#butterfree has a special place in my heart

[toaarcan]

Pokemon: Shiny vs. Default, 0048-0049

Okay, now we’re moving on to my favourite Gen I Bug types, Venonat and Venomoth!

Best known for being a slightly better Beedrill that became much better when it got access to Special STAB and Tinted Lens in Gen IV, and Quiver Dance in Gen V, but still struggles with mediocre stats and and typing, and also a fan theory that suggests that the sprites for Butterfree and Venomoth were switched at some point in development, as Venomoth’s sprite bears some resemblance to Metapod, while Venonat is literally a Butterfree’s head crossed with a Kuriboh and I love it for that.

Anyway, let’s begin with Venonat itself.

Adorable. I want to hug it, I don’t care how much I get poisoned. Anyway, the shiny. The fuzz is now a more bluish purple, that’s a lateral move. The hands and feet are now paler, and honestly they’re my least favourite part of this design, being flesh-toned. The shiny doesn’t really fix that. But the eyes and mouth now being blue? That I like. Overall I’m gonna call this a draw.

Moving on to Venomoth, our favourite All-Terrain Vehicle.

Fun fact, one of the first bits of Pokemon merch I owned was a little plush of Venomoth I got from a Burger King or something like that, and it’s one of the reasons why Venomoth has a special place in my heart. Anyway normally I don’t approve of purple things becoming less purple, but here I’ll make an exception: Venomoth’s shiny is bright blue, and Venomoth’s Japanese name is Morphon, likely after a genus of butterflies called Morpho, of which the most well-known is the Blue Morpho, a large species whose males have distinctive blue wings. Y’know, in case you couldn’t tell from the name. With that in mind, I’m gonna give this one to the shiny. It looks good, and it has a bit of real-life connectivity, purely by chance.

Default: 38 Shiny: 20 Draw: 9

[cinnaminsvga]

Compound Eyes | Taehyung

→ summary: After being declared the newest champion of the Hoenn region, it doesn’t take long until you are whisked away to participate in the annual Pokémon World Tournament and represent your hometown. Filled with the excitement of meeting strong trainers from all over the world, you don’t realize until it’s too late that a familiar face floats above the sea of participants. It’s none other than the newest Johto champion—who also happens to be your long-lost childhood rival.

→ genre: pokemon!au, childhood bff!au, fluff, humor → warnings: none! i guess there’s going to be a few pokémon terms thrown here and there but i don’t think it’s all that important in order to understand the story :D → words: 4.6K → a/n: this took FOREVER (literal years) and i am so sorry for keeping you waiting @breadoffoxy​ but thank you again for commissioning this piece!! pokemon will always be a fandom i don’t think i’ll ever leave (LEGENDS ARCEUS WAS SO GOOD) so combining that with bangtan is definitely a plus in my book!! i had a lot of fun writing this so i hope you guys enjoy reading it!!

It is every young trainer’s dream to one day participate in the annual Pokémon World Tournament—a special event where the cream of the crop from every region gathers together to compete for the title of world’s strongest trainer. Not many ever get the chance to compete in this selective tournament, as each participant must have collected a specific minimum amount of wins under their belt in order to qualify for any of the divisions. 

Among those divisions, there is one that is reserved for the best of the best, for the champion of each region. It is reserved for the last day, almost like an exhibition match to celebrate the end of the week-long festivities. And yet, the tension leading up to the Master Ball division is palpable—as if everyone’s hopes and dreams are causing the air to feel electric. Either that, or the electric-types are starting to get a little too excited.

Everyone is rooting for their homegrown champion to take the crown, and the pressure to succeed might have made any other trainer quake in fear. 

But as a champion, there should be no need to feel concerned, right? There’s a reason why you managed to battle your way to the top of your own region’s Elite Four. Despite only having claimed the title of Champion last month, you are confident in your team and the hard work that got you this far. 

All that experience didn’t stop you from getting starstruck, however.

“Oh my Arceus! Look over there, Gengie! I can’t believe the actual real-life Diantha is standing right over there!” You nudge the shadow Pokémon brusquely, who nearly topples over from your strength. Luckily, your Gengar is more than a little used to your excitement, so it quickly straightens up and nods enthusiastically with you. 

“She’s even prettier in person! I wonder if it would be weird if I went over there and introduced myself...” you trail off, your feet already making their way towards her when you feel a small hand tug at your shirt to keep you still. You look down, finding Gengar with an uncharacteristic frown on its face. 

“Oh, right. We don’t have time for that,” you mutter sheepishly, patting him on the head. You look at your watch, cringing at the time. “Guess we shouldn’t have messed around so much when we got here. Registration closes in an hour if I remember correctly.” 

Gengar huffs in exasperation and licks your leg as if to admonish you. You yelp, pushing the mischievous Pokémon away from you with a loud laugh. “Stop that! You know I hate it when you do that.”

After flicking Gengar in retaliation, the two of you make your way through the busy streets of Driftveil City. Despite Gengar’s earlier scolding, it doesn’t take long until you’re distracted once more by the sight of many other famous trainers, mostly gym leaders and a few Elite Four trainers. You even catch a glimpse of Blue from Viridian City, his signature spiky orange hair unmistakable amidst the crowd. 

Even more, there are all kinds of food stalls littered everywhere, most of them advertising local delicacies from Unova, as well as some visiting merchants from other distant regions. It takes all your willpower to keep yourself from buying everything in sight, and even your serious-natured companion finds it difficult to keep his eyes away. 

“Oh shit, we’re really going to be late now,” you say after another ten minutes of wandering. You realize too late that you’ve gotten terribly lost along the way. The crowd in the area that you are in is significantly thinner than before, and all of the arrows pointing to the registration tents have disappeared. You and Gengar stare at your phone map in confusion, and anyone can see the imaginary question marks floating above your heads.

You’re just about to give up and approach a stranger for help when two heads of purple hair barrel their way towards you. 

“Sorry, coming through!” The smaller of the two shouts in warning, but you don’t have enough time to move aside before their bodies slam into you, knocking you down to the ground. You groan in pain, the weight of two people causing it to sound more like a broken wheeze more than anything. Lucky for your Gengar, it manages to dodge in time. It pulls you from underneath the wreckage with a loud cackle, clearly amused by your injuries. 

“Well, that’s one way to meet someone,” says the taller of the two. The man in question is still laying on the floor, but he doesn’t appear bothered by the sizable bruise forming on his forehead. Instead, he pulls himself up with a simple brush off his shoulder. With a large, dopey grin on his face, he extends a hand forward in greeting. “So sorry about that! My name is Leon, by the way! It’s nice to meet you!”

That’s a lot of exclamation points, you think drily to yourself. Before you can reply, his friend hoists herself up by clinging onto his pant leg. He yelps in shock, quickly latching onto the waistband of his sweats, lest he allows himself to get pantsed in the middle of a bustling metropolitan street. 

“What the Arceus, Leon! And here I was, offering my time to help you find the registration desk, and you don’t even try to help me stand up? Did you forget all your manners when you bonked yourself in the head?” she seethes, eyebrows furrowed in irritation. When she turns towards you, however, her expression immediately morphs into a pleasant smile. “Oh, sorry about my friend! He can be a little bit of an idiot.”

“Excuse me?” The boy, Leon, exclaims. “I wasn’t the one who was running through the streets like a madwoman possessed!”

She huffs, rolling her eyes. “Yeah, well. Whose fault is it for getting lost in the first place? If you hadn’t spent the last three hours battling anyone who can breathe, then you wouldn’t be scrambling to register before the cut-off time!”

Leon pouts, petulant. “Yeah well… I did offer to fly there with my Charizard…”

“Umm,” you interrupt, feeling a little disoriented by the two loud friends (siblings?) in front of you. “So sorry, but did you mention heading to the registration desk?”

The girl perks up at your voice, smiling brightly once again. “Yup! We’re supposed to be heading there right now. My name is Iris, by the way. I’m the champion of this region! And Leon over here,” she juts a thumb at the sheepish boy, “is the recently crowned champion of Galar. Well, new-ish. We both got our titles a little over a year ago, huh?”

“That’s right,” Leon says, nodding proudly. Then, his posture stiffens, grimacing in embarrassment. “And that’s why I’m still a little unfamiliar with the whole registration process. Yup. Totally.”

Iris snorts, leaning closer to you with a knowing look. “Which is utter Dunsparce, if you ask me,” she whispers with a smirk. 

“Aha, right…” you say, clearing your throat. “Well, I guess that makes two of us. I’m also a bit lost, and I was just about to ask someone for directions to the registration desk, actually.”

Iris gasps, grasping your arm with a squeal. “Oh! Then we should totally go together! We can’t have both of you late!” Just as she’s about to tug you along, Iris pauses in her steps to give you a long, good look. “Wait a second. I don’t think I ever managed to get your name.”

“Oh, right.” You laugh, scratching your neck. “My name is Y/N. I’m the new champion of the H–”

“–of the Hoenn region!” Iris finishes, her eyes lighting up in excitement. “I can’t believe I didn’t notice sooner! I am so sorry, by the way. I’m not really good with faces,” she says sheepishly.

You wave her off, embarrassment flooding your face. “No, no! That’s totally fine! I didn’t really expect anyone to recognize me at all.”

“Wait, now that you mention it…” Leon says, peering at you up and down. He slaps a hand to his mouth in shock. “Oh my Arceus—that’s right! You are the Hoenn champion! I watched your battle against Wallace the other week, but I admit that I wasn’t really focused on how you looked like, not when your Gengar kind of stole the show,” he jokes. 

You giggle, patting your Gengar affectionately. “Yeah, this little bugger was truly the star of that battle. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him,” you say. Gengie snickers beside you, but the beaming smile on its face is telling enough. “Not gonna lie though, I thought I was a goner when Wallace Mega Evolved his Gyarados at the end there.”

“Don’t underestimate yourself! You were leagues ahead of him, which is saying something,” Iris says. “And believe me, I would know. I’ve fought the guy before, and he’s no pushover.”

“Which makes me all the more excited to battle you! I hope we get paired against each other somewhere along the way,” Leon quips, his competitive drive palpable in his voice. 

“Aha, right…” You laugh awkwardly, forcing out a smile. You won’t admit it to him, but you want to say the opposite—after all, there’s a reason they call him the unbeatable champion. You don’t exactly want to lose so early on in the competition if you’re pitted against him first. It’s not like you think you’d lose, but you definitely don’t want a difficult boss right out of the gate either. 

He pumps his fist in the air, oblivious to your plight. “Oh, but I wouldn’t mind settling for the new Johto champion either. I haven’t gotten around to watching how he battles yet, but I’m sure he’ll be a beast on the field!”

“Oh, you’re right!” Iris gasps. “Now that’s another trainer who’s insanely strong.” She offers you a sly glance, a mischievous smirk on her lips. “But I’m sure you know all about the other newbie champion all too well, don’t ya? Especially since the media seem to have gotten excited over the star-crossed rivals, or something like that,” she says, giggling.

“S-star–crossed? What the fu—does that even mean?” you flush, choking on your spit. Beside you, Gengar stifles a snort, nudging you to get your wits together. You stare at the two champions in embarrassment, clearing your throat. “I-I mean, how can we be rivals when I’ve never even battled him before?”

“It’s not always about battling you know! It’s the vibes, darling!” Iris says, pointing at you knowingly. “You’re both within the same age range, you both chose Grass-types as your starter Pokémon, you’re both hot and eligible—”

“Hot and eligible?! Excuse me?!” you interject, but Iris continues on as if you hadn’t spoken.

“—and rumor has it, you guys aren’t even from your respective regions! I heard from someone that you guys might have grown up in the same sleepy town in Hoenn,” Iris smirks, wagging her finger. Her smirk only widens at your shell-shocked silence. “So whaddya say to that, newbie?”

“W-well… You see, I…” you start, racking your Mankey-brain for some sort of answer. As luck would have it, a large crowd (stampede?) of people rush past you in a blur, their stomping feet and excited squeals drowning out any hope of hearing your reply. A flurry of camera shutters accompanies the crowd as reporters quickly start to swarm as well, the horde of people seemingly circling a large purple tent near the tournament stadium. 

“Oh! That’s the registration tent, isn’t it?” Leon shouts, his voice barely loud enough against the cacophony. “Are they all latecomers to register for the tournament like us?”

“No, you idiot,” Iris snaps. She stands on her tiptoes, her neck straining as she tries her best to look past the rows and rows of heads. “I can’t see over all these people—damn Arceus for being vertically challenged!—but I think there’s some celebrity trainer or something.”

“Huh? A celebrity? Who is it?” you ask, your interest piqued. You aren’t much for celebrity gossip, but if Cynthia happened to pass by and offered up some autographs… You can’t say that you wouldn’t be above groveling at her feet for a moment of her time. 

Leon, for all his clumsiness, has the advantage of height in his repertoire. “I can see curly brown hair… I’m not sure but I think it’s… Oh! I think it’s the new Johto champion! Speaking of the devil,” he reports, a large grin on his face. “Blimey, I know he beat Lance a month ago, but he already has this large of a fan club? That’s insane!”

“Look who’s talking!” Iris scoffs, rolling her eyes. “If I hadn’t saved you a while ago, all those fangirls flocking around you might have directed you to their homes and you would have been none the wiser!”

“I can certainly see the appeal of being a fan of your hometown champion,” you quip, your gaze trained on the crowd. You can’t see the champion in question, but you can almost imagine him—brown hair, long eyelashes, lips that love to quirk up into a smirk… 

You continue, shaking your head of your thoughts. “But even then, I don’t see how this many people would be going crazy over someone who only just got the title of champion. I’d understand Red or Cynthia, but him?”

“Something tells me it has less to do with his prowess as a champion, and more to do with how smoking hot he is,” Iris snickers, wiggling her eyebrows. “I mean, c’mon! Y/N, you’ve seen him, don’t you agree?”

You splutter, your cheeks quickly turning Cherubi pink. “What? I mean, he’s…” you hesitate, finding the right words. “He’s not bad, but it’s not like that! Besides, it’s just Ta—”  

Just then, a loud screech cuts you off, causing the three of you to whip around in surprise. A large purple halo surrounds the crowd, an invisible psychic force parting them gently enough to form a path. From there, the Johto champion makes his escape, his trusty Gardevoir following closely behind as it keeps the crowd from getting in its trainer’s way. 

In a flash, the champion takes his Gardevoir’s hand to teleport away, leaving his supporters groaning in disappointment. 

Leon whistles lowly, impressed. “Well. That’s certainly one way to make a grand exit. Suppose that means we know who’s winning the popularity vote this year, huh?”

Soon enough, the mob of people quickly disperse, and the three of you manage to make your way to line up at the registration tent. At the table, the cheerful attendant informs your two new acquaintances that they have been coincidentally paired up in the preliminary rounds tomorrow. Meanwhile, your opponent would be none other than the legendary 5-minute champion himself, Blue Oak.

“Oh, that’s rough buddy,” Iris laughs, patting your shoulder sympathetically. “You really couldn’t have asked for a more stubborn opponent.”

Instead of being discouraged, hearing the news only makes you more excited for the tournament to start. After all, battling strong trainers has always given you a massive rush, and there is nothing quite like an adrenaline high than facing one of the most legendary trainers in the world from the getgo.

“I’m pumped as hell! I can’t wait for tomorrow to come,” Leon hoots, his body nearly vibrating from his excitement. “I don’t even think I’m going to be able to sleep tonight!”

Iris snorts beside him, shaking her head in exasperation. “What a kid,” she sighs, but the twinkle in her eye tells another story. “Well, it was nice talking to you guys! I’m heading to the park to put in some last-minute training. I gotta make sure I beat Leon until he cries.”

Leon laughs goodnaturedly. “I’d like to see you try, short stack! Well, I better get going myself. See you both tomorrow!” He waves his farewell, jogging off with a skip in his step.

The two of you stare after for a moment. Then:

“He’s going the wrong way, isn’t he?” you say. 

In response, Iris only nods in defeat before slowly trailing after him.

Alone once more, you turn to Gengar with a soft smile. “I think we should take a page out of their book and do some practice, don’t you think?” However, your motivation to train gets dashed after the loud rumbling of your stomachs. 

You both look sheepishly at each other. “Maybe after lunch?” you propose, and Gengar nods back enthusiastically.

“What are we feeling up to, bud? I say we head to that malasada food stall! I’ve always wanted to try it if we ever went to Alola,” you say, walking off excitedly with Gengar in tow. You are so caught up in your hurry to get over there and sink your teeth into some rich fried doughy goodness that you do not immediately notice when a harsh gust of wind knocks the cap off your head.

“Huh?” you startle, your hand flying to your hair in surprise. It is not supposed to be a particularly windy day, so you are more than a little confused to find that your hat had magically jumped off your scalp. With a perplexed frown, you bend down to pick it back up, only for another gust of wind to blow it farther away.

“H-hey!” you shriek, chasing after your cap. The wind finally makes sense, however, when a Butterfree descends right in front of you. It chirps cheerfully at you before its small arms grab your cap and it flies off in a rush. 

You call after it, demanding that it return your well-worn hat. Disgruntled, you turn to Gengar. “Gengie! Use Shadow Ball!” 

At your command, Gengar does its best to land the move on the rogue Butterfree, but misses by a fraction of an inch. The bug Pokémon had dodged the move, its reflexes almost miraculous. With another happy chirp, the Butterfree flutters away, moving faster than any Butterfree you had ever seen in your life.

With no choice but to give chase, you and your partner scramble after the Butterfree. You knock into some startled bystanders on the way, and you shout some hasty apologies as you try your best to keep your eyes on your cap. 

It feels like you had been running for ages when the Butterfree suddenly decides to stop, landing delicately on a tree branch. As you stagger to a breathless stop, you vaguely notice that it had led you to the hotel you were staying at. 

The hotel has a large sweeping garden outside its lobby, a perfect place for trainers to let out their Pokémon for a relaxing day out in the sun. You had seen a few hotel residents milling about when you first arrived this morning, but you suppose most of them have left to grab some lunch nearby. 

One lone trainer stands nearby, his back facing you. He’s on his haunches, feeding what you assume is his Appletun and Venusaur some berries. He is humming a soft melody—a song that you had learned long ago, back when you were just a small girl from an even smaller town. 

The Butterfree jumps from the tree and lands on the boy’s head, dropping your cap by his feet. 

“What’s this, Butterfree? You got me a gift?” the boy asks softly, scratching its cheek tenderly. He turns to face you, but you already knew who he was the moment he’d even made a sound.

Taehyung smiles cheekily at you. “Took you long enough to say hello.”

You frown, swallowing thickly. Why had your throat gotten dry all of a sudden? “You took my hat,” you reply lamely.

He shrugs, his grin only growing wider. “I didn’t take your hat. Butterfree did.”

The little bugger chirps out what you think is a laugh. It nuzzles against Taehyung before retrieving your fallen hat off the ground. It flutters over back to you and places it gently back on your head. You pat it firmly back on, feeling strangely self-conscious with the boy as your audience.

“Is that all you do? Train your Pokémon to steal from other people? I’d reckon you were part of Team Rocket or something,” you joke, pout still present on your face. But you both know it’s all for show—neither of you are sure of how to act around the other just yet.

“You caught me red-handed. I even got a Gardevoir just to get me out of sticky situations,” he jokes.

“I saw that little display by the registration tent a little while ago. The last time I saw you, you were barely taller than a Pikachu. Never knew you became such a superstar since the years have gone by,” you say, amused. 

At your comment, Taehyung’s cheeks turn a soft pink. “Don’t even go there. It’s a mystery why they keep following me around,” he groans, rubbing his face with his hands. He sighs, gesturing to the empty hotel training grounds. “Good thing this hotel is only for the participants of the tournament. I don’t know how much longer I can take the sound of reporters asking me to look their way.”

He pauses to squint at you. “Hey. We’re both champions—”

“Thanks for noticing,” you say drily.

“No, I mean—” Taehyung laughs nervously. “We both became champions at around the same! Shouldn’t you be surrounded as well?”

“Ouch, way to rub salt on the wound,” you huff. “Not all of us can be dangerously good-looking, you know.”

Taehyung’s ears perk up. “You think I’m good-looking?” he says, his grin turning box-like. Just like when you were kids, you think to yourself unhelpfully.

“Enough! If you brought me here to lower my morale or something, it isn’t going to work. I have better things to do than suck up to the media,” you grouse, crossing your arms. 

“No, you know I didn’t mean it like that,” Taehyung says, holding his hands up in surrender. “I just thought that… since everyone on social media has been pitting us against each other and all, you’d also be in the same boat.”

You shrug, unperturbed. “I guess not, but I don’t really care either way. My Pokémon will make them see that I’m definitely the better trainer anyway.” You beam proudly at your Gengar, who gives you a confident grin in return. 

Taehyung lets out a snort, wiping away a faux tear. “You’re just as cute as I remember! But trust me, I have the advantage in that department as well.”

You force your brain to selectively ignore the first part of his declaration. “Just because you started on your journey one year earlier does not mean you’re better! Hell, we haven’t even battled each other since we were both 15!” You point an accusatory finger at him. “All because you decided to move away to Johto, by the way!”

“I did ask you to come with me, if I remember correctly,” Taehyung mentions with a pout. “Even begged on my knees,” he mutters to himself and you barely miss it.

“Whatever. I guess it makes it all the better that we finally meet again, both champions of our respective regions,” you say. A few streets away, the large city center bell chimes loudly, ringing across the Unovan air. In the corner of your mind, an old memory resurfaces. 

“Do you believe in destiny?” Jungkook, your other rival, had asked you one day. He’d always been a breath of fresh air to battle with, but as competitive as he was, you still seemed to always yearn for someone better. 

“Destiny?” you repeated, returning Gengar to its Pokéball. You hummed, shrugging your shoulders. “Not really. I think you should always have some control of your life.”

“My dad told me once that when you meet your soulmate, a bell will ring,” he said, sighing. He stared wistfully at the sky, a lovelorn look on his face. “Isn’t that a beautiful thing to wish for?”

You huffed out a laugh, ruffling his hair with a fond smile. “Well then. I hope a bell rings for you, one day.”

The city center bell falls quiet once more. The two of you stare at each other, a blanket of something enveloping you with unknown emotion. 

Taehyung winks. “I always knew that our paths would cross again, one way or another.”

“I don’t know… I think I’d be a lot more nervous if I were you. I’ve grown a lot since we last saw each other.”

Taehyung gives you an unsubtle once over. “Oh, believe me. I can see that all too clearly.”

“What is that supposed to mean?!” You squawk, punching his shoulder indignantly. Taehyung only laughs, backing away and hiding behind his Butterfree. 

Coward, you think snidely. 

“Just… don’t think I’ll be going easy on you just because you’re cute okay?” He smirks, blatantly enjoying the way your cheeks heat up in embarrassment.

“Why do you keep saying shit like that?” you whine, not even caring how petulant you sound. To your ire, your Gengar only laughs at your misery, encouraging your so-called rival further. 

“Oh, you know me. I’m just truthful to a fault,” he snickers. But in an instant, his expression sobers as he focuses his gaze slyly towards you. You unconsciously feel your nerves stand on end, the tension increasing tenfold when the naturally goofy boy turns serious. 

“Say, Y/N. Let’s make a bet for the tournament, shall we?”

“A bet?” you parrot, but you can’t say you’re not intrigued. You straighten your back with a haughty smirk. “I wouldn’t bother with a bet if I were you. I don’t like taking candy from babies.”

Taehyung ignores your attempts to taunt him. He continues to stare at you with stone-cold eyes, and if you didn’t know him as well as you did, you might have thought he was being genuine. You just needed to wait another couple of seconds, and eventually, he’ll break. After all, you’ve known him pretty much your whole life—

“How about… we bet that whoever loses has to ask the other person on a date! How ‘bout that?” Taehyung exclaims, his expression lighting up once again.

—Okay, scratch that. You have no idea who this dude is. Never seen him in your fucking life. 

“Excuse me? What the hell did you say?” You screech in response, completely dumbfounded by what you think was an out-of-the-blue suggestion. “Are you fucking out of your mind? Where the hell did that come from?”

“Geng…” your Gengar groans beside you. To translate, that was Pokémon for “My trainer is dense as hell.”

Taehyung blinks innocently. He taps his chin, pretending to think. “I mean, I understand if you’re scared of losing. If you don’t want to, then that’s fine. Or, we can lower the stakes and settle for a kiss instead?”

“You’re fucking DEAD if you think I’m afraid of you,” you seethe, hands on your hips. “I’m going to make you eat your words, pretty boy! I’m going to get free food and squeeze your wallet dry!”

“I’ve always loved you for your confidence, did you know that?” Taehyung admits with a dreamy smile. “Too bad you’ve got your head in the clouds, though.”

You’re still shocked and enraged by everything to even process his admission. “And your overconfidence will be the death of you! I’ll fucking show you! This battle is going to be so easy if this is how stupid you are! I’ll see you at the arena, dumbass!” 

After one last resounding huff, you stomp away with a cloud of smoke puffing out your ears. Taehyung watches on in endearment, the giddiness in his chest full to the brim. He can feel his heart pounding in his veins, and he knows the next few days are going to be the ones he’ll tell his (i.e. your) grandchildren about in the future.

He turns to his Butterfree. “I think that went well, don’t you?” It chirps happily in response.

[imjeralee]

Wallflower: Chapter 11 - The Honeymoon Phase (NSFW)

Raihan x F!Reader

Disclaimer: Do not own Pokemon

Note: This is my first Pokemon fanfic. I hope you enjoy it :) Originally posted on Archive of Our Own.

Summary: You’re an unassuming Pokemon breeder who works at the nursery in the Wild Area and he’s Raihan, the fearsome gym leader of Hammerlocke who has more than a million followers. You don’t want anything to do with him but he’s…persistent.

Rating: Mature/Explicit

Warnings: Lemon, smut, violence, language

Extra Note: Plenty of smut here 

THE HONEYMOON PHASE

...

...

"So, how's things?"

"Good."

It's been a while since he visited Alola but Looker thinks it's time he paid Nanu a visit. Nanu had always been rather rough around the edges and when it came to dealing with people, he's not exactly described as being a ray of sunshine, but he gets things done and his heart is in the right place, even though people may not realise it. Looker calls in advance of course, and when he arrives, his superior's looking more grizzled than ever but overall, he seems to be fine. He's just slumming it in a dilapidated settlement called Po Town, right next to the hideout of a gang that once roamed around Alola. After some brief catching up, they decide to go through some cold cases from regions ranging from Kanto to Kalos which Nanu has kept in a box under his desk.

"Heard you helped a couple of kids recently," Nanu grunts out, rifling through the documents and examining them. They're so old, the paper is turning yellow and wanes in his hands. "It's always the kids these days, isn't it?"

"It was more of a personal favour." Looker puts down his file, deciding to pour himself and Nanu another cup of hot herbal tea, watching as two Alolan Meowths play with a ball of string. Another Meowth is resting at the foot of the window whilst another stares at Nanu's fish tank which contains several Goldeen and Finneon. That's not all - In fact, there's a lot of Meowth here. Looker counts sixteen, but there could be more. "...Before I left, they told me they found a dead body in the woods of Galar and the Stow-on-Side gym leader said it belonged to a Phantump."

"You gonna investigate that?"

"Not this time."

"Good on you."

Together, they go through some more documents until Looker finds an old photograph of a young couple - the mother is holding a little girl in her arms. Lifting it up, he studies the little girl's face carefully and realises he may have seen this girl before. He turns the glossy print round but there is no further information aside from a date stamp. Looker picks up the file next, flipping it open. The file mentions the little girl went missing and has never been found. "Hey, Nanu." Looker mutters.

"What?" Nanu grunts out.

"You mind if I hold onto this?"

"Nope, it's all yours."

"Thanks."

...

Meanwhile.

You have a couple of tasks to complete and on your to-do list is to check up on your family. Therefore, early in the morning, you called them and you're glad to see that your mother's doing fine. You tell her you're dating and she's eager to meet Raihan in person so you tell her she will be able to meet him soon should you decide to visit Johto with him in the future. She asks you about work and you tell her everything is well. You chat for a bit longer and her Blissey pops up - you’re not too worried about your mother being left on her own since she has a lot of Pokemon and Blissey is an excellent nurse.

Next, you call Glenn and he's safely made it to Johto, he's in Mahogany Town and he's doing just fine. Everything is just peachy. He will also go visit mum soon as well. Great! You'll check up on them again when you have the time.

Following that, you message Allister and ask him how Phantump is doing. He informs you he's fine and sends you a photo of himself, Phantump and his pokemon. Allister will let you know when they find out more about Phantump and his family, if possible. It’s going to be a while, so you will need to wait. 

Either way, you wonder what will come out of this. You also message Opal, asking how she got on with Chairman Rose and the Glimwood Tangle business. She flagged it to him but Rose merely told her he's dealing with it and Eli would be careful from now on. It sounds like Eli's been left off rather lightly. This is unsurprising, you suppose, since Eli works closely with the Chairman.

You’ve scored off several tasks which were rather easy to complete so onto the next one - you open the door, the bell jingling to indicate your arrival. The nursery worker greets you and quickly disappears inside to retrieve your Pokemon. 

They've refused to stay in their pokeballs, knowing that you're coming - so when you see the large hulking frames of your Haxorus and Salamence stomping through the doorway and into the visitor's area, you hold your arms out and they growl and nicker at you affectionately as they waddle into your embrace. Mindful of their sharp skin, tusks, claws and fangs, your pokemon allow you to pet them and stroke their heads and backs.

"Here you are! Bagon and Axew are in excellent shape!" The nursery member also hands you two pokeballs which you take off her.

"Thank you so much."

"You're welcome!"

With the new pokemon, you recall your two dragons, pay the worker and leave the nursery. You can't wait to give them to Raihan; you're sure he will love them and you're excited to see his reaction. You're also wearing one of the lingerie sets you got the other day. It's not the most comfortable and the lacy thong keeps riding up your ass and you’re trying your best to resist from adjusting it every now and then, but your mum once told you beauty has a price, so you're reduced to dawdling around with an awkward gait. 

Hopefully, you'll get used to it soon and it's not like you are going to wear this everyday. Nope, on lazy days you're just going to go back to your mismatched, grubby t-shirt bra and panties. You’ve even done your hair and makeup today too. It’s not a special occasion but you wanted to put in the extra effort and it was really fun to dress up.

There's not a moment to waste - you're supposed to meet Raihan in Hammerlocke stadium as soon as you have finished up. You call the Corviknight taxi which arrives pretty quickly and once you’re at the castle city, you hurriedly make your way towards the venue; you've become rather familiar with the entire place by now but inside, you don't see Raihan anywhere on the pitch at all.

"Hey!" Someone yells from behind, and you turn round, coming face to face with none other than Ball Guy. "Hihi. You're looking for Raihan, right?" His voice is muffled behind the mask but it sounds pretty deep.

"Yeah."

"Unfortunately, he got called to the vaults, but he told me to give you this." He lifts his hand up, where you see a pair of keys dangling off his fingers. He presses them into your hand for your taking. "And since you came all the way here, this is from me, your friendly neighbourhood Ball Guy!"

He hands you a Love Ball - a type of capsule which you know is far more common to get in Johto than other regions. "Thanks!"

"No problemo! See you around! And have a wonderful day!"

Gee, Ball Guy's positivity is contagious. You leave the stadium in good spirits when Rotom sounds off. Checking your phone, you see that you've received a message from Raihan:

Doofus: Did you get it?

You: The keys? Yep

Doofus: great

Doofus: Meet me at the house :) I'll be there in 15. You remember the way, right?

You: Yep, sure. See u x

Leaving it at that, you make your way to Raihan's house, your heart pounding and stomach fluttering with butterfrees. Even now he still has that effect on you. You make your way past the main district and into the quiet, residential area with the similar looking houses where you count down the number of houses until you reach the two hundreds. You didn't realise it but this is a decent area and it's very quiet. You pass a few people with their Stoutlands and Yampers scurrying around on leashes and they greet you politely.

Once you're at number two hundred and forty one, you go up the steps, remembering the last time you had been here. Pulling out the keys once you reach the door, you unlock it and step in, closing the door behind you, removing your shoes and leaving them on the shoe rack. Now this would be your second time in Raihan's home and you take the time to look around. His wallpaper is a royal blue which reminds you of the dragon uniform colour.

You hang up your coat on the hooks provided and the stairs are directly in front of you - however, you decide to enter the living room to your left. You hear something rustling from within so you quickly poke your head in to see Torkoal fumbling in the lounge by the fireplace, heating up the room.

"Hey there!" You greet him with a wide smile, squatting down to his level and he lets out a low but gentle bellow as smoke puffs out from his shell. You pat him on the head and from the corner of your eye, behind the leather recliner, you see a little Applin on its back, struggling to roll up properly. You promptly head over and pick him up, returning him back onto its feet and it rubs itself against your arm happily. "Hehe, you're okay."

Returning to stand, you put a hand to your chin, glancing around. A black leather sofa sits against the wall, facing the fireplace. The TV stands opposite the sofa as well albeit closer to the window. In another corner, there's a benchpress and a couple of weights - Raihan's workout station. You smile to yourself as you glance at his bookshelf where you see a few awards standing on the top shelf along with some books. 

There's a few photo frames too and you look at them one by one: there's a photo of himself with Leon, a photo of himself surrounded by his pokemon in front of Hammerlocke stadium along with his proteges and the cheerleaders. Then there's a group photo of the gym leaders and Rose. There's another photo with himself, Leon and Sonia.

Then you see two photos that capture your interest; the first photo shows Raihan, Rose and the blond-haired man known as Eli. They all look happy, and you wonder what happened that drove the wedge between them aside from, well, Raihan getting the position as Hammerlocke gym leader and Eli getting...well, whatever his job actually is. The other photo is a picture of Raihan with his arm around an extremely attractive young woman as they stand in front of a beach resort. Maybe an ex-girlfriend...

You should let Axew and Bagon out, so you quickly release them and they look around their new home for a while; Applin rolls over to Torkoal's side and everyone makes a brief exchange of growls and rumbling noises before they decide to follow you into the kitchen. 

There's bowls left lying around with food and water which Applin and Torkoal head over to at once. Raihan's kitchen looks surprisingly empty but there's a lot of protein powder and nutrition bars in the shelves and his fridge is full of vegetables and meat. 

You think it's best to wait for Raihan to come back to decide on food so you head back to the lounge and into the landing again where you head up the stairs and into Raihan’s bedroom. You two were really absorbed with each other the last time so you didn’t quite look around his room properly. You’re not being nosy or anything, just curious.

It’s a typical guy's room. The bed's in the middle, there's a desk with a Dragonite figurine, there's another bookshelf chock full of Pokemon books and there's posters of the Pokemon League stuck to the wall. That's about it.

Remembering that Raihan will be here soon, you suppose it’s time to get to business and you begin to remove your clothes, leaving them folded over his stool and leaving yourself in your undies. 

You wonder how to do this the right way and quickly check your reflection, making sure your hair and makeup is fine - before you gently move to lie over the bed, propping yourself up with one elbow on the bed and your hand behind your head, leaving your other hand draped over your waist as seductively as possible. 

It's then you catch whiff of his scent from his sheets and you feel your cheeks warming. Holy shit, you've never done this kind of thing before... This is really happening and it feels like something straight out of a movie. Your heart's thumping hard even though he's not here yet. What will he think of this?

You sit up, pondering to yourself until Rotom sounds off again and you check the screen to see that Raihan has messaged you. He's running late. Your face falls as you tap a reply back. No biggie, he will just be an extra thirty to forty minutes late. 

Lying over the bed, you stare at his ceiling. What should you do to kill time? You actually feel very sleepy all of a sudden - well, it has been a long day, you suppose... but you fight to keep your eyes open. Your eyelids are threatening to droop every second or so and you move to lie on your side, curling up for some warmth. It is so nice and cosy in his bed that you find yourself drifting blissfully off to sleep...

...Then you promptly jerk awake because you feel someone stroking your hair and you open your eyes to discover that it's become dark - you must have dozed off - and you're still in Raihan's bed but this time the owner has returned and you're sitting in his lap.

"Hey..." He grins at you as you blink unsteadily for a few seconds before you look up and around, lifting your head off his chest.

".....Raihan?" You squeak groggily, brushing some hair from your face and tucking it behind your ear as you sit up properly. "You're here."

"Sorry I'm late." He replies; you rub your eyes, glancing around again and stretching slightly before you gasp, throwing your glance to yourself. You're still in your bra and panties and you gawp at yourself whilst his grin widens; he reaches over, fingering the lacy shoulder strap of your bra. "What's all this about then?"

You cringe as he lets go, encircles his arms around your bare waist, pulling you into his chest before his hands slide down to your ass, fingers delving under the flimsy material of your panties. You silently inhale in response, your cheeks evidently growing warm as he busies himself in feeling the fabric of your underwear, skimming his hands over your flesh at the same time. "Oh, um...well, this..." You slip your hands over his shoulders as your faces grow close, your lips millimetres away.

"And there's a Bagon and Axew downstairs too." He murmurs, leaning forwards to bite down on your lower lip teasingly before pulling away gently.

"Yeah, they're yours." You mutter, and you quickly throw your glimpse down to yourself once more and return to meet his gaze; he hasn't taken his eyes off you, not once. "I, uh...I wanted to do something nice for you. But... I feel and look stupid."

Raihan gives you a sweeping look from head to toe before he leans into you again, lips by your ear. "You look beautiful."

Even though you feel ridiculous right now, your heart lurches frantically against your ribs when he pulls away, letting go of you to swiftly remove his t-shirt, lifting it up and pulling it off before he dumps it somewhere to the side; reaching for you, he pulls you into his embrace once more, crushing his lips against yours and as you kiss, you wrap your arms around his neck, enjoying the feel of his muscles relaxing under your grip whilst his large palms caress the curves of your body.

You cautiously slip your hand from his shoulders to his chest and hips, sliding your fingers past the waistband of his shorts and his boxers when you feel the hardening bulge underneath the thin fabric, fingertips gliding over his smooth skin until you find his shaft. He hesitates at once from your touch and you can tell he’s a little surprised by your bold, eager action but then he grins against your mouth and you know he doesn’t mind this at all.

In fact, he leans backwards slightly, allowing you full permission to explore him to your heart’s content. You swallow down inwardly, cheeks going warm as you fondle him. He’s been inside you, and as you slowly grip his shaft, you realise just how big and thick he is. Clamping your fingers around his warm length, you gently run your hand up and down, giving him a few strokes.

His cock is engorged with arousal, hard and stiff under your palm as you sheathe him with your hand, fingers gliding underneath his length. He feels bigger than usual and as you continue to stroke him his breathing becomes laboured; you come in contact with something wet and it's coming out of his hardened tip but you continue, the warm liquid staining your fingers as you pump your fist up and down over his length.

"My turn." He breathes out, pushing you gently to lie over the bed and you retreat your damp hand, licking your fingers dry. You watch as he climbs over you, pinning your wrists to the pillow before his lips claims yours. Closing your eyes, you relish the feel of his mouth over yours. He kisses you passionately and when you part your mouth for air, he slips his tongue inside, mingling with yours and you emit a soft gasp as your tongues press together. He retreats to focus on kissing your neck, trailing his lips up and down your skin as he releases your hands to hold you tightly to him.

You close your eyes, slipping your arms around the back of his neck and entwining your fingers over the sides of his shaved head and into his dreadlocks, moaning quietly as he moves to your chest, pulling down on your bra to reveal your breasts.

Cupping your breasts with his hands, he frees your breasts from the garment so he can suck on your nipples, massaging your chest and running his fingers all over your flesh, forcing you to shudder involuntarily under his touch. He leaves no area of your exposed skin untouched, using his tongue to lap at your nipples and under your breasts. He's determined to take his time with you today and he suckles on each breast at his own leisurely pace.

You sigh gently, lying still as he continues, tilting his head to the side to kiss and lick your breasts from all possible angles. He cups your breasts and massages them again, squeezing down on your mounds before he laps at your nipples hungrily. 

He soon moves between your breasts and down your stomach until he reaches your panties. Hooking his fingers under the thin material, he eases them down your hips and all the way down your legs before yanking them off you entirely, pressing kisses over your skin as he moves further and further and once he's at your slit, he discovers you're drenched for him.

Raihan parts your folds with his fingers before he leans forwards, his lips finding your aroused clit. You moan heavily with unabashed lust as he kisses and sucks, and you clamp your hand over the back of his head, weaving your fingers through his dreadlocks and keeping his face positioned in-between your legs. 

You can feel him grinning against your flesh before he slips his tongue inside and eagerly licks at your clit. You wriggle helplessly as he continues but he holds you firmly down over the bed, one hand fondling and squeezing your breast whilst the other hand keeps your leg pinned down.

When you come, your body grows limp as you sigh and he finally releases you to nudge your knees further apart from him, untying his shorts and removing them. Raihan wipes his chin, grinning as you pant from the extortionate experience, chest heaving. He proceeds to lift your legs up and hike them over his hips - you instinctively settle them around his waist and over his back, keeping him close and locking him in so he can angle and guide himself.

"I'm not wearing a condom." He murmurs.

"It's fine, I'm on the pill. I want you inside right now." You reply breathlessly, and now that you're quite aware that he's going to go in raw, you swallow down when he pushes his tip past your soaking folds and buries himself all the way to the hilt, grunting. You bite down on your lower lip as you feel your walls being stretched to accommodate his size and when he starts to thrust, you clutch onto him.

He sets a moderate pace and you close your eyes, moaning loudly with content as he fucks you. You spread your legs as far apart as you can for him; your body forced to move up and down from the repeated, rhythmic penetrations of his cock. You can't think properly as he leans his weight against you, your legs bending further for him and dangling high in the air as he drills into your wet and tight pussy.

He goes in smooth with slick, deep thrusts because you’re so wet. He strokes your walls intensely and withdraws, then pushes himself back inside once again and you pant and moan heavily. To keep yourself grounded, you hold onto him tightly, snuggling into his shoulder and burying your nose into his nape as you enjoy the build up of pleasure that's settling in your lower regions.

The bed begins to protest loudly from the harsh movements of your joined bodies. Raihan kisses and nuzzles you affectionately, passionately ravishing your skin with his lips; he trails his mouth over the side of your neck and shoulder, biting down on your flesh playfully as he holds you to him, wrapping his arms around your back, your breasts pressed tightly against his chest.

As he rocks his hips back and forth against yours, you follow him so you can meet him thrust for thrust, your walls contracting around him uncontrollably.

You're close to coming and he bucks his hips against yours in one intense motion that has your toes curling; his cock pressing thoroughly inside, his tip hitting your womb and you cry out at the mind-numbing intensity, nails digging into his back. Knowing you thoroughly enjoyed that, he pumps into you rapidly and slams you harder into the bed, working you over the edge and you're starting to feel rather raw and sensitive as he grinds against your walls.

Thrusting into you one final time, you pant and moan as you achieve that peak and he cums inside you, spilling his seed and you shudder all over as he grows still, his cock throbbing inside. 

He stops moving altogether, and you rub his shoulders gently as your frantically beating heart begins to slow down. Grunting, Raihan begins to withdraw out of you and you steal one shy glance to your body as he drops himself beside you on the bed; you’re smothered entirely all over with cum and juice. You wipe your brows free of sweat before you roll over to join him, climbing over his chest, stroking the side of his shaved head before you lean over to nibble the shell of his ear, your lips finding his piercing.

He welcomes you into his embrace, wrapping his arms around you tightly before he runs his fingers down your spine and stops at your ass, giving you a firm squeeze. "Can you stay here for the rest of the night?" He mutters, burying his nose into your hair.

You poke your head out of his neck, smiling. "Okay."

He looks surprised that you've actually agreed, grinning widely before he promptly rolls over the bed, trapping you underneath him as he nudges your legs apart and enters you once more.

Eventually, you both leave bed after the third (or was it the fourth?) round and don't even bother getting properly changed: Raihan merely puts on his boxers and tugs on the string whilst you pull your panties back on along with your bra and the two of you leave the room, hand in hand. Once you reach the stairs, however, and he decides that carrying you is more fun and you climb onto his back with your arms around his neck and his arms tucked underneath your knees. He carries you downstairs and into the lounge where the pokemon including your Rotom phones, stare at you two silently and you both smile sheepishly at them.

Raihan wanders to the kitchen in his flip-flops to switch on the central heating, picking up Applin along the way and holding him under the arm whilst you stay in the lounge to make sure the pokemon are fine. They're okay, just wondering what the racket upstairs was all about, why the two of you were gone for so long and also, when you were going to come back downstairs.

When Raihan returns with Applin and two beers, Torkoal helps heat the room up for the time being so Raihan sprawls over his sofa and you curl up beside him with your head on his shoulder; he throws his arm around you, switching on the TV where a late night scary movie is playing. He hands you a beer and funnily enough, he's become engrossed with the movie in a matter of seconds. As you lean against him, you stroke his bare thigh absent-mindedly before he lifts you up and eases you into his lap, bundling you up in his arms and stroking your thighs and ass.

He also holds your hand, reminding you that you don't need to be afraid of any scary parts because it's just a movie. It's then you remember something similar that crossed your mind a long time ago. You watch him from the corner of your eye as he relaxes and drinks his beer. Despite his tall, lanky lithe figure, his body is sculpted and he's undeniably fit. Again, you wonder to yourself how you managed to land yourself such a fine man.

The ambience is disturbed when Raihan's phone sounds off. "Bzzzt, mezzage from Chairman Rose!"

"Hm?" He puts his beer down as Rotom flies over and Raihan opens the new message on his phone.

"What is it?"

"...Chairman Rose will be holding an exhibition in two weeks and all the gym leaders, including the Champion, are invited. And there's some special announcement from Eli. It says I can bring a plus one." Raihan adds with a grin, turning to you. "How about it?"

"Uh...." It's basically a party and you absolutely abhor parties, but for Raihan, you have to bury those feelings deep inside. Therefore, you find yourself nodding reluctantly. "Sure."

....

A few days later.

Ever since Raihan confirmed he was dating on his social media account, his page has been inaccessible due to overwhelming traffic and he's been trending for days.

Who is she? Where did they meet and when? How long have they been dating for? No-one knows who she is, why is everything so secretive? Fans were divided at once - some were happy for him whilst others flew off into a rage which subsequently created a storm of online articles about social media influencers and the importance of their privacy. 

Eli puts away his phone, brows furrowed. Honestly, he just thinks this whole thing is annoying and that Raihan is an attention seeker. Why is this guy so popular? What is so lovable about him? Who cares about the fact that he is dating, and who he is dating? He's dated before anyway... Why do people care so much and how could he get so many fans, so many followers? He's nobody special.

He moves off the tree he was leaning on, making his way towards the direction of the pokemon nursery. He stops just a few steps away. It's a disgustingly cheery place - a small cottage, pleasant and cosy, with a thatched roof and one side covered in ivy. 

There's a sign painted in primary colours, along with rainbows and a sun. He scoffs, opening the door to see Raihan's girlfriend inside at the sink, washing dishes. There's a Goomy sitting on her shoulder. She hears the door opening and turns round, a little spooked by his arrival. It's then he also sees a Dreepy sitting in the front pocket of her apron.

"Hey." He greets her, stuffing his hands into his pockets, glancing around.

"...Can I help you?" She asks, a little nervously whilst Dreepy and Goomy gurgle and chirp. He doesn't think Raihan's girlfriend is much to look at, but considering how strong her pokemon is and what kind of pokemon she has, looks certainly are deceiving for her case. He also finds her a little demure and quiet, meek. She's the complete opposite of Raihan. Also, he takes notes of the dragon pokemon - no doubt, she'd raise them into strong battlers for her team in the future.

"No, you can't. Where's the old bag?"

Her eyes widen; she knows he's talking about her boss. "...She went to Hammerlocke to complete some errands."

"So it's just you then?"

She looks uncomfortable. "...You...You can wait over there for her to come back." She stammers slightly, pointing to the sofa for visitors.

He follows the direction of her finger, but doesn't head over. Instead, Eli proceeds to wander over and approach the counter; she inches backwards as he pushes open the small gate and enters the staff area, stepping towards her.

"What are you doing? You can't come in here."

"Don't you know who I am?"

She stays silent as he steps closer and closer to her until she is backed against the wall. She looks left and right, not sure where to go and Goomy and Dreepy emit loud noises in protest but she doesn't command them to attack. It's not like she can, anyway.

"I'm her son. I bet she's never talked about me before, right? Heh. She wanted me to become a pokemon breeder but the idea of looking after other people's pokemon and raising them up instead of my own made me sick." Eli replies, smirking as she gazes up at him, eyes wide. He's not as tall as Raihan but he still towers over her. "You know, I really wonder what Raihan likes about you...you’re nowhere as pretty as his ex-girlfriend and you’re nothing like her. I didn’t think Raihan would like girls like you. Actually, now that I think about it... it’s not even been that long since they broke up. He’s probably not even over it. Maybe he’s just using you.”

Reaching for her, he takes a strand of her hair in his hand and all of a sudden, he sees a change in her persona - she shoves him away, seething. "Don't touch me!" She yells, her face red with anger. Goomy and Dreepy also hiss at him angrily too, protective of their trainer.

Eli merely blinks slowly, and sighs. "....You're no fun."

In fact, they didn't notice that someone else had entered the establishment and as Eli turns, a fist connects with his face. However, before he falls to the floor, he is grabbed by the front of his coat and he comes face to face with the dragon tamer.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Raihan growls. It's weird to see Raihan angry because he's always either smiling, grinning or posing for the camera. Nothing gets to him apparently, except this, which is nice to know. It's kind of exhilarating, knowing that he can get Raihan to rear this side.

"Oh. It's you. We were just talking about you." Eli says, grinning.

"You got a problem with me, you take it out on me. Not her. Leave her alone."

He is unfazed, despite Raihan's threatening tone. "You don't scare me, Raihan. I'd watch myself if I were you."

Raihan releases him and Eli almost stumbles over his own two feet. "Get outta here."

Adjusting his coat, he wipes the blood off his chin, turning round to leave. "See you at the party." Eli says, smirking.

...

[animefan-overran]

Birthday Surprise (Twinleafshipping)

****PART 4 (RATING: CUTE/FLUFF)****

MEANWHILE

“Hey, Dawn. Long time no see. Even though we can’t see each other because we’re talking on the phone and all haha… ugh no that sounds even dumber than the last line!” Barry spoke to himself whilst urgently pacing back and forth in front of his phone. It was only yesterday that he had gone fishing with his good friend Lucas, and ever since then, their conversation has saturated his mind. 

“You’re gonna be 18 soon for crying out loud. You’re gonna have to man up sometime...” Lucas’s words echoed in Barry’s mind, making him cringe.

Ugh, I hate it when he’s right. I do need to tell Dawn how I feel at some point, but I don’t even know how to start out the conversation, let alone what I would even say when it comes to how I feel. Her smile ties my tongue, her humor pounds my heart, and her laugh sends chills down my spine… She makes me nervous, and yet I still want her to be all mine.

Barry shook his head clear, as he reached for the phone. “Ok, I’m thinking way too much. I just got to do it.” 

With each dialed number, Barry’s fingers struggled more and more. He couldn’t believe his actions. Where in the world did this nerve come from? It’s like some kind of secret urge woke up inside of him, and he needed to satisfy it- he needed to tell Dawn the truth of his feelings. 

His thoughts raced as the first ring fell silent. Oh boy, I’m actually doing this… 

‘RINNNNGGG,; The second ring came and went, still no one. Maybe no one is home right now… Barry silently hoped. Just as he was about to hang up, he heard a familiar voice on the other side of the line. 

“Johanna speaking, who might I be talking to?” Dawn’s mom answered.

In response, Barry seemed to freeze in fear. He totally forgot about the option of her mom answering the phone. “Uh hi, this is Barry,” he managed to croak out. “Uh, I would like to talk with Dawn. Is she home by any chance?”

For only a moment, there was a slight pause on the other end, before he heard a slight giggle, and an answer “Yeah, she’s home. Let me get her for you…” 

********

Dawn grinned “You have yourself a deal!”

Just as Dawn and Ash had finished shaking hands, the front door of the house opened revealing Johanna. “Oh hi Ash and Pikachu! It’s nice to see you again. Your mom told me you might be coming by Sinnoh.” Johanna greeted.

Ash and Pikchu smiled in return “Yeah,” Ash took off his hat, running his fingers through his hair. “Pikachu and I wanted to do some special training before we head off to the next region, and we thought Sinnoh would be a great fit.” 

“That’s great! Actually, I was planning on making some lemonade pretty soon. You and Pikachu should come inside for a glass, before you go and train.” Johanna offered.

“That sounds awesome, doesn’t it buddy?” Ash turned his head to ask Pikachu, who was already squealing with excitement.

“Cool! C’mon inside then. You know the drill, take your shoes off at the door.” Johanna explained, holding the door open for everyone to come inside. Being as discreet as possible, she pulled her daughter aside “Oh, and Dawn.” she whispered “There's a certain blonde waiting to talk to you on the phone. If I were you, I would act normal.” she encouraged patting Dawn on the shoulder. 

Dawn’s heart skipped a beat. “What? You actually told him I was home? Sometimes I hate it when you tell the truth.” she whined. “Ugh, but I get it.” 

Dawn sped over to the phone. She was unsure of what had gotten into her, but she needed to be on the other end of the line. A terrified curiosity had overtaken, her strides getting larger with each step. She tried not to think about how the next 5-10 minutes of her life would play out. Ugh, what if I slip, and end up saying something wrong? What if he tells me how he feels, what will I say then? she could feel the deep blush on her cheeks, as she finally reached the phone, slightly putting it up to her ear.

Dawn quietly breathed out one last time in an attempt to get rid of any last minute butterfrees that might have built up in her stomach. As much as she wanted to hear what Barry had to say, she equally wanted to be 6 feet underground, away from everyone. Ok, if Barry has the guts to call me, then I should have the guts to see what he has to say. With that thought, she found the courage to speak “Hey, Barry. What’s up” Dawn asked politely. 

“Oh, not much,” Barry started “I just wanted to see if you could hang out sometime in the next couple of days. I thought it’s been a while since we spent time together, and I wanted to do it before my birthday party this weekend.” Barry explained. 

Dawn held her breath in anticipation, contemplating on how to respond. Yes, of course she wanted to hang out with Barry, but she already had plans to give him his present during that time. Just as she found herself at a loss for words, her brain hatched a brilliant plan. “Yeah, actually. I would love to hang out with you. It’s Sunday now right? How about we hang out Wednesday? Come by my place at around noon? ” Dawn suggested. 

A slightly audible sigh of relief could be heard on Barry’s end, which only made Dawn’s smile widen. “That sounds good,” Barry said. “See you then!”

“Sounds like a plan,” Dawn said as she hung up the phone. 

Oh my God, what just happened? Dawn tried to suppress her snowballing thoughts as she sauntered to the kitchen table. She took a seat next to Ash, who was busy working on his third glass of lemonade. 

“So, was that who I think it was?” Ash asked, wiping his mouth dry. Dawn’s quiet demeanor and lack of response gave her away instantly. Ash continued. “Ok, so how did it go then?” 

Dawn face palmed to hide her ever growing blush “I don’t know. We set plans to hang out Wednesday,” Dawn explained whilst pouring herself a glass of lemonade. “ But I didn’t tell him that I arranged a scavenger hunt for him. Now, I’m going to be scrambling for time as Wednesday reaches closer. Everything needs to be in order for this to work out. This is all so stressful!” Dawn put her head down on the table. “Oh, and Ash.” she looked up to look him in the eyes “I also found out… I really like the idea of me and Barry being more than friends… I really don’t know what to do.” 

Ash saw the confusion in Dawn’s eyes. He gave a knowing look to Pikachu who only nodded in return. “Dawn, it looks like you need some really good friends right about now. So, me and Pikachu are willing to forgo training in order to help you figure out every end of this. We want things to work out for you.” 

A glimmer of hope flashed in Dawn’s eyes, and strength found its way back into her body, as she stood up from her seat. “Wow, Ash. You would really do that? Thank you. I mean, I have some ideas of what I want to do, but there are still so many things up in the air.”

“Yeah, of course! And don’t worry,” Ash smirked smugly “I also have some ideas of what you could do,” 

[metalandmagi]

March Media Madness!

Hello and welcome to the post where I talk about all the movies, books, and TV I consumed this month in my seemingly never ending quest to shout my feelings into the void. And oh boy all the winter anime is ending so I feel dead inside.

*puts on sunglasses* Let’s do this.

Movies!

Bohemian Rhapsody: The one about Queen Freddie Mercury. And it’s pretty good. It’s a little weird seeing a biopic of a band with literally no struggles getting into the industry, and I wouldn’t say it does wonders for the negative stereotypes about bisexuals...but who cares because if you’re watching this movie, it’s because you just want to sing along to some Queen songs and see some big hair! 8/10

How to Train Your Dragon- The Hidden World: The third and final installment in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy, in which Dreamworks pulls a Butterfree on us, but at least we get a happy ending. This franchise holds a special place in my heart for so many reasons, and I’m glad that this one stuck the landing. Each movie has its own specific feeling and message, and they all advance the story in unique ways. Apart from being beautifully animated and hilarious, it also packs the big emotional punch we all were expecting and ends on a satisfying note overall. But it’s still not perfect. The other riders are at their most useless by far, and this is coming from someone who never really minded them before. They’re a lot more irritating if you’ve watched the tv series and can see how they can be useful. And Astrid really only provides emotional support instead of her usual ass-kicking. The villain was...fine...but he didn’t really pack much of a punch. And I really wished they had kept some sort of continuity and embraced the television series (I NEED A DAGUR CAMEO)! But these are mostly small things. If you haven’t given this franchise a try yet, please give it a chance! 9/10

Ralph Breaks the Internet: The poorly named sequel to Wreck It Ralph, in which Ralph and Venelope must travel to the internet to save Sugar Rush and keep the game characters from becoming homeless. It’s a fine follow up, but it definitely doesn’t have the same impact the first one did. There’s a heck of a lot going on in this movie, and it feels like it tried to do too much in terms of plot and character arcs in favor of sacrificing the humor from the first movie. And I really miss Felix and Calhoun. But there are a lot of good things about it too. Everything the Disney princesses do is pure gold, Shank is amazing, and there is a ton of effort put into building the world of the internet. I’m sure it will be pretty dated in a couple years, but it’s not just a quick cash grab full of name dropping and references (even though Disney seems like it wants it to be). It’s still worth checking out. 7.5/10

A Quiet Place: A family must survive in a world where deadly alien monsters that are attracted to sound have invaded the planet. I am the world’s biggest wimp when it comes to scary movies, and even I was interested enough in the premise to want to see this movie. And yes it’s amazing! The performances are all incredibly moving and believable, we get good representation of a Deaf character, the sound design is so creative it should be used in film classes, and it tells a thrilling and heart wrenching family story in only an hour and a half. I think I liked it because the focus wasn’t on the monsters just going around killing people. It’s about a family and what parents will do for their children. People like to say there’s a ton of plot holes, but if you actually think about them for more than five seconds, you’ll see there’s really nothing to pick apart because their decisions all make sense in the end.

My only question is about the cochlear device the daughter (Regan) uses. Was the dad (Lee) trying to make a new cochlear implant? Did Regan already have the internal component implanted in her cochlea? Had she been using one since before the monsters came? Did it break earlier because of the monsters’ connection with electromagnetic waves? Because if not...CIs don’t really work like that. I’m just confused about that situation. But that’s kind of nitpicky when this movie is still amazing. Even if you hate horror movies, I’d highly suggest it simply because of how creative its production is. 9/10

Mary Poppins Returns: It’s exactly what it sounds like...Mary Poppins returns to help the now adult children of the Banks family with the help of Lin Manuel Miranda. It’s fun, but it definitely goes on too long. Though I appreciate Emily Blunt putting her own spin on the character. Odds are if you like the original, you’ll probably like this too. 8/10

Fantastic Beasts- The Crimes of Grindelwald: The second movie in the Harry Potter prequel-verse, where Grindelwald basically becomes wizard Hitler and Newt is more concerned with winning Tina back then saving the world. Okay...this movie is not great. Structurally it’s a mess, the fun is being sucked out of the wizarding world, the characters make decisions that don’t align with previous behavior and make no logical sense, and there really is just the bare bones of a plot. There are also several characters that don’t need to be there and are just thrown in for fanservice (for now anyway). I found myself constantly saying how things don’t work like that and asking why things are happening. But even so, there are still good things about it. Visually it’s...fantastic. Jude Law makes a good young Dumbledore, and even Johnny Depp embodies what I always imagined Grindelwald at the height of his power would be like...I just wish it wasn’t Johnny Depp. I also wish it had more humor, because what was there was funny. It’s really just a transition film, which proves this franchise should never have been five movies, and Rowling should have focused on a Marauders era series or on young Dumbledore and Grindelwald. You just have to form your own opinion. 6.5/10

Maquia- When the Promised Flower Blooms: An immortal girl becomes a teen mom to an orphaned baby after her clan is killed. It’s basically a high fantasy version of Wolf Children. I honestly don’t know what to think about this movie. It does the family relationships so well and really drives home what it means to be a parent. However, its setting really throws me out of the movie because it tries to focus so much on the politics and background of this world without really succeeding. And because it is about a baby growing up, the pacing is so fast it will give you whiplash. But it is beautifully filmed and animated, and I would have bawled my eyes out at the ending if I wasn’t so distracted by how much I didn’t like the other characters and things that were happening at the castle. So...yeah, it’s a well animated, hard hitting movie that will probably mean more to parents overall. I just wish it was a TV series or a trilogy or something other than a two hour film. 7.5/10

Free Solo: A National Geographic documentary covering Alex Honnold, a man who is attempting to climb up the 900 meter side of El Capitan at Yosemite national park...without ropes or safety equipment. Yes, this is an incredible feat and the actual climbing portions are gripping and super intense. But personally, I found who Alex is as a person much more fascinating...and not necessarily in a positive way. Honestly, he can be a jerk. This sounds horrible to say considering he’s a real person and he’s doing something amazing, but seriously watch this movie and tell me this man is not one step away from being a sociopath. It’s completely understandable why he thinks the way he thinks, but it’s not exactly healthy for the other people in his life. I would be just as interested to see a two hour therapy session with him as I was with his climbing. Anyway, if you love gorgeous scenery and butt-clenching thrills with a side of psychologically interesting perspectives, watch this on the biggest screen possible. 8/10

The Matrix: REALITY IS AN ILLUSION, THE UNIVERSE IS A HOLOGRAM, BUY GOLD BYE

Yeah I’d never seen The Matrix, but I really didn’t expect it to be EXACTLY like the Oto arc in Tsubasa Chronicles. It’s too long, Neo’s an incredibly flat protagonist (but I feel like that’s on purpose to serve some sort of self-insert fantasy), and it seems like a YA dystopian fantasy series from 2013...but in an endearing sort of way. And hey it’s got a lot of cool slow motion fighting and neat body horror if you’re into that sort of thing. 7/10

Books!

Dry by Neal and Jarrod Shusterman: What happens when California literally just runs out of water one day? A group of teens go on an apocalyptic field trip to find some of course! I’ve only read one other Neal Shusterman series before, but I’m sensing a pattern of how well Shusterman can propose a theoretical question and then build an entire world around it. And this duo knows how to cover as many bases as possible because every time I ask a question about how something world work, the authors answer it almost immediately. This is a great story with very well written characters, and it even has a small hilarious twist in the end that makes you completely rethink everything about one of the characters. Most importantly it doesn’t follow the Scythe series’ formula of terribly written romance. However...it’s definitely a major bummer. It’s very interesting to think about, and it’s a roller coaster of a story...but the roller coaster only goes down and makes you want to scream all the time. If you like books that make you question human behavior and society, definitely check it out, but get ready to start hoarding all the water you own. 8/10

Jackass!: Okay this one’s a manga, but I’m still counting it. Honestly I don’t even know how to describe the plot...there’s two boys...there’s pantyhose...there’s a fun side character who is openly gay and doesn’t take shit from anyone...there’s introspection about how to deal with developing feelings and realizing you care about someone. It has the most awkward premise ever, but it’s unfairly good I promise. The less you know going in the better. 8.5/10

TV Shows!

The Umbrella Academy: A family of seven children with super powers who were “adopted” by an eccentric billionaire become child superheroes. So naturally, they all grow into jaded adults who are now tasked with saving the world from the inevitable apocalypse. And it’s...amazing. Like, this should be the new Stranger Things amazing. It’s a Netflix original based off the Dark Horse comic series, and it has one of the most binge worthy plots I’ve ever seen. It is capable of pulling off some very weird things because it just leans into it. The setting and aesthetic is very similar to A Series of Unfortunate Events where different time periods seem to collide, and it works pretty well. It has (mostly) likable characters, interesting and/or empathetic villains, great use of music and editing, and Emmy worthy performances. The only thing I don’t like (aside from them killing off a perfectly interesting character for no reason at the beginning of the show) is the romantic relationship between two of the siblings. Because naturally they had to put a romance in it, and it just sort of conforms to the idea of “adopted siblings aren’t related so it’s not weird.” But even they have some great scenes together so I can’t be too annoyed. It’s amazing. Please watch it. 10/10

Ducktales (2017): The reboot of Ducktales, in which the three nephews of Donald Duck go on mysterious adventures with their obscenely wealthy uncle. I’m pretty sure we all know this as the cartoon where Scrooge McDuck swims in his giant pool of money. It took me a long time to get to, but I like it! Webby is an amazing character, and even though the boys can be annoying, at least they all have their own personalities. I just wish Launchpad was a little less...stereotypically clueless. I’ve never seen the original series, so I can’t compare them, but I’d recommend it for everyone who likes Gravity Falls style mysteries and satisfying story arcs. 8.5/10

Carmen Sandiego (2019): The Netflix original animated series that focuses on a master thief who travels the world stealing important artifacts before an evil organization can get to them first...AND HOLY CRAP WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABOUT THIS!? I don’t know anything about the original Carmen Sandiego franchise, but dang this revamp is awesome. Carmen is a great character who banters enough to be a Marvel protagonist, there’s unique animation, some mystery, and its own twists. The side characters may not be for everyone, but I like them...well, most of them. Apparently the purpose of the original franchise was to be educational, so they do sound like they’re reading the Wikipedia page for every new place they visit in the beginning of each episode, but at least the cultural things they mention always come back into play later. If you liked the new She-Ra or shows with great heroines, PLEASE WATCH IT! 9/10

Queer Eye (season 3): The third season of the ridiculous makeover show where five fabulous gay men rocket into people’s lives to boost their self confidence and keep them from living in filth. I hate that I love this show so much. I don’t like things that try to be overly emotional, but dang it, this show will just make you feel happy...and then sad...and then happy again. 10/10

Honorable Mentions

THE LAST SEASON OF STAR VS THE FORCES OF EVIL IS AIRING! Stop sleeping on this gem people!

Netflix finally released the rest of Arrested Development season 5

I started watching Yu Yu Hakusho because it’s a classic and the dub is hilarious.

I also started watching The Librarians. It’s...something that’s for sure.

And I’m currently reading Reign the Earth which is basically Avatar the Last Airbender set all in the desert.

[likemesomesalads]

How about all For Fun, for Cayde and Soleine!

34. What’s their room look like right now?

Cayde: A complete mess. Clothes everywhere, clean and dirty mixed, pillows on the ground, but at least he doesn’t have any sort of food inside. (Lusus doesn’t let him take it inside.)

Soléine: A clean room, with the bed in the middle and a little separate corner for Isonos, fresh flowers on the nightstand, and probably a couple of books beside that. A little sadly empty another half of the bed, since Canach is not home. But Sol keeps it clean and waiting ready for Canach to just fall in bed.

35. What are they like as a friend?

Cayde: He is a horrible friend. He is there for you, yes but he will annoy you to the hell and back. But will offer to beat whoever you hate ate the moment or hurt you…And will proceed to beat them up even if you say don’t. Also, be ready for a lot of ‘friendly’ insults.

Soléine: You will receive free pet care and hugs. Lot’s of hugs. And she will listen to your every trouble and be there for you forever and for anything and she will try to help the best she can. You also can have fun baking afternoons where she horribly fails but has fun with you.

36. What are they like as a partner?

Cayde: He is the puppiest of partners. Loves cuddles, kisses, just to be close to his partner and sex, a lot of it. He is also very much a sub but will ask his partner not to tell anyone about it. he gotta look big and bossy after all.

Soléine: A tender cutie. Loves to get and give cuddles and hugs. A little clingy and doesn’t like to get her partner out of sight (though she has to deal with it with Canach), that said she isn’t really a jealous type, just afraid for their health. 

37. Do they have any phobias?

Cayde: Asuraphobia… I don’t know if it’s a word or not but now it is…

Soléine: She is scared of big groups of people especially if she doesn’t know any of them, small places, and Inquest.

38. Did/do they go anywhere special for vacations?

Cayde: Would go anywhere else but Caledon Forest or around the Court. He wants to travel! But he doesn’t really have the opportunity while he is a Duke.

Soléine: Canach took her to the beach once. She enjoyed it and would go again.

39. Your character walks into a cafe. What do they order?

Cayde: Black coffee.

Soléine: Cappuccino and some sort of cheesecake.

40. What time do they go to bed, usually?

Cayde: When he finished with work or when Aselif finished with him.

Soléine: Usually around 11pm unless something happens to keep her up or she feels sick so she goes to sleep sooner.

41. What’s their morning routine like?

Cayde: Lusus comes to kick him out of bed (sometimes literally), kisses Aselif good morning and whines a little about how he hated to be a Duke, gets dressed and goes to work. If he can he walks Aselif to work first though.

Soléine: Gets up, feeds Isonos and any animal she cares for at the moment, get breakfast herself and then it’s work time.

42. What’s the dumbest thing your character’s done?

Cayde: It’s in an AU with @ascalonianpicnic, where Aselif and he go to Amnoon (after the Court crumbles) and Cayde is motion sick so Aselif gives him from his blood and Cayde gets high on it (since it’s basically drug) and he stands on the edge of the airship, ready to jump because he thinks he is an elder dragon. Aselif doesn’t let him obviously.

Soléine: She sort of ignored Queen Jennah for her cat. She just zoomed over and pet the cutie and totally forgot about the queen. Everyone was shocked but Jennah laughed at it so everything’s cool. Canach almost got a heart attack.

43. What pokemon would your character be (if they’re already a pokemon/gijinka tell us what they are, and how that’s affected them)?

Cayde: Serperior

Soléine: Shaymin

44. What’s their pokemon team? Try to pick all 6.

Cayde: Leafeon, Umbreon, Gengar, Arlados, Houndoom, Sneasel

Soléine: Leafeon, Teddiursa, Blissey, Sylveon, Gardevoir, Butterfree

45. Theme song (and a playlist if you’ve got it!)

Cayde: Killing time. Infected Mushroomhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LD7_RG2vzW8

Soléine: Face my Fears-KH3https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nSVJjOp1zA

46. If this character was in a musical, what would their motif be (what kind of instruments do you hear, what’s the tempo, etc).

Cayde: I’m not home in musicals but there would be a lot of bass guitar in his musical and it would be loud and angery music (not death metal loud.but loud)

Soléine: A serene orchestral music and nice vocals…I guess.

[eyecicles]

🐹 >:)

🐹 what are some of your favourite Pokémon and why? 

Excellent question! I’ll most likely forget at least half of my favourites, but I’ll try to mention at least a few of them:

Charizard was probably my first favourite Pokémon. I was very young back then and very into dragons (I still am)

Butterfree, because of its versatility and colour-scheme (always loved purple) (and the Pokémon anime made me very feel all kinds of sentimental things about Butterfree…)

Popplio. Most of the time I choose Water for the starter Pokémon and people’s hatred of Popplio made me love it all the harder

Gastly, mainly because I’m a sucker for Ghost Pokémon and it makes me pretty nostalgic (also, I like ghost & poison combos)

Vaporeon. What can I say? I’m boring enough to have basically every Eeveelution among my faves and Water has been my first favourite type (now it has to share first place with Ghost, mostly)

Dragonair and its mystical aura… yes…

Breloom grew on me and I can’t exactly explain why. Sometimes it just happens

Litwick and its evolutions, mainly because it’s such a ridiculous but still kind of charming concept…

Mimikyu stole my heart almost immediately. Again, it’s a Ghost Pokémon and also just too sad and cute for me to not love it to death (heh)

Cuteness isn’t the main factor that makes me love a Pokémon, but it’s the case with Cosmog. Just too adorable

I don’t know why, but I always felt a special connection to Greninja. I love all starter Pokémon, though

Ditto. Just looking at Ditto makes me feel a great amount of pure joy

I would die for both Latias and Latios

Arceus and the very mysterious egg it emerged from. It just speaks to me.

Aurorus is an overused Pokémon of mine, so I definitely have to mention it here as well

Also Xerneas 

Mantine. Not gonna lie, it’s mainly because of the face

Phantump is100% what I love in a Pokémon

Same goes for Pumpkaboo, honestly. Give me all the ghosts

Klefki. I still remember how I felt when I first saw it. Very confused. And then I laughed for ten minutes straight

And of course I love Pikachu. That’s self-explanatory, though

[bakudekuficlibrary]

Do you have any fics where BkDk have the their “first time” together?

Hiya! Here’s a mini-list of fics tagged as “First Time”!

-Ellie

40 Works.

Before Midnight by DriftingGlass ( E | 211,528 | 28/28 )

Izuku Midoriya takes the same train to and from school Monday through Friday, morning and night. His only company during these lonesome hours comes in the form of another boy his age—a teen with scarred hands and blood gem eyes, a stranger with ash-blond hair who walks in a shroud of danger and mystery.

“Would you stop with that fucking muttering, idiot?”

And before Izuku can find his footing, his life becomes a full-blown collision course thanks to walking cannonball Katsuki Bakugou.

(And along the way he may have found the missing fuel to his fire).

[Graphic Depictions of Violence | Underage | Implied/Referenced Child Abuse | Emotional/Psychological Abuse | Attempted Sexual Assault]

drag me to the deeps of your heart by halcyonwhispers ( E | 5,945 | 1/1 )

Everyone presents on their 17th birthday, and while Katsuki has already (alpha, big fuckin’ shocker), he awaits his boyfriend’s presentation to finally get over the nonexistent (slight) curiosity over Izuku’s new rank.

He can’t be an alpha, not crybaby, overthinking Deku. Anyways, both his parents are betas, and all that genetic and biology shit says Deku’s bound for that road.

(he thinks)

SeriesPart 1 of The (Im)Proper Way to an Alpha-Omega Courtship

[Underage]

Honeymoon High by Butterfree ( T | 115,021 | 18/18 )

“OI, FUCKFACE! If you think you’re just going to waltz into this fancy-ass church with your fake as shit smile and your miserable bitch of a wife while my friend is sitting on the street carrying YOUR BABY, then YOU need to step right down here SO I CAN DETONATE YOUR ASS UNTIL NO ONE CAN RECOGNIZE YOUR LYING FACE, YOU DIPSHIT EXCUSE FOR A HUMAN BEING!”

A beat of silence.

And then all hell broke loose.

It started with a ‘SLAP’ resonating from the bride who activated some quirk to maximize the pain that her ex-fiancé felt. A lady near the front fainted, knocking over the table with the wedding cake and a glass swan sculpture. The scattered remains caused the ring bearer to jump up. Her quirk accidentally activated and sent the brides’ maids into the air. A man with half white and half red hair rushed to save the statue, but ended up tripping over a power line which engulfed the room in darkness. It didn’t take long for everyone else in the building to follow.

In the midst of the glory Katsuki felt at the complete chaos, a calloused hand grabbed his sleeve. He was met with wide and curious green eyes. “Excuse me, I’m the groom. Do I know you?”

.

Fuck. He crashed the wrong wedding.

[Graphic Depictions of Violence]

Don’t Set Your Drink Down by Crandberrycrush ( E | 79,363+ | 20/21 )

With sudden clarity Izuku realized he had broken the first rule of going out. Never leave your drink unattended.

Not-so-useless Deku by reigncloud ( E | 9,778 | 5/5 )

Katsuki just presses even closer, shoving Deku against the wall. “N-no!” Deku flails a bit, uselessly of course, and futilely tries to push Katsuki away. “Kacchan, don’t get so close!”

“Holy fuck, Deku. Is that what you’re trying to hide?” Katsuki has his thigh between Deku’s legs, and he can feel the other boy’s rock hard dick pressing against him. Deku’s hips jerk forward just a bit in response to the pressure of Katsuki’s body. “Shit, you absolute pervert. You fucking like this, don’t you?”

[Underage | Mildly Dubious Consent]

My Youth Is Yours by lalazee ( E | 2,419 | 1/1 )

“I love you.”“Gay.”“Are we really having this conversation while your dick is - oh.”

addendum: immersed by Ramabear (RyMagnatar) ( E | 2,733 | 1/1 )

After the confession on the beach, things do not cool down between Izuku and Katsuki even after they return to Izuku’s home together.

SeriesPart 4 of standing in awe of death

[Underage]

Panic by iknewaman ( E | 22,725 | 1/1 )

Katsuki’s experienced a load of ‘firsts’ in his lifetime, but his most memortable ones include the firsts he shared with Deku.

[Underage]

springtime of youth by claimedbydaryl ( E | 25,592 | 6/6 )

Now, Katsuki was capable of at least acknowledging that Izuku was his friend, but Izuku doesn’t think Katsuki knows that their rekindled relationship would entail things like talking, and almost-dates, and unsaid feelings.

(Or, the five times Izuku knew he would never forget the innocent sweetness of their childhood friendship despite all that had happened, and the one time Katsuki realised he had not forgotten it too).

addendum: connected by Ramabear (RyMagnatar) ( E | 3,699 | 1/1 )

Katsuki fulfills Izuku’s wish to become closer, become connected.

The first time sets the precedence.

SeriesPart 9 of standing in awe of death

[Underage]

Playgrounds and playing fields by Stars1Are1Metaphors ( E | 16,872 | 1/1 )

It starts as a game. Doctor and nurse, they call it. They’re childhood friends and there isn’t anyone they trust more than each other.

But somewhere down the line Bakugou and Midoriya end up in a very… complicated relationship.

[Underage]

[On Hiatus] synthesis by DriftingGlass ( M | 31,325+ | 6/? )

They didn’t know how it happened, or when a concept so fickle and ridiculous blossomed in the garden of doubts, anger, and pain in which they so frequently visited.

Between scarred hands and bloodied knuckles, unspoken thoughts stirred like petals in springtime rain.

Bakugo was not prepared for the undeniable change spurring between them.

Unfortunately, neither was Midoriya.

[Underage]

Storm Stayed by actualdevil ( E | 4,221 | 1/1 )

Inclement weather leads to finding shelter and reluctantly sharing a bed. Also, Kirishima was supposed to be here, damnit.

Took It Like a Champ by InfiniteTeal ( E | 3,238 | 1/1 )

Midoriya takes it like a champ when Bakugou forces him down to give the most miserable and rudest blow job of his life. He’s the one that leaves Bakugou speechless in the end.

[Underage | Dubious Consent]

Mark Me. Make Me Yours. by decadentbynature ( E | 10,062 | 1/1 )

Midoriya is the only Omega at UA and he’s been hiding it well but there’s one issue that threatens to expose him: his attraction to an Alpha, Bakugo. After being told to give some paperwork to Bakugo, Midoriya lets him into his dorm room and is immediately overwhelmed by his scent. Unable to help himself, he gives in to his urges, only to be discovered by Bakugo but instead of becoming enraged, Bakugo decides to give Midoriya exactly what he wants

[Mildly Dubious Consent Becomes Consensual]

May-December by Disney_Princess_Izuku ( M | 8,291+ | 2/3 )

Midoriya Izuku is quirkless, a single father, and a Beta to boot.

If that’s so, of all the people in the world, just why did Bakugou Katsuki (alpha, a Pro Hero in Training with a great quirk, and eighteen) picked Izuku as the poor recipient for his affections? There were a lot of omegas in Katsuki’s age range that he could pick, so all this attention and attempts on seduction the blond was using on Izuku made zero sense.

He really should have cleared up that childhood crush with Katsuki when he had the chance. Flattered as he was, he really couldn’t accept Katsuki’s… proposals.

Problem was: the interested twitch in Izuku’s pants was telling a different story.

[Age Difference]

Birthday Secrets by DMMegsie ( E | 8,815 | 1/1 )

During their first year, with all the hectic events, birthday celebrations fell to the wayside. However, now in their second year, the class is trying to celebrate everyone’s special date…. except for a certain explosive temper student.

Katsuki Bakugou didn’t really celebrate his birthday through middle school and never told anyone when the date was.

It was only when some of the class realizes that Izuku Midoriya knows, that trouble starts brewing. It also brings the question to mind of: Why does Katsuki hate his birthday in the first place?

SeriesPart 1 of Only Comes Once a Year

[Underage]

Young Blood by Lilith von Beilschmidt (LilithK) ( E | 5,981 | 1/1 )

Bakugou hadn’t gone to class and his mother asks his neighbour, Izuku Midoriya to ask for his due homework. Of course, she doesn’t know about the tense relationship between those two… And neither does Midoriya know about what was Kacchan doing when he came into his room. A little one-shot fanfic, basically a pwp because I wanted them to masturbate each other. That’s it.

[Underage]

Top hero by pixiebob ( E | 2,579 | 1/1 )

He had expected Deku to be sweet and innocent.

Alright, Deku is sweet.

He always smiles at him, he loves to cuddle, and he is just so open with his feelings he can say the cutest things and make Katsuki feel like exploding from embarassement.

But fuck innocent.

Midoriya Izuku is all sloppy kisses, plush lips trailing on neck, breathy laughs, hands under shirt.

I Miss You by kayjscage ( E | 5,618 | 1/1 )

Izuku didn’t think it would be so easy to start repairing a broken friendship, but Katsuki found him very persuasive.

To Mend A Hero by BluKrown ( E | 8,665 | 2/2 )

After being attacked by Shigaraki, Midoriya has been recovering.A week has gone by and Bakugo is obviously concerned about it.

[Underage | Past Rape/Non-Con]

[On Hiatus] When It Isn’t Like It Should Be by gobeyond ( M | 2,461+ | 3/? )

Jesus, what is wrong with this world. How the fuck did Deku end up an alpha and I’m the omega?

Katsuki had always been sure he would present as an alpha and Deku would be an omega. But what happens the results are actually the last thing he was expecting?

[Underage]

you have nothing to hide from me by QueerPinoy ( E | 2,582 | 1/1 )

Midoriya Izuku is ashamed of who he is. Who… they are? Who she is? He’s still not sure but he sure as hell doesn’t want to think about it right now. He pushes his femininity away like it’s a shameful thing, something to stay hidden, keep to himself. Sometimes he slips, lets a gesture through. Once he even painted his nails and kept them on for a whole day – black, an acceptable nail color for a boy going through his teenage angst. But this, the Izuku, he saw looking at himself in the dress he had mail-ordered, is his secret. The dress doesn’t quit him quite right – it drapes where it should be tight, falls too low on his torso, but it’s still precious and he still grins a stilted smile when he looks at himself in the mirror. No one would ever know about this dress. No one would ever know how he felt.

Bakugou Katsuki is the opposite. He could probably be stealth if he wasn’t so bombastic about who he is. He doesn’t even whisper it, doesn’t just tell his friends – he yells it out. “How the fuck am I more of a fuckin’ man than you?” “I’ve got more balls than you without even fucking having any!” He never bothers hiding. He has no shame. Izuku yearns to know what that’s like.

SeriesPart 3 of bakubowl

Belatedly by beebuzz ( E | 4,911 | 1/1 )

“It wasn’t a preposterous question. They’d done Things, plenty of things after years of pining and tension abruptly vanished, but never this.”

The boys fumble through their first time together with a lot of uncertainty and a heavy amount of taunting.

SeriesPart 2 of Steadfast

Hero Pants by zubateatscakes ( T | 1,077 | 1/1 )

Rated T for the first part. Katsuki and Izuku are about to do it for the first time, but then Bakugou notices something that completely turns him off.

True Colors by creatiwriter ( E | 4,051 | 1/1 )

Katsuki Bakugo has never been good at showing his true feelings, but that doesn’t stop Izuku Midoriya from trying.

You Talk Too Much by DastardlyDaisy ( E | 3,215 | 1/1 )

Bakugou and Midoriya have a strange relationship

[Underage]

stranger things by failbender ( M | 945 | 1/1 )

They’ve been dating for two months now, but sometimes it’s still strange.

Prompt fill: “You were never just my friend.”

SeriesPart 1 of prompt drabbles!

It Started With An Apple Slice by illu_nii ( E | 8,184 | 1/1 )

Was it for better or for worse? Usually I could tell. But this time, Kacchan wasn’t giving me any hints. Of course his actions toward me lately have been rather concerning for my friends, but to me it was just how Kacchan was. It was normal…

Right?

Birthday Surprises by DMMegsie ( E | 8,946 | 1/1 )

It has been two months.

School and the end of a term has really kept both Izuku and Katsuki apart with the exception for brief moments here and there in private.With their budding relationship a secret, and Izuku’s birthday on the horizon, it is only natural they’d want to take things further.

This is a sequel to the fic Birthday Secrets.

SeriesPart 2 of Only Comes Once a Year

[Underage]

Chapter 1 of Love in a Week by anonymousCat ( E | 450 | 1 out of 4 )

A series of one shots for katsudek week.

Learning to live by Luciel (Bananenfisch) ( M | 2,890+ | 3/? )

No man was created equal. Midoriya Izuku learned this harsh reality at the age of eight. It was not the diagnosis that he was quirkless, which shook his life.

No, it was not this diagnosis that destroyed his life. It was something much more serious.

or

where All Might is Midoriyas father. All is nice and peachy until Midoriya gets sick and they have to deal with the consequences and then Bakugo fucking Katsuki steps into Izukus life and becomes Izukus own special Hero.

[Major Character Death]

Endeavors of the Mind by Kattfish ( M | 22,027+ | 3/? )

Bakugo and Midoriya both struggle with different aspects of their newfound relationship. Katsuki wants to be more open with his affections for Deku, but is hindered by his intimacy issues. Izuku covets Kacchan’s affection, but is too afraid of being overbearing.BakuDeku-centric with mentions of KiriShido and TodoMomo. Yaoi. M/MLemon flavored chapters.

same ol’ mistakes by dekuberry ( M | 483 | 1/1 )

Izuku felt reborn, under a gaze he has never seen before.

Worth the Embarrassment by Zeekcat101 ( E | 2,771 | 1/1 )

Bakugou wants Midoriya to train NOW! Midoriya doesn’t even get to use the bathroom before he’s being dragged away, which ends up being both a curse and a blessing.

Fuckin’ Cleveland Ohio by QueerPinoy ( E | 2,377+ | 1/? )

Katsuki had a stupid, wonderful idea, and, of course, Deku had to suffer through it too.

consent is sexy by The_Potatoe ( M | 300 | 1/1 )

In which Katsuki and Izuku are very in love, and value communication.

Delicate by maiume( T | 554 | 1/1 )

Izuku waited for it for so long, he couldn’t help being anxious.

All Eyes on You by ibreatheakaashi ( M | 4,254+ | 1/? )

“Bakugou!” Uraraka pulls on him, forcing him to trail behind him. He hangs back, getting a clear look of him. He looked the same, same blonde wild hair, unable to be contained- just like him. His piercing red eyes stared directly at him, they were hardening and unmerciful, just as he remembered.

His sleeveless black and grey plaid jacket, showing of his bare arms.They were still muscled, he suspected it was due to Kirishima well being. Underneath his plain white shirt nearly see through, the jeans he wore couldn’t possibly be anymore tighter, hell they looked good.

—

aspiring ballet dancer Midoriya Izuku dreams of following in his mother’s footsteps, he wants to become the best. when he gets into Julliard, his dreams become true one step at a time. he finds out that his childhood friend Bakugou Katsuki, a talented hip-hop violinst is also attending.he believes he changed. but did he really? or is he the same arrogant boy he met 5 years ago? can they work together and rebuild their friendship, and if so than will he fall to him?

Инструкция by Explodocat ( E | 5,422 | 1/1 )

Каччан не так идеален, и в первый раз у него не получается.

How are we doing? We have a Submitter Feedback Form for anyone who wants to give us a piece of their mind! Thank you in advance if you complete it. If you have never sent an ask, but want to give us feedback, we have a Follower Feedback Form, too!

[prtag]

49-52?

CRIES TYSM!!!!!!!!!!! i really wanna do a bunch of them so im assuming this is 49 50 51 52 avhjbavdba

49. favorite ice type

I LOVE FROSLASS SO MUCH!!!!!! SHE IS ONE OF MY FAV POKEMON EVER!!!!! SHES JUS T SO PRETTY AND HVNDFHG I LOVE HER TYPING TOO…. ghost types are one of my two fav types!!!!! n ice types r super fancy too so ice/ghost is just!!! such a great combo. i just love her sm and ALSO!!!! platinum berlitz (a pokespe chara who is a…big comfort..) has a froslass and HNFG i would DIE for platz and all her pokemon.

50. least favorite ice type

THATS CRUEL BUT OK.. i really love ice types so thats such a hard question.. theyre just all so. beautiful and vhdnvgf idk they feel otherwordly kinda!!!! plus ice types were always v important to me when i played the games!!!! articuno was my first legendary from the first game i played (pokemon red!!!) and i spent hours trying to catch him so im. really attached to him AND regice, one of the legendary titans of hoenn, was so important to me when i first played rse!!!! ice types in general also usually remind me of my fav charas so theyre v precious to me.. i really dont wanna choose but if i really had to id say kyurem but just bc i still have to play pokemon b&w so im not really attached to any of the legendaries!! 

51. favorite bug type

HMM thats hard.. i was never particularly close to bug type pokemon bc im afraid of bugs irl but i do have some nostalgic choices!!!! dustox and beautifly were on my original rse team and my they were both so precious to me.. theyre the final evolutions of the same pokemon and in the pokemon anime theres a whole thing about how may (the region protag) and jessie (team rocket grunt!!) who compete in contests both caught a wurmple and they later evolved to dif pokemon!! they went against each other in contests n idk it was nice.. i love may and i love jessie and hoenn is a big comfort region to me.. vhajbvfa i cried so many times while playing oras i just. love it sm. buterfree is also v precious to me tho!!!! im kin w yellow (pokespe) and butterfree is one of her original pkmn!!!! i always had a v close bond to my pkmn so vhdnhjbg i loved (and still love!!!) my team sm… OH or mayb like!!!! shuckle. idk shuckle isnt a nostalgic choice i just love their design sm. a rock w noodles. noodle rock. tiny noodle. i lov them. n they seem so nice.. i wanna hug a shuckle and play w them and be their friend!!!!! they look like a great partner.. ig if i had to choose id say either shuckle or the wurmple evolutionary line!!!

52. least favorite bug type

MM thats hard too cries. i know i said im afraid of bugs irl but that doesnt mean i dont like them!! i love bugs a bunch and the same goes for bug type pokemon.. theyre so small and so strong and so precious and im just ghnGHg so proud of them all. i love them. if i had to choose mayb id say metapod? not bc i dislike them but just bc they always gave me a lot of trouble when i was clearing viridian forest in the kanto games!!! vhdjabvf whenever metapod used harden id just……….die a lil inside. i love metapods tho n metapods r part of the butterfree evolutionary line so!!! a special place in my heart for them. i just didnt like running into them ahvabfjvd esp since viridian forest is at the start of the game n my starter didnt know many elemental attacks.. mostly physical ones n that makes it hard when ur against a pkmn that raises its defense stat constantly!!!! i remember once i went against this trainer who ALWAYS raised their pokemons evasion stat and it made me SO MAD. i NEVER EVER hit an attack and it made me want to close the game and restart. i hate stat changes HVJBFv im a big attacker type of trainer..

SORRY THIS GOT LONG AND I KINDA STARTED TALKING ABT SMTH ELSE AT THE END BUT HVNDFGHG I JUST LOVE PKMN SM THANK YOU FOR ASKING ME THESE!!!!!!!!!!! HAVE A GREAT DAY

[nvkatherine]

Been a long time since I last made a Butterfree 😄 He's one of my first Pokemon designs so he always has a special place in my heart ❤ Find him in my Etsy shop, available as made-to-order. 😊 I still have 1 Sunrise Narwhal available as ready-to-ship. She's waiting to find a new loving home 🐳💕

[pasu-chan]

Pokémon Tag

@yamujiburo created this, and what better way to start pokémon day? =3

GENERAL

1. Favorite starter?

Totodile (Mudkip is very close second)

2. Favorite Pokémon?

Arcanine~~ (easy)

3. Favorite type?

Dragon

4. Favorite region?

Johto and Alola are on a tie there

GAMES

1. Favorite game?

Crystal for nostalgia’s sake and Ultra Sun if I’m honest

2. Favorite in game player character? (Red, Leaf, Kris, Ethan, etc.)

Ethan (Luth) from SoulSilver

3. Favorite in game rival?

Serena? Serena.

4. Favorite Professor?

Pr Sycamore (Platane)

5. Favorite Gym Leader/Kahuna?

Kiawe

6. Favorite Elite 4?

Lance (Peter)

7. Favorite Champion?

Steven Stone (Pierre Rochard)

8. Favorite evil organization? (Rocket, Magma, Aqua, Galactic, etc.)

Aqua and Magma

9. Favorite in game song?

It has to be Celadon city (Celadopole)

10. What was your first Pokémon game?

Pokémon Crystal =3

ANIME

1. Favorite Pokémon anime season?

Season 4, 6 and 20 in a tie 

2. Favorite travel companion?

May (Flora)

3. Favorite character?

Ash (Sacha)

4. Favorite movie?

Lucario and the mystery of Mew the feeeeeels man....

5. Favorite of “the twerps’ Pokémon”?

Almost all of Ash’s pokémons (old and new) But I’ll say his Charizard (and there is a special place in my heart for Brock’s Croagunk)

6. Favorite of Team Rocket’s Pokémon?

James’ Cacnea!

7. During what season did you start watching?

It was a rerun of season 3 if I recall

8. Top 5 episodes:

Oh man...

-Bye bye Butterfree

-File 4: Charizard from the Origins anime

Listen I can’t know all of them in english =3=‘

-Episode 8: Le chemin qui conduit à la ligue Pokémon

-Episode 507: Sabelette prisonnier!

-Episode 960: Un voyage se termine, un autre commence !  (TmT)

9. Favorite OP?

In order from absolute fave (it’s too hard to choose ^^’)

Season 9 (fr)

Season 6 (fr)

Season 3 (fr)

Season 17 (jpn)

10. Favorite ED?

POSE!

OTHER

1. Do you prefer the Pokémon games, anime, TCG or manga?

I love all four... I’m TRASH okay! However, I do consume of the anime and games way more

2. Would you live the Pokémon world?

Heck yeah!

3. Contests or battles?

Battles

4. What Pokémon berry looks the tastiest to you?

Sitrus berry

5. Tag people!

@blaziken-666 obligatory tag, @samsoule, @magicarpedore (faites le en français les gens, chercher tous les noms sur wikipedia c’est relou =___=‘) @adgerelli, @deathscar and @conflitdecanard (if you want)

[toonstarterz]

Toonyoungster Watches: Pokémon The Movie: I Choose You ! (DUB)

SPOILER WARNING!! 

ALSO, CONSTRUCTIVE (NON-BASHING) CRITICISM OF THE DUB AHEAD...

Very few movies can resonate with me on a deeply, personal level. 

The latest Pokémon movie has that distinct honor. 

As a long-time Pokémon fan, seeing this movie in theaters was an absolute must. And apparently, I wasn’t the only one. The theater I went to see this was seriously packed. Kids, teens, and adults were all over the place, and I felt so honored that I could share this once-in-a-lifetime experience with people who love Pokémon as much as I do.

But what about the movie itself? To be honest, I don’t think I can review this movie wholly unbiased. A part of me loves this movie for reasons the average viewer rightfully won’t appreciate. That said, I’m going into this review not as a newcomer, but through the eyes of a lifelong Pokéani fan. And yes, I will be critiquing the dub here, for better or worse. 

Let’s start with the narrative. You all know the origin story of Ash and Pikachu, so I won’t be going too much there since it was largely the same as the first episode. What I’m talking about is everything past the 10 minute-mark. The story of how Ash Ketchum met Verity and Sorrel and their quest to find Ho-oh.

The first thing I wanna say is that this is a solid idea start to finish. The way Ash met Verity and Sorrel, the rivalry with Cross, the trials and tribulations they go through to find Ho-oh are all believable. It was hardly a complex story, but in this case, the simple goal of a lovably simple trainer is all you need. 

Now for my first criticism. The first that comes to mind was the pacing that made the movie seem a little too eager to get through the smaller parts in favorite of the bigger, heavier scenes. The problem with this is that these bigger scenes don’t have as much impact without the proper buildup. Butterfree’s goodbye felt a little hollow since we didn’t see much of the pokémon beyond its evolution scenes. The inclusion of the legendary dogs didn’t feel as meaningful since their connection with our three heroes seemed a little too convenient. 

Speaking of heroes, let’s talk about Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town. If there’s one thing I can give this movie full props for, it’s putting Ash Ketchum at the center of it. A movie where Ash is the true main character instead of just a face to put next to the marketable characters is what I’ve always wanted. Best of all, they actually have Ash go through some real development, and on an internal level no less. When he muttered that he wish he’d had a different starter, that gave me goosebumps since it’s so unlike the Ash we know now. But given that this is a reimagining of Ash at the start of his journey, it makes sense to characterize him this way. Kudos M20 for making this a true Ash Ketchum movie.

I believe a special mention goes to the dream sequence, which may be the most original thing the Pokémon movies has ever done. It’s essentially a world where Pokémon don’t exist, and Ash Ketchum is typical anime schoolboy. It really crossed into the uncanny valley of being so familiar yet also so wrong that I respect the writers for eliciting such an emotion out of me.

Props to Sarah Natochenny for giving her most impressive performance of Ash yet. She’s still rough around the edges, but you tell that she’s putting in real genuine emotion at the right moments. She’s come a long way.

Of course, you can’t talk about Ash without Pikachu. The yellow rat is just as much of a jerk at the start of film as we all expected. From spearow attack onwards, Pikachu’s personality does sort of plateau for the rest of the film, save for some key moments like the dream sequence. I will say this, though: Ikue Ohtani is spectacular when delivering Pikachu’s most emotionally driven moments. I honestly had chills during the “death” scene.

As for the “talking” scene...it could have been worse. I heard a few laughs of disbelief in the theatre so I know the seriousness didn’t resonate with everyone.  It felt like we were supposed to take it as a mental translation on Ash’s part, but the execution of it felt a little too far into reality. Good try.

Now for our side heroes, Verity and Sorrel. Note: If you looking for comparisons between them against Misty and Brock, you’ve come to the wrong review.

Verity, on all accounts, is a perfectly likeable heroine. She’s has a lot of the qualities that make her a good parallel for Ash: headstrong, spunky, earnest, empathetic, with a little fire in her. It certainly helps that she’s voiced by Suzy Myers, one of my top favorite voice actors in the dub. Thankfully, her backstory wasn’t overbearingly sad. It had just enough subtlety for the audience to sympathize with her. All in all, nothing groundbreaking, but just right for a movie appearance. 

Sorrel, on the other hand, I’m not afraid to admit I was sort of disappointed with. I get that he plays the “mature” role to Ash and Verity, and in that apartment, he’s a decent character. My issue is that it’s the only thing about him, so he didn’t have much character depth. There wasn’t really anything to offset his sensible personality, such as the quirks that “mature” characters like Brock and Cilan had. It certainly didn’t help that his voice actor, David Oliver Nelson, seemed to struggle giving him a good emotional range. Guess you can’t win them all. 

Then there’s our antagonist, the not-Damian Cross. He definitely plays the role of being everything that Ash isn’t, and in that regard, he’s a very good villain. I think my issue with Cross is not so much his personality, but by his character growth, which felt very textbook as far as rivals are concerned. He does effectively increase the tension whenever he’s on screen so I’ll give him that. At this time, I don’t know who voices him, but he seems to have some of the performance issues Nelson appears to have. Overall, a good rival that needed some refinement to be really great.

Bonji was obviously meant to be a representation of fans who’ve been with the franchise for twenty years. Not much to say about him except that he’s a fun addition, even if he is just a little more than a mouthpiece for the plot.

Our obligatory mythical Pokémon, Marshadow is...weird. Jumping from an observer to leading a genocide against humans was certainly an unexpected development, so I give the movie props for not giving yet another cutesy, pure-hearted legendary. But going back to the movie’s pacing issues, the jump from passive to active was just so fast, that it almost felt like a cop-out. If anything, Marshadow will be one of the more memorable pokémon the movies ever put out. 

Team Rocket...I love you guys, but even I can’t deny how insignificant you were to this movie. Being utter gag characters is fine in some cases, but in a 20th anniversary movie, you’d think Team Rocket would have more of a starring role. And it hurts even more since they had more significant roles in the last string of Pokémon movies. Better luck next time.

Technically speaking, this may be the most visually inspiring film to date. Seeing the landscapes of the Kanto region in such vibrant and immersive colors just blew my mind, and the lighting was absolutely impeccable to boot. The animation, to my surprise, exceeded my expectations. It was joyfully frenetic at the action scenes, and delightfully subdued in its quieter moments. I have nary a complaint in this regard.

And now for the most controversial part of my review: the music. Not gonna lie, I was one of the people who was really, really hoping they’d keep the Japanese soundtrack, and I was met with disappointment when my hopes were shot down. Now the dub soundtrack isn’t horrendous, mind you. It’s just that I personally am not a fan of Ed Goldfarb’s compositions–they lack variety and are emotionally muted in my opinion–though to be fair, this does feel like his better works compared to previous movies. I also really respect that they kept silence where it was essential. But for an anniversary movie, having the original tracks from the series just felt like an absolute must. I can only imagine just how much more glorious the movie sounds in the original.  

As I said before, this movie is a case of a really strong, really solid idea suffering from less than stellar execution. This is quite honestly, the most important Pokémon film in existence, as it very likely will affect how the anime and films will proceed from here. The inclusion of past traveling companions at the end was especially meaningful, because it told us that the writers do remember they exist, and that future appearances are not out of the question. It’s a tease, but a much desired one. 

While I may have expressed some disappointment in the dub, I can recognize that the cast and crew really put their heart into this one, which why I find its shortcomings to be more disheartening than aggravating. Despite its narrative constraints, it really did feel like the Pokémon team, both the original and dub, put so much more effort into giving us a Pokémon movie to remember. If I had to give this movie a hard rating it’d be a 7.5/10. Let’s hope that future Pokémon movies will be given just as much love as this one.

[drscotcheggmann]

Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You Review & Wider Reflections

On Sunday afternoon I went to see Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You. As a longtime fan since Generation 1, the thirteen year old boy still hiding inside this now thirty year old man (sometimes not all that well hidden) was nothing short of buzzing; but while excitement was running high as the lights dimmed and the curtain went up, at the same time I wasn’t really sure what to expect. I knew what I wanted: a huge slice of nostalgia; to be transported back to the late 90s, a reminder of when my love for these little monsters was still in its infancy; a warm, tingling Thundershock of a hug from Pikachu and the gang. But would this be what I would get? Would the film alter or even damage my memories of watching the original Animé all those years ago? Getting up early before school, willing to forgo breakfast to make sure I’d watched the latest episode. Some will say “Get over yourself and stop being so precious”, arguing that no matter if good or bad, those golden mornings watching Mew dance across the screen as the ridiculously infectious theme tune rose to crescendo shouldn’t be and can never be touched by watching this one film. Yeah, that’s all well and good in theory but it’s never nice having a half baked reimagining or rehash of something classic seemingly shit all over your childhood. And this was a slight worry because....I’d heard things. That Brock and Misty had been ditched for two other male and female companions. That the movie was only loosely based on the original Animé and might stray from what longtime fans like me might expect. It’s always the longtime fans that feel most entitled, whether it be video-gamers, movie buffs or Pokémaniancs. So as Ash’s Mum comes in to wake her long sleeping son, dreaming of his future adventures in the early hours of his tenth birthday, the weight of expectation was weighing on my mind. But. I’m pleased to say that this longtime, entitled, nostalgia crazed Pokémon fan had nothing but a huge smile on his face when all was said and done. I would go as far as to say that I left the movie theatre, mentally waving my arms in delight, like a Togepi on speed. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t perfect and it didn’t tick all of my own personal boxes but sitting at the end watching the credits roll, I realised that it didn’t have to. Looking around me as the lights went up I realised that it was about more than just me and all of the other Gen 1 superfans sitting there in the semi darkness (and I would wager there were quite a few of us)! Let me explain. WARNING: FULL SPOILERS AHEAD. Something for the Oldies The movie tells a story which is, at its core, rooted in the original Animé. Ash, a regular 10 year old boy living in a world inhabited by Pokémon, dreams of one day becoming the greatest Pokémon Master (yes, the greatest Pokémon master, not trainer). Ever. Like no one ever was (sorry, couldn’t resist). And in this fact alone, the film lavishes longtime fans with nostalgic riches at every turn. From Ash’s frantic dash out of the house (he doesn’t seem to shower at any point before setting off, as noted by my cynical cinema going companion), to those first wonderfully endearing moments of love hate interplay between Ash and Pikachu, it’s all just ‘kid in a sweet shop’, ear to ear smile inducing stuff. Another thing that struck me as a fan from the beginning is that I’ve never seen so many Gen 1 Pokémon in such a short space than in this movie. As Ash tumbles off a cliff into a river clutching Pikachu, a murmuration of angry Spearow in pursuit, a snarling Gyarados darts downstream in what is a near miss for our hapless duo (but at least he has a wash in the river). Pinsir prowl the forests, people can be seen strolling down streets and indoors with their Pokémon at heel. A slumbering Onix is provoked into pursuing our group of heroes. Nidoran of both genders, a Sandshrew and a Paras are all led into a cave to shelter from the rain by a certain legendary dog (more about them later). At one point, I even had to laugh as Ash approaches the summit of the mountain towards the end of the film, only to be greeted by an audience of exclusively Gen 1 Pokémon: Graveller, Venomoth, Golbat, Nidoqueen, Nidoking, Magnemite, Magneton, Electabuzz and Magmar. You wonder if some of these even belong on a bloody mountain but this is the love the filmmakers are keen to show those fans of the earliest generation. A clear message: ‘Here we are! The originals. Back in all our glory again’. And the effect of this is wonderful. I actually began to go through how many of the original 151 Pokémon I hadn’t seen. There were still quite a few but not as many as you’d think. And it’s not only Gen 1 that seems to get that special treatment. Gen 2 is just as lovingly captured. Ho-Oh is the Gen 2 Pokémon at the heart of Ash’s quest in the movie, a quest which was never realised in the original anime but still has its roots there, as Ash spots Ho-Oh flying over the rainbow in the very first episode. But there are others too. The legendary dogs, Raikou, Suicune and Entei all feature, the latter most prominently. When I say prominently I mean this in the most literal sense for Entei - he’s the size of a freakin’ house! There’s even a glimpse of Lugia as the film draws to a close. As a longtime fan it’s great to see all of these guys on the big screen again but I’m also quite honestly glad that the movie did not become an exercise in crowbarring in every legendary Pokémon across the generations, just for the sake of it. Arguably seeing all 3 legendary dogs, who are so incredibly rare that hardly anyone ever encounters them, is a bit much but I was ok with this. It’s not all about the legendaries though; the not so legendary Pokémon spanning all generations are well represented. That first moment when I saw a non Kanto Pokémon alongside a Kanto one and the realisation that this wasn’t a world totally rooted in Kanto. It was great, despite my Gen 1 bias. It really showed how far the Pokémon phenomenon has come over the years and that the filmmakers weren’t afraid to lay out all their wares and risk upsetting those wanting a solely Gen 1 affair. What’s there to be upset about anyway? We all love Pokémon, right? Classic Pokémon from numerous generations are one thing but it’s the set pieces from the Animé that I still remember fondly today and some of these have been reimagined in this iteration of one of Ash’s adventures in Kanto. A clever use of the slightly jazzier (but not necessarily better) theme tune advances Ash’s journey as far as Erika’s Gym, but not before we see him catch his very first Pokémon in the form of Caterpie. We see those initial struggles (and shocks) with Pikachu, the Charmander left out in the rain and Butterfree’s departure to the spawning grounds, presumably to do some spawning with his female companion (can we not even say ‘mating’ anymore?). These set pieces are either bang on the money in terms of paying homage to the original or are slight twists on the original formula (most notably, the Charmander arc). Unfortunately for me, Butterfree’s departure to pastures new didn’t really have the same gravitas here as it did in the original Animé. I think the reason for this is partly due to the time constraints of the movie and that we don’t really get to see Ash’s relationship with Butterfree develop in any sort of meaningful way, except for seeing Caterpie evolve into Metapod and then into Butterfree. The tears flooding down Ash’s face, while they served as a call back to what was a particularly heartbreaking farewell in the Animé, just didn’t have the same punch. But perhaps without a direct comparison, this wouldn’t be an issue at all. Regardless, it’s still a touching monument, showing the deep and lasting bond humans form with their Pokémon; perhaps one of the best outside Ash’s relationship with Pikachu, which shines as brightly as it ever did despite having only 90 or so minutes to show it. And it’s perhaps because it seeks to wow its audience with so many of these individual moments, both past glories and new, that the movie feels a little disjointed in places. At times the action moves on a little too quickly, leaving no room for character development beyond the high octane chase/fight we have just witnessed. Consequently I didn’t feel that the synergy was quite there between Ash, Sorrel and Verity. Marshadow on the other hand is well deployed, being introduced gradually as the movie progresses. I actually thought that using Marshadow as the primary Pokémon antagonist was a good move as opposed to the likes of Darkrai or something a little more obviously evil looking. Marshadow’s ability to seem innocent enough but to pack a few punches when backed into a corner was well done, even if Marshadow isn’t a Pokémon just for the fans of yester year. But this is ok. More on why is coming. Team Rocket make their appearance as you would expect but maybe not in quite the way I expected. If anything, Team Rocket are fringe players here. There is no grand and bombastic entrance with the Team Rocket signature jingle; in fact, I can’t recall a moment when Ash and his friends actually come into direct contact with Jesse, James and Meowth. There doesn’t seem to be much of a grand plan from Team Rocket: they want Entei, then abandon that and go after Ho-Oh but are always thwarted without our heroes ever knowing, either propelled into the air or disappearing off the side of a mountain and always into a glinting star denoting that they might not be back for a while. But they do keep coming back, which is fine, but to no great effect. It’s all a little bizarre and you can’t help but feel, having watched the original Animé, that they could’ve been put to better use rather than simply be made to seem even more ridiculous than they already are. To the movie’s credit though (and this sounds like I’m wanting to have my cake and eat it here), the filmmakers don’t beat us over the head with Team Rocket, as was sometimes the case in the Animé. I remember physically sighing and rolling my eyes at times when Team Rocket would appear and break the flow of a perfectly good episode. The XY Animé moved away from this thankfully but I suppose it was nice to not have Team Rocket dominate, despite also being a tad underused. For longtime fans (or certainly for this one), there were one or two other things missing that, while they didn’t detract massively from the overall experience, just would’ve been nice and not too much trouble to implement. For one, although Ash seems to be largely the same character as I remember, here he comes across as even more gung ho and sure of himself than usual, to the point of actually losing some of the naivety that made him so endearing in the first place. At no point in the film does he whip out the Pokédex, looking confused and saying ‘What’s that?’ as he spots a Pokémon he’s never encountered before. Indeed, there is no Pokédex AT ALL as far as I can remember, just like the one so ceremoniously presented to Ash by Professor Oak in the Animé. There is a smartphone though which Verity uses to take pictures (sigh). Not even Kanto is free from the reaches of modern tech it seems. The lack of Pokédex and ‘what’s that?’ moment made me a little sad as Ash’s confusion was once my confusion, as a 13 year old sitting in front of the TV, pre widespread internet and readily available lists of information, wondering what this new and wonderful Pokémon Ash had just run into actually was. And then running into school to chat wildly with my friends about it - “Did you see this morning’s episode?! That was awesome!” I still remember the original speculation about who the Pokémon at the beginning of the theme tune was and why it wasn’t part of the original 150. Ash’s naivety was mirrored in my own. Don’t get me wrong, Ash is still green around the gills in the movie, pushing Pokémon to their limits at times without fully knowing their capabilities or strengths. But maybe the absence of this wide eyed naivety, even if only a little, struck me so much as I’m not that naive young person anymore. Someone who lives in a different world where information is at our fingertips and there is no excuse for not knowing. I’m digressing slightly here but it did make me think about the then and now. But perhaps the movie’s most striking departure from the Animé is the absence of some key figures. Brock, Misty, Officer Jenny. I understand that maybe 90 or so minutes just wouldn’t be enough time to make Ash’s relationship with Brock and Misty believable, especially when Ash’s relationship with Pikachu should be centre stage. I know that the movie is really only a side quest in Ash’s overarching journey. A snapshot of his travels on his way to glory. But a small cameo would’ve been nice. Fighting a gym battle in Pewter or Cerulean City, especially since the only gym battle we see is beyond this point chronologically and so it’s not a case of Ash having not run into Brock and Misty yet. Ash’s direct rival, Cross left me feeling a little dissatisfied too. What was wrong with good ‘ol Gary. Even though Cross goes from Pokémon masochist to seeing that there’s more to the whole Pokémon thing than ruthless ambition, he’s still a bit of an ass when he goes his own way, despite the fact he owes Ash (and Charizard) his life. The Charizard he abandoned as a Charmander. The bastard. Yeah, he wasn’t my favourite. Let’s leave it at that. Something for the Newbies While you may think that because I’ve spent the last section of this review picking at this bit and that bit and perhaps making unfair comparisons to the Animé days, I just want to reiterate: I loved the movie, imperfect as it was. I loved it for all of my own reasons, some of which I’ve mentioned and some I’m yet to mention but also for other people’s reasons too (bear with me on this one). For as I watched the audience file into the cinema (and I saw absolutely everyone file in, having been über keen in arriving half an hour early), I began to realise that the Gen 1, diehard Pokémon fan wasn’t going to be the only type of Pokémon fan represented. I’m talking about the kids, of course. Kids ranging in age from 4 to 14. The younger ones especially excited to be seeing their favourite Pokémon on the big screen for the first time. One particular Mum and Dad ushered their two young daughters to their seats, one carrying a Squirtle and the other with a Charmander tucked under one arm and an Eevee peeking out of her bag dangling off the other arm. This is a whole new wave of Pokémon fans, all of whom weren’t even born when Ash first set foot out the door and the Gen 1 hype was thriving. And I can’t overstate how much this is a great thing to behold. That the love of Pokémon is still running strong some twenty plus years later. And that’s of course thanks to Pokémon moving with the generations. Literally. I know I’ve been banging on about how wonderfully Gen 1 is represented in I Choose You but in actual fact the movie does a great job of pleasing fans of all generations. If you grew up with Piplup as a starter, you’ll be happy to see that little guy flapping about onscreen; Lucario is perhaps one of the most recent Gen Pokémon to be embraced by both old and new fans alike and he’s here by Sorrel’s side in all of his hard assed glory. And even if you just dived into the world of Pokémon last November with the release of Sun & Moon, there’s plenty to keep you happy here. Marshadow appears and disappears, Cross’s midnight Lycanroc is broodingly evil at all times, and Incineroar, while low down on my favourite starter evolution list, will have younger fans especially bicep flexing and fist pumping in delight. Personally I would’ve loved to have seen Decidueye unleash the full extent of his ghost/grass power, being what I feel is the most impressive starter final evolution in generations but the fight with Charmeleon would then not have been a fair one. Again, to hammer home my slight bias for the original 151, I was glad to see Charizard kick Incineroar’s ass in the end, not just in terms of satisfying the movie’s story but also as a mini victory of Charizard, THE ultimate fire starter Pokémon of all generations for many, over Incineroar, who I feel would look better placed on the side of a cereal packet. Rarrr! That was a bit catty but yeah, he’s just not a favourite of mine but I’m totally fine with these younger generations cheering him on. I did actually force my eyes to leave the action now and again during the screening, as I sometimes do, just to see if everyone else is enjoying the action as much as me. Of course there were the parents, some of them maybe older fans like me but there were an equal if not greater number of bemused parents whose faces seemed to be struggling to grasp what all the fuss was about. But I salute these parents for giving up a chunk of their Sunday afternoon for the sake of their young Pokémaniacs. And what a wonderful sight it was to see this new generation of Pokémon fans hanging on Pikachu’s every ‘Pika’. One little boy stood up through majority of the film, clutching and peering over the empty seat in front, so obviously brimming with excitement. Someone somewhere in the darkness screamed a giddy ‘Pika-pi’ at one point, causing a fair few chuckles. Another child sitting along my row had an expression of pure awe etched on their face the whole time and I can completely understand why: imagine seeing the Legendary dogs for the first time; not just onscreen but EVER. Imagine seeing Ho-Oh for the very first time, gliding over that rainbow; imagine hearing the names Articuno, Zapdos & Moltres, as they were mentioned at the movie’s conclusion, and thinking to yourself ‘I wonder who they are?’ and then rushing out of the cinema to look them up and find out. Oh, to be young again and see it all with fresh eyes. Something for Everyone So far I’ve tried to look at how I Choose You might appeal to the older generation of Pokémon fans as well as the new. But although I’ve painted a picture of distinct camps of Pokémon fans, the movie does a great job of bringing fans from all corners together thanks primarily to its rich visual aesthetic. Everyone can appreciate the sun drenched vistas, rainswept plains, snow capped mountains, billowing clouds drifting over fields filled with flowers dancing in the wind, dense forests and buzzing metropolises so vividly and vibrantly depicted; each area alive with Pokémon just waiting to be discovered, caught and loved. The visual feast starts and continues unabated to the end, never more so than in the Pokémon battles which have never looked sharper and more dynamic. Charizard zooms into the air with a menacing elegance; Pikachu nimbly dodges this way and that, all before landing a thundershock attack of seismic proportions; you can almost feel the flames lick your face as Entei or Incineroar unleash a frightening flamethrower blast; and some of the Marshadow-possessed Pokémon’s attacks land onscreen with the megatonne force of an atomic bomb, or so it seems, also offering a stark contrast between the affectionate side of Pokémon and their über aggressive side when given the chance. It’s all lovely to watch and your senses aren’t allowed a moment’s rest. And that goes for your emotions too. In keeping with the willingness of some of the more recent video game entries in the series to explore powerful and often dark themes, I Choose You also does not shy away from putting its audience through the emotional grinder (the dark lore threads in Sun and Moon are especially worth reading about; I still think about that abandoned Stuffl). There’s neglect (Charmander in the rain), physical pain (Lycanroc biting Cross and not letting go, something that shocked me particularly for some reason), the dangers of greedy ambition (as Ash ponders if Pikachu would’ve won the fight which his Charmeleon just lost). The latter is particularly interesting if we consider the end of the movie; we see Ash finally battling Ho-Oh and the scene cuts to a long shot of the battle taking place from afar, represented by flashes of light on the mountainside. But we never actually find out if Ash managed to catch Ho-Oh or even come close, despite seeing Pikachu looking a little worse for wear as Ash delivers him to the Pokémon Centre after the battle. And this is ok, because we don’t really need to. Arguably, Ash’s greatest adversary isn’t Marshadow or Cross; it’s himself, as he has to put aside all of his own ambitions to save his friends and his beloved Pikachu. Some may perceive this uncertainty over Ho-Oh as quite unsatisfying but Ash’s willingness to let Ho-Oh go might point to him growing and realising there is more to his journey than ruthless ambition. Viewed like this, I find this ending very satisfying and think that had Ash done a pompous and over the top victory dance having caught Ho-Oh, this would not have been tonally in keeping with what we have just seen: everyone escape with their lives narrowly and Ash come back from the dead (or a state of semi death at least in an alternate reality). I’m glad that Ash emerges at the end of the movie better off having not had a moment like this. The Pokémon Centre Lady’s ‘That’s nice’ when Ash tells her they’ve just been battling Ho-Oh is perfect in showing that the result of that battle (caught or not) doesn’t really matter. And, most importantly, Ash seems ok with it too. I would go as far as to say he looks pleased to have had the opportunity to battle Ho-Oh, caught or not and Pikachu having lost. We can see he’s come a long way. Ash’s brush with death is incidentally not the only occasion that the movie is happy with testing its audience. I sat wide eyed as I watched that Luxray found dead in the snow, frozen, trying to protect its infant owner from the fate it ultimately suffered itself. This idea that Pokémon are dispensable yet indestructible; that they can be pushed to the limit with few consequence that a Pokémon Centre wouldn’t be able to fix. With Luxray’s onscreen death, this notion is shattered in an instant and the world the movie seeks to flesh out is made all the more real and believable for it; a tenderness and bond exists between people and their Pokémon which shouldn’t be scoffed at. And, in closing out this section of the review, that bond between person and Pokémon is hammered home no better as Ash and Pikachu part into different worlds, at the tail end of the movie. That moment as they lie face to face and Pikachu speaks. PIKACHU SPEAKS. I actually thought I was hearing things. The minute I saw it I knew this would be a scene to divide opinion. The cynical side of me initially thought this was an easy pull on the heart strings. The Pokémon equivalent of Jack and Rose. But it’s actually much more than this. Having begun watching the original Animé, I’ve been used to Pikachu communicating with Ash by way of facial expression or tonal variations on the same word or half word for nigh on 20 years. But to actually hear what the little guy truly thinks of his partner, that he never wants to leave his side. I’m going to level with everyone reading this. A tear welled up in my eye. The fact that Pikachu never wants to leave Ash’s side wasn’t exactly a revelation I admit but to allow something like this to happen by way of them sharing different realities and one of which being situated a stone’s throw away from death. It was beautiful. It won’t win and Oscar and some won’t think it was anywhere near as impactful as I’m describing. Some will think that it probably wasn’t necessary at all, seeing as a trainer’s bond with their Pokémon seems to transcend language. But, to put forward the most compelling argument for the scene’s inclusion, this is arguably what gives Ash the push he needs to transcend death and push out of that nether realm. Not for himself, but for Pikachu who he would be leaving alone otherwise. Aww man, I can feel the tears coming all over again. Joking (or not) over tears aside, the willingness of the Pokémon universe, both in film and video game media, to engage with what are uncomfortable topics, gives me lots of hope for the future. I still hope for a more adult fan orientated game in which our hero feels like he or she is in genuine peril or at risk of death (I don’t think I fainted once in Pokémon Moon!), a game which makes fans confront real world problems but then allows us to eventually overcome them. I know I’ll be hoping for a long time, as Gamefreak would be unlikely to make such a move and risk alienating such a huge demographic represented by the series’ youngest fans. But, on the flip side, I wouldn’t want this alienation to happen either. The fact that the movie was able to articulate some of these themes and do so in such a way as to make it palatable for younger viewers is a triumph in itself. Those wide eyed children in the audience of my screening were the proof of the pudding and long may it continue. Conclusion I really enjoyed I Choose You. Even though the movie wasn’t perfect, it did one thing really well for me personally: it affirmed my love of Pokémon, as if that really needed any affirmation in the first place. It reminded me just why I fell in love with everything Pokémon in the first place and why that loves has endured until today. The world of Pokémon and the simple but powerful messages it communicates are timeless: that someone seemingly insignificant can achieve great things and make a difference; that we should all step out of the front door and pursue our dreams; that we can rely on our friends and family for support along the way. Never have these messages been more relevant and important than in the shitstorm of a world we live in today and it’s always nice to be reminded that this is the other side of what humanity is capable of, even if that reminder does come from a fictional world filled with fictional creatures. Such is the power of art and fiction. I’ll finish here with a reflection on a scene from the movie which really made me pause and think (to the point where I nearly missed the five minutes of the onscreen action that followed). The scene is when Ash first succumbs to Marshadow’s dark seduction and is taken to an alternate reality where Pokémon don’t exist. He leaps out of bed, a poster on his bedroom wall of a blue car, a red car and a green car in place of Blastoise, Charizard and Venusaur. He’s late to school that day, not for Professor Oak’s lab. Just regular, boring old school. He looks out the window as he sits daydreaming in class , glimpsing Ho-Oh gliding high above, except it’s not Ho-Oh at all but an aeroplane. And when he questions what is beyond the confines of the school fence, we hear something along the lines of: towns, forests, fields, more towns, forests, fields and then the ocean. What is essentially being shown, described and imagined by Ash is a world without Pokémon. A drab, boring and monotone world which lacks a layer of purpose. Quite ironically, this is our reality. Real life. I remember sitting as a kid and thinking that the coolest thing in the world would be if Pokémon were real. To be caught, trained and loved. To some extent a virtual version of this was achieved via Pokémon Go but the initial hype has died down. I knew then, as a kid, and I know now that there won’t ever be anything approaching what Pokémon does in the real world but this scene in a Pokémonless alternate reality got me thinking about the wider implications of this being communicated (and I think intentionally) by the filmmakers. Imagine a world, this shitstorm of a world we live in, WITHOUT something as wonderful as Pokémon, even if they are only virtual monsters living on our screens. This phenomenon which has brought and continues to bring so many people together, be it via the TCG, games or Animé. The phenomenon which was a huge part of my childhood and is something I engage with in some way every single day as a grown man. Imagine if all of that didn’t exist and never had done. It’s a frightening thought and as Ash snapped out of his alternate reality and I came back to mine, I gave thanks for the enduring charm and appeal of Pokémon. The fact that I was sitting in that cinema seat almost twenty years on, still enjoying everything the Pokémon universe has to offer is something that I’m so pleased the film allowed me to experience and feel and give thanks for. Thank you for the memories, Pokémon and here’s to the memories still to be made. My final parting piece of advice: stay beyond the credits. A few shorts, a goosebump-inducing rendering of the initial start sequence to the original Pokémon games on Gameboy and a beautiful piano arrangement of the Pokémon Animé theme tune. A shout out also to @brayshgaming - I hope he particularly enjoyed the Noivern clip but also hope that it isn’t now a regular feature in his nightmares. There is no escape! Thanks for reading guys. Comments on my reflections are most welcome and I’d love to hear some of your own thoughts about the movie. This review was written solely from my memory of watching the movie (and thanks to lots of frantic jotting down of ideas the moment the lights went up, while they were still fresh in my mind). There may therefore be some inaccuracies in here which I cannot yet verify without watching the movie again. Apologies if so.

[felix-c-lee]

When Love Hurts...  My First Love

Well.., it’s been a good many years since the last time I’ve logged on, let alone written anything in here, but alas, I’m back, 

First off  I’m Sorry if this post seems a little all over the place, I had started to type this a few weeks ago, and I just kept adding to it as things came to mind before I finished the background story. then i got too lazy to organize all of it and make is sound all nice and all, so just bear with it haha.

(Background)

So in February of 2017 I had gone into Luoyang, China to do a little bit of volunteer work. That is where I met this BEAUTIFUL girl named Dawn, the moment I saw her, I knew she was something special. While we worked together, we got to know more and more about each other. and before i knew it, i had started to like this girl. and sooner than i had expected I had officially confessed my feelings for her. then we officially became boyfriend and girlfriend on March 18th 2017. We were together in person for about a month before i had to leave China to go back to the US. we continued to fight for our relationship. and of course there were many arguments and issues that happened throughout the months, but we were able to talk thing through. and everything was going well.

Then came September, we got to see each other once again in person when i got the opportunity to go to shanghai.  While we were together,we actually got to do  date things finally. We went to the Shanghai Zoo and played with a baby tiger and baby lion. We also went to the Shanghai Natural History Museum, and got to go out for walks in the evenings. it was one of the best times of my life. but sadly week just flew by just way too fast, and before i knew it I was at the airport saying goodbye once again. 

Things were still going pretty well for a good long while. there were even plans of her coming to visit me in the the States, however, when the summer hit, her parents did not allow her to come. I guess that’s where things started to take it’s toll on our relationship. We did not get to video chat as often due to her being at home from school with her parents (she would never video chat with me when her parents were around), we only video chatted only maybe three times between June - August. Our conversations became more and more shallow, and she started to give shorter answers to my questions, and by the time august came rolling around she’d answer only some questions and her answers had become pretty much just one word responses. I mean I figured something was up awhile ago, but everytime I wanted to bring it up in conversation, she would always try to avoid the topic when we video chatted. finally I decided to ask her what was going on through text. And her response was pretty much that she couldn’t see the future with us being together anymore, and she suggested that we end things. But I refused to give up, and I didn’t want to do the break up over text. so we were technically together for about 2 more weeks before I was too drained to keep fighting a lost battle, since to me she had already given up completely. continuing to only give one word answers and no longer saying “I Love you” anymore. So finally on the September 5th 2018, I really needed closure as to what is really going on and if I need to give up this fight. And in the end, the distance was just too great for her to bear, and she wasn’t ready to leave her friends and family. we talked over text, and we officially ended things. we agreed to still be friends.

however for me, the pain really has only just begun. I had never thought that I would hurt this much. She is the only person outside my family that had ever made me cry as an adult. The actual breakup wasn’t that bad but it was all the after effects that followed our “friendship” made me wonder. Where did i mess up as a person, as a boyfriend? Was i holding her back in her life? all these thoughts were really affecting me. There was this one night after, i was at a local event called Dally in the Alley, and I was going to go with some people there but they were late, so I decided to go on my own first then meet up with them when they showed up. This year at Dally there were so many people drinking and smoking weed. I myself don’t really drink all that much and i don’t smoke anything. personally I’m against it. Anyways, as I was walking around i just got hit with this overwhelming sense of loneliness and insignificance, and I thought to myself, no one would care if I drank till I was wasted and smoked weed till I couldn't remember who i was. So i had considered trying it, but thank God that by His grace that I had more sense than that and I left the event, not having done anything that I would’ve regretted.  

The pain of loss: It feels like letting go a bird that you’ve loved and taken care of for so long, hoping that it will return back to you but it never does and it doesn’t look back. (or in like that one scene in Pokemon, when Ash releases Butterfree.) Which then makes me wonder, do I even matter in her life anymore? will she miss me? will she remember me?  I miss her so dearly, and I want to say that I Love her still, but I can’t say it to her anymore...

finally coming to terms that we are no longer together was/still is really tough and I can’t help but to wonder, if there still a possibility for us to be together. I know that I shouldn’t think like that, I just can’t help it. 

Sometimes I just wish that I had never experienced this feeling of Love, because now that it’s gone, it feels like a piece of me has gone missing too. 

she was my first for many things. The first girl that I had confessed to officially, my first kiss, my first girlfriend, my first Love, and now my first Heartbreak.

As i was typing, i came upon this song, and this song describes how i feel right now. I’m not mad or angry. And I do honestly hope that she is doing better than I am. 

Who Am I to Stand in the Way                                                                             -Chester See

Forgive me I may have said things That aren't exactly The way that I feel I told you I'd be strong I said that I've moved on But it doesn't take long To realize That I'm not over you [Chorus:] But if there is somebody that makes you feel happy Tends to your heart in the ways I'd been lacking Then who am I, who am I, to stand in your way Stand in your way Stand in your way Stand in your way [Verse 2:] I know it sounds crazy But I need you to trust me If it's how it must be Then I'll fade away When it finally feels true Do what you have to Cause I'll never blame you For not choosing me But I'm not over you [Chorus:] If there is somebody that makes you feel happy Tends to your heart in the ways I'd been lacking Then who am I, who am I, to stand in your way That I feel is no longer your burden If there is someone that makes you feel perfect Then who am I, who am I, to stand in your way Stand in your way Stand in your way Stand in your way [Bridge:] Down the road, someone will ask me if I know you I'll pause for a moment I'll smile and say that I used to [Chorus:] Cause if there is somebody that makes you feel happy Tends to your heart in the ways I'd been lacking Then who am I, who am I, to stand in your way That I feel is no longer your burden If there is someone that makes you feel perfect Then who am I, who am I, to stand in your way Stand in your way Stand in your way Stand in your way

[puclpodcast]

Pokemon Catch-Up: Looking Back At Season 1

Welcome to Pokemon Catch-Up and our special post where we look back at season 1. Pokemon Catch-Up is a post series where we look back at only the most important Pokemon episodes and follow Ash along in his journey per the Pokemon Fast Track Viewing List. Today, instead of covering an episode, we’ll jump into covering the entire season and discuss how Ash progressed, pick out the more interesting parts of the season, and what we have to look forward to.

A lot of Pokemon fans hold season 1 with a certain sense of nostalgia. Many revere it and honestly, it’s for a good reason that I’ll get into later on in the article.

One thing I’ll mention before moving forward will be that I’ll cover one more season 1 episode after this article, mainly because the episode is listed as season 2 in some lists and as season 1 in others. To me, this last episode is a great teaser for season 2 and a wonderful “bonus” episode for season 1 so that’s how we’ll treat it.

Without further ado, let’s talk about the season 1

What did Ash do?

Without listing off each episode, let’s jump into what happened in the season as a whole:

Ash received his first-ever Pokemon, a feisty little Pikachu. With this companion, he traveled the Kanto region. Along his journey, Ash met MANY friends, two of whom followed him through most of the journey: Misty and Brock.

Ash also met many new Pokemon, a few of which he caught. Among his closest companions are the three Kanto starters: Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle. Only Charmander evolved along the way.

Upon learning about the Pokemon League, Ash started battling gym leaders. He didn’t win each match the first time but he did beat the eight Kanto gym leaders, granting him the access to the Indigo Plateau Conference. There, Ash battled his best before losing his sixth match.

Every so often, our hero ran into his rival, a trainer by the name of Gary Oak. Gary was a fantastic trainer with a lot of ego but strength to back it up.

And in just about every episode, Ash also ran into the notorious Team Rocket who tried to steal Pokemon for their own evil purposes; however, Ash’s Pikachu blasted them into the next episode almost every single time.

“Exciting” is probably the best word I’d use to describe season 1 to everyone.

Note: we should also mention that the plot of MewTwo Strikes Back took place in season 1.

Ash’s Pokemon

Ash started out with a Pikachu, a Pikachu that hated the trainer and would not go into the ball. Spoiler alert: Pikachu never makes it into the ball. But Pikachu is not the only Pokemon Ash catches.

One thing to really point out here is that Ash has a “pattern” he follows that usually ends with Pokemon trusting him. He often screws something up, endangering the Pokemon along the way, and then he fixes it by sacrificing himself in some way. Let’s sound off real quick on all the Pokemon Ash caught.

Caterpie. Caterpie has the most heart-breaking story in season 1. It’s Ash’s first true catch. Caterpie shares its dream of becoming Butterfree with Pikachu by the moonlight on its first night with the boy. Ash helps Caterpie achieve its dreams by helping it evolve into Metapod and finally, Butterfree. It battles with heart.

However, during the episode “Bye Bye Butterfree“, Ash made the difficult choice of letting Butterfree go. I know that I, as a fan, cried during this scene and waited for Butterfree to return for several seasons before giving up. It was a heart-breaking moment and it demonstrated the deep connections with trainer and Pokemon. It also displayed Caterpie’s desire to be caught and trained.

Pidgeotto. Ash caught Pidgeotto just the next episode. The relationship between the two isn’t fully explored and so I’d say that Pidgeotto was very much a utility Pokemon for Ash. It fought hard, it got Ash out of a few jams, and it put out countless fires.

Bulbasaur. Whilst observing the Hidden Village, Ash befriended Bulbasaur who hated the trainer at first. In fact, the boy had to gain the Pokemon’s trust and even when Bulbasaur desired to accompany the hero, it requested a fair match first. Ash had to prove himself to Bulbasaur and that he would train it well. Bulbasaur was the first of the three Kanto starters that Ash caught.

Charmander. Charmander’s story is a heart-breaking one. Its original trainer abandoned it to die by telling it he’ll come back and making it stay in one place. And yes, to die! Charmander’s story is the first time we confront the idea of Pokemon death in the series. Ash and his friends obviously save it but even then, Charmander is reluctant to join Ash’s party. Again, Ash has to prove that it will take care of this abused Pokemon. The boy does so selflessly, caring less about his own team make-up and more about the Pokemon’s safety.

Charmander is the only Kanto starter that Ash evolves and it evolves all the way into a Charizard. Charizard’s own storyline is a fascinating one. In its case, Ash did not prove himself to be a worthy trainer in season 1. Charizard never follows orders or connects with Ash, even to its own detriment. It doesn’t actively want to leave, it just disrespects Ash. Charmander wasn’t enough for its trainer, and now, Ash is not enough for Charizard. The boy has to train himself harder and become a better trainer in order to gain Charizard’s respect but when will that happen?

Squirtle. Squirtle is a “bad boy” at first but through getting to know Ash, he chooses to follow Ash. In “Here Comes Squirtle Squad“, we learn more about the trainers that abandon their Pokemon. They are not “released” into the wild (in my mind) but they are simply left alone. The boy hero befriends their leader and earns Squirtle’s trust. Squirtle then joins Ash without a fight.We get a small glimpse into the dark side of the Pokemon world again. Charmander’s trainer was cruel, he told Charmander he’ll be back and never came back while Squirtle’s trainer is an unknown individual that left it outright. Ash and Squirtle develop a very close bond.

Krabby. Krabby is Ash’s seventh Pokemon and so it gets automatically transported to Oak’s lab. I think Krabby is a comic relief to some extent as it often shows up unexpectedly when Ash calls the Professor. Oak is very happy to have Krabby as a companion. It eventually evolves into the powerful Kingler during the Indigo League Conference. We don’t see much of it otherwise.

Muk. Muk joins the team somewhat reluctantly but becomes very affectionate quickly. Known for its hugs, Muk plays very well with everyone else and shows its true power during the Indigo League Conference.

A few honorable mentions. Ash had several Pokemon that temporarily joined him on his journey that he let go. I mentioned Butterfree exclusively because of its importance to Ash’s personal journey but its slot never gets permanently filled. Along the way, Ash gets to battle with Haunter and Primeape. He also catches MANY Tauros.

Ash’s Friends

Ash was off to a rough start at the beginning of the show but throughout, he became friends with many people. He gained respect of the Gym leaders, and he proved himself to not only Pokemon but to humans as well. All in all, Ash’s friendships always helped him move forward.

Misty. In the first couple of episodes, he quickly left a negative impression on Misty in particular, destroying her bike very early on. But she stuck with him and together, they became close friends. They traveled together through the entire season and they battled only once when Misty represented the Cerulean City Gym in the Water Flowers of Cerulean City.

If I recall correctly, Ash pretty much beat her before Team Rocket interrupted. And since then, she became more of a coach to Ash, advising him and guiding him through his battles. Misty had her own journey; however, we did not see much of it through the fast track viewing list. There was definitely some chemistry between the two characters but again, nothing really came of it.

Brock. Brock is still around, almost twenty seasons later. Ash and Brock first met when Ash challenged him to a battle at the Pewter City Gym where he lost at first and then Ash had to power through and win against Brock…through a technicality.

Brock’s own journey is an interesting one, too. He went from being a hardcore Gym leader to becoming a Pokemon Breeder. He cooks for the group, their Pokemon and he he heals the Pokemon, too. Just like Misty, he becomes Ash’s coach and helps him get better over time.

The trio became iconic and set up a standard for the rest of the show where Ash is usually flanked by two friends that focus on the Pokemon world without conflicting with Ash’s own journey to becoming a Pokemon master.

And while we rarely ever met other characters that Ash befriended in the Fast Track list, we did one more very important character.

Ritchie. Ritchie showed up for a handful of episodes all the way at the end but he exemplified a more refined version of Ash. A true friendly rival that could push Ash toward becoming a better trainer. Ritchie had his own Pikachu and even a Charmander. He was the perfect counterpart and when they battled, it showed where Ash excelled and where Ritchie did.

You see, Ash had powerful Pokemon including his Charizard but Ritchie had better control over his Pokemon which lead to Ritchie’s victory. Ash used cunning strategy and that’s where the trainers matched evenly.

The Rivalry

I already mentioned Ritchie and I think Ritchie is Ash’s true rival. Looking at later gens, the dual protagonist setup makes much more sense and shows up in Indigo League with Ritchie being the friendly rival whilst Gary being the unfriendly rival

Gary. Gary Oak shows up in the first episode and then pops in and out every so often. While he is very arrogant, he is also strong. I’d say he’s actually a bully but his poking and prodding of Ash gets the boy riled up enough to keep getting better.

Ash and Gary never end up having an all out epic battle you’d expect from other anime. In fact, they rarely ever clash. But Gary is always several steps ahead. When Ash is getting his eight badge, Gary already has ten. While Ash caught less than ten Pokemon, Gary had already caught dozens.

Eventually, we get some semblance of how they measure up against each other when Gary drops out a round prior to Ash at the Indigo League Conference.

Where to next?

We don’t yet know where Ash will head but he’s done with Kanto, there’s nothing left for him to do with the Indigo League Conference being over. But we should see pretty soon!

from Pokemon Catch-Up: Looking Back At Season 1