#at least until post-canon when hilbert returns very much alive (altho kinda different now. you know how it is)

[quixot1sm]

hey can you talk about n's relationships with other characters in the hilbertverse

AHH. yes :) this is also going to be a very very long answer but oof i think about this stuff all the time

team plasma:

he was treated as though he were their beloved spotless lamb and figurehead, and honestly, even though ghetsis is a total dick and never felt anything for his son, n was led to believe he'd had a good childhood with a nice- albeit emotionally distant- family, until ghetsis finally showed his true colors. n's sisters were less siblings to him and more caretakers, about ten or so years older than him. the sages were simply teachers, the rest of plasma his underlings even as a young child. everyone treated him like a prince, but the only one he had any true connection with was the zorua who had grown up with him in the wild and stuck to his side even when ghetsis came to collect him. zorua is by all means n's brother, and he's kind of an asshole to everyone else but he's very protective of n.

hilbert:

a few months after n's 18th birthday and official coronation as the king of team plasma, he found himself in accumula town, and it was there that hilbert caught his attention. hilbert was the first person in the real world that n paid any real mind to, and it was because he was just so weird. here n was, being told all his life that people outside of team plasma were heartless and cruel, and yet this newly licensed trainer seems to be anything but, according to his pokemon. it really caught n off guard. so, they investigated... and surprisingly, they and hilbert were fast friends. the two of them had a lot more in common than they expected, they shared a love of pokemon, and a desire to make the world better for them, and even though hilbert was reluctant to agree with their worldview, n came to believe that hilbert would do the "right" thing and join team plasma. that... obviously was wrong, and they had a bit of a falling out after hilbert rejected this proposal. after this though, n latched onto the idea that if hilbert wasnt with him, then he must be the one to stand against them, and from here put together the idea that hilbert would be his hero counterpart. in n's eyes, they were bound together by the string of fate, meant to destroy each other in a war for the future of the world one day. this made hilbert terribly, terribly sad while n was enraptured by the idea. and, whether it was always meant to happen, or if n's actions spurred hilbert on to become something he wouldnt have otherwise, who can say, but eventually hilbert was in fact confirmed to be the hero of ideals... and in their decisive battle, he totaled n, and he had the grace to have done it to save them, and all his friends. n had utterly lost, they couldnt even compare. hilbert was everything that they werent. when ghetsis set his hydreigon on hilbert- even though zekrom and hilberts samurott cut its fire blast off before it could do more than leave some scars- n was terrified of the whole situation and felt itd been their fault, so they ran away. n would never, ever forgive himself for this. as mentioned in the last post, the more time that passed without being in contact with hilbert (and especially after learning that hilbert had allegedly died), the more n idolized him. itd only be when he found hilbert alive, but in the form of kyubert, would n ironically see him as simply human again.

hilda:

honestly, he'd only had the briefest interactions with her before his first leave from unova. when he returned though, she was shockingly among the most patient with him. frustrated and angry, yes, but again he shared a lot in common with hilbert, and hilbert considered them his friend, so hilda tried to be gentle. she even tries to bond with them! tries to get them back on their feet and interacting with other people, but eventually hilda takes to participating in battle tournaments in other regions to do the same for herself, and n starts globe-trotting again, so they see each other less and less.

cheren:

cheren does not like n. at all. try as he might to stomp out his immature and unwanted feelings of jealousy over seeing his pseudo-ex getting involved with someone new, n leaves a bad taste in his mouth. after bw, cheren cant help but view n as being the root cause of hilbert getting hurt, and this only worsens after the reveal the events of bw2 brings. cheren really tries to give n slack and show them a little kindness, for hilbert's memory's sake, but it's difficult. he'll let n stay at his house in aspertia if he needs to, but he'll be biting his tongue the whole time. n is very aware of this, but of course they feel as though it's completely warranted, so just hang their head and endure it.

bianca:

she feels terrible for n. she doesnt know him all that well, she maybe only saw him once or twice during bw, but she can certainly relate to him. controlling father, debilitating self doubt, it might be far from a 1:1 comparison, but she understands to some degree. n had dismissed her as a reckless, irresponsible, even if well-intentioned trainer before, probably even spoke down to her like a jerk at some point, but after bw2 he starts tentatively spending time with her as both an attempt at comforting/being comforted and apologizing.

nate:

also very much does not like n for "taking" his big brother hilbert away from him, but unlike cheren he's very upfront about it. he co-operates with n towards a common goal through interpol, but he sure does not enjoy it, and will let him know as much. despite this, n feels obligated to look after him since hilbert no longer can. they'll take the hostility on the chin- once again feeling as though they deserve every second of it- just as long as they can ensure that nate is doing okay.

rosa:

rosa does her best to forget hilbert ever existed and with that pretends to have no opinion of n one way or the other. deep down, she probably does hate him for the same reason as nate, and while she doesnt directly voice any of her animosity towards him, she'll twist the knife with vague statements and implications if she's feeling particularly short-fused that day. luckily for n his interactions with her are few and far in between, and considering her words are harder to bear than anyone else's because they make him think about all his failings more than he already does, he tries to avoid her.

alder:

not actually all that close, but alder sees him for what he is (i.e. a deeply hurting and misguided teenager who was failed by the people around him), so he offers support and aid when n will accept it from him. n, like they are with everyone else, is initially reluctant to reach out to him for help when under the belief that they are in a mess of their own making and undeserving of forgiveness, and that asking as much from alder of all people is beyond poor taste. though alder is one of the first people he crashes with when he has nowhere else to stay, n leaves the moment he feels as though hes encroaching too far on alder's time and resources.