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song-of-storms162 · 5 years

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Mistletoe

You, Raihan and a whole lot of mistletoe. This fic might be a little late but it’s part two to “To Treasure a Treasure”! @megchan87 @soradragon @emeraldluna

The party was in full swing, with Gym Leaders and their families along with certain trainers from the Gym Challenge mingling about the decorated hall in Ballonlea Stadium. Though Christmas had passed and the New Year was upon them, it didn’t stop anyone from parting with Christmas traditions. And it certainly didn’t stop the partygoers from putting the presents under a large decorated tree.

You were nowhere to be seen, some of the gym leaders had opted to dress up a little or come in attire that was not their Gym Uniform and you along with Sonia and the female Gym Leaders were yet to step in to enjoy the party.

Raihan couldn’t help looking up whenever he heard the doors open, a habit that Leon quickly caught on to.

“Sonia said she’d text me when they finally decide to show up,” said Leon as he sipped his drink. He and Raihan were at standing in one corner of the room where they both had a good view of the whole hall.

“And?”

“Well she hasn’t texted anything, so you can stop looking up whenever that door opens.” Leon nods to the large double doors of the function hall in Ballonlea Stadium.

Raihan frowned at his friend’s words, his free hand absentmindedly reaching up to tig at his headgear before feeling his hair instead. Ah, he nearly forgot he had chosen to forgo it this time. Raihan’s eyes strayed to the door again, subtly so Leon wouldn’t ask this time.

“I wonder what’s taking them,” said Leon. “I get it’s a celebration and all but it shouldn’t take this long for them to prepare right?”

“Who knows?” Raihan mumbled as he surveyed the rooma again. There was Bede with Opal’s family, who were more than curious about the successor to Ballonlea Stadium. The new Gym Leader had an expression of shock and disbelief that Raihan found funny, knowing that Opal’s family was no doubt the cause of that expression. They had taken to Bede quickly and that was entertainment in and of itself.

Raihan’s eyes drifted to where Piers stood, the ex Gym Leader dressed in a plain black sweater and dark pants was conversing with Milo. Yet Raihan could see how Piers’ eyes occasionally went to the door where his little sister was yet to appear from. Raihan had to admit it was a bit odd to see his colleagues not in their usual work uniform but it was a welcome change.

Speaking of work uniform, Raihan found his eyes drifting to Leon’s outfit. Leon noticing his stare, frowned at him.

“What?”

“Nothing but it’s nice to see you out of that get up.”

“Should I be taking offense? What’s wrong with the way I dress?”

“It’s like your sense of direction, Lee.” Both trainers turned to find Hop grinning at them.

“I couldn’t agree more but at least your sense of direction has your Charizard to look after it.”

Raihan smirks and Hop chuckles at the jab to his brother while Leon pouts at the two.

“I can’t believe you both,” said Leon as he crossed his arms.

“Pouting doesn’t suit you, Leon,” Raihan pointed out.

Leon attempts a glare at his friend before narrowing his eyes at the sling bag Raihan wore. “You know what doesn’t suit you? Hiding that gift and not putting it under the Christmas tree.”

Arceus.

Raihan’s hands quickly fumble with his bag and sure enough, the zipper has sprung loose and his keys are slipping out. But his first priority lies with the small wrapped gift inside. Quickly zipping the bag, Raihan sighs in relief before finding two pairs of eyes on him.

“Why don’t you put it under the tree?” Hop asks, nothing but curiosity in those amber eyes.

Raihan can see Leon hiding his smile. “It’s for later, Hop. Raihan wants to give it directly to its receiver.”

Raihan’s brows furrowed. “I don’t see how my gifts are your business.”

“It’s for (Name), my cousin. How is it not my business?” Leon retorts.

“What? That’s for (Name)? I thought someone gave you that! So what did you get her?” said Hop as he tries to loosen the growing tension between the two.

And maybe it was a good thing that the double doors opened again.

Raihan’s gaze immediately finds you.

You’re dressed no different than the rest of them, in a sweater and pants along with fur lined boots but what piques Raihan’s interest is the headband you’re wearing. That’s an oddly familiar shade of green...

Your eyes light up when you see Raihan, Leon and Hop and your feet immediately take you to them, Gloria and Sonia in tow.

“I almost didn’t recognise you, Lee! Sure is odd to see you wearing something like this,” you said as you gesture at Leon’s plain sweater and pants, so different from his usual preferred clothing.

Leon snorts at your words. “Honestly it’s no wonder you and Raihan get along so well, you both love poking fun at me don’t you?”

“Unless you can find me another favorite pastime to do,” you sniffed.

“You could tease Raihan for once,” Leon mumbled and Raihan laughs.

“Oh no, there is no way that’s happening.” Raihan slings an arm around Leon’s shoulder playfully, a grin showing off his fang.

“That’s right, Lee! You’re stuck with both of us,” you laughed at your cousin’s mournful expression. “C’mon, Leon. Don’t give me that expression, it’s New Years! Haven’t you got any resolutions?”

That pulls him out of his stupor. “My resolution is just like last years!”

“To have a most Champion time with the least regrets.” You all say in one voice and Leon nods enthusiastically.

“Yep! We don’t always know what’ll happen but I wanna make the most of the new year!” Leon pumped a fist into the air.

“Is no one here going to take a drink?”

At the sound of Milo’s voice, you turn to see the Grass Type Gym Leader holding out a tray of drinks.

“Thank you, Milo,” said Sonia as she took a paper cup from the tray. You take one as well, thanking Milo and prompting him to offer one to Raihan and Leon.

Raihan watches you as you continue to talk with Gloria and Sonia but then he notices where Milo’s gaze has gone.

“Something wrong, Milo?” Raihan asked and the Grass Type Gym Leader smiled at him.

“Well, I just thought it was a tad odd for (Name) to wear that.” Milo chuckled as he continued to look where you conversed with Sonia and Gloria.

“Wear what?” asked Hop and Milo points it out.

“Her headband, those aren’t just any leaves. That’s mistletoe on her head right there.”

Raihan feels his hand squeeze his paper cup. Mistletoe, why in the name of Giratina would you of all people-

Then Raihan caught Sonia’s eye and she winked at him before making subtle hand signals to your head, or to be more accurate, your headband.

Raihan felt the blood drain from his face, and just when he thought it couldn’t get worse...

“(Name), do you realise what you’re wearing?”

Raihan swallowed the curse word as Milo asked with a smile.

“Uh, clothes?” You blinked at Milo before looking down at your outfit.

“No, no.” Milo chuckled and points at your headband. “You’re wearing mistletoe.”

Raihan watches the smile drop from your face and your eyes widening as you whipped your head to look at Sonia.

“Soni-“

“Oh, I think I hear Opal calling for me. I’ll be right back guys!”

You watch with eyes wide as your friend or the person you thought was your friend, quickly hurry off to Opal’s side. But not before Raihan saw Sonia mouth at him.

Give it to her.

Raihan was regretting the fact that he told Leon about your present.

“Milo, I was wondering if you wanted to have an opening match with me for the Battle Tower soon?” Leon asked as he subtly led Milo away. Raihan could only watch as Hop and Gloria left them too.

“Gloria, wanna get more drinks?”

“Sure Hop!”

And that left you with Raihan. Raihan was still frozen from what just happened, meanwhile you were struggling to get the headband off. You knew Sonia had knotted the ribbons of it to keep it in place but you didn’t know how many knots she had made.

You made a sound of frustration before finally whipping your head to face Raihan.

“What?” Raihan couldn’t meet your eyes not while he knew there was mistletoe above your head. He honestly wondered why Sonia did this, there were enough doorways that he had planned to avoid the whole night because of a single plant. But how could he avoid you?

“I know it’s not my place to ask Raihan, but could you...” you gestured to your head and Raihan nodded.

“Yeah... but let’s go somewhere quieter before anyone else realises you’re wearing mistletoe.”

You nod and lead Raihan out of the main hall.

Raihan didn’t bother trying to avoid the doorways now, not much he could do when you had a whole headband of mistletoe tied to your head. You both eventually found an unused room, one thankfully devoid of the parasitic plant. The room was partly empty except for a desk with stationary strewn across its surface and a sofa chair.

Raihan sat down and motioned for you to stand in front of him, he felt Butterfree flying loose as his hands carefully delved into your hair to find the knot. You made a small noise of protest when he tugged at a wrong end causing him to mutter apologies. Raihan frowned when he found the chain of knots keeping the headband in place.

“Did Nessa do these?” Raihan asked as he began undoing them.

“Y-yeah,” you answered and Raihan paused in his work, wondering what you were sounding nervous for. And then he realised how close you both were along with how the distance between your quickly reddening ears and his mouth were much closer than he expected.

“I’ll finish this quick,” said Raihan softly and you nod.

Raihan stays true to his word, his hands deft and quick as you both continued your silence. I want to say something but what?

Raihan remembered the gift in his bag and all of sudden the object felt heavier. Shaking his head, he asked you a question.

“So how are you finding your first ever Christmas party here?”

“It’s great,” he hears you reply. “I didn’t think it would be possible for the wholw region to experience a white Christmas this year but that’s Galar for you, always a surprise.”

Raihan reaches the final knot, noting the redness in your ears still there. “A surprise indeed, there’s never a dull moment in here.”

“Especially with our circle of friends.”

“Especially with them around,” Raihan muttered under his breath. “Well you’re all done! No more mistletoe in your hair!”

Raihan lifts the headband up from your hair, watching your expression turn into one of relief. “Thank you, Raihan,” you smiled up at him. “I don’t know what Sonia and Nessa were thinking, making me wear that. If Milo hadn’t pointed it out...”

“I was wondering why that green looked familiar,” said Raihan.

“Why did you recognise it?” You asked, frowning.

“I hung the mistletoe for this party. Me and Leon were here all day putting up the green little buggers.”

“So you know where all the mistletoe are?”

“I got you a gift,” said Raihan, hoping he could divert the conversation somewhere. He did not want to talk about mistletoe.

Your eyes lit up. “Really? Wait, do you have it right now?”

“I wouldn’t have brought it up if I didn’t have it with me,” said Raihan as he fumbles with his bag.

“And here I thought you just didn’t want to talk about mistletoe,” you said with a cheeky smile.

Red alert. Red Alert. Said a little voice in Raihan’s mind.

Raihan brings out a wrapped gift that you tilt your head at. “It’s small,” you muttered but Raihan heard loud and clear.

“If you don’t want it, then I’m putting that headband on you!” Raihan growls and you shiver at the thought.

“Okay, okay!”

“Close your eyes,” he mumbles and you obey.

You feel his hands part your hair to one side, then his finger on your collarbone along with the coldness of metal. When you open your eyes, you gasp.

It was the necklace you had your eye on back in the jewelry store. The little charm winked at you as you held it in your palm.

“Raihan, this-“

“I think the clerk planned it out,” said Raihan, cutting you off. “I walked in that store for your gift and you come in not five minutes later.”

Raihan’s blue eyes were warm when you turned to him. “Merry Christmas (Name) and a very happy New Year.”

What came next surprised him. You were quick to engulf Raihan in a hug, the surprise hug knocking you both back to the sofa and the mistletoe headband out of Raihan’s hands before the headband found its place on the sofa. The Gym Leader blinked momentarily before locking his arms around you with a smile. The Butterfree in his stomach flying at your body so close to his. “I told you, didn’t I?” Raihan whispered into your ear. “A dragon always makes sure his treasure’s in top condition.”

“You beat me to it,” you mumbled into his sweater. “I had a gift all ready for you too.”

“Really now?”

You nod before moving as far back as you can with Raihan’s arms locked behind your waist. Your hand reach down to your bag to pull his gift out, wrapped neatly in Trapinch wrapping paper.

“It’s small.” Raihan grins at you and you huff.

“If you don’t want it, then I’m putting that headband on you.” You crossed your arms and turned the other way.

“I wouldn’t mind.” His words widen your eyes but when you look at Raihan again, his blue gaze on the gift he’s unwrapping.

Raihan hums appreciatively at your gift, a pair of earrings in the shape of Hammerlocke Gym’s logo. “Do you like them?” You asked nervously. “I know there might already a lot of merchandise with the logo on it so I understand if you don’t like them.”

Raihan stares at you for a moment before reaching his hands up to his ears to attach the earrings, it was a good thing he had chosen to forgo his usual studs as well. “There, now you can’t say I don’t like them,” Raihan grinned at you.

You let out a short laugh at him, not seeing where his arms go until he hugs you again and this time you feel your ears reddening again.

“What are you up to?” You ask, your voice muffled by the material of his sweater.

“Well, before you said I was avoiding the topic of mistletoe.”

“That’s right.” You feel skmething settle on your head again and the familiar brush of Raihan’s fingers on your scalp.

“Well, this way you can be sure I’m not aboiding it this time.” Raihan grinned as he admired his handiwork.

You frown and feel your hair, eyes widening when they feel the familiar leaves. “You-“

Raihan’s grin dims a little. “I didn’t knot it, you can take it off if you’d like. But if you’d allow this greedy dragon one selfish present-“

You’re quick to press your lips to his, the kiss soft and telling more than needs to be said. When you two part, you’re the first to speak.

“You said you hung up the mistletoe with Leon right?”

Raihan’s eyes are still on your mouth but he nods. “Yeah and?”

“So how many times did we pass by mistletoe in the halls?”

Raihan grins before going in for another kiss. “Let’s see if I remember.”

Needless to say, you both didn’t leave that room for awhile.

#gym leader raihan #pokemon raihan #pokemon raihan x reader #raihan x reader #pokemon imagines #raihan #pokemon swsh

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mochirimi · 5 years

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Take the Lead [Bede x Gloria]

New Year's Eve in Galar is one big ball. Literally. One where Gloria danced and Bede stood on the sidelines, but with a new year comes new resolutions, and maybe it's time Bede got on the dancefloor...

Read Here at A03

The sound of popping champagne bottles punctuate the roar of conversation and laughter. And Bede sighs, further settling against the wall watching the party with a wary eye.

“What, not enjoying the ball are we?” The familiar old woman beside him glances up at him bemused.

It takes everything for him not to roll his eyes at her; doing so would surely result in a quick slap to the head and a “mind your elders” quip. Instead, he sighs again running a hand through his pale curls, “I just don’t understand why we have to come to this thing every year.”

This thing was Galar’s largest New Year’s Eve party full of the country’s most celebrated and their friends and family, televised for all to see. It was considered an honor to be invited and (for Bede) an obligation to go. Whatever the honor it supposedly was, Bede would have preferred to pass, but after the first one Opal literally dragged him by the collar to, it was an unspoken rule that he would at least attend as the retired gym leader’s escort, if not as the proper representative of the Ballonlea gym itself.

Now, three years later, he’d made it his usual habit at this thing to stand beside her as fellow gym leaders and old friends visited, adding a small remark here and there in the conversation to stave off boredom… and to keep him from straying off to watch her dance across the room.

Always the brightest star in the room, in any room— Galar’s champion, it’s hero, it’s absolute darling— Gloria. She was the only one he considered his true rival, having once blamed his disqualification from the gym challenge on her, calling it sabotage. But what once started out as animosity, became respect, admiration, (and with her leading the way) friendship.

With each calendar year, their relationship grew— at her insistence. Constantly showing up to the gym, to his home in Ballonlea simply to visit, have lunch, and talk he could acknowledge their relationship as… close. But their relationship was built on time spent alone, on a one to one basis. And if he admitted it, he had no place at events like this with her.

So every year, he held back, avoided her while she shined like the brightest star, while she danced around the room with Leon, Raihan, Milo, Marnie, and... Hop. This year is no different. Instead of looking at her, or at anything in her direction, Bede trains his gaze towards the view from their point at the top of the Battle Tower, to watch as the people of Wyndon enjoyed their own festivities down below.

“You know, if you don’t hurry, you’ll miss your chance again,” his surrogate grandmother states calmly, her aquamarine eyes trained on the figures across the room on the dancefloor.

He follows her train of sight and immediately frowns, quickly regretting the action. There, dressed formally in a black suit and indigo tie, Hop holds Gloria firmly in his arms as they waltz. And she is as bright as he has ever seen her. Dressed in shimmering pink taffeta and tulle, her brown amber eyes shine as Hop pulls her in close and whispers in her ear.

He can’t but bristle.

She laughs and smiles, nodding in agreement at whatever it is the imbecile said.

No one could deny the two childhood friends cut a perfect figure together. Having grown towards adulthood together, every gossip column loved to speculate towards the real relationship between the two rivals. And watching them now, Bede understood it.

He swallows the lump in his throat, unable to look away as he addresses Opal, the words coming out more slowly than he’d like, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She laughs, cackles even, and shakes her head. “If you keep this up, you’ll miss your chance. It’s almost midnight.” She says, looking up at him knowingly from beneath the brim of her purple hat. “Why don’t you just ask her to dance already?”

“I don’t dance.” He said matter-of-factly.

That was a lie. In fact in the privacy of his own house, Bede danced with beauty and grace, practicing with an invisible partner.

“Bede, you know better than to lie.” She tsks. “I know what you do when you’re alone.”

He turns to her, ready to protest just how wrong she was, just how wrong her statement even sounded when a clear voice interrupts.

“Bede?”

In front of him, Gloria stands with one hand outstretched, a hesitant smile on her face.

While bantering with the old lady, Bede failed to notice that the previous song had ended, that Gloria had turned her attention to their corner, and was now standing in front of him asking him to dance.

He freezes. Did he head correctly?

The noise of the surrounding room crescendos to a roar in his ears before breaking into complete silence. She seems to say something again, her mouth moving without him catching the words.

Quickly he shakes himself out of his reverie. “What did you say?” The words come more quickly, more eager than he’d like.

Her smile catches a little, as she licks her lips and tries again, “I said, would you like to dance?”

It’s what he thought she said. Simultaneous panic and exhilaration fill his body, settling into a bright, vibrant shade of pink color on his cheeks.

The only word he musters is, “sure,” taking her steady hand with his own shaking, pulling her in before she could notice. His mind only slightly hyper-aware of the fact his hand is on her waist.

Immediately he was overcome with the way she smelled, of jasmine white flowers, honey, and something sweeter.

“You know, it’s traditional to move when you dance.” She looks up at him.

Bede looks away from her expectant eyes and back again, nodding. “Right.”

He moves and she follows, and before he realizes it, they’re dancing around the room, in perfect sync. And it’s like magic; no one else in the room matters but him and her.

While they dance, Bede tries to come up with the right words to say, to inquire why she so suddenly (and unexpectedly) asked him to dance.

“I figured this year I would get a start on my New Year’s resolutions.” She says it so quietly he almost doesn’t catch it.

He dips her gently before asking, “What does that even mean?”

She takes a step closer ad he takes a step back. She licks her lips again. “I told myself that this year, I’d ask you to dance. Here. With me.” She explains.

His mind races at what it could mean, at what he could possibly say in response.

But she continued, “But then again, that’s been my New Year’s Resolution for a while now.” Her speech quickens, “You’re always off against the wall with Opal while everyone else dances. And I—”

A lump begins to form in his stomach. The words come out reluctantly, interrupting her, “I see, so it’s a pity dance.” He wanted to let go, to save her the time, but.

“No!” The protest comes out as an outburst. He blinks watching the dark pink creep across her own cheeks. The hand in his tightens its grip, almost as if she feared he’d let go. She looks away.“That’s not what I meant. I’ve wanted to dance with you for a while, I just couldn’t seem to ask you, and you’ve never asked me or anyone and what if you didn’t dance anyways.” Gloria’s words come out in a rush, strung together in a flustered line.

He pauses their dance and she stumbles, caught quickly in Bede’s arms. And she still won’t look at him. “Slow down already, you’re not making any sense, Idiot.” The remark comes out harsher than he’d like, and he winces. “I mean, what makes this year any different from any other?”

Bede’s heartbeat drums against his chest, erratic chaos in a ribcage. And he’s sure he’s about to die. The wait for a response seems to last a lifetime.

“Hop.”

“Hop? What does that imbecile have to do with anything?” He bristles a bit at the idea that the imbecile could have anything to do with this, with Gloria, with them, in this moment.”

“No, I mean—”

“What is it you mean?” He demands.

“Why do you keep interrupting me!” She snaps.

Bede quiets, hesitant. He reacted wrong.

Quietly she murmurs something he almost doesn’t catch, “Why is this so hard…” Shaking her head, a brown curl falls loose, falling on her cheek.

She looks at him. Finally. And there’s fire in her eyes, like when they battle and she’s about to land the finishing blow.

Bede forgets to breathe.

“I like you… Idiot.”

Somewhere in the background, he hears a crowd countdown in growing excitement. Instead, Gloria’s words echo over and over in his ears.

I like you. The world seemed to open up.

“Five!”

I like you. He could hear music, the voice of angels.

“Four!”

I like you. Every restless piece of his life coming into place, together with, her, with Gloria.

“Three!”

“Say something?” The fire in her eyes calmed and she looks into his magenta ones anxiously.

“Two!”

“I—” I like you too.

“One!”

And because words could not nearly be enough, he pulls her in for a kiss, for the kiss. First met with rigid shock, Bede feels her relax, her arms wrapping themselves around his neck, pulling him closer to her. Fireworks pierce the sky behind them.

All around them guests cheered in the new year, howling and laughing, pulling in their partners in dramatic kisses of their own.

When they come up for air, the space between them is minuscule, their foreheads still touching. Neither can stop smiling.

When the words finally come to him, the initial moment is already passed. But he says it anyway because, for the first time in a long time, he means it, “Happy New Year.”

“Happy New Year, Bede.”

#Bederia #DressedinPinkShipping #Trainer Gloria #Rival Bede #Pokemon #Fan Fiction #Pokemon Sword #Pokemon Shield #My Fan Fiction #New Year's Eve #New Year's Eve Kiss

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flyswhumpcenter · 5 years

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Bad Things Happen Bingo! The event where you send me requests according to this marvelous card! (Red cross is the completed prompt, character headshots are prompts I’ve already filled. Green deltas are for requested prompts, which is none rn, as my inbox is empty.)

[SPOILERS FOR SWORD & SHIELD’S ENDGAME START HERE].

"Let the adults take care of it," he said.

"Comatose" is a weird prompt, and yet I somehow came up with two prompts. One of them was Hop-centric and I'm absolutely gonna write it one of these days, but I wasn't sure if it fitted that well. The second one is, well, this. It came to me shortly after figthing Eternatus, when Hop says this in the hotel: "And still Lee's... well, he's being Lee. Insisting on having a Championship Match with you today. It's a bit much, isn't it? You're sure you're up for it? I'm not even too sure about him. He was out cold and hurt pretty badly himself during all that mess". So this focuses on a weird interpretation of the prompt, but considering I do focus on a comatose state here, just from weird POVs, I think it counts. It was really fun to write from the perspective of Gloria and especially Hop. I'm absolutely self-indulgent in making some edits in there to what's actually happened in canon. I like having some wiggle room to work with, y'know?

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Calm After the Storm

Summary: After the adrenaline and dopamine that come with winning a battle, comes dealing with some immediate casualties. It turns out that, sometimes, adults can't take care of everything. Gloria and Hop learn their lesson on the field, in an elevator, a corridor, a hotel bedroom. (Or: a self-indulgent depiction of a scene Hop alludes to before your battle against Leon).

Fandom: Pokémon Sword & Shield

Wordcount: 3.1K words

Event hosted by @badthingshappenbingo.

AO3 version available here.

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Sighing in relief, Gloria picks up the still-smoking ball she’s thrown onto Eternatus. Who knows what could have happened to the people of Galar if they had failed to defeat it… But that was her fear, an anxiety that didn’t get to become real thanks to their combined efforts, and now, she gets to smile with Hop and thank from the bottom of her heart the Sword and Shield from the legend who came to save their region. They’ve done most of the job, after all; and if she had a way to truly thank them, she’d have absolutely gone to the end of the world to do so.

Still, Zacian and Zamazenta leave shortly thereafter, forgetting to take the sword and shield they got invoked by. Hop grins wider than he’s ever had despite the dark rings under his shining eyes and messy hair strands, and she can’t be much more different than him at the moment. She puts away Eternatus’s ball in her bag and goes to hug her best friend as tightly as possible. In the ruin-like top of the tallest building of Hammerlocke, they forget about the darkness that almost engulfed them and everyone they’ve ever cared about and those they know only from view or say. They’ve made it, they’re both safe, and they can now go sleep for three days…

“Wait.”

Hop, whose expression suddenly drops, lets go of her as he notices Charizard flying towards them. If they’re both washed over by flows and flows of relief, his brother’s most famous partner really isn’t, draconic features frowned. The poor guy, who still bears some bruises and scratches from weakening Eternatus with the rest of his team, is trying to tell them something.

“I think we’re forgetting something,” Hop tells her, worry rapidly painting all over his face. “We got so caught up in that fight that…”

“Now that you mention it, I do have that feeling too… Wait!”

That Charizard is…

“Lee!!”

Hop rushes in the opposite direction to Charizard, pushing on his legs as if they had never experienced the raw power of Eternatus looming over the entire region. Gloria follows suite, her heart skipping a bit as she ignores the pain in her feet, the purple half of the Master Ball Leon tried to throw before crackling under her sole.

When she stops, she sees her friend shaking his brother laying face-first on the floor. It seems like either Hop or Charizard has dragged him there in a hurry after Eternatus broke out of his attempt at catching it, leaving him in quite a pitiful state. There’s quite an heartache to have over seeing the Champion in such a disgraceful, painful-looking pose; and yet nothing beats the cries of urgency breaking out of Hop’s throat.

“Lee, answer me!”

Gloria kneels to her friend’s level, making sure she isn’t accidentally stomping on anyone’s limbs. For a moment, the only sounds are Charizard’s wings flapping, Hop catching his breath and the peaceful wind blowing the dark red clouds away.

“He’s not waking up!” He says as he looks at her, restless and breathless, before going back to looking at his brother. “Lee, dammit, stop sleepin’ like that you big Slowpoke!!”

In silence, she starts inspecting Leon. He’s got bruises all over his limbs from what she can see, cuts and scratches that sometimes are decorated with dried blood, and she doesn’t dare point out how… exhausted he seems. They all are, truth be told, but there’s something about seeing such an energic grown-up lying on the floor unable to wake up and get on with his day, that simply aches.

Watching Hop trash around like that pains her just as much. The relief and joy they felt until they remembered about the third party who tried saving Galar before they had even gotten there in the first place is now gone, eaten away by brotherly instincts. She grabs him by the sleeve, shaking her head, as he stars at her, helpless.

“I don’t think he’s going to wake up anytime soon, Hop.”

“W-what are you…”

“We can’t do anything about it ourselves, can we? Let’s just bring him to someone who can.” She tries smiling to ease the distress in his eyes. “I’m certain the Champion’s just as tired as we are.”

Gloria knows that isn’t entirely true. Leon didn’t just fall asleep when all of this mess was going down, as he couldn’t have with how noisy and adrenaline-inducing Eternatus’ appearance was. However, this alone doesn’t give her the impulse to straight-up tell Hop about it. Nobody is going to leave this world today, she knows it, but in the meantime, can she really blame a boy for being worried about his sibling?

“Yeah, you’re right,” he finally says as he gives his Dubwool a Repel and summons it out of his ball again. He smacks his cheeks and tries smiling. “Mind giving me a hand? Lee’s kinda too heavy for me to lift on my own…”

“No problem.”

She calls for her Cinderace to help them out, entrusting her first companion with being delicate when handling their Champion.

-------------------

Going down from the top floor of the tower is slow. Neither of them is speaking: they’re both too tired and too speechless for that. Gloria doesn’t even know if her words would make things better or worse: what is she supposed to say, in that kind of situation? Instead, she just stands her, fumbling with her

Hop’s eyes never leave his brother, even when he blinks, lying on his Dubwool who shows little signs of still being amongst them aside from his chest rising and falling. Dubwool himself is very static: it may be the fatigue of the wild day they’ve all experience, it may be the worry of his Trainer transmitting itself to him, it may be something else.

There is no Macro Cosmos employee to fight against them and no music in the lift that people she had never met before were praising to them something like an hour ago. She glances, from time to time, to Dubwool, to Leon, to Hop, and everything else feels too silent now that tension has died down. If there was too much noise before, there is now too little left of it.

Yet, Gloria prevents herself from humming to pass the time. It just doesn’t feel right to suddenly break into a song when there is so much on all of their hearts, even if it’s to alleviate that weight, so she remains silent. She doesn’t like any single bit of the aura of mourning this gives to the situation, the heaviness of the air, the tapping of their feet echoing as they impatiently wait for the elevator to go down. Nothing about this feels right.

It should’ve been a time to celebrate. They should’ve been chattering away like birds, discussing the tournament, the Gym Challenge, stuff kids are supposed to be hyped about, right? They’ve just saved the world. They should feel nothing but relief and happiness; and yet, she can only see Hop ball up his fists in his pants’ pockets, silent, head hanging down with his eyes fixated on one person.

If she was trying to convince herself earlier that Leon may have fainted, but could have just fallen back asleep when they were fighting Eternatus (that barely makes sense, but she supposed that, if you were tired and a heavy sleeper enough…), the fact he’s reacted to nothing until now, not even the monstrous cries of Eternatus, the vigour of Zacian and Zamazenta, the frantic screams of his brother or being moved around, can only tell her he’s comatose.

And that word stings her tongue.

“Y’know, that’s kinda stupid, when I think about it.” Hop suddenly says, trying to draw a smirk on his face.

“What do you mean?”

“I know Lee’s gonna be alright. He’s always been alright, even if he’s scared Mom and Dad before. I’m sure he gave Sonia heart attacks while on their Gym Challenge. There’s no reason he won’t be now, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Lee’s the undefeated Champion of Galar, and yet, I’m scared for him and all… That’s dumb, I know it, but… But I can’t not worry! He should’ve woken up by now, right?”

She doesn’t know quite to respond. Mom often says fear can be an irrational feeling or reaction… but it doesn’t sound like a rightful explanation.

“He’ll be fine, sure, but when?”

Gloria doesn’t have an answer to give him, or, at least, no answer that’d sound truthful yet optimistic. Hop shakes his head and goes back to being silent, putting the hat falling out of his brother’s head back on top of it. Over and over again.

When the elevator’s doors open, she lets go of a breath she’s held for too long.

---------------

Truth be told, Sonia didn’t plan on watching the championship unless Hop or Gloria made it to the finals. She was somewhat blissfully unaware of the surprise cancellation, only learning it when she saw the two kids running past her and into the Slumbering Weald, barely getting an explanation on the situation from them. Thus, she only flew to the bubbling, buzzling Wyndon when learning about what had happened with Eternatus and the Chairman and all that jazz. It’d still serve as study material, even if she had other reasons to attend…

A surprise was waiting for her there and, like most surprises in her life, it wouldn’t be a good one.

What she finds in Wyndon is people stuck between shock and relief and an aura of worry. People speak amongst them, some recognize her, and she tries her best to sneak her way into the hotel where Nessa told her to go. Her friend was fairly vague in her wording, mentioning she could be interested in what had unfolded for her research. Her voice sounded less confident than usual and she could hear, from the other side of the line, the discussions amongst themselves of other familiar voices, mostly Leaders’. The only thing she was able to clearly distinguish was, however, Milo asking Nessa if she wanted a drink. How mindful of him.

That’s only the first layer: she’s allowed into the hotel fairly easily for being the new regional professor, much to her wallet’s relief considering how pricy and luxurious this hotel seems to be, and plans on heading to the floor Nessa told her the number of. However, instead of going through with it, her eye immediately spots Hop on an inferior floor, pacing in the corridor, taping his foot whenever he stops, hands deep inside his pockets.

When she engages the conversation, he seems far less optimistic than she’s mostly seen him be. He seems somewhat evasive, trying to escape a conversation, as if time’s running out. She can only point that out.

“You look like you’re in a hurry, Hop, what’s wrong?”

“Lee’s not waking up.”

The sentence pinches something inside of her.

“You can’t possibly mean this man is sleeping peacefully when he’s meant to battle Gloria as soon as possible, right?”

“That’s because he’s not sleepin’.”

Before Hop can add anything, Sonia opens the door behind him, an alarm ringing in her head with a bloodcurdling shrill. That’s what was giving her the weird feeling about this entire situation! Of course he’d have called to tell her how excited he was about this entire thing, he’d have posted about it on his social media, and if not him, then it’d have been Hop.

Sonia doesn’t remember having ever seen Leon comatose, or having to worry about that before, so she busts open the door and gets her fears confirmed in an explosion of silence.

----------------------

Hop’s sitting on a chair, waiting. He got tired of pacing, and so did the hotel staff, so instead he’s sitting on a chair next to a bed. At some point, there was Sonia with him, before she had to go do something else. At another, there was Raihan pretending not to care (and really being bad at it). At yet another, there was Gloria yawning her jaw out. Time’s been slow. He knows these people were there for less than an hour each.

Actually, it’s only been something like three hours at most. Time’s just been really, really slow. He fiddles with Dubwool’s Ball in the meantime, ears wide open for the smallest sound, fingers impatient. It’s night outside, which he sees through the mostly-closed curtains to the black sky and little yellow dots from the never-sleeping Wyndor.

His eyes flutter with the wind. It’s hard to stay awake now that the fatigue of the past few days settles down and the adrenaline of saving Galar is fading away. It’s too calm to stimulate him and yet, clutching on the hope that his brother really is sleeping, he doesn’t want to disturb his rest. He hopes Gloria has managed to find a way to fall asleep and that she’s having some beautiful dreams while he stays here, as a vigil.

He puts away Dubwool’s Ball for a bit and just stares at his brother. Lee looks oddly peaceful, lying like this in a comfortable and silky-soft bed, despite the circumstances he’s found himself in and the crease his eyebrows are making. It’s odd to see him without his signature hat, or his cape, or even just being the Champion. It’s weird seeing him that way after spending so much years only seeing him through the screen of the telly. For once, he feels like the stronger sibling.

That should’ve satisfied him, or at least given him some joy, but all he can think about is how wrong it’s rubbing him. It’s not meant to be. Not that way, at least.

He yawns like a Snorlax, sustaining his head up with faulting elbows. He can’t exactly see Lee’s little injuries here and there as most of his body is covered by a blanket, even if the band-aid on his cheek already says a lot; and so does seeing his uniform displayed on hangers in the room and his cap neatly put on a bedside table, untouched, its crown pattern hidden in the shadows. He can’t turn on the lights more than just the lamp on the table in case Lee opens his eyes and gets blinded by the brighter ones of the ceiling. The darkness doesn’t help him stay awake, but it just has to be that way.

He’s no Champion of Galar, and he may never become one unlike what he’s promised to himself ever since Lee became the undefeatable; yet it’s like he’s the one in charge tonight.

-------------------

A gentle shake on his shoulder makes him slowly open his eyes, clarity coming to him in a burst. It takes a while for him to truly come back to the surface, as if his sense were numb with tiredess. Finally creaking an eyelid open, he notices there’s someone else awake, lit by the gentle morning sky seeping through the curtains..

“Hop?”

He releases a sigh of relief. That’s finally something good and worth rejoicing over.

“Lee?! Since when have you been awake?”

His brother looks a little confused, and the dark rings and bruises haven’t entirely disappeared, but nonetheless, he smiles.

“Not much… You should go to bed, Hop, it’s late.”

His yawn gets interrupted by Lee getting back on his arms, exposing a couple bandages on his forearms in the process. He jumps wide awake, as if he had never felt comatose in the first place.

“What are you doing?!”

“I’m gonna go on with my day,” he visibly winces when tucking away the strands of hair that have stuck themselves all over his face. “I’ve slept for long enough.”

“W-wait, don’t get up!”

It’s the pain in his bandaged shoulder, of which he can see a bit of under the right sleeve of the sleepwear they gave him, that actually makes Lee lie back down, not his words, and he knows that.

“You’ve been out cold for a while, and you’re hurt and stuff, you shouldn’t be moving!”

“I didn’t know you became a doctor while I wasn’t looking, Hop”, his brother laughs as he scratches his head.

“Very funny, Lee,” he laughs back, “but that’s what the doctors said while you were knocked out. You’ve really made us worry!”

“Hah… I passed out before Gloria and you saved the day, right?”

The tone drops in mood. It’s like rubbing salt in a wound he thought was closed.

“…Yeah. Charizard dragged you to safety after he protected us. I guess you really saw nothing of that…”

“I haven’t, I’m sorry. I should’ve taken care of it myself.”

“I was terrified to see you get knocked out like that… And you wouldn’t wake up! It’s like you didn’t react to anything around you!”

Lee scoffs. “I really was out cold, huh… Well, don’t worry, it’s all good now. Gloria and you have saved Galar and everything’s back to normal, right?”

He nods.

“Good. It’d have been terrible if either of you had gotten injured. Now, if you’ll excuse me,” he tries getting up again, slower, gentler, and it’s still not okay because he’s still wincing at each move he makes, “I have a match to dispute against this year’s challenger…”

“You’re not in a condition to have a battle, Lee!”

His brother stares at him for a few moments, silent, before smiling again.

“If I stay here, will you go get breakfast?”

“For you too or just –”

“For you. You’re tired, go back to sleep.”

Hop can’t prevent himself from proving the point by yawning. He’s sore from the weird position he’s fallen asleep in…

“Okay, okay; but you stay here, right? Otherwise I’m gonna send you Sonia or Raihan!”

Another chuckle ensues.

“Wouldn’t want to be scolded at by Sonia, I must have scared her us enough. See ya later.”

“See ya, Lee,” he says as he gets up, almost falls from how wobbly his legs are, and gets out of the room.

There’s undeniable irony in the fact that, right before leaving the room, he notices Lee has fallen back asleep. Seems like the comatose state didn’t constitute as proper rest. Better get some food and sleep before he follows.

On the way out, he spots Sonia, who enters the room right afterwards. Passing by her, then in the corridors, he stops in front of a window giving onto the busy streets of the city. The heart more at peace, he finds that the sun has never shone this bright in Galar.

#pokemon #pokemon swsh #pokemon gloria #pokemon hop #pokemon leon #pokemon sonia #hop's dubwool #pokemon swsh spoilers #comatose #loss of consciousness #hurt comfort #emotional hurt comfort #light angst #gloria (pokemon)#hop (pokemon)#leon (pokemon)#sonia (pokemon)#brotp: children of postwick #brotp: brothers with split destinies

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