#hell yes jump to gaLAR

[alolanrain]

Not sure if this was mentioned but how did everyone react to Ash being pregnant? Also how was the actual pregnancy itself? Did he have typical cravings, mood swings & all that jazz?

Did I info dumped? Hells yes. Do I really care? No because it’s about my fan kids and their family dammit!

There was a lot of... mixed reactions. Generally the more common one was joy and happiness! Most of Ash’s friends were excited when he gave them the news and swarmed both him and Raihan any chance they can get. The girls are the first children to be born in their large group surprisingly.

Celest, Raihan’s mother, didn’t really congratulate her son and Ash. More just... acknowledged? I would say. She was much more interested in Raihans every changing progress of being hammerlocks gym leader. Though Raihan and Ash are surprised when she still wants to keep tabs on Ash’s pregnancy. They both chalk it up to having to watch her daughters go through multiple miscarriages and her one grandchild born severely early. They take what warmth they can get and Ash is usually the one explaining things since Raihan gets Squeamish in hospital rooms and prefers to stay outside in the waiting room, that doesn’t stop him from constantly cupping Ash’s belly or laying kisses to it before they both go to sleep. She’s a lot more involved in the triplets pregnancy. Helping out a lot more and keeping in close contact with Ash to see if he needs anything.

Raihans two sisters, Minx and Venix who were twins as well, were down right jealous of Raihan. They each had more then one pregnancy lost and only Minx was able to have a baby boy who is just a few months old and still in the NICU because he was born at 7 and a half months old. Everyone is just surprised that he’s alive. When they found out that Ash is having twins they despised Ash even more. They wanted the life Ash was currently living. Sweet adoring husband, twins on the way, a steady career, a large group of friends who don’t try and leech from Ash’s bank account. Ash had it all in their eyes.

Though this doesn’t stop Ash from trying to bring the twins into anything baby related. Raihan had explained after the initial sudden backlash from the twins. it was usually kept in the dark because his family is well known and very rich, this could potentially ruin both of the girls reputation if people found out. Especially since they were basically infertile at this point in life. Ash had started asking simple things; what color would look good in this room? I like this theme but this one is also pretty nice? would you like to help pick out some books? Raihan once again had to pull him aside and explain that what he’s doing is sweet, and even Celest acknowledges Ash’s actual goal, but it’s hurting the twins because they feel like this is some backhanded way of Ash gloating.

Ash denied venomously, which Raihan quickly dispelled, that he would never do such a harmful thing. He just wanted to see if the twins wanted to be apart at all. Since Minx is still a mom to a few month old baby and she hasn’t even set up her nursery still. Raihan agrees again that what Ash is doing is good in thought but not in practice. He’s still peeved but he leave’s he girls alone and goes so far to apologize through Raihan in fear of mixing the pot even more.

Forest, Raihans older twin, is much more involved in the pregnancy. Usually helping Raihan move furniture around and help set up the big nursery. He isn’t very warm, anyone but Raihan in his family isn’t warm, but again Forest is much more involved. Especially since he has his own twin’s, a daughter and a son, and he and Raihan jokes that twins just seemingly run in the family. He brings the little ones around for Ash to “get a feel” for kids, Ash snickered because their about the same age Max and Bonnie were, but smiled at the kind gesture. Even though Raihan jabbed at him that he was just looking for free babysitting while he’s here.

Rose doesn’t even know Ash is pregnant. Ignoring Raihans calls that are not on chairmen tk gym leader level and any card he gets goes straight to the mail without him even knowing. Know Oleana on the other hand knows and since she has to keep Rose’s best interest, and knowing that the older twins and Celest don’t really care for Ash, she decides that it’s best to sabotage the pregnancy. Rose finds out after getting an angry call from Venix laminated that Raihan, her younger brother, has a successful marriage and now two new born twin girls before she did. It takes Rose into complete shock before he immediately leaves his desk and books it to Hammerlocke... where he’s barred from entering and or seeing the couple and their babies. 

Rose is furious and calls up Celest to demand what the hell is going on. It isn’t until then what he learned what Oleana has been trying to do and how Raihan had tried to get Rose involved but ultimately Rose never answered Raihan which was enough for Raihan to go very low contact unless it’s for league reasons. Rose is silenced and dejected. He really Had done all those things, it’s only right thag Raihan doesn’t even want him to see the babies. After getting back to his office in the same day, and cutting down Oleana’s pay by a good chunk, he keeps to the sidelines.

It isn’t until Ash is pregnant with the triplets does he personally visits Rose in the office to ask if Rose is still willing to be in their little families life. They still need their grandpa after all. Rose immediately jumps at the chance and soon becomes the biggest help besides Delia again. Making sure that Raihans workload is cut slacked and even asking a few gym leaders closer to him to be a little stronger so Raihan doesn’t have to face to many challengers since it’s mid season and will be near the end when the triplets are born.

Delia is very involved with Ash. Coming so far to rent a month in a AirBnb just so Ash can stay off his feet and Raihan isn’t to stressed between Ash and his gym. Celest actually takes time from being a very important CEO of her company and to come help Delia help with Ash. Though she’s more into lecturing and talking with Ash then actually doing stuff around the house.

Red calls daily, Green and Blue usually heard in the background with their joint kids Tracey and Mackenzie, at least twice a week. It’s short calls, just a check up on how he’s feeling and if he’s craving anything Red can Champion Express Mail over from Kanto to him.

Silver usually just texts, he loves his brothers but they can be talkative in their own way, but he constantly assures Ash that the moment they get the notice that he’s in labor almost everyone is flying out to Galar. Gold agrees through actual call’s with Ritchie by his side, his new top elite four, and that they already have shit ready and packed.

Giovanni is envolved but in the distance. He originally planned on pacing up the process of taking over the world but half of his spies, gown to spy on Ash and Raihan, had come back nearly mauled. Soon almost all of his grunts and even higher up goons were being dragged into HQ’s around the world, bloody and beatened. It took some time to figure out that it was Ash’s Pokémon doing most of the damage, in Galar and Kanto, while the rest were from legendaries. The only team that can get on by is Jessie, James, and Meowth. Though they seem to immediately get the memo to stay at a distance from Ash at all times, never to enter personal property, and to keep all scheming on the down low and out of rang where Ash can’t be stubborn and get up to go help. So Gio has to be content to just sit and quietly wait as he watches Ash give birth to his second set of grandkids. He gets to watch Delia when she comes around so that’s nice, Gio actually misses her dearly.

The pregnancy itself gave them a few scares. The biggest being that Ash is actually pregnant. which takes a lot of arguments about Ash having to be more careful and even forcing them a month apart without talking, this is and still is their biggest argument yet in their relationship. The second biggest scare was Oleana actively trying to spike Ash’s nonalcoholic drinks with alcohol, certain drugs, and other means they haven’t found the answer to.

Since Ash is technically the physical link between Pokémon and humans, what every thinks and also how he has all these abilities, certain human drugs make his body shut down and reject anything. Putting him in life threatening condition immediately to the point where the twins are unable to be saved.

Ash wasn’t expecting how big his stomach would grow. He originally thought that the baby, yes one baby at the time, would take his size. Unlucky in that department both girls have taken near Raihans size, though Cadenza is closer to Ash’s height still, and that also means big babies and equally streatched stomachs. There was a lot of sleepless nights and crying sessions. Ash was abnormally lazy and tired for himself, though expected, and the only cravings he’s gotten was curly fries and vanilla and chocolate ice cream.

[lostonehero]

Cursed friends

Piers sighs as he cleans up his room again. A soft chattering noise follows him as he sighs. He pets his long hair and it quiets. "Ey guys I get it we're hungry we can't go hunting till tonight." He huffs thinking back to when this started, he was so terrified. Now these tendrils or his long thick locks that surprise are not held up by rubber bands are actually alive. At least they can fake being hair when he is in public.

He was barely a teen when he was cursed with this, his little sister got caught up in something when he turned his back for a moment. Sure it was incredibly painful, but that was ages ago and he gotten used to the little buggers. The chattering started again and Pier's groans.

"Ye know the drill by now cunts we can't get caught Marine is here visiting." The chattering again stopped. He sighs rubbing his stomach as his hunger pains spoke for themselves. "Ok maybe in an hour I can sneak away for a bite."

He sighs and opens his phone.

"When you coming back to Galar?"

It took a moment.

"I'm trying I think the old man has figured out that I'm no longer entirely human."

Piers raises a brow. "Did you get caught yknow?"

"Nah nothing like that I just got freaked out when he tried to take off my shirt after he got me out of a storm"

Piers sighs in relief sending a text back. "Good I guess, I'm starving."

"I know the feeling I have to wear baggy clothes so nobody thinks I'm starving myself on purpose."

"These curses suck."

"Ya."

"I need to head out."

"GL I'm heading back to bed its my day off."

"Cheers Guz for listening give bugaboo a hug for me."

"Hell yeah."

Piers sighs letting his phone drop to his side. He sits up frowning, he needed to go.

......

Pier's hands were dripping red as he felt more of the red substance trail down his face. He curses to himself as he accidently cuts his tongue on his sharpened teeth. He steps back from the few bones remaining from his own feast. His hair wrapped around his neck signaling that they are satisfied.

"Yeah yeah I get it." He sighs sitting back on a tree. He felt so good after that, but he hated what he needed to eat to actually satisfy his hunger.

After awhile he got up and walked to the river washing off the red showing coal black hands that spread to his elbow. He knows his feet match amd his eyes glow silver. "Relax yourself bloody hell, you can't let Marine see you like this." He jumps into the cold water and climbs out the other side his hair unwrap and looks as if he just did his hair perfect for a concert. His teeth finally returned to along with his hands.

He frowns it kept getting stronger, he can't say it's the curse anymore its him. He has to pretend to be normal, he has to pretend he couldn't do things. He shakes himself off heading back to spikemonth. What he truly hated the most was lying to his younger sister.

.....

Piers nearly jumped out of his skin when his phone went off alerting him to a call, and his sister laughed at his reaction making him smile as he left to take it.

"Piers you there?"

"Guzma? Isn't it like midnight where you are?"

"Not the point, but " he pauses swallowing. "Nanu saw me."

"You alright mate?"

"I ran away, I was just the guy was trying to rape a member of ReSkull she is 15 Piers only 15"

"Guzma breathe ok." Piers sighed he would of done the same thing, that's Marnie age, and he would move heaven and earth for her.

"I panicked after Nanu saw me and I ran away the girl is fine, the grunts and Plumeria knows the secret. Fuck he is going to kill me, just like..."

"Nanu is not your father Guzma. Nanu won't use you like he did."

Guzma stayed quiet as a soft gruff voice could be heard.

"Guzma? Look it's OK I'm not mad, I'm getting to old to hunt for you....."

"That's him I need to run."

"Wait Guzma? Guzma?!"

A voice Piers doesn't recognize answers. "You the bug expert friend?"

"Yeah and who the bloody hell are you?"

"Nanu, look I recognize the curse he is under... well it begins as a curse no way to reverse it after 24 hours." He sighs heavily. "Fucking hell I retired to not deal with this anymore."

"You....know?"

"Let me guess you too? Whatever it develops different for everyone, do you know where he would go?"

"I've never been to Aloha."

"Excuse me?"

"We met when Guzma was brought to Galar because his father dragged him along."

"And you got cursed at the same time." Another heavy sigh. "Well I have connections if you help me with Guzma I'll supply food for you."

Piers was left speechless

"Well? I don't have all day kid."

"Y-yeah, uh Guzma always hides with the wimpods when he is frightened his dad never looked there."

"Thanks we'll keep in touch." The phone clicks

Piers grips his phone and nearly crushes it. What the bloody hell did that mean?

"PIERS?" Marnie shouts to get her brother's attention.

Piers shakes his head and looks up. "Sorry runt just a problem with a friend."

"Oh is it that guy in Aloha?"

"Yeah he covered himself in honey to attract the bugs he loves."

Marnie giggles. "You have weird friends."

Piers smiles

......

Rai nearly knocked down Pier's door. "Hey dark and gloomy time for hanging out."

Piers nearly chokes on his 'steak' "can't I eat in peace ya cunt"

"Psssh whatever come on I heard you got a tour in Aloha, we have to celebrate." Rai is smiling larger then normal. "Leon is coming too I gave instructions to his charizard so he won't get lost."

Piers knew arguing would be a loosing battle. "Let me finish eating first."

"Ok" Rai watches smiling

Piers only groans.

[grey-eyed-menace]

So!

I'm coming straight outta left field with this one, but hey, some of the best things in life come from spontaneity!

Er... Maybe.

Anyway, here's my Pokèmon AU!

Featuring the Female Protagonists I played as, their names, general differences from canon, and personal headcannons I came up with during my first playthrough of each game!

...and how they fit into the wider world! Maybe. Kinda.

I'm only doing the main series females in this post, with potential a potential sequal in the form of the side game females!

I do know that the main series male's will have their own post though! Mostly because I legitimately cannot control myself, and it's already halfway done!

So, without a further ado...

Arden Forrest!

Childhood friend of Red Audra, and the maternal cousin of the one and only Blue Oak.

Chose Charmander as her starter, named the little guy Flare, and is extremely defensive of the nickname. She is/was ten! Sorry if her creativity wasn't up to par!

Ended up having to travel with Red because her mother absolutely refused to let her leave Pallet otherwise.

Simply stick with him out of convenience after Viridian Forest, mostly because at that point there really wasn't anything to gain in separating from him.

In this continuity she's the older sister of the Sun and Moon protagonists. More on that in Jericho's section.

At the end of her journey, her team consisted of Flare the Charizard, Lenz the Jolteon, King the Slowking, Knott the Vileplume, Skye the Pidgeot, and Blue the Raichu.

Raichu is a stuck up little shit, and pampered, the nickname was obvious. To her at least. Oddly enough, Blue the Raichu hates Blue the human.

The only reason Giovanni remembers her is because she straight up decked him across the jaw when he threatened to kill one of her Pokèmon.

Somehow ended up acquiring Silver as a travel companion for three weeks, Red was bemused. He was also incredibly confused when that feral eight year old showed back up three years later in the news.

Ended up hanging up her battling career shortly after she lost the championship to Lance, and handed over Flare to Red to battle on a more permanent basis.

She still trained the rest of her team, and still does, she just realized that despite her talent in the profession it just... Wasn't her calling. She wasn't as quite as in love with it as she was at the start of her journey.

Bounces around the world for a bit during the three or so years between the Blue/Red and the HeartGold/SoulSilver storylines, and after Lance wins the championship back from her. Trying to find herself.

She participates in the Galar league around the same time as Leon, Raihan, Sonia, and Nessa, mostly as a curiosity, and maybe as a way to try and reconnect with her battling roots, but jumps ship after Opal because fucking hell is their League a killer for self-confidence.

Her jersey number, for the record, was 069. She deeply regrets keeping the uniform years later.

She also finishes the Unova circuit, but doesn't challenge the Elite Four or the Champion, and she tries to do something in the Ferrum Region for a bit before packing up and returning home.

Perpetually pissed off that no one can remember her fucking name.

And no, it isn't about the Championship thing, she was fine with that, really, it's just that the moment she introduces herself ahead of Blue or Red people tend to either treat her like a commodity, or like she doesn't exist.

Made it through the Elite Four and beat Blue before Red.

So yes, she is the official record holder for the shortest Championship. Which, if you're wondering, is exactly thirteen hours, seven minutes, and thirty-three seconds.

She and Blue played Go-Fish for two hours while Red finished up with Bruno.

The ensuing eleven hour battle with Red both traumatized and bored Blue in equal measures.

Blue had the title for a week. Red bolted to Unova shortly after winning and declined the position, turning it back over to her. She proceeded to hold it for another six months before a match with Lance turned it back over.

Actually ends up as one of Professor Oak's lab assistants once she ends back up in Pallet, and... Eventually finds her calling in research.

She throws herself into her education with everything she has. And... Never really loses that passion and drive.

Has to be physically dragged to Passio during the Master's tournament/festival. Dragged. And no, that's not an exaggeration, Blue physically throws her over his shoulder, books their shared flight, and well, he basically kidnaps her.

If it makes you feel any better, he pretty much did the same thing with Red, only it was a private flight that was prearranged.

It makes her feel better, anyway.

She spends the entire tournament/festival in borrowed clothes.

She takes solace in mock-poker matches with Red, Grimsely, Lina, and, oddly enough, Cynthia and Steven Stone.

She does eventually end up becoming a professor in her own right, with a focus on Abilities and how they affect a Pokèmon's mental and physical growth, and also ends up with an engineering degree as well.

In her late thirties I see her taking over Professor Hasting's job for the Ranger association. Mostly because, in my head-cannon at least, Regional Professor status isn't all that it's cracked up to be, and at that point in her life the only reason she would even take over for Oak in any capacity is out of sentimental value for the Pallet Labs.

That, and it's a cushy job, plus she gets to see small children scramble around for over jumped flying tops. So really, it's a win-win.

Teases Jericho relentlessly over her relationship with Gladion.

Not that her romantic life is much better. Someone idly points out that Red is romantically pursuing her when they're nineteen and she proceeds to have a minor breakdown.

Or, you know, she just remains forever oblivious, and Red remains extremely passive in his pining.

Completely blind-sided by Blue's wedding, and honestly doesn't know what to think of his wife, but plays the role of doting aunt pretty well once they have their first kid.

Shows up in the White 2 storyline in a rental tournament, wrecks Rei's shit, comes back a day later during a Team Switch Tournament, and proceeds to destroy the battlefield.

Then, once Rei is the Unovian Champion, she comes for an actual vacation, and actively, and willingly, participates in the Cross-Region Tournament, makes it to the finals, wrecks Rei's shit again, and then destroys the Stadium when she goes up against Red in the semi-finals... Yeah, I'm not sure what storyline to put to the whole rage vent thing, but it's there. It exists. And Red pays for it.

I'm thinking Blue just gets in over his head a week or so before the tournament, and she quietly simmers all the while.

I think if I were to make a fic about her journey/life, I'd call it 'The Trials And Tribulations Of A Run Of The Mill Pokèmon Trainer'. Because... Ya know, against Blue and Red, she's actually a pretty average trainer.

Compared to Red, who'll have participated in over thirty league circuits in his lifetime, (and plowed straight through the champion in a pretty good chunk of them), Arden has only actively participated in maybe five, mantled a single Championship, and completed two other circuits, with the last three or so having her jump ship due to pressure, having to put it aside for prior commitments, or a simple lack of interest, (the incredibly vague Greece based region I have an idea for is incredibly interesting history wise, in universe, it's Gym and tournament circuit on the other hand... Lacks pretty much anything to make it even remotely interesting).

Red will be a living legend once all is said and done at the end of his career. While Arden has a single legal achievement to her name, the famed recognition of being one of three people to take down the Pokèmon equivalent to the Mafia, and a pretty average badge count for a career trainer.

Also, Lina loses to Red on Mount Silver. She knows, she was drafted as the referee because when she came to drop of Red's food for the week. She's pretty much payed off to say otherwise though.

And she doesn't know why.

She's convinced it's a conspiracy.

Fades into relative obscurity around the time of the Sun & Moon storyline, but her damn if her tiny fan club isn't dedicated.

Doesn't show up in Alola for the battle tree because Blue couldn't find her for three solid months.

No one knows what the fuck she was doing.

...she may or may not have been the Gates To Infinity protagonist.

There's a tiny aside to a Snivy named Leaf in article concerning Overgrow and how it affects the Snivy population at large though.

And that's Arden Forrest, a bit clunky, but hey, they're randomly ordered facts, not a character sheet. Next up is the Crystal heroine!

Marie Smith!

Traveled through Johto about three or so years before Arden, Red, and Blue began running around Kanto.

Older than her sister, Lina, by seven years.

I actually don't have all that much on her because I got to the third Gym on Crystal before my brother destroyed the Device I was using to play the game on.

What I do know, from this information, though, is that she disappeared around said time.

No build up, no cries for help, nothing. Just up and gone. She just cut contact with her family, things happened, and she's absolutely infamous for nearly killing three thousand people. Somehow, she's officially recognized as someone who completed the Johto Circuit though.

She got recruited by Cypher.

Again. Shit happened.

Oak blames himself for an incident in the Kiro Region, (Egyptian Region), pertaining to her.

Lina's entire journey is an event and a half because of her.

If I were to make these little things into a fic series, she'd get... Like a seven chapter mini-fic told from seven different people's perspectives throughout her journey.

Those people, in order, would be... Her mother, Whitney, Naoko of the Kimono Girls, Giovanni, Clair, and Oak.

With an extra chapter detailing her death during the Kalos invasion.

She shows back up in the Kalos storyline in this and traumatizes the ever loving fuck out of Serafina.

She chose a Chikorita. Who she loves dearly, even when she's pretty much gone off the deep end, and then some.

Lina Smith, local trouble maker, owner of a perpetually terrified Feraligator, and the best friend of the very weird Ethan Aurum, and the only person who seems to be on Silver's good side. Vaguely.

Oh so vaguely.

Youngest out of three children, her older brother, Gregory, is an incredibly average guy who's extremely confused as to what the fuck happens on her journey, and never NOT worried about her.

Parents died in a car accident some two years before the start of the storyline, is cared for by Gregory at this point in time

Don't ask why Greg is a thing. He just is.

Like Arden before her, Lina takes a very proactive approach to dealing with Silver during the Radio Tower Incident. Which involves decking him in the jaw.

Surprisingly, this is the part where there relationship improves.

Chooses a Totodile and names him Reyne, and is fiercely protective of him. The little guy could put a Sobble to shame... This also means Silver ends up with the incredibly overly energetic and affectionate Chikorita, all for my personal amusement, (said Chikorita is named Lyra, and no, he does not spoil her, shut your mouth Aurum!).

Her entire story isn't so much focused on her gym challenge or the reappearance of Team Rocket, as it is finding out what the fuck happened to her sister.

Ethan starts tagging along after Goldenrod, and starts to reveal he knows a lot more than he's willing to admit about the situation.

Gets caught up in a lot of nasty things, and nearly ends up dismantling an operation to kill Red, Lance, and Cynthia.

(Where are our favorite colored duo, and supporting tree, during all this you may ask? Why, still recovering from trauma of course! Like reasonable, sane, run-of-the-mill people. More specifically, Blue's officially taking over Viridian gym before the start of the Kanto gym circuit season, Red's fucking around in Hoenn for a good bit before coming to Mt. Silver just two months before Lina gets there, and Arden's in that vague Greece based region getting therapy.)

Her journey is just a really long incident report, and Looker has half a mind to slap her at the end of it.

A good portion of it is Ethan's fault though. Ethan, by the way, nails the looking right through you stare.

And a girl named Sarah Morgendy comes up a lot, although it turns out she's just a kid trying to protect her adopted brother from the shit shoe she got them involved in illegally.

The only two problems with that is she's about eleven and emotionally compromised.

Gets recruited by Interpol after everything is said in done.

Gets the code name Agent Lenz.

Demands therapy for herself, Ethan, and Silver. She gets it.

While she's training as an agent, Ethan and his mother move to Unova so that he can attend an Academy meant 'rising stars', and Silver becomes Elm's apprentice.

...somehow ends up married to Blue years down the line. They have two kids between them. Maria and Reginald

[fieryfafarfanfics]

(Bederia) Unplanned Confessions 1

 This was absolutely ridiculous.  Unheard of. Unbelievable. Utterly unthinkable.  And yet here he was.  Standing in the middle of Lake of Outrage. Watching in baffled daze as the women a few steps away worked and moved her way to the set up her—their—camp.  Well, to be precise, she was technically setting up her camp. His own tent was still tucked inside his backpack while hers had been neatly arranged and formed in one of the open fields. All 6 of her Pokémon were out from the moment he arrived, all either hopping or running or even sparring with one another like a bunch of baby Pokémon.  Dangerous baby Pokémon, he corrected as he spotted the fearsome Hydreigon spouting Dragon Rage at an enthusiastic Cinderace.  “Bede!”  Her name was a bell that cleared away the clouds in his mind. Violet eyes were lost in a sea of crimson that shined between a pair of glasses. Quickly he regained his senses. Though years of rivalry and friendship enabled them to get comfortable with each other, the Gym Leader still felt on guard when it comes to her and her specifically.  Well, both her and that unruly best friend of hers. But Bede knew Gloria’s case was a much more…delicate matters of the heart.

 Ugh. Slowly sucking in a breath, he walked towards her. At every step, he could feel the excitement of his Pokémon from inside their balls. It seems that he wasn’t the only one who formed such a friendship with the Champion.  “Gloria.” He stopped in front of her. His height hovered tall and proud before her, but not once did Gloria ever feel threatened by his presence.  What he found as offensive before, now he thought of it as sheer relief.  Crimson eyes looked up at the Fairy-specialist. “I’m so glad you could make it!” Excitement bubbled all too obviously, yet Gloria toned down her glee in fear that she might make a fool of herself. Merely flashing a smile next, the young woman continued to focus on her camp.  Why was he here?  Right, he grumbled inwardly, you know damn why, you stupid mind. ---  It was a few days back. They had their daily spars with the other gym leaders. Gloria as usual stomped each match despite using the exact same team she had been using since the first day she was crowned Champion. Many leaders thought they had the upper-hand for learning and studying her battle tactics and her Pokémon’s battle techniques. But no matter the research, the outcome would always vary with the only thing being the same is her victory.  But what he thought was a normal day immediately burned to the ground when he bumped into her in the prep room.  She was sweaty and hot—figuratively—when he saw her. The Champion outfit stuck close to her body, absolutely complimenting every curve and taut muscle a 20-year old would achieve from rigorous trainings. The dark hair was in slight disarray, still short as she liked it, and Gloria heaved a heavy sigh as she raked through the black strands backwards.  Bede felt pathetic to feel breathless on the spot.  Once their eyes met, he remembered flinching. He also remembered her asking how his day was. His answer was curt, simple. Though challenging, his eye contact was sorely focused on her mesmerizing irises rather than the supple curve of her breasts. How demeaning, he chastised himself, for ogling at her body like some sick freak.  It was then that remembered saying something that sounded like a dumfounded, “Yes?”  And this caused Gloria to chime in both nerves and excitement when she continued with, “Great! I’ll see you there!” ---  And now…here he was.  He was an idiot.  A fucking idiot. Opal would never forgive him for raising such a dumb, idiotic pervert. Stop! He shook his head. He was not dumb! He was not an idiot! And he definitely was not a pervert! Bede knew better than to treat humans like tools or trash. As bitter as he was when he was a teenager, at least the Gym Leader was thankful to have some morals embedded into him.  And yet…  The memory of her body sent shivers down his spine.  “Bede! Come on! I need help!”  “Arceus save me…” He really needed to make it up and apologized to Gloria somehow without offending her in the process. ---  He was here! He was here!  She couldn’t believe he accepted her invitation! Granted, it was a long shot. Gloria was more than ready to suck it up and wallow in Lake of Outrage if she ever got rejected. She was at lost on how to make it subtle and obvious about her feelings for him.  Tea time? They always had that twice every month. Sparring sessions? Had that nearly every week. Gym Battle season? Arceus forbids if she ever had time for herself at all.  Ever since he took the official status as Ballonlea’s gym leader 3 years back, Gloria was a bit…iffy that she couldn’t spend time with him other than battling or Pokémon context. The last time they ever had time alone together was when they celebrated his victory for holding the mantle as the 8th and final gym leader last year.  He was getting stronger. And prettier.  And it sucked that their raging popularity disabled them from having a normal outing whatsoever that involved them and only them. It was easy hanging out with Hop since the young man now studied and worked in Wedgehurst. Hell, it was even easier hanging out with Marnie since the woman lived in the growingly popular Spikemouth. Despite the fact that Bede lived in peaceful Ballonlea, only an idiot would just rush to his front door and blatantly go, “Hey! I like you! Wanna hang out and do nothing since I feel comfortable around you?”  She was a moron.  A lucky moron, though.  Building up all the courage she collected since last week, Gloria finally blurted out her camping plans this weekend and finally—with a rapid heartbeat—asked him if he would like to join her little camping trip. Alone. With her.  Now that she thought about it, anyone would take it as a joke, especially from the snarkiest person in Galar.  Never thought he would accept it, much to her pleasant surprise.  Now here she was, crouching in front of a bunch of stacked logs, staring at the wood like a dumb Wobbuffet. What do I do? What do I do? Clearly, she didn’t think this through. She may have had two days to prepare herself, physically and mentally, but overestimation clearly played her hard when the target of her affection actually showed up.  Bulk up, Gloria! She scolded herself, palms giving a few slaps before mouth huffing out air. “Okay.” She talked to herself. To the logs. “I can do this. Just…hang out. Talk to him. Have a nice camping trip with him and hopefully…hopefully…” A gulp slid down her throat. “I can get a chance to confess to him.” ---  Easier said than done.  Luckily, they were so used to each other’s silence that he managed to prop up his tent with ease. The noises from their Pokémon were quite helpful too. The moment Bede released his team, Gloria’s Pokémon greeted them with such loud—very loud—exuberance. Her Cinderace started hopping and bouncing in glee in front of his Hatterene, seconds before Gloria’s own Hatterene butted in and snarled in what he assumed was jealousy at his own surprised starter.  His Mawile could be seen playing tag with his Sylveon and Gloria’s Corviknight and Hydreigon. A Toxtricity—Gaara, he remembered her calling him—was seen talking to his Gardevoir who looked like she actually enjoyed his company. Violet eyes turned to the very Champion, now accompanied by her Runerigus who was stirring whatever was in the boiling pot.  A smile unwarily curled the corners of his mouth. If he didn’t know any better, it looked as if he was a husband fawning over his wife and lively child—  Stop.  Immediately and quickly he shook his head, which he then groaned in regret at the sudden dizziness that he conjured up by accident. ---  “Hey Gloria.”  She looked to his side, head tilted slightly to match his height. “Yeah?” Swallowing once, she took another bite of her apple curry. The two sat on the grassy field, observing the very wonderful view of Hammerlocke. The edge of Lake of Outrage was dangerously high. One wrong step and it could be the end for any human or Pokémon. While the two trainers knew there was a huge ocean that blanketed underneath the cliff, none wouldn’t dare to try out the theory on whether or not anyone could survive from such a scary impact.  Besides that, the view was spectacular, though.  “I’ve been meaning to ask.”  Gulp! Oh shoot, here comes her nervousness.  But alas, a sigh of relief silently peeped between pursed lips when he continued, “Why did you choose to camp out at Lake of Outrage?”  “Oh?” She swallowed again. Phew… “Well, for starters, I really like the view. Hammerlocke at night is so breath-taking at night.” She was thankful to have found out that little information by accident during one of her campouts.  He chuckled. “You said ‘at night’ twice.”  Pink dusted her cheeks. “Well, you know what I mean!” Lower lip jutted at the little tease. Pushing her glasses properly back to the bridge of her nose, Gloria harrumphed lightly and continued her meal.  Cute.  Unbeknownst to her, her actions right now was a strike to his heart.  Calm down, me! “True.” He shrugged once, then tore his gaze away—hesitantly—to bask on the view before them. “But isn’t this place crawling with powerful Pokémon? I’m not judging your team’s strength or anything. But it seems like hardly a place for any trainer to think, ‘Hey, what a great place to camp out and hopefully not get mauled by a wild Pokémon!’”  He peeked once he heard a grunt.  “I’m still alive, aren’t I?” She jutted her tongue—by Arceus, she was killing him—and brushed away the bangs that hovered across her forehead. “Besides—”  ‘Woohoo! I got another one!’  ‘No fair! Best two outta three!’  The Gym Leader jumped at the Pokémon’s exuberant cheer, while Gloria herself only giggled in amusement. Quickly they turned around, only to see a happy Cinderace hopping above a pile of fainted wild Pangoros and Skuntanks.  What the ever-loving hell? Bede remained in stupor when he saw the Champion’s Toxtricity crossing his arms in distaste—all the while standing in front of a pile of fainted wild Grimmsnarls and Pangoros himself.  Ah. Like an idiot he stared, merely gaped even as the two chaotic Pokémon spread out back in the field for their little game.  Looks like his question was answered. ---  “Thank you so much for bringing the desserts!” Cheeks warmed in pink at the succulent taste on her tongue. “Please tell Ms Opal that they’re divine!” She could still taste the cream in her mouth. It was a pity that there weren’t any left, but Gloria was more than happy to see her team enjoying the treats just the same.  Hell, she even had to break the fight between Starlight and Gaara for the last cupcake.  It was a shame that Ares beat them to it. Oh well, the Cinderace asked for it as he ended up being chased by both Hatterene and Toxtricity.  Pride swelled up to hear endless compliments from the woman. In truth, he actually baked all the cupcakes. While it was true that the desserts were Ms Opal’s recipe, he did most of the shopping and baking in order to impress her. How could he ever forget Ms Opal’s knowing smirk as he said he wanted to bake the treats for their campout.  Arceus, if the oven ran out of heat to burn the cupcakes at that time, Bede knew the blush in his face would be enough to suffice.  Would he tell her that he baked them? No. As much as he craved for her compliments to rain down upon him, Bede figured it would be nice to let Ms Opal get the spotlight.  He knew the old woman would spill the beans anyways when Gloria paid her next visit to Ballonlea.  “I’ll tell her that.” For now, the sight of her smile was sweet enough. ---  Night time finally blanketed the sky above. True to her word, Hammerlocke truly provided such a breath-taking view once the sun was out. Thankfully, it didn’t rain. The moon was a crescent gleam tonight, so this allowed the stars to shine and sparkle their magnificence for the world to see.  “Man…” When he was a teenager, Bede was never one to look up at the stars. He was so used to looking down. To looking at his own feet. And when he did look up, the poor boy only saw broken rooftops or monstrously tall buildings. He was never one to admire nature. It was only that he lived in Ballonlea that Bede sometimes cherished the peaceful moments under the soft, soothing glow of the mystical town.  “Beautiful, isn’t it?”  Violet eyes turned to the lady next to him.  The hair was in its usual disarray, despite having it combed backwards many times after her bath in the lake. The pyjama she wore was…cute and elegant to say the least. Red and black never strayed as her choice of fashion. A splash of red here and a swirl of black there made the attire to look somewhat…passionate.  If not for the fact that a cute Cinderace icon was stitched on its back, Bede would definitely find her alluring.  …  ………  Okay. He lied. She’s alluring still even in those damn Cinderace jammies.  Her eyes never strayed from the blanket of beauty. The glasses shined faintly under the lovely glow. It only intensified the colour of red iris. It only allowed him to be enraptured by such fiery elegance.  “Yeah…” he mumbled softly. “Beautiful…”  Before she could look at him and ask about anything else, Bede quickly brought his gaze back to the stars. ---  “Well,” She stretched, “it’s getting way dark. I think it’s high-time we call it a night.” Palms pressed together and placed under her chin, Gloria looked at the silent man. Bede talked a lot during their conversation—which was expected—but to obtain silence now was a bit…unnerving.  Was this how people felt every time she remained silent at a certain topic?  None said a word next, for eyes moved to the tents that were positioned side by side. The gap between the tents and the cliffs were many steps apart, but honestly, that wasn’t the distance that Gloria felt nervous about right now.  Violet met crimson. Pink and red dusted and swirled so adorably.  “Yeah…” He needed to be convincing. “Yeah!” That’s better. He thought.  Taking a sharp breath, he looked at the short Champion. “I’ll see you later in the morning.” A mask of indifference was worn nicely on his face. He saw the hesitance, the unknown emotion that flickered in her eyes. If he was selfish, just selfish enough, Bede would think that those eyes meant—  He shook his head. “Goodnight, Gloria.” His body felt warm. His fists clenched behind his face.  A weak smile pulled her lips. “Goodnight, Bede—”  ‘GLORIA, WATCH OUT!’  Just when they were lost in their melancholic moment, it burst just like a balloon when they heard the loud chirp. Before any of them could react, a raging ball of fire zipped right between them.  Right into Bede’s tent.  Right towards the edge of the cliff.  BOOM!!!  An explosion actually made both jump from shock. Pupils shot to tiny dots. Heartbeats formed a maniacal pace. Everything happened too fast. Very fast. Both adults remained in pure stupefaction in their place. One had their baffled gaze at the Cinderace who was now cowardly hiding behind Hilda. One had a face of sheer, utter, bewilderment at the lack of tent and sprinkles of ashes.  “M-My…” Jaw dropped so low he could attract Ninjasks. “M-My…My…”  Fury now fuelled within the Champion, along with shame and regret that were quickly switched as she looked at Bede and her starter. “ARES!” She wasn’t one to raise her voice. If anything, people could say Gloria was ‘The Divine Champion’ for radiating an air of passion and grace.  Not tonight, though.  Ares merely tugged his ears downwards and crouched behind the sighing Corviknight once he heard a very fuming, very piercing, “What. Did. You. DO!” ---  She wanted to jump off a cliff.  The cliff was there, so the option was really whether she was ready to throw herself without risking being saved and scolded by her entire team.  For something that had transpired in an hour, Gloria felt like it was a long, long, long, night. Finally, after constant apologies from her and her starter, Bede finally forgave Ares—Just Ares. He figured Gloria had no fault in this except maybe the damn Scorbunny as her starter. She felt absolutely guilty, and she would feel even worse if she knew Bede was sleeping outside in the cold.  So of course the next option was to offer him his tent while she slept outside. Which he of course rejected because what kind of bastard would he be to let a woman sleep outside?  Finally, after an emotional brainstorming, the both decided to sleep in her tent. Together. Alone. Together.  Alone.  Gulp!  It seems the heat in her stomach wouldn’t disappear anytime soon. Her back faced his the moment she lay down. And she knew his back was facing hers as well as he looked at the other side.  Was he asleep? She didn’t know. Was she asleep? Of course not! Her mind was a Tangela of messes. Both arms curled and pressed against her chest, between her breasts. Breathing was in and out, calmly, forcefully. Another gulp slid down for Arceus knows how many times tonight.  She felt nervous. She felt guilty. She felt…oh damn she did not want to admit the other thing she was feeling right now.  “Sorry…”  The word slipped out before she could stop himself. She felt him fidget, and she didn’t dare to turn around. ---  While she battled her emotions, he had a battle of his own.  Here he was, lying in the same tent as her. Lying down next to her. Although Bede firmly declined and rejected her very offer to sleep in the same tent together, he would only lie to himself if it wasn’t…absolutely thrilled to share the same room as her.  “Please!” She convinced, palm roughly pressed against each other as she pleaded. “I promise it won’t be weird! I promise I’ll payback the tent that Ares burned down!”  He was fine with the latter. He just wasn’t…entirely fine with the former.  He was sure she wouldn’t be the reason for them being weird in a tent together.  But alas, she managed to convince him. It wasn’t much of a discussion anyways. As much as Bede tried to be sane about the subject, he was anything but when it comes to her.  And now, here he was, wide awake at the thought of his rival and long-time target of affection sleeping right next to him.  So close. So quiet.  Should he say something? He’s supposed to be asleep. Should he wait for her to say something? She was already asleep—  “Sorry…”  Well, guessed not.  His head tilted slightly, body still remained on his left side. He peeked as Gloria moved in her place, showing signs of guilt and nervousness.  A sigh slipped out. “Don’t be.” He looked at the clothed wall of the tent. Arms crossed tightly against his chest. Uncomfortable as he may be, Bede was too afraid to unfold himself just in case he suddenly felt…twitchy.  Silence lulled inside the tent for a few minutes. “Still…” She was at lost. “And…thank you. A lot.” Air held back behind pursed lips, Gloria slowly turned around. “Not just for forgiving Ares and me. But for today.” Hands still cupped closely to her chest. Seeing that he wasn’t about to turn anytime soon—much to her dismay—Gloria finally faced him. “I’m happy that you decided to have camp with me. I’m happy that you brought desserts and talked to about so many things. Honestly I—” She stopped. Hesitant.  He merely listened in nervous anticipation.  Crimson eyes that were free from glasses now stared at the tall man lying before her. “Bede…”  Her voice sent shivers on his skin. Her warmth seeped right into his body.  She noticed.  Dup-dap, dup-dap! The beat of one’s heart echoed in the tent. Was it hers? Was it his?  “Bede…” She tried again, lips quivered as she let out a shaky sigh. “Why…Why did you agree to camp out here with me today?”  It was a silly question. A childish one. One needn’t a valid reason to agree to her campout. He simply wanted to hang out with her. He simply wanted to catch up and talk about random stuff with her. He simply wanted to unwind from the public and get some fresh air, and she was an excuse for it.  He wanted to say all of them. Any of them.  Instead, he opted for the truth.  “I…” Eyes squinted shut, Bede released a sigh he didn’t know he held back. Arms tightened across his chest, he finally flipped and turned to face her.  Only mistake here was: neither anticipated the close distance.  They were a short breath away. The tip of her nose almost his own. Crimson eyes met a pair of dazzling violets. Both were at lost for words. Both mirrored each other by the shade of red on their faces.  Their hands were close to each other’s respective chests. None moved a muscle. None said a word.  Her eyes then gleamed the emotion he wouldn’t dare to guess hours ago.  The unspeakable emotion was back in her eyes. Hotter. Clearer. Drawing him breathless.  “I care you,” was all he responded, mouth then gaped at the foolish sentence he had ever muttered.  Heat burned straight to the tips of his ears. Having almost a clear mind to just bolt out of the tent and never to see her again, Bede instead froze in his place once he felt her palm, so warm and loving, on his left cheek.  Her smile became the answer to his doubts.

[pokenimagines]

An Imagine of Sonya and Leon dating and Reader is really sad about it because they have a huge crush on Leon and reader is really sad but it ends fluffy, please 😳❤️?

Yes, hello, have no idea how to feel about this! Like I wrote it while very tired, and the ending seems rushed, but it was almost at the 2k word mark, and I was like, “Oh no!” Anyway, it’s pretty apparent how this will end since I’m a sucker for fluff and happy endings, but go ahead and read. I just…love these nerds? All of them? Can I marry everyone in SwSh because I love them? Time to get hitched, you guys! Now without further ado, it’s a story!

Misunderstandings: Leon x Reader x Sonia

It was absolutely crushing when the new champion of Galar realized that, with Leon’s newfound freedom, he decided to pursue a relationship with Sonia. Not only did the champion love Leon to pieces, but they also loved Sonia, making this the worst-case scenario for them. Both people they were interested in were dating one another. It would’ve been one thing if just one of them got into a relationship with someone else. Sure, it would’ve stung like no tomorrow, but at least they still had one love interest left. To think they’d get together…they should’ve seen it coming.

The champion looked down at their phone, seeing Hop had messaged them again about coming down to the lab to see him, and to update their Pokedex into the newest format. They had been avoiding going to town for a long time now and was really trying to explain to Hop that they were just too busy to go home. It wasn’t an entire lie, as he surely saw all of the news with them in it, magazines and whatnot as well as live interviews or mock battles. Even their battles with Raihan, the ones just for training, were sometimes broadcasted from Raihan’s phone.

Still, Hop was pretty persistent and wouldn’t take the ‘Why not just visit me?’ nonsense. Hop knew very well that the champion had a crush on his older brother and the professor he was apprenticing with. He knew the champion was purposefully avoiding the town, and he was getting sick of it. If the champion avoided the town forever, their friendship might fall apart a bit like Leon’s, and Sonia’s relationship did when Leon became champion.

Hop opted to just call, waiting a few moments before the familiar voice of the champion filtered in, “Hello Hop. Listen, I can’t come down this week. I have this thing with Nessa and training, and I just can’t afford the time right now.” The champion immediately began making excused, knowing full well of what Hop was going to be asking.

“Nice try, I called the other gym leaders to make sure they weren’t doing anything with you. Come down to Postwicke, visit your mom, or something. You can’t avoid home forever. Even Lee managed to visit when he was champion more often than you.” Hearing Leon’s name stung, and the champion flinched a bit before coughing into their fist.

“I’m uh…I’m getting sick.” The champion pretended, and Hop sighed loudly into the phone. The champion could hear voices in the background, one of them being that of Sonia. She was calling out to Hop for some reason and what Hop said next sent chills down the Champion’s spine.

“Ya Sonia, I’ll be there in a second. The ever so strong champion has apparently fallen victim to a cold and can’t handle life.” Hop shouted across the lab, and the champion just wanted to curl into a ball. There was shuffling as something was happening, and the champion was about to hang up, not wanting to deal with their best friend before a feminine voice picked up the phone.

“Are you okay? This is Sonia, by the way. Hop said you were sick? Need me to visit you?” Sonia began berating the champion with questions, and the champion blushed at her concern. One of the things they loved about her was the fact that she was really caring when it came to her friends. The champion bit their lip, trying to push back their feelings for her.

“I’m fine…I promise I am.” The champion said, and they could hear the cogs in Sonia’s head begin turning, and they decided they’d do whatever they could to assure her, “I’m at the tail end of it, so I’ll be fit as a fiddle probably by tomorrow or the next day, I swear it!” The champion said, and Sonia let out a sigh on the other end.

“Well, okay…do you think once you’re better, you’ll be able to visit then, or do I have to drag you out of your castle and make sure you’re actually alive.” Sonia said into the phone, and the champion knew there was no getting out of this one…perhaps.

“Listen because I’m sick I’m uh running behind on a lot of things. Once I’m all better, I’m sure I’ll have tons of things to uh catch u-up on and whatnot. So sorry, I can’t visit anytime soon…” The champion mentally high-fived themself for the quick response. Still, Sonia wasn’t convinced, and she was, oddly enough, more stubborn and persuasive than Hop was.

“Alright…so I’ll see you in two days either in Postwicke or Wyndon. You have until noon that day to decide who’s going where.” Sonia then clicked on them, making the champion let out the world’s loudest and most annoying groan. The small Charmander in their room just gave them an odd look before going back to taking their nap. The champion was going to actually die because of this woman.

After two days had passed, the Champion pulled into the sleepy town of Wedgehurst; a particularly smug Sonia and Hop were there to greet them, alongside an excited looking Leon. The champion didn’t make eye contact as they walked a bit closer to them, giving small greetings. Their grand plan was to excuse themself to go and visit their mother than disappear into the Slumbering Welds for the rest of their stay until they could go back to Wyndon.

“Not so fast, we haven’t seen you in months, and you’re going to dip out like that?” Sonia asked, grabbing the back of the champion’s hoodie as they tried making a hasty escape. They choked a bit before falling back and seeing an annoyed Sonia, glaring at them. They withered a bit under her glare, not knowing what to do as Leon put a hand on her shoulder, chuckling a bit.

“It’s alright, it was probably was a long journey here, and they might need some rest,” Leon assured her and seeing them interact just hurt the champion more as they looked away and caught Hop’s eyes. Perhaps if they tried to grab ahold of him and escape, this anguish would be a lot better.

“Don’t even think about it,” Hop said as soon as he noticed the look in the champion’s eyes. They blushed furiously at being so transparent, and Hop smirked, “I actually need to go and see professor Magnolia, so why don’t the three of you catch up?” Hop said with a devilish smirk.

“Good idea, Hop,” Leon said, enthusiastic as ever and utterly clueless to the inner turmoil of the new champion. They just wanted to run to their old bedroom and sob into a pillow or something. Being with the couple would only make things ten times worse for them.

“Excellent idea, actually.” Sonia sent him a wink, and he returned it before dashing off into who-knows-where. The three were left at the train station, and Sonia turned to the champion, giving them her soft smile and wanting to seemingly relax them now. The champion’s eyes darted to find an escape, and after not seeing one, decided to walk alongside them.

The trip to the lab was pretty silent, other than Leon and Sonia making small talk, and the champion just humming in agreement whenever the conversation needed a reply. The two knew that they weren’t really engaging in the discussion, and Sonia knew precisely why. She was smart and had noticed the champion’s feelings a long time ago. Probably before they even made it to Turffield. Leon had been a bit more dense about it, so she spelled it out to him once.

They finally arrived, and Sonia’s yamper happily jumped onto the leg of the champion, and they happily picked up the excited electric dog. At least the champion had one ally in this lab, even if he was good at occasionally electrocuting them. They all walked over to the small sitting area as Sonia put on some tea for them and sat down next to the champion.

“Anything interesting happening since becoming the champion? Meet anyone you’re interested in?” Sonia immediately asked, not skipping around with formalities, and the champion’s eyes bugged out a bit as they bit their lip nervously.

“No, to really. Just a lot of…work.” The champion tried to say, looking over at Leon and hoping to get some support. The champion hadn’t been lying that they had tons of work to do, constantly. They’d just occasionally volunteer for more whenever Hop was interested in having them come down to visit.

“Well, it is a lot of work…what do you do in your downtime?” Leon asked, leaning a bit against the table as the champion tried to look in every other direction but him. They soon opted to stare at the bookshelf, as that wouldn’t judge them at least.

“I uh, I prefer keeping myself busy whenever possible.” Less time for them to think about the two of them whenever they were working. Hell, the league probably thought they were a workaholic despite being a pretty lazy individual when they wanted to be.

Sonia sighed, rubbing her temples before she decided enough was enough, “Listen, I think we’ve tortured you enough for blatantly avoiding us.” Sonia began, and the champion opened their mouth to say something when she continued, “We both like you, okay. Leon and myself. As more than friends. We’ve been trying to get you here through Hop for months, but that stupid thick skull of yours has kept you away.” Sonia said, making everyone at the table blush.

“I thought we were going to word that way differently,” Leon said as he looked over at his girlfriend in shock. She just shrugged her shoulders, thinking that her way had even the best way. After all, she skipped to the point and wanted this awkward tension around the group to dissipate already. It was getting a bit annoying.

“You guys…what? You guys are going out together, though?” The champion asked, not understanding what the hell they were going on about? Was this some weird flex or something?

“Listen, it’s a polyamorous relationship deal. Do you want to go out with us? Like a huge couple? All three, together?” Sonia explained to them, and the champion took a moment. They had heard about polyamory, but they always assumed it was something that old couples did when the wife found some young guy, and he and the wife were together, but the husband just watched. Was their life a lie?

“So you want to be in a relationship with me? And him. And him and me? And him and you? Like love triangle, but it’s all requited love?” The champion said, pointing at everyone while referring to them. Leon found this amusing and actually laughed, getting hit in the chest by Sonia in the process.

“Yes, that’s exactly what we’re saying? Do you want to?” Leon asked, giving him that signature smirk that had them falling for him all over again. The champion opened their mouth, prepared to answer when the front door flung open, and there stood Hop.

“So is it done yet? Did they agree?” Hop asked, being far too impatient. He had been told to wait for a while for this discussion, but he was getting now too bored. If they hadn’t gotten to the good stuff yet, he was going to just get it out there for them. All three looked over at him before the champion began laughing. It felt like an entire universe was being lifted from their shoulders.

“Yes, I agree.” The champion said, looking between their two new lovers. Sonia and Leon’s face lit up at the thought, and the champion decided, at that moment, perhaps they’d make sure to visit town far more.

Request Info Here

[pokemonswshbutionlyplayedsword]

Haunted house anon here: basically I watched Rayan Bergara's interview with SAYMYNAME and wondered about the young gym leaders' reaction (minus Bea and Allister) to something similar. I'd say Milo is one of those people that giggle after getting spooked and gets out unfazed

Haunted House Anon, I am so glad you sent me this ask because I’d never heard of that interview or Spooky Small Talk at all (too bad there’s only 2 that I could find) and I absolutely LOVED IT. In case anyone doesn’t know what this is (go watch it), Ryan Bergara interviews people while walking through a haunted house.

So Allister sets up a bunch of haunted houses across Galar. These are where the interviews are taking place.

Milo:

-You’re right, anon, very little fazes him. The interviewer is jumping and shaking and Milo’s all “Yeah, I love my Eldegoss he’s a good boy. :)”

-He is disturbed by the gory bits, though. Like that thing right after the Career Crush segment in the SAYMYNAME interview would probably really bother him.

-When they make it out all Milo really has to say is “Thanks, that was fun :)”

Nessa:

-She clings to the interviewer the entire time. Before they even get to the first scare, she’s on his shoulder like “you go ahead, I’ll be right behind you.” She jumps at nearly everything.

-She’s cracking witty remarks at the actors. It’s amazing they don’t laugh. Also, she can’t finish a single sentence without getting scared and screaming. Her hair catches in a chain and she thinks she’s been grabbed, so she shrieks. She’s alright though.

-At the end, she’s still looking over her shoulder even though they’re outside. She’s just like “thanks for the interview but screw you for doing this to me.”

Kabu:

-At the start, he claims that he won’t be shaken by anything in the house. And it goes well until the scare at the first segment. From there, he’s a nervous wreck, wondering what else will be able to sneak up on him.

-He keeps his answers short and simple so he can mask the shaking in his voice as much as possible. He’s trying really hard not to flinch at each scare, but you can tell he’s petrified.

-At the end, he admits that he did get scared, but he really enjoyed the experience.

Bea:

She respectfully declines because she knows she’s probably going to accidentally send an unsuspecting actor to the hospital if she goes.

Allister:

He also respectfully declines because they’re all his own haunted houses and it’s not going to be any fun for him.

Gordie:

-Before they even go in, he admits that he’s scared. He takes off his sunglasses only when they get inside.

-He’s trying not to cling to the interviewer, but it gets harder as they get further through the haunted house. He keeps trying to give in-depth answers, and he gets so into them that he forgets he’s supposed to be in a haunted house and everything gets the jump on him.

-At the end, he’s shaking, and he mentions that he thinks his heart stopped. Sunglasses come back on and he thanks the interviewer for the experience. He says he had fun, and even tell the other gym leaders through the camera to do the interview, since the interviewer asks him if he thinks the rest of the gym leaders will be interested.

Melony:

-She’s optimistic. At the start, she’s all “I hope we have fun in here and get a few good scares!”

-She’s not scared by anything. Surprised? Yes, but is she paranoid or nervous? No, she’s just vibing enjoying the experience. Someone pops out and she’s all “Oh! How scary! This is fun!”

-At the end, she mentions how much fun she had and thanks the interviewer three times. She didn’t really get scared, but she had herself a great time.

Opal:

She respectfully declines because she is an old lady and does not want to get scared.

Piers:

-He’s pumped to go in. He loves horror movies and haunted houses, so he’s visibly excited for the interview. He warns the interviewer that he’s a singer, so he’s got a powerful voice and likes to scream.

-At every scare, he shrieks a little, but then is like “that’s so cool, how do you think they did that? Was that a real person? I hope so, that was awesome!” He keeps interrupting himself to point out things he thinks is cool and fun. He is a bit paranoid, looking over his shoulder, but he’s having a great time. He keeps his ponyta-tail over his shoulder so he can make sure it doesn’t get caught on anything (he watched Nessa’s interview).

-At the end, there’s a big scare right before the exit. Piers lets out the most impressive horror movie scream to ever be executed. He’s proud as hell of it. He’s very happy with the interview and thanks the interviewer for the great time. In every interview after that one, when asked what his favorite clip of himself was, he says the one of him shrieking at the end of that haunted house. Allister is very pleased with that scream.

Raihan:

-He’s trying to play it cool, but it’s obvious he’s nervous. He says he’s not scared when the interviewer asks him, but he’s fiddling with his headband, a habit of his for when he’s nervous. His fans call him out on it in the comments.

-Throughout, he’s trying not to scream or flinch, but he’s failing miserably. He gets through most of his sentences, but he nearly passes out at the scare during the first segment. “I thought chairs meant I was safe!!!!” His voice wobbles as he tries to get through sentences when he gets scared. He does a lot of ducking when something pops out.

-At the end, he says he never got scared once. The interviewer calls him out, but he’s like “nope not scary totally wasn’t scared haha nothing it’s nothing it was so easy” He had fun, though.

Leon:

-He’s surprised he even had time for an interview like this, but he’s excited. He admits that he’s not nervous, but he’s curious because he’s never actually done a haunted house before. He asks what he should expect and when the interviewer says “you’ll see” you can see true terror in his eyes.

-In the haunted house, Leon’s making jokes. He’s using his humor to lighten his own mood so he’s not as scared. He admits several times that he’s pretty frightened, but he’s having fun and he thinks this it’s cool. He gets through a lot of answers, and surprisingly, none of the scares during the segments get him. For some reason, that’s the only thing he’s immune to.

-There’s a big scare at the end and Leon just straight up freezes and covers his eyes with his hat. He and the interviewer laugh about it at the end. He says he had a great time and he hopes that the audience liked the interview.

They all have a lot of fun and heart attacks. Allister loves these videos, seeing his work spooking his friends. It’s a good time for all. Opal also really liked watching the videos.

[thaisibir]

La Vie en Rose (Bede and young!Opal time travel fic)

Here’s the fic I’d been promising to write about Opal’s past, based on my prior headcanon posts. Though this fic will explore Opal’s life, it’s all from Bede’s POV. Enjoy!

La Vie en Rose (Life in Pink) Rating: T (for character deaths and language) Chapter 1/10 - Fairy Tale (length: ~4k words) Summary: Bede doesn't get why that loony old bat Opal wants him to be the next Fairy-type Gym Leader. To help him understand, Opal has Celebi take Bede back to the time of her youth. 

(For other chapters, look up the tag “pokemon la vie en rose” or go to my profile)

For what seemed like the hundredth time that day, Bede thought about making a break from Opal, that loony old bat. Nothing could stop him. She wasn't gripping and pulling him along by the arm, like a parent dragging an upset child through the grocery store. In fact, he fought a hard battle with impatience to match her stride. The oldest Gym Leader in Galar walked at the pace of a Chewtle on a cold day. It wasn't like she could chase him down if he took off. Her heart would probably give out first if she tried.

Before they had set off from the sprawling castle-city of Hammerlocke, Opal had insisted on walking, turning down chances to take the train and the Flying Taxi. The train made sense, since there were no railways leading through the dense Glimwood Tangle and into Ballonlea. But not taking the Flying Taxi perplexed Bede.

"We'll get there much faster if we take a taxi," he told her.

"I'm not hopping on that bloody death trap," she replied with a snort.

"So you want to get blisters on your feet instead?"

"I very much prefer that to crashing and dying."

Bede rolled his eyes. "We won't crash and die. Those taxis are very safe."

"Rubbish. My boy, you have no idea."

Bede gawked at her. More like she didn't have any idea. There had never been reports of Flying Taxi accidents on the telly. Not that Bede expected an ancient fossil like Opal to keep up with news on the telly, anyway. Did she even own a telly?

Opal wouldn't budge on her decision, so they ended up walking all the way from Hammerlocke to Ballonlea. They had walked side by side, making no physical contact at all, yet what Bede felt between them was the alluring, arresting air of her authority and of course, her very strange, out-of-the-blue offer.

He wasn't a Gym Challenger anymore, so could Opal really pick him to be the next Gym Leader? Was that allowed? Opal seemed like the kind of woman to turn her big nose up at the rules and do whatever the bloody hell she wanted, anyway.

She had declared that he had the "right amount of pink." What did that mean? That was the first question he popped just after she had swooped in on him at Hammerlocke, but she refused to tell him, only that "pink isn't a color easily explained." Bollocks, you couldn't explain color. Blue is blue. Green is green. Red is red. And so on. Bede couldn't make heads or tails out of this lady clearly off her rocker.

Chairman Rose had disqualified Bede from the Gym Challenge at Stow-on-Side, so Bede had never reached Ballonlea to challenge the Fairy-type Gym. Though he tried to keep his face impassive, his first visit to the town enchanted him.

A spectrum of colors from glowing mushrooms abound under the shade of towering trees. Some mushrooms were so big that they loomed over the cottages. Bede didn't know that they could get that tall. Burbles of a brook winding through the leafy floor filled his ears. From their perches on the Pokemon Center, a pair of Hattrem tittered at Opal and Bede. Farther away, Chinchou bobbed their angler lights overhead. A little girl sitting on a large boulder played with two bobbing Inkays, and as Opal and Bede climbed the stairs, she waved at them.

"Hello, Ms. Opal. Welcome, Trainer."

Opal smiled at the girl and gestured to her young traveling companion. "This is Bede. He's going to be the town's next Gym Leader."

The girl's eyes lit up and she fidgeted in her spot on the boulder. "Oh, that's so exciting! This will be the talk of the town for sure. Good luck, Bede."

"Er, thanks," he stammered, then as they walked away, he muttered to Opal, "You have an awful lot of confidence to say that."

"I am rarely wrong in the choices I make," she replied. An impish glance peeked from the brim of her hat. "Don't prove me wrong, child."

Though she had a jovial tone, his stomach twisted in nervousness as if she had said it ominously. Why was he nervous? Why did he care? He didn't really want to be a Gym Leader. He hoped to just glean whatever information Opal had on the Wishing Stars, then be on his way. If there was a second chance to redeem himself in the Chairman's eyes, then he would seize that chance by the throat.

Opal led him down a winding path away from the Gym. Bede frowned. "Wait, where are we going?"

She quirked a white eyebrow at him. "You're not living at the Gym. Don't you want to see where you'll be living?"

Bede nearly stopped in his tracks. She was taking him to her house. It looked like the other cottages in town, timber-framed and dotted with cascading plants. A wooden armbench occupied the tiny front yard. A door flap took up a third of the whole door.

Suddenly a Mightyena bounded through the door flap with ferocious barks. Bede couldn't help jumping back in alarm. An Obstagoon opened up the wooden door to occupy almost the entire threshold and crossed its arms. It leered at Bede with bared fangs and through red eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Opal waved a placating hand at the pair of Dark type Pokemon. "Oh, hush now, my dears. The boy's all right. He's with me."

Bede's hand flitted to the Poke balls on his belt, not to send them out, but to protect them. He had a team of Psychic types, after all. "What are they doing here? Aren't you a Fairy type Trainer, Ms. Opal?" He hated how his voice got high and cracking when he gets scared.

Opal patted Obstagoon's arm with one hand, then ruffled Mightyena's mane with the other. "These are my husband's Pokemon. Descendants of them, anyway. They keep good company. Sometimes good protection." At her touch, the two Pokemon relaxed and looked to her with undisguised affection.

Bede tried to relax, too. "You have a husband?"

"Had."

"Oh, so he's—"

"Not around." She gestured to another path with the tip of her umbrella. "If you want to meet him, take the trail to the Ballonlea Cemetary."

Bede rubbed the back of his head. What should he say? "Er, I'm sorry."

Opal gave him a toothy grin. "No need to be. He left me ages ago. Now come inside and have some tea."

"Yes, ma'am." Bede stepped inside the house after her, followed closely behind by the vigilant Mightyena and Obstagoon. He was not surprised in the least to find the interior painted in cheerful pastel colors, shades of purple, pink, and light blue. He felt like walking into a child's dollhouse. Every piece of furniture—the sofa, the dining table, the armchair, the nightstand—looked like it was made for one. Excluding the company of Pokemon, clearly Opal had been living alone for a long time.

As Opal went straight to brewing tea in the kitchen, her following remark confirmed his suspicions. "It's been a while since I've had visitors in here. Mostly because this place has been a righteous mess."

"I...I can see that," Stacks of papers, discs, and tapes were piled halfway to the ceiling, on the verge of toppling over if Bede carelessly bumped an elbow or his hip against them.

Opal set two steaming teacups on the table, then turned to pull a book from the nearby shelf. The thick weight of it bent Opal over and nearly made her drop it, but she managed to heave it over the table and place it with a solid thump before Bede.

"Here, a crash course on the care and training of Fairy type Pokemon. Written by my own mum."

Bede peered at the cover. "By Ruby Roy," it said. He looked up at her with a frown. "You want me to read all of it, Ms. Opal?"

"From front to back until you have it memorized," she said firmly. "Mum made me do that, so I'm passing down the same regimen."

Bede bit back a groan. He wasn't one to sit still and hunched over a book for a long time. As he sipped at his tea, he found her unblinking gaze of intense scrutiny on him unnerving, so he tried to avoid staring back at her by leafing through the Fairy Pokemon training manual.

The pages were Butterfree wing-thin, aged from lengthy ownership but evidently cared for since there were no holes or stains. Bede kept the teacup a fair distance from the book. Somehow he didn't want to risk pissing off an old lady like Opal.

"I notice that you favor Psychic types," She remarked as she sipped from her own teacup. "The jump from using Psychic to Fairy types isn't a terribly big one. I know many Pokemon that are Psychic-Fairy, like Gardevoir, Hatterene, and Galarian Rapidash. You would do well to start using them."

"I already have a Galarian Ponyta and a Hattrem," Bede said.

"Splendid. You'll still have to make some switches to your team, though. Go for a few runs through Glimwood Tangle to catch and train your new Pokemon. But first, before any battles, hit the books." She seemed to notice his dismay, and the corners of her puckered lips twitched upward, though not apologetically. "I'm an old-fashioned gal."

Opal had Bede read through one chapter for the day, then asked him to help her tidy up the house. "We'll need to get the clutter cleared so you can have your own space," she said. "I only have one bedroom, so you'll have to make do with the sofa."

Bede shrugged. "That's fine. I'm used to sleeping in chairs."

She thrust a feather duster into his hands. "You're a tall boy for your age," she remarked as she looked him up and down. "You can dust the shelves that have been out of my reach since my back got bad." She grinned. "How handy."

Bede resisted heaving a sigh, otherwise he'd get dust up his nose. He pulled up the sleeves of his pink oversized coat and got to work. The stacks of papers, discs, and tapes turned out to be years worth of audition material, records of thousands of candidates Opal had been considering to be her successor. She had kept them around for reference, or in case she had to contact anyone she changed her mind about. Now that Bede was chosen, she had no more use for them. Her Mawile proved to be a big help in shredding up the paper and chomping the discs and tapes into pieces in its big jaws. Bede noticed that Opal kept her Pokemon team, along with Mightyena and Obstagoon, out of their Poke balls while she was at home. Weezing floated and puffed in content around the front yard, while Togekiss nestled in the sofa, and Alcremie, due to its creamy body and high-maintenance care, was kept away from the furniture and could be in the kitchen where messes were more tolerable.

"I use the Poke balls only during battles," Opal said. "Just for show, like a stage prop. This may boggle your young mind, but back in the day, I grew up in a time before Poke balls were invented."

Bede paused in collecting scrap from Mawile to stare at her in disbelief. "No Poke balls at all? How did that work?"

"Oh, we simply kept our Pokemon around. Sometimes people kept them on leashes, though I'd rather not do that to my own. Imagine having a full party of six Pokemon and each went its own way!"

"That's crazy," Bede agreed. Weren't Poke balls invented fifty years ago? The remark slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself. "Wow, you really have been around forever." She squinted at him and he quickly added, "Forever sixteen, I mean."

She leaned back in her armchair and giggled. "That's the correct answer."

Bede resumed his chores with relief. That peppy little brother of the Champion's annoyed him to no end, but he had Hop to thank for the warning: "When the Gym Leader Opal asks you how old she is, whatever you do, don't ever say that she's really bloody old!"

Once Bede threw out the clutter, Opal's house became much more manageable to navigate through. Bede had to fetch his own blankets from the attic himself, since Opal was no longer in good shape to climb up and down the ladder. His feet hung over the edge of the sofa whenever he stretched out to sleep on it. At first he was embarrassed when Opal made him borrow her purple fuzzy slippers, but he got over it because they kept him warm at night.

Bede learned over the next few days that Opal followed a rigid routine. At seven in the morning, she got up to have scones or oatmeal with a cup of hot tea. At eight, she went for a walk around town with Mightyena. Because the trees gave protection from the rising sun and kept the place cool and fresh, Ballonlea was the perfect place for a morning walk. Those who didn't know Opal well, like visitors and foreigners, would be surprised to see her, a Fairy type specialist, strolling through town with a Dark type Pokemon. The locals didn't bat an eye at this. If Opal wasn't seen with Mightyena on the trails around eight, that was worrying. By around eleven, she returned home to break for an early lunch of salad sandwiches prepared by Obstagoon. In the afternoon, she would take a nap, go outside to smoke a pipe on the armbench, or read the local newspaper Mightyena would fetch for her. Otherwise, on days that the Ballonlea Theatre was preparing a play, Opal would be over there from afternoon to late evening to manage the stage and cast.

Her current project, however, was Bede. So she stayed at home to make sure that he got situated, and kept the Gym closed to challenges in the mean time. While training in Glimwood Tangle, he evolved his Ponyta into Rapidash, his Hattrem into Hatterene, and acquired a Ralts. As for his fourth Pokemon, Opal gave him her Mawile.

"Though I haven't handed the title over to you officially, I still consider myself retired," she told him. "My battling days are over. You and Mawile seem to take a liking to each other well enough. She's yours now."

Mawile chirped happily at Bede's side. "Y-You don't have to do that," he stammered. "I can go catch another Pokemon..."

Opal waved a dainty hand. "Why go through that trouble when I can simply give you one? Like I said, I'm done battling. But not Mawile. You've seen how she has been chewing away at that audition scrap. She's still itching for battle. She's better off with you, my boy."

Bede had no choice but to reluctantly accept Mawile as a gift. This wasn't supposed to happen. He only trained in Glimwood Tangle to get stronger, and lived with Opal to cozy up with her so she could spill whatever she knew about Wishing Stars. Now he'd feel like scum if he hightailed out of Ballonlea with her Mawile in tow. And something about leaving an old lady alone again stirred up guilt he didn't expect. Besides, he didn't even have time to stop and ask about the Wishing Stars. Opal kept him busy.

It took Bede several days living with Opal and cleaning her house to realize that she had no photos whatsoever. No photos hanging on the walls, or sitting around on stands. Any hints of a past and a family were nonexistent. That baffled him, but he remembered the brief mention of her husband earlier, and he hesitated on bringing that up again with her.

Bede was getting used to the temperature in the cottage. He didn't need the extra blankets, so one day, while Opal went for her morning walk with Mightyena, he climbed up the attic to stow them away. But he forgot which chest held the blankets. He batted away cobwebs as he rummaged through the many boxes and chests that littered the floor of the attic. In his search for the right place, he fumbled in the dim light and bumped into a cabinet. Something flat and hard toppled off to fall straight on his head. He stumbled back and swore, clutching his throbbing scalp. A large oval portrait clattered to his feet face down. Still rubbing his head, he turned the portrait face up with his other hand.

Bede blinked in surprise. It was a woman, a young and beautiful one. Short dark curls framed her face. She wore a white blouse with a large frilly collar about her neck. She seemed to exude a cheeky, almost flirty air, with a hand propped on her hip and a wide grin as her gaze was directed just off to her left, probably at the artist who did the portrait.

"Who's this?" Bede muttered.

A relative of Opal's? A daughter, or a granddaughter? Or could that be Opal herself? Curiosity overwhelmed him and made him put aside his initial quest for the chest of blankets. He had a new quest. He opened up lids and dug into the confines of whatever he opened, hoping to scrounge up more hints of the old woman's past. He didn't know how much time passed. The attic had no windows. Bede got pulled into his new quest like an Electric type Pokemon drawn to a magnet.

After some effort to open up trunks at the deepest part of the attic, he managed to find stacks of photos with the same young woman. This time she posed with other people, mostly with an older, bearded, yet handsome gentleman and a boy with the same dark, curly hair that she had. In almost every photo, the man and boy had an arm around her. The young woman smiled widely, radiantly, through the sepia-toned dimness of old pictures. None of the photos were compiled into albums, for some reason. Bede spread them evenly and carefully on the attic floor, contemplating over his discovery.

"Bede?"

Hearing his name made him jump. Opal was home? He hadn't heard the door swing shut. How long had she been inside?

"Where are you, boy?"

Bede scrambled to gather the photos back into stacks. There were a lot of them. He wasn't fast enough to gather them all. Heavy stamps up the ladder made him freeze and whirl around. Obstagoon had climbed up the attic carrying Opal in its strong arms.

"Bede, thank goodness you're all right," she cried out in relief. "You didn't answer when I came home, so I thought something terrible had happened to you, and I—What are you doing with those?"

Her question cut through the air and made Bede cringe.

"Bede, where did you find the pictures?"

Opal's voice had always been soft and thin. The uncharacteristic sharpness to it now startled him.

"I-I was just coming up here to put back the blankets," he stuttered. "I-I found these by accident."

Opal tapped on Obstagoon's arm so the Pokemon could gently set her down. She closed the distance between herself and Bede with the same unusual quickness back at Hammerlocke, and snatched the photos from his hands. "I forgot where I had these. Now I remember where I've put them away, and I did that so I could forget."

Bede had never seen Opal so upset, and that terrified him. "I'm sorry," he blurted out. "I'm really, really sorry, Ms. Opal."

Not only did she look upset, she looked like she was in pain. A few photos slipped from her grasp and back onto the floor. Opal looked down at them, then her eyes scrunched shut and her lips drew into a thin, hard line.

Obstagoon let out a growl of concern and reached out with both paws to steady her. Bede tried to approach her, but the Pokemon bared its fangs at him. For a split second of dread, Bede wondered if she was having a heart attack. At her advanced age, that guess wasn't unreasonable.

Opal sucked in a long, shuddering breath, then let it out in a gusty sigh as she looked up back at Bede.

"You want to know, don't you?" She said softly, the angry light out of her eyes now. "I can hear you asking that question even if you're not asking it out loud." She beckoned at Bede to come closer, and pointed at the topmost picture of the stack in her hands. "That woman here...that's me."

"That's you?" Bede exclaimed.

She nodded. "That man is Roger, my husband. And that boy is Jasper, my son."

Bede's head spun from the weight of the revelation. He noticed that there were no pictures of Jasper beyond the time he was a boy. No pictures of Jasper in his teens, or older. "What happened?" He whispered. He feared that she would snap at him again.

Instead her shoulders sagged. "Where do I start? There's so much to tell." She buried her face into the crook of her thin arm to cough into it. "Blimey, this attic is so dusty. I'd much rather carry on the conversation over tea and better air. Bring the pictures down."

Bede blinked at her in surprise. "I thought you didn't want to see them, Ms. Opal."

"I didn't want to see them for almost sixty years," she murmured. "Times have changed. Now you are going to be the next Gym Leader." She rested a withered hand over Bede's. "Not only that, but you are practically under my care, like family. And since you're like family, I owe you my story, because soon it will be yours."

Opal, with Obstagoon's help down the attic, left him with that. Finally, Bede shook out of his stupor to gather up the photos of Opal and her family. For the first time in many, many years, he brought them downstairs.

Notes: On Mightyena and Obstagoon being descendants of Pokemon belonging to Opal's late husband: There's no canon on Pokemon lifespans, so I thought that relying on lifespans of real-life animals would suffice. At least, for the Pokemon whose designs are inspired by real-life animals. I used the average lifespans of dogs and badgers for Mightyena and Obstagoon. 70 years seems like too long for the original Mightyena and Obstagoon to stick with Opal. Same goes for her own Pokemon.

Musical inspiration for this chapter was "Concerning Hobbits" from The Lord of the Rings.

For voices, I imagine Bede to sound like Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy in the 1st and 2nd Harry Potter movies, and old Opal sounds like Maggie Smith as Lady Violet from Downton Abbey.

[nobodiesheartlessshitblog45]

Nessa Meets Eric, Gose fullblown Fangirl, And Makes A Dork Out Of Herself. Pokémon Fanfic

The battle with Steven Stone vs Eric Wild was was big deal in Galar. most viewed matches the water Gym leader Nessa, as she was live-streaming her reaction along with Soina Leon the through, and tablets, and Tv.

“Oh, my! God. Look at the Serperior!!!” Her eyes weld opens.

Soina was hugging her Yepper the two watching the battle.

‘C’mon, Armsaldo!”

Nessa looks at her. “There’s no way in hell that Steven is going to win this!” said Nessa.

“I want him, but at the same I want Eric too win, too. This... this matche is insane.” said, Soina.

“Really is, everyone in Galar going to completely mad over this.” said Nessa, checking her phone, social media everyone was talking nuts over this battle.

The two were on the edge of her seat, cheering when Ivy jumps into the air to use a shadowball, and Steven shouted to his Armaldo to use X-Scissor. Armsaldo jumps into the, with one swing of it of its blade like arms, hits Ivy in the chest sending her flying into the, and landing arm on the ground.

Nessa screams and places hands over month, as Eric rushed over. “Is she okay?! Please don’t tell she’s out!

“Oh, shit.” said Soina.

Yamper whines a bit. The was loud buzzing sound, saying that Ivy could no longer fight. “Damn it!” said Nessa.

Meanwhile at Leon’s family house, Hop, with his Wooloo sitting next to him on the floor, while Leon and Raihan at on the couch. “Blast!” snaps Hop, getting frustrated. “This... this not looking go for. Se

Raihan sat on the right side of Leon, he was leaning forward, elboes on his knees and hands together watching he groans.

“Shit. I kinda knew he was way over his head in this battle. Battling a trainer like Steven Stone is like small Rattata going up against a Gyarados.”

Leon was sat next to him, arms folded, his face expressionless, as they were watching the battle on big flat tv, as Eric places Ivy back in her Pokémon, and stand back up, and looks at Steven Stone.

Leon watching the tv carefully. “I don’t think he’s ready to give up. Not yet, at least.”

Hop, Raihan and Wooloo looks at him confused. “Lee, the guys is outta Pokémon, Serperior was Eric’s last Pokémon.”

“Just watch.” said Leon.

Hop and Wooloo look at him, then at Raihan, who gave Leon a sideways stare and they looked back at the tv, as Steven said. “This was good match, Mr. Wild. But I think victory is in my hands.”

Eric nods and shrugs nonchalantly. “Yeah, What can you do?” he said, then he smiles, and looks at Steven. “But I am not done.”

Then crowd began to go wild, as the announcer said. “Ladies and Gentlemen! It seems that Eric Wild isn’t ready to throw in the towel yet.”

Raihan blinks stares at the tv. “What a tick... He’s serious?!”

Leon said nothing and kept watching stoney look on his face, and Hop throws his hands in the air, cheering. Wooloo was jumping up and down with excitement. “Oh, hell yeah!”

Meanwhile in the kitchen Hops and Leon’s mom called out. “Hop, language’”

“Sorry, mum!” said Hop.

Meanwhile Nessa’s apartment, both she jumps to her feet. “Oh, oh! He’s not done yet, everyone! C’mon, Eric! Let’s go!!!” Nessa said. Soina sits up more. “I thought he was out of Pokémon.”

“Well, he’s not! C’mon, Eric, show’em waht you got!” said Nessa.

The crowd was cheering and screaming, Eric looks around, thinking to himself, and pulls out a master ball from his belt and looks at it, as if contemplating for a few moments, and takes a breaths and looks at Steven, a determined look on face, and fire passion in his eyes. This was a Pokémon battle that he was going to win not matter what.

Leon was watching his eyes weld,  definitely saw a change in Eric’s body language. Stood match taller than he did before, and more  confident and braver.

Eric throws the master ball into the air, and it opens up and reviled the legendary Pokémon Latios.

The crownd was haft silent and gasping as they all witnessed a Pokémon that seem long forgotten or rumor to be fairytale was in this stadium.

Soina jumps to her feet, nearly dropping Yamper, her jaw dropping, and eyes big with wonderment, Nessa just stood there, blinking completely speechless.

“N-No, way. He... He has Latios?!” said Soina.

“God... This... This Gonna BE SOOOOO BLOODY WICKED!” shouted Nessa. “LET’S GO! TEAM ERIC AND LATIOS!!!!”

Back Leon and Hop’s place everyone in the living room sat there, mouth open, both Raihan and Leon sat there both had looks of pure shock, while Hop and Wooloo jump their feet, freaking out. “I-I am dreaming!? Wooloo, did you use headbutt on me, and I have a concussion!”

Wooloo shacks her head, and Hop looks at her, then looks his brother and his friend. “Y-You lot are seeing this yeah?! Tell me I’m not going mental!”

Raihan said. “N-No, kiddo, we... we see it to.” he sat there speechless, then grins. “Eric, you mad dickhead! has a legendary Pokémon, keeps it a secret for me! Fucking asrhole!” 

Leon just there, his eyes weld, his mouth slightly open his heart beating his chest as he looking he was looking at the tv.

Eric looks at Steven and said: “So, how about it, Stone? Last round, winner takes all.”

Steven smiles, and nods. “Heh. Very well.” His smiles fades into a serious expression as shouted. “Armaldo... ROCK BLAST!!!”

“AZUL! USE PSYCHIC!!!!” Eric yells.

The crowd began to rawrimg the two Pokémon began to battle, the battle was insane. Armaldo used Stone Edge, the rocks flows to Azul, and hit on the right, and making him fall onto the ground. The crowd cheers and gasp. Eric rushed over to his Azul’s, to check to see if he was okay.

“H-Hey, bud. You okay?!”

Azul nods at him, and slowly got back, and the looks at Armaldo. “Damn... I thought we could win this... but, guess I was wrong.” said Eric, with sigh.

Azul looks at Eric, and then looks at the necklace that Eric had around his neck, and Azul nudges Eric cheek, and the looks into his eyes. Eric understood what he was , and reaches up with his right hand, and says. “You... sure...?”

Azul nods, and Eric smiles at him, and the necklace began to glowing, and Steven stood there, watching smiling knowing what was about to happen. A thing of white light consumed Azul, and the crowd, watche in aw as the white light brrust everywhere, and Azul had Mega Evolution into Mega Laitos.

Sonia just stood there, blinking. “M-Mega Evolution...”

“A-Are you bloody lot seeing this?!” Nessa said, looking at her Rotom Phone, that chat going nuts.

Back at Leon and Hops place, Raihad’s jaw drops, and blinks.

“THAT POKÉMON KNOW MEGA EVOLUTION?!” said Hop, in a awe. “WOOLOO! MATE, YOU SEEING THIS? “

Wooloo was jumping up and down, and He and Hop were standing and cheer. Raihan jumps and stand next to them.

“O-OH, MY GOD!!! THIS... THIS IS MENTAL!!! HOLY SHIT!!!!” Shouted Raihan. “ERIC, YOU ABSOLUTE FUCKING LEGEND!!!”

Leon and Hope from the other kitchen. ”RAIHAN, MIND YOUR LANGUAGE!”

“SORRY, JUDY!” said Raihan, looks back at the tv.

Eric and Azul began battle again, useing Dragon Breath, and Armaldo used Ice Beam, the crowd going nuts, and Nessa, Sonia and Yamper who screaming and cheering, and cheer. back at Leon’s house, Raihan, Hop and Wooloo were screaming and cheering Eric on, while Leon just there. Just watching the one most amazing battle that on tv. His heart was beating, watching as Eric and Latios were battling the one most powerful trainers in the world.

Armaldo was getting weaker, as Azul used a Steel Wing attack, Steven swore. “Damn it...” He said.

“LET’S END THIS!!!” Eric yells. “AZUL, USE DRAGON PLUSE!!!”

Azul lets a might rawn, and the move Dragon Pules, came brusting out his month, and hit Armaldo, there was loud explosion, making the earth around the battle move. A silent falls the statement, as the dust began to clear, and Armaldo was still standing his ground, panting heavily, before falling onto the ground, as exhaustion came over the rock bug Pokemon.

Eric just stood there, his eyes ring, from the powerful explosion was slowly replace by the sound, as screaming and cheering. Eric looks around as people and Pokemon were screaming and calling his name. Eric just there looking around, and stunned look on his face was replaced with amazed smile. Azul flies over, his mega evolution finally powered down, hugs him.

“Heheh. Easy, big guy.” said Eric, with smile, and looks around at the crowd that chatting his name. His name. Steven walks over to Armaldo, gently pat his before returning his Pokémon. “Well done out there, Armaldo.” said Steven, smiling at the Pokémon. Eric was walking over, with a smile.

“I have... must say, I am deeply impressed by your skills as trainer. I hadn’t battle like that in a very long time, and I am truly honored to have fought you and your team, my good man.” said Steven, hold out his hand.

“It was tough one. Thank you for giving me the honor to fight you.” said Eric, taking his hand shaking it. “To honest I thought about giving up.”

Steven laughs. “But you win, Mr. Wild, you didn’t, and look around you. “

Steven looks around the crowd, and waves. Eric looks around in wonderment and smile breathlessly, waves at the crowd who was cheering for him.

Meanwhile back Leon and Hop’s house, Hop and Raihan were going over just what happened. “I-I am shaking. God, I’m at lost for worlds.” said Hop.

“Did you see that last move?! That Dragon Plus attack was brilliant!” said Raihan pulling out his phone. “Hahah. There’s ready Memes coming!”

Hop was texting Nessa and Sonia about that going, as they were doing so Leon just there on the couch staining a the screen.

“He... He’s amazing...” Leon thought.

2 months later...

It had been over a week since Eric came to Galar, and he fell in love the place, the Pokémon and it’s people. As Eric was exploring the different places and towns. It did come to shock to Eric that he was well known a lot people know he was. Yes, Eric was strong trainer traveled a lot, but he had no idea that people and Pokémon would he was. It was flattering, but awkward for him.

Eric was a young man who would keep to myself, and it was very sweet that a young kids and trainers would go up time him, and talk him about his Pokémon.

It was a nice day in the city of Hammerlocke, the sky was blue and the city sheets were bussy. Eric was walking around with Toto floating behind, and a new Pokémon that Eric just captured a male Rookidee, that was nicknamed Ruby, and a female Sneasel that he called Sassy, and male Yamper called called Gus. Eric sent Ivy to Kukui, she was getting a bit older, and Eric didn’t want her to battle as much, Kukui sent Eric his Umbreon Kinght.

Eric was walking around the shops, Toto peeking over his shoulder. Eric was wearing his black leather jacket, but it was tired around weast, he was wearing light gray their, his ripped jeans, and his black steel boots.

Eric had been staying with Raihan in his massive house on the outer part of Hammlocke, it was large stone house, with woods, and huge yard where his Pokemon can walking freely. It was a beautiful home.

Toto was humming she flying around, Eric smiles as she does so. Meanwhile on the other of city Raihan was talking the water type gmy Nessa, she was’s in her usual outfit, but in a wear dark navy blue, that showed off her right, and bright pink head ban, light jeans, and pink and white convert sneakers.

“Why are still in your gym clothes.” asked Nessa.

“Uh, I donno... I like wearin’Em.” said Raihan, somewhat lazily.

Nessa give him a disarovel look. “Jeez, Rai. What do you do? Wear your gym get up, through them in the laundry, and wear them next day?”

“… …What’s your point?” said Raihan, looking at her.

Nessa raise an eye brown, and crosses her arm. Rolling his eyes. “I do bloody wash my clothes!”

“You’re hopeless.”

“And you sound like my Nan.”

As the two began talking Toto was flies near by and spots Raihan talking to a very pretty lady, and calls for Eric, who stops and looks. She points Raihan, and flys over. Raihan stops and looks and smiles when Toto was flying over, and hugs him.

“Hehe. Hello there, Toto. How are doing today?” said Raihan. Toto nuzzles his, and flies around, and looks at Nessa flyies up to her, and greets her with happy chrip. Nessa giggles reaches out and shakes the Toto’s hand. “Hello. Where did come from then?”

Eric walks over, and waves at Raihan. “Morning, Raihan.”

“Hi, Eric, how are you.” said Raihan.

Nessa looks to the side, she froze, as Eric said: “Not to bad. Just enjoying the day.”

“Same. Hey sorry I haven’t been around much. Been bussy with the gym and training the new members.” said Raihan.

“Don’t worry about it. I get it.” Eric smiles and looks at Nessa, who blushes like crazy. “Oh, hi there. I didn’t ever you there, Miss. I’m my name is Eric Wild, and you are?”

Nessa was looking at him, and then looks around back him. “You... You’re speaking to me.... right?”

“U-Um, y-yeah...” said Eric.

“O-Oh!!! Haha haha, I-I thought so... Or you were taking to a Ditto who was look like me! Hahahahaha.” said Nessa, laughing.

Both Eric and Raihan gave her a funny. Nessa cleans her throat and said in a loud high voice. “I-I am the gym of Nessa type Pokémon, Water!!!”

“You... Um, huh?” said Eric.

“I-I’m Nessa. A-A water Pokémon gym leader. That’s what I was saying. Right, Raihan?” said smiles nervously.

“I... I have no idea.” he said.

“O-Oh, okay... I’m not weird, ya know? I-I’m normal~!” said Nessa.

“Wait... I thought you said you were your Pokémon were water type...” said Eric.

“O-Oh, I did say that. Y-Yes, I don’t remember. S-Sorry, I-I’m ... Okay. I-I have to go... B-Bye!” And Nessa powered walk away, making sure she was far away enough, hides behind alleyway, yells into hands. “Aaahhhhhhgghhhhh! Why?! I just met my hero, and I fucked up!!!!!! Waaaahhh! Nononononono! Now he thinks I’m a huge nuttier! … … This... This is the worst...”

Meanwhile Eric stood there blink, and Looks at Raihan. “Is ... she okay?”

“Oh, yeah. Nessa will be fine.” said Raihan. “How are you holding, mate?”

“Great, when to wild area my Toto got a new friend.” Eric holds up a Pokémon, and tosses it, and out cams an adorable Wooper. The Wooper blinks and looks around. Raihan looks it, the at Eric, smiles happily at the little Pokémon. “A Wooper?”

“Yeah.” said Eric.

“Huh?” Raihan just looks at the little one, as Wooper just walks around, looking around, Toto flys up him greeting him. The Wooper smiles, and the two began to play. “What? What wrong, Riahan?” asked Eric.

“It’s just... there are loads of strong Pokémon out there in the wild area, and you captured a little Wooper.” said Raihan.

Eric looks at him, and raises an eyebrow. “And...”

“Well, you know, you’re strong Ace Traner, you are well know for having strong Pokémon. I donno, I though you get an Oxe or at least hell and Gyarados.”

“Well, sure, but I just this little guy wondering around, and I always wanted Wooper, so Toto battle him, I throw a Pokémon and boom, meet Oddball.” said Eric, points his hand at Wooper.

“Pfff, really?! Oddball?” said Raihan, laughing.

“I-I’m still thinking about nicknames, don’t judge me, okay?”

Raihan just shrugged, and the two began to walking. Wooper, or Oddball was walking happily next to Eric, and Toto and him began talking. “So, how the training coming along.”

“Pretty good, the new new gym trainers are doing great. Been posting updates on InstaImgaine.” Said Raihan.

“... You spend way to much on social media.” Said Eric. “Kukui has big fellowing not there, I swear your own cousin is worse then you.”

“Heh. Have you heard from him?”

Eric nods. “Yeah, he’s doing good, I reached out to him this morning and he told me that Lillie is working on becoming Captain, and Gladon and Guzma are running the Aether Foundation, and Guzma is trying e a better father to his kids, and he and Mia finally thinking getting married, Hue is taking has become a lot stronger since he began. He’s basically our Leon in the Alolan islands.”

Raiahn smiles, happy to know that everyone was doing. “Another thing that Kukui has told me, that He and Burry are expecting their first child.”

Raihan eyes light up, and smiles. “Are you serious?!”

“I am.”

The just stood there, think. Eric was watching Oddball and Toto playing with each other, and Raihan was looking up the clouds, watching them go by. “I miss’ Em.” Said Raihan. “I wish I wasn’t bloody busy most the time. Being a gym leader, having be new interviews, dealing with the public eye. I love it... But bloody hell is dose get to me sometime.”

Eric looks at him. “You know it’s okay take breath, Raihan.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. But, Eric it’s not that simple... I do love this. I love being a gym leader, and I love the fact that people cheer for me, but I can’t help be feel... I don’t know. Like everyone wants me to do more. It’s... draining. Mentally and emotionally. And then you fuckwits you always saying I should this Pokémon, on my team or this one. Or My Pokémon sucks... Blah blah blah, fucking blah.”

Eric looks at him, giving him a sympathy look. “... Damn that’s gotta be annoying.”

“You have no idea.” said Raihan.

“Are you... talking to someone about this?” Eric asked.

“Yeah, you, mate.” said Raihan.

“Raihan, I’m being serious.’

He laughs and said. “Yeah, don’t worry I’m speaking to my therapist.”

“Oh, good.” said Eric.

Raihan think for a few moments, and smiles a little and places his hands in his sweatshirt packets. “Wanna get a coffee, and some food our team?”

Toto and Oddball stop and Raihan when he said, and look him. Eric laughs. “Coffee and food good. C’mon, you two.”

Toto and Oddball jumped up and down turn around and start running off the wrong direction. “N-No! Guy... fuck.” said Eric, running after them.

“Loser beys the winner lunch!” said Raihan, running after then.

[myselfinserts]

“Damn... that must have hurt. Are you okay?”

Champion of Kalos. Top Trainer of the Elite Four. Support Designer Extraordinaire. These titles and more were worn proudly on his sleeves. Étienne Allard didn't underestimate his opponents, even if they never impressed him much. Those that did interest him didn't do so for long. Few exceptions included his angel Lady L, and her friend Phoenix. And sometimes Reginald when the absentminded professor bothered to pay attention long enough on a Pokémon battle to actually instruct his partners on what moves to use. Then again, they were quite intelligent Pokémon in their own right. They often knew exactly what Regi was about to say before he even said it. There was a reason he used to be the Champion of the Elvin Island League.

Still, none of that mattered when Étienne was approached by the hero that day with a new, lizard-like Pokémon in his hands. The moment it came out of the Pokéball it began to cry, letting out a heartbreaking whine as tears  the size of Sitrus berries. They fell to the floor, slowly forming a puddle and leaving a mess.

"What, in the ever loving hell, is that?"

Regi smiled, holding up the sobbing mess of a Pokémon proudly. "It's a Sobble. I told you I was going to Galar, remember? And I got to bring some new Pokémon home with me! You wouldn't believe the wide variety they have there." He held the Sobble out to him, watching it curled into his friend's hand. "This little fella's for you!"

Étienne stared at the thing, completely unimpressed. It was small, round, and far too weepy. A lizard like creature with eyes as big as its head, tail curling into a spiral. If it would calm down, he might be inclined to call it cute. It was a lovely shade of blue he could appreciate.

The Sobble looked up at him, slowly starting to cease its tears. It started to relax, little hand gently gripping Étienne's fingers. The tail uncurled, lightly wrapping around his wrist as it stopped its crying sounds, replacing them with little chirps and trills.

"I think it likes you," Regi said.

Étienne  rolled his eyes. "…Then at least it has good taste."

Regi's smile didn't falter, though his eyes easily betrayed him. "You're not impressed."

"You think?" He handed him back the Sobble. "As much as I appreciate you thinking about me on your trip, I think I'll pass on this."

"Oh, come on!" He held it back out to him, batting his eyes softly. "I know Sobble doesn't seem like much, but I promise you, if you give the little guy a chance, you'll not regret it."

"Reginald, please," Étienne insisted. "What in god's name makes you think I need this sobbing creature that's made a mess of my floor? Which you will clean up, by the way."

Regi nodded. "I will clean it up. But please, just…give Sobble here a chance. There's so much potential in this Pokémon. Please?"

He should have said no. Insisted on saying he didn't need it. But something about the way it lightly held onto him, staring at him in awe and affection. It was almost too much. 

“I suppose I can let him stay for a month or two tops,” he conceded. “Just to get him some training so that he can properly look after a new trainer.”

“Really?” Regi let out a soft cheer. “Awesome! Thank you so much. I promise, Sobble here will be a perfect addition to your family.”

Étienne doubted it, but he promised to try and keep an open mind. 

“The Water Lizard Pokémon. When scared, this Pokémon cries. Its tears pack the chemical punch of 100 onions, and attackers won't be able to resist weeping.”

Étienne set the Pokédex down, looking at the Sobble currently poking at the small ball of paper that had missed the waste paper basket in the locker room. Thinking it might do the little one some good, he’d booked a private training session with his Milotic in the cool of the local gym. 

More than that, Étienne needed a good swim. 

“Alright,” he said. “Come on now.” 

He headed to the pool, the little Sobble hurrying after him. The moment they got inside, the creature let out a loud trilling cry, startling Étienne as he brought out his Milotic, Marcelle. He expected the creature to be scared and cause them both to weep. 

But Sobble wasn’t crying. He was smiling and bolting for the water rapidly. No sooner did it jump in did the Milotic follow. With a shrug, Étienne joined them. 

He swam after Marcelle, smiling as he was allowed to hop onto her back. The chill of the water against his skin was soothing, a rush of euphoria. The two did their usual routine, tricks and tumbles that showed off their synchronicity. Once those were finished, they did laps, racing from one end of the pool to the other, and timing their reflexes as they came around the rocks in the more terrain heavy area. After about an hour and a half, he waded to the edge, taking a breath as he looked around. 

Sobble was gone. 

“Where did he- QU'EST-CE QUE LE BAISE?!”

Étienne stumbled back, bobbing under the water briefly before coming back up with a start. Something had brushed against him, but he couldn’t see it. Whatever it was, it was soft, and had a very familiar texture. Étienne shook the hair from his face, spinning around in the water, just waiting for it to appear again. It wasn’t Marcelle. She was resting on one of the nearby rocks. 

Suddenly, something began moving above water. It was clear, but the shape of the waves as it came over to him were unmistakable. Slowly, the clear mound took on a blue hue, and he could see exactly what it was. It was round, soft, and had eyes as big as its head. 

“You?!”

The Sobble giggled, eyes shut as he smiled and waded side to side happily in the water. Étienne climbed out of the pool and ran back to the locker room, coming back with his dex and scrolling through it rapidly. It wasn’t until he got to the bottom that it finally appeared. 

“When it gets wet, its skin changes color, and this Pokémon becomes invisible as if it were camouflaged.”

Étienne looked over at the Sobble, who was already disappearing into the water again. 

“I’m going to kill Reginald for this pathetic excuse of a dex entry.”

“A clever combatant, this Pokémon battles using water balloons created with moisture secreted from its palms. Highly intelligent but also very lazy, it keeps enemies out of its territory by laying traps everywhere.”

Étienne had read the riot act to the professors to fix the entries for the Galarian Pokémon so that they were more organized. And no sooner had they been updated, the Sobble had evolved into Drizzile. He’d taken to calling him Rune, if for no other reason than to give him something to be called other than his species name. 

And looking over the entry for Drizzile, Étienne was convinced that this moody looking Pokémon wasn’t lazy. He knew deep down Rune was an active, curious child at heart. He always looked over what anyone was doing. He tried to be involved, even when it bothered the poor Chandelure in the kitchen. As a Sobble, Rune had made himself a little assistant of sorts. Rune was far from lazy. If anything, he just seemed bored. 

Luckily, he had an idea. 

“Rune?” Étienne called softly. “I’m heading to work. Do you want to come with me? You can be outside of the ball for this one.”

Rune looked up from his spot on the sofa excitedly. He rarely got to come out of the Pokéball when at the Atelier. He jumped off his seat and hurried over to him, and reached up to take Étienne‘s hand. After making sure the house was locked up, they headed out. 

When they arrived at the Atelier, Étienne lead Rune to one of the testing rooms. It was set up similarly to a small forest, with a tiny lake and a few sunbathing rocks. It looked beautiful. And Rune was already bouncing on his toes. Étienne tried not to laugh. 

“Alright. Here’s what I need you to do.” He lead Rune into the room, letting him get comfortable. “We’re testing a new product. It’s meant to detect traps in areas that have endangered Pokémon. I need you to lay some traps around the area for the product to detect. Think you can do that?”

Rune looked up at him, nodding as he gave his hand a light squeeze before letting go and hurrying to explore.  Étienne left him to his task, heading into the main part of the lab and preparing the product for testing. It was a small wrist watch like gizmo, with the ability to scan an area of up to 100 meters. With luck, it’d detect what it set out to find. He attached it to the test bots and headed back. It’d only taken him about twenty minutes, but by the time he returned, Rune was already waiting by the door. 

“Finished?” he asked. Rune nodded. “Alright. Let’s go to the observation deck.” He set up the bots and closed the door. Rune took Étienne‘s hand again and followed him to the window nearby. With a push of a button, the test began. 

It didn’t even last a minute before three of the ten bots got caught by a trip wire, and another two in a classic hanging net trap. One fell in a hole. How did he even dig that? And the remainder were either drowning or caught in bushes. 

Étienne let out a sigh. “Looks like we’re back to the drawing board.” He smiled, looking at the expectant Drizzile. “Do you want to continue helping me with this? Those are some clever tricks you pulled. You’d be an invaluable member of the team.”

Rune stared at him, eyes filling with happy tears as he smiled, chirping excitedly and bouncing on his toes. 

He took that as a yes.

It’d been three months since Étienne started bringing Rune to the Atelier to help with the testing, and already they were far ahead of schedule.  At the rate they were going, they were going to have the Trap Sensor ready for market by the start of the new year. Étienne was incredibly proud of the Drizzile, who was always awake early and ready to go in the morning. Rune always paid close attention, and he was adapting incredibly well to the changes. Rune was one of his best workers. He got along with the others, and was very helpful to Chris. He couldn’t help but feel proud. 

So once again, the two were walking home hand in hand. Tonight, they’d swing by the SF to pick up Ceri, then head home. They had to go the long way though, given the main street was closed for repairs. 

Étienne imediately wished they had gone straight home as they turned the corner, coming face to face with a giant, angry looking Lickilicky.

He wished he’d gone straight home. 

“Dammit,” he grumbled. He reached into his pocket, preparing to bring out his Absol, Angie. A quick Mega Evolution would take care of this for sure. 

However, as the Lickilicky charged at him, he heard a sharp, gargled cry. Rune had let go of his hand, bolting forward and throwing water balls, slowing the other Pokémon down. Rune leaped into the air, spinning around and managing to slap the Lickilicky with his tail before running round it in circles, throwing muddy water and screaming to get its attention. 

“Rune, what are you doing?! Get away from there!”

The Lickilicky glared at Rune, glowing a bright yellow. A bolt of lightning flew out, hitting Rune right in the back and causing him to freeze in place. When the lightning faded, the Lickilicky spun on its toes, smacking Rune into a nearby wall before turning to face Étienne again. 

Étienne couldn’t move. It was all he could do to focus on his quirk to keep his hand steady. 

Come on, dammit. Just pull out the damn ball, Étienne!

The Lickilicky started to glow again. 

Shit!

Just as he finally managed to pull out the Pokéball, the Lickilicky stopped glowing. Its face went blank, and it began to fall forward. As it hit the ground, Étienne stumbled back, nearly falling over from the shock. The pink mound was still breathing, but it was out cold. And completely soaked. Curious, and a little cautious, Étienne followed the trail of water. To where Rune had landed. 

Where Rune was no longer the little Drizzile he’d known for the last several months. 

Now, there was a tall, albeit injured and sitting, Inteleon over by the wall, finger pointing steadily at where the enemy Pokémon once stood. His body was covered in tiny sparks of electricity, and his breathing was a little shallow. But for the most part, he seemed alright. 

“Rune!” He hurried over to him, reaching into his work bag. “Damn... that must have hurt. Are you okay?”

Rune nodded, finally lowering his arm. Despite the injuries, he was smiling. 

“Hold on. I have a Full Heal in here somewhere.” He rummaged around until he found the medicine. “Here we go-eh?”

Rune let out a small whimper, lightly taking Étienne’s hand in his hands. Étienne felt himself relax. 

“I’m alright,” he assured. “No need to worry,. You did very well. Thank you, Rune. Now hold still. This might sting a little.”

“Inteleon, the Secret Agent Pokémon. It has many hidden capabilities, such as fingertips that can shoot water and a membrane on its back that it can use to glide through the air. Its nictitating membranes let it pick out foes' weak points so it can precisely blast them with water that shoots from its fingertips at Mach 3.”

Étienne had reread the Pokédex entry for Rune’s new form over a hundred times. What once started out as a ball of tears barely a foot tall had grown into a 6′ 3″ sniper with a strong love of support tech. Rune’s slender fingers were as steady as his own, making him a perfect shot. 

And now, that shot would be put to the test. Regi had invited them to test out a new version of the Dynamax bands, with the news that Rune was a very special Pokémon. As if Étienne needed to hear that told to him. Though he had to admit, the news that his Inteleon could Gigantamax was a surprise. A rarity in most Pokémon, and it was time to see what this new form could do. 

Étienne stood in the center of the field, standing beside Rune as Regi spoke to another professor and a rabbit Pokémon. If he could remember correctly, it was called a Cinderace, and it was nuzzling up very close to Gladstone, trying hard to reach his shoulder in a hug. There was also a large Rillaboom waiting by the entrance. 

“Looks like it’ll be a hard fight,” Étienne said. “Think you can handle it?”

Rune gave him a soft trill in reply, lightly holding his hand in solidarity as the opposing Pokémon began to approach with their trainers. Étienne smiled. 

“That’s just what I want to hear.”