Kalos queen runner up? The one they are speculating will become the next Hoenn top coordinator? Serena, I think her name was.”

Dawn glanced at the group. Yep, there was no mistaking the light hair, blue eyes and the red dress she had seen on her in a few contests she had watched on TV.

“What is it with you boys and Serena?” Dawn grumbled under her breath. “She only needs to exist and you all seem to go nuts over her.”

Kenny seemed slightly offended by Dawn’s implications. “I… I didn’t mean it that way! I just recognized her from Coordinators Weekly, that’s all. I know people of Hoenn have been praising her a lot, and since I’m planning to travel there soon, it’s good to scout the competition already.”

“You do realize that there won’t be contest battles here?” Dawn frowned at him. “But maybe she’ll stay for the Wallace Cup. I heard Wallace is going to make an announcement about it a bit later.”

“I hope he will,” Kenny stated. After that he fell silent again and Dawn couldn’t help but wonder if she had been a little too rude towards him. Kenny and she may have had their issues in the past but he had also asked her to travel with him, an offer which she had turned down. Later on she had realized there might be more behind that question than simply wanting to travel together. If he still liked her… she may not reciprocate his feelings but she could at least try to be nice about it and not make him feel guilty about bringing Serena up.

Dawn turned her attention back to Serena’s group and suddenly her mouth fell open in a happy surprise as she recognized a brown haired girl among them. Once the song ended, she let go of Kenny and told him:

“Excuse me, Kenny! I spotted a friend there. I’ll catch up with you later, OK?”

“Al-alright,” Kenny seemed a bit baffled but he started looking for other familiar faces in the crowd once Dawn started making her way towards the group.

Not many moments later Dawn had crossed the dance floor and was hugging one of her favorite coordinator friends, May Maple.

“I didn’t think you would come!” Dawn exclaimed after the girls had exchanged their cheerful greetings. “I thought you had some business to attend to in Hoenn.”

“I was supposed to have a meeting with Mr. Contesta and Mr. Sukizo about the new coordinator academy but Mr. Sukizo fell ill so we had to postpone it… Guess you could say that illness happened at a very unremarkable time,” May smirked. “But the silver lining is that I could make it here! It’s so good to see you! How are you? Did you bring anyone with you?” she looked at Dawn knowingly. Dawn noticed from the corner of her eye that Drew Hayden, May’s long time rival and not so secret crush was also nearby.

Luckily for Dawn, Piplup had finished eating and jumped into her arms happily. “I’m good, I’m good!” she chuckled as she put Piplup into a better position on her lap. “As you can see, I brought Piplup with me.”

“I see,” May replied, petting Piplup’s head feathers briefly. “What about human company?”

Dawn hoped that her cheeks didn’t look as warm as they felt. “Zoey… She got stuck talking to some acquaintance of hers.” Dawn glanced at Zoey’s direction again. “She’s been at it for a while now though, so I’m sure she’ll join us soon.”

“Mm-hmm,” May hummed, again annoyingly knowingly. She kept looking at her reactions, her eyes going back and forth between her and Zoey. “Is it just me or are you a little bit jealous that she’s talking to someone else?”

“W-what? Why would I be jealous?” Dawn feigned shock. “Just because we came here together doesn’t mean we have to spend every second of the evening together. She’s allowed to talk to her other friends too.”

“Didn’t say she isn’t,” May snickered. “But don’t mind me, I’m just teasing.” She decided to change the topic: “So, how are the contests going?”

Dawn started giving May a long and detailed explanation on the two ribbons she had won so far and May in turn told her about the coordinator academy project that would hopefully see the daylight sooner rather than later. And she also couldn’t help but gush about Drew a bit; apparently he had finally found the courage to ask May to be his partner at this ball once it became clear that the meeting with the chairmen wouldn’t happen… though May did admit that it had required quite a bit of hinting before he had done it. Drew was currently getting some food for both himself and May but Dawn could see them casting almost uncharacteristically soft looks at each other whenever other people weren’t blocking the view. She wondered if she looked the same when she saw Zoey.

Hold it, she stopped herself. Why would she? They were /friends/, after all.

Her track of thoughts was stopped when May changed the topic to the other people in her group.

“Have you ever met Serena, Dawn?” May asked. “I’m sure Ash has told you all about her.”

“Hi,” Dawn waved at the girl in question as Serena stepped closer to her. “No, we haven’t met face to face yet. I’m Dawn. And this is my bestest partner, Piplup.”

Piplup also gave Serena a polite greeting. Then he noticed Serena’s Sylveon out of the Poké ball and started watching her curiously.

“Nice to meet you, Dawn,” Serena replied. “I’m not sure what Ash has told you about me, but I do know you two traveled through Sinnoh together. And you were also watching the final battle of the Masters Tournament in Wyndon too, isn’t that right?”

“I sure was!” Dawn said cheerfully. “It was so great to be there when it happened! It was IN-TEN-SE. I was so sure Ash and Pikachu were already finished, at many points, really, but then, poof, suddenly Pikachu found more energy from somewhere. I think I’m starting to understand why Team Rocket had an obsession with him…”

“Ha, ha,” Serena chuckled. “I’m a little bit jealous, to be honest. I wish I could have been there too. But May, Lisia and I were literally in the middle of a contest while Ash was battling. Luckily the staff understood our need to see the battle so they let us watch it on TV while we were waiting.”

“Oh, that was very nice of them,” Dawn said. “But really, can you all believe it? That kid who taught me to use a counter shield in contest battles is now the world champion! It just feels… amazing and bizarre at the same time.”

“I knew Ash had it in him when I saw him at the Kalos league,” Serena stated. “He was this close to winning against Alain… I bet he could do it now.”

“Well, he did beat Leon who beat Alain…,” Dawn pointed out. “Maybe they’ll face each other again in the future. By the way, Ash mentioned he visited Hoenn a bit before the Masters 8 tournament. Did you have a chance to catch up back then?”

“Only very briefly. His ship was already leaving back to Kanto when we saw each other. But it’s fine, I’m sure there’ll be other chances!”

Dawn wondered if Serena really was fine with that, but she didn’t ask. They had only barely met, after all.

“Oh, yep. He said that he’ll finally try to settle down long enough some time in the coming spring that he could throw a championship party for all of us. I hope he really sticks to his word this time! I still remember how casual he was when he became the Alola champion. A champion!”

May, who had been eating and chatting with Drew, joined the conversation now too.

“He’s so modest now, so different from when we two first met,” she said fondly.

Their conversation about Ash ended there, though, because Lisia decided to wrap her arms around Serena’s middle. “Hey, dear! I love this song, will you pleaaase come dance with me now?”

Serena sighed, giving an apologetic look to the rest of the group.

“Sorry, you all… When she wants something, she usually gets it. Fine, Lisia, I’ll come.”

The others chuckled as Lisia started dragging Serena towards the dance floor.

“So it’s true?” Dawn asked as she watched the two twirl around enthusiastically. “They’re dating?”

May nodded. “It’s a pretty new thing, still. But somehow Coordinators Weekly managed to get a photo of them hugging in the backstage during the Lilycove contest. At first Serena was a little conflicted; she /really/ likes Lisia, I can see it in her eyes, but she felt like she was sort of ‘cheating’ on Ash by suddenly liking someone else because she spent so long thinking she had feelings for him… Seeing them now, though, I think she is past that phase, finally. Lisia is just the kind of open, cheerful person that is good for her. Shauna might be a bit gutted, though… But I guess that’s life. Hey, Drew,” she asked her companion for the night, “Do you think we look that cheesy together?” She nodded towards the dancing couple. They were laughing at something and leaning their heads close to each other.

“No,” Drew shook his head, looking amused. “We don’t have time to look cheesy because we’re bickering about 24/7, so the only kinds of pictures Coordinators Weekly gets of us are the kind where we’re trying to bite each other’s heads off. But that’s fine.” He gave May a soothing smile. “Because I could never date someone who agrees with me about everything. You keep things interesting, and that’s why I like you.”

“You know what,” Dawn interrupted. “I think that /is/ pretty cheesy.” She decided that if /she/ ever started dating, she wouldn’t sound like that.

The other two just laughed.

Dawn had been so busy talking that she was surprised when she felt a tap on her shoulder. When she recognized the scent of a flowery shampoo and saw a flash of the familiar red hair, she almost threw herself at the person in question (why was she like this?? She kept asking herself), but managed to control herself at the last minute.

“Oh, Zoey! Finally!” she exclaimed and ignored the looks May and Drew exchanged with each other. “These two almost covered me with cheese, they’re so disgustingly cute together.”

“Good thing I happen to like cheese,” Zoey said, and it took Dawn a long moment to realize that she was flirting with her. She couldn’t get a word out of her mouth. Meanwhile, May and Drew had to face the other direction to not burst out laughing.

“I… You… what?” Dawn stuttered, feeling completely brainless.

“Never mind,” Zoey sighed. “We can discuss that later. I saw you dancing with Kenny. Hope he didn’t give you a hard time.”

“No, it was fine… Just the usual, I guess. What about you, though? Did you have a good catch up?” Dawn asked.

“Oh, about that. It was a friend who takes photographs at contests. I… wanna show you something, but maybe in some place a bit more quiet, alright?” Zoey suggested.

“Sure,” Dawn agreed, bidding May and Drew a farewell before following Zoey out of the ballroom, a curious Piplup in her arms.

Finally, they arrived at a quiet hallway and Zoey withdrew something from her bag.

“So… I haven’t had a chance to give you a Christmas present before but I thought I’d change that when I found out we’d be here together,” Zoey said and Dawn couldn’t help but think how nice the word ‘together’ sounded from her mouth.

“Oh!” Dawn gasped. “But I haven’t got anything for you!”

“Don’t worry about it. You can pay back some other time,” she smiled. “But yeah, the friend I just saw, he took one special photograph back during our first Grand Festival in Sinnoh… and I thought you’d like to see it.”

Zoey handed her a package that had a pretty blue paper with some tiny stars on it wrapped around it. Dawn almost felt bad for ripping it off, but she was eager to see what was inside. Piplup climbed on Dawn’s shoulder so he too could get a better view of it.

The paper fell on the floor and Dawn was holding a framed picture of her and Zoey hugging after Zoey had become the top coordinator, confetti falling all over them. Dawn realized that even though she had just lost the contest battle moments before that picture had been taken, she had been genuinely happy for her friend and she was smiling widely in the photo.

“We told each other that we would see in the finals… and we did… and that’s what we’ve been doing ever since,” Zoey said quietly as she too watched the photo, her eyes a bit hazy as if she was holding down some emotion. Dawn felt something rise in her throat, and she gulped hard in an attempt to get rid of it.

“Yeah… we have,” she finally managed to respond.

“I guess I’m just trying to tell you that you really mean a lot to me, Dawn. We’ve always been supporting each other and driving each other forward whether it’s contests or some general life things… And even when one of us could have easily gotten upset at the other - like a moment of loss - we’ve never done that. When I said that thing about cheese, I meant… I like you. Like, like you, like you.”

Dawn’s heart felt like it could burst out of her chest any moment now. She finally understood those weird thoughts she had been having about Zoey.

“I… I like you too, Zo. In the ‘million Butterfree in my stomach when I think about you’ way,” she finally confessed. “Arceus, does this mean we are gonna be as cheesy as May and Drew? Or Serena and Lisia?” She covered her mouth with her hands.

“Only if you want to,” Zoey laughed. “So, do you like the gift?”

“It’s… it’s perfect,” Dawn said, and really meant it. “Thank you.”

She was about to kiss Zoey on the cheek, but in a moment of whim she decided:

“Well, here’s my gift to you.”

And she kissed her fully on the mouth.

They stayed like that for a moment, until finally Piplup, expressing his discomfort for such blatant public display of affection, started chirping loudly enough that they had to separate. Zoey asked: “So, would you like to dance with me?”

“Yep. I think I would.”

Dawn happily followed her back to the ballroom, knowing that the next dance would be a lot more enjoyable for her than the previous one. And it wouldn’t be the last.

[ask-the-monster-nest-xxx]

Aim was wary at first as he heard the news of Eiden having joined. He came over to the monster house to have a look at the guy. Though the first thing he did when he arrived was go look for Olivine. [@reborn-demon]

Olivine was telling Eiden all about everything he did since coming from this world. Eiden was listening and nodding. "Yea I told you my world was awesome! And your lucky you got two lust demons for husbands!" Olivine smiled and was holding Reigns hand. "Yea he's a very naughty priest. He told us you made toys and stuff and helped him out."

[ask-the-monster-nest]

Made picrews of all the nu boys

In order of appearance in the story. Picrew can be found here

[thejournalmylife]

[Frosted Virtue | Olivine]

Following the chaos of Kleinmas, Eiden and Olivine, filled with Kleinmas cheer, provide each other with all the spiritual (and physical) support they could need...

#NUCarnival #FestiveGlimmer #FrostedVirtue #Olivine

[Icy Equilibrium | Dante]

The Sun Lord takes some time out from his official duties to engage in a few winter activities together with Eiden. Maybe, just maybe, the new Grand Sorcerer can help him make up for lost time...

#NUCarnival #FestiveGlimmer #IcyEquilibrium #Dante

[Arctic Warden | Quincy]

Despite being at odds with the lively nature of Kleinmas, spending time together with Eiden helps to give the holiday brand-new meaning. So much so that the pair even decide to engage in a little "gift exchange" of their own

#NUCarnival #FestiveGlimmer

[draconscious]

It's just a waste of time.

Perched at the edge of Blackthorn City's lake with scraped-up legs dangling in the water, Clair sighs as she stares down at her shimmering reflection. It had been a brutal day of training today--some of her hair is still standing on end from a Dratini's panicked Thunder Wave, and--gods--everything aches, hurts all over. She's definitely not in any condition to travel.

But still...

The Gym Leader's gaze flickers over to the ornate invitation pinched between her fingers. The Goldenrod Grand Gala. It would be so easy to ignore, to shut herself away again. After all, she had already made a personal donation, and being around so many people, in such a...different environment? Blah. (Still, Clair had been to events like these before...and during the previous one, a formal cross-regional meeting in Olivine, she did confess to having a good time. Even though she shut herself away for a week afterwards.)

Clair turns the envelope over in her hand again, eyes trained on the sky. Beautiful evening for flying, so no excuses there. She hates to admit it, but Clair--fearless dragon tamer extraordinaire--is suffering from a rare case of nerves. She groans.

What to do, what to do...

[idololivine]

because I am me as a person (i.e. someone who was classically trained in singing and honestly had a good shot at professional opera if I wanted it) I have also. been idly daydreaming about an opera house AU

Olivine as this child prodigy-slash-rising star within the opera world; 25 is, in the grand scheme of opera, young. careers often don't fully launch until a singer is in their 30s because the voice takes time to mature.

but Olivine, having participated in church choir since he was old enough to read sheet music, got picked up young because he was so clearly talented, and then spent the next two-ish decades being pressured towards professional opera as a career while being told that his voice was a gift from God

except... deep down, he doesn't love performing. or, he loves performing, but he doesn't love it enough for everything surrounding it; the auditions, the freelance schedule, the sheer pressure of it all.

but he can't admit that to himself, because he's so painfully aware of how privileged he is. how many people could afford the training he had? the language lessons, the acting lessons? how many people can say their parents support their singing career this strongly? how many people have the sheer talent? he's met so many who had this dream and just couldn't cut it, one way or another. doesn't he owe it to them to succeed?

that's a pretty wrong thing to believe, of course. Other Things Happen (not knowing what things happen is always the greatest reason why I don't write plotty fic; I have thoughts about themes and character arcs but not the Actual Happenings) and by the end he decides that he's much happier as a singing teacher, supporting others in their own passions.

B-plot: it's an opera house AU and not an opera AU, which means ballet

Edmond, Dante, and Blade are our local ballet dancers with a play on the themes of privilege in Olivine's main arc

Blade is the opera house's resident choreographer. silly mode Blade is his day to day mode and murder Blade is the flow state he goes into when he's really really focused on his work. he's autistic and dance and choreography is one of the ways in which he really feels like he can truly express himself.

Edmond is very very privileged - legacy dancer with a famous ballerina mom, classes since he was old enough to walk, never a worry about being able to afford new shoes and other ballet gear. (can you tell I don't do ballet?) but he's also conscientious enough to be aware of his privilege, so he puts in more work than most so he can truly earn his place by anyone's measure.

Dante, on the other hand, is an orphan who only managed to get classes via free programs when he was young, and scholarships when he got older. he's had to work insanely hard just to get his foot in the door, and a billion times harder to surpass his peers. he doesn't resent anyone for being plain luckier, but he's not exactly here to make friends, either.

C-plot: other characters are here too

Yakumo is truly an amazing baritone and is magnificent when he gets in the zone, but he's so overwhelmingly anxious that he flubs auditions and holds back rehearsals A Lot

Eiden is... a composer maybe...? I don't know how modern composers function. but I assume it would put him in touch with singers and dancers.

Aster is, the owner of the opera house, or something? Morvay is his sexy secretary.

Quincy is the master carpenter in charge of making sets. extremely underrated but important job. he's not a prideful guy, but it feels fulfilling to create pieces that are so foundational to the shows the opera house puts on.

Kuya is one of those diva singers who's an absolute bitch to work with but they're SO famous that the crew just puts up with the terrible behavior. to his credit, sometimes the stuff he demands indirectly or directly makes the show better. directors hate him.

I don't know how GaruKaru and Rei fit into this actually. they don't translate very easily to a performing arts AU. maybe Rei's a former ballet dancer who sustained an injury that took him out of dance entirely, and now he does sports medicine.