#i have not read bede but i read a LITTLE bit of bede on my english trip for one the lectures

[incomingalbatross]

Literature connected to Whitby:

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Marmion by Sir Walter Scott (sort of—he took the abbey's name and its founder's and transferred them to Lindisfarne)

The Ecclesiastical History of the English People by the Venerable Bede (the Synod of Whitby is the climax of the history's third volume)

Caedmon's Hymn (probably the oldest surviving English poem, composed at Whitby)

[cherryroselock22]

Out of curiosity, how would you describe the dynamic between Bede and Hop in the context of their romantic relationship? I think of that one drawing where Hop holds Bede's head in his hands and I crack up at the thought of Hop seeing Bede as an especially disgruntled wooloo

Hi hello i’ve been waitin for this ask forever. ALSO I WANNA SAY THANK YOU!1 i love getting asks like this (two ship charts under cut n explanation if you're interested)

The non-detailed way I see their dynamic is basically just that, grumpy x sunshine. Whenever I think about em I just think about that post that reads ‘’Hop and his boyfriend whom he needs to fight with constantly’’

But I do have some more in-depth thoughts/headcanons on their relationship, I have been hyperfixatin hard on em for the past 9 months;

To me, Bede’s the more physically affectionate, or clingy to be more accurate. He keeps affection in public at a minimum cause well, you know gossip travels fast. But in private? He’s constantly seeking out Hop’s attention. At first he was awkward about hugging n stuff, getting overwhelmed easily, which is why Hop waited for him to seek it out but he eventually got more comfortable and now Hop can’t sit down without him laying down on him.

Out of the two of them, I think that (surprisingly) Hop is the most touch starved, he always gives affection without receiving much himself. I think that at some point, Bede realized this and it’s half the reason for why he’s so clingy.

They bicker a lot, at some point it just becomes a love language. Bede’s still a little bit of a jerk and Hop has to keep him in check. I like to imagine Bede is flustered easily n Hop loves to take advantage of that.

I think that Hop is usually the one planning dates and hangouts, it’s either that or he shows up at Bede’s door at 11 pm with roses out of nowhere. He also almost always insists on paying. In turn, Bede randomly sends him gifts. I definitely think Bede spoils Hop

Even though Bede’s taller, and Hop’s shirts are too wide and short for her, he steals Hop’s clothes all the time. Hop keeps losing shirts. If you see him without his jacket means that Bede probably has it.

Hop fidgets with Bede’s hair methinks, he likes to run his hands through it and occasionally braid it. Reminds him of a wooloo lol.

I also think Bede is very easily jealous, not to a possessive extent but it is very clear when she’s jealous. She’ll glare daggers to anyone who’s a little too close to Hop and will act very affectionate towards him in front of said person

Also I just think Bede’s smitten with Hop to the degree it becomes everyone’s problem. Hop might have fallen first but Bede fell harder. Like. Idk I just think that Bede gets attached to people way too easily but acts like he doesn’t while Hop is the opposite way

Also I’d be very funny is Hop’s dubwool was borderline homophobic towards Bede (I have a hc that dubwool is very overprotective of Hop lol, he does not let anyone near him). Bede reaches to grab Hop’s hand and is instantly tackled by dubwool. I have this scene in my mind where they’re both up in a tree and when they’re about to kiss, Hop’s dubwool just begins to tackle said tree non-stop.

(Applying my gender hcs woo). Even though Hop’s not really a guy, Bede still refers to him as his boyfriend. Hop also refers to Bede as his girlfriend as much as he can to fluster her or try to cheer her up.

I find it funny to imagine Bede being horrified upon figuring out he has a crush on Hop. Also also Bede cooks for him a lot. Usually just sweets or baked goods since that's what he knows what to do best.

I think that the confession was a disaster. Like they were probably hanging out, Bede’s just starin at Hop not payin attention at all and without thinkin blurts out a ‘you’re pretty’ or something like that. Cue panic and Hop tryin to get a direct answer and Bede just denying everything. It works out somehow

I think Hop’s mum would like Bede, Leon would not lol. Opal is supportive not only cause Hop is a good match for him but also because Bede can’t stay at the gym all the time, Opal has to kick him out sometimes.

Movin onto the angst stuff:

I think that Hop would struggle with saying ‘I love you’ while Bede would say it too easily.

Hop is very observant, he notices when there’s a slight change in Bede’s behavior and when she’s nervous. Bede isn’t as observant and is usually a little awkward when it comes to comfortin Hop

I think both Hop n bede have scars. Bede has scars on his hands from the gym challenge and digging through caves to get wishin stars. He also has a light yet constant tremble to his hands, aka his hands are always trembling, can’t control it (I also have this and I get to choose which character to give it to). While Hop generally has scars from wounds he’s picked at, he has them primarily in his arms but some in his legs too. He also has a burn scar from eternatus.

I think Hop has low self-esteem and doesn’t think he’s a good person. I definitely imagine there’s times were he feels like he isn’t worthy or deserving of the affection Bede gives him. I also think his intrusive thoughts (I hc him as having intrusive thoughts cause I do lol) don’t help. Bede does his best to try to distract him from it

That’s all I have rn cause I’m sleepy n also my mom is yelling at me to go to sleep lol, have some charts I did. SORRY IF THIS IS KINDA RANTY, I’M NOT GOOD WITH WORDS

[nerdyagere]

trick or treat!!! 🍬 marnie from pokemon! :)

Oohh Marnie!!! I haven't thought about her much but I think she's such a cutie, perfect excuse now to rattle her around my brain giving you... a sweet treat!

Note that I have only played the games, haven't watched the anime or read the manga (I SWEAR I will one day) so please forgive me if my HCs are lacking!

---

- She seems like the type to not only love deco pacis but make her own! They're always a little dark, gothic in theme covered in little black gems, cute little crobat or duskull charms

- I think she'd adore plushies too, Piers once gifted her a Morpeko and she's been attached ever since, that was the start of her ever growing collection (that maybe she's a BIT shy about but it's okay, Piers always supports her via his many, many plush gifts he'll give)

- Generally I think she likes to stick to herself, preferring more quiet environments where she can cuddle up with plushies and watch a show or a movie, sometimes it's a little tiring having a whole fan club following you around always you know?

Doesn't mean she doesn't love when Piers spends a bit of time with her, or maybe when her friends stop by and they have a fun movie night, big pillow fort all snuggled together!

- Oh she loves to play dress up too, she and Gloria will team up and drag the others into their room, trapping them and using them to showcase whatever outfits they create together, mwahaha!

Of course everyone's having fun, trying out stuff they'd never normally wear (Marnie's wardrobe is pretty outside their normal styles but man, she has good taste, her and Gloria create the best outfits!) even if Bede is reluctant at first he'll slip into the fun the second Marnie pulls out something more his style, can't be grumpy when Marnie pulls out a limited edition fairy type inspired jacket she snagged from the local boutique!

[touristbree]

Penny Family Theory (Confirmed)

OKAY SO, I started playing Area Zero and then Penny says this:

[Image Text:

Penny - “It’s just my dad! He’s loud and clingy and makes up weird nicknames for me like “Pen-Pen”.]

And when read this, I thought: “Peony?”, and that was the start of my rabbit hole. I theorize that Penny is the younger daughter of Peony.

For a little reminder: Peony is the character who leads the player through Pokémon Sword and Shield’s Crown Tundra DLC. A steel type user, former champion, Chairman Rose’s brother, and embarrassing father to Peonia (and Penny).

Penny was introduced in the main story of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, being the secret leader of Team Star.

Exhibit A: Dialogue

This is what she entirely says about her dad:

Penny - “It’s just my dad! He’s loud and clingy and makes up weird nicknames for me like “Pen-Pen”.

Penny - “He’s the most annoying guy in the world! Period! He’s the worst!”

Penny - “Unbelievably Annoying”

Penny describes her dad as “Unbelievably annoying”, “loud and clingy” and that he calls her weird nicknames like “Pen-Pen”. Peony is well known for being an enthusiastic and endlessly supportive father, and gives Peonia nicknames like “Darling Daughter”.

Penny already seems a bit pessimistic so maybe she’d read Peony’s energy wrong.

Exhibit B: Names

Penny’s Japanese name is “ボタン” or “Botan”, which comes from the Tree PEONY.

Also, their names all start with “Pe”, have an “N”, and have an “ē” sound in their name.

Peony

Peonia

Penny

Exhibit C: Home

Penny (being referred to as Cassiopeia) was sent to Galar after Operation Star, and Peony was introduced in Galar, former Galarian champion and gym leader, and so on and so forth.

[Image Description: Harrington with Ortega, the player, and Clive.

Harrington - “I wanted this student (referring to Penny/Cassiopeia) to take some time to rest, so I had them return home to the Galar region.”]

Exhibit D: Genetics

Now for the elephant in the room: they look nothing alike.

This would be a flaw, if we didn’t have his second league card:

[Image Description: Peony’s Second League Card, Peony is front and center with baby Peonia on his shoulder and a blonde woman behind them]

It is assumed that the woman in the back is Peony’s wife since she’s in the league card along side him and Nia (and because her and Nia have blonde hair). Penny is paler… but that may be from a lack of sunlight due to being a nerdy hacker who barely goes outside (Canon).

We don’t see the woman’s eye color… but we do see that she is a recolor of the beauty trainer model (notice the red clothes and hair styles) which has brown eyes, just like Penny.

[Image Description: Beauty Trainer from Sword and Shield, she has brown eyes and a red sweater]

UPDATE 12/16/2022

A friend of mine (YouTube: WagonWorks) mentioned a bit of evidence that I hadn’t noticed. We were discussing a video by HybridHero about my theory, except HH theorized that Penny was the daughter of Rose and Oleana LINK. He goes over some of the same evidence as me, but I’m not as certain about “Oleana being Penny’s mother” and Bede isn’t mentioned despite being Rose’s adoptive son. Now then…

Exhibit E: Eye Shape

Rose and Peony have eye shapes very similar to Penny, specifically eye lashes. Her eyes especially resemble Rose’s and eye lashes resemble Peony’s, Rose being her uncle would confirm that that eye shape would be somewhere in Peony’s genes to pass down to Penny.

[Image Description: Penny, Peony, and Chairman Rose’s faces. Peony’s eyes are more angular while his eye lashes are curved and have a bit pointing out. Chairman rose had more curved eyed but shorter eyelashes. Penny has the same eye shape as Rose and same lashes as Peony]

Update: 12/29/2022

Exhibit F: Hair

While Nia and Penny’s hair styles are very different, their front bangs are extremely similar (maybe even the exact same if the graphics weren't completely different from SwSh). They both also have dyed hair (presumably, at least the red part of Penny’s hair could be dyed).

In the real world, dyed hair and bangs would mean nothing, but this is a fictional world where small details like that can be important. We recently has Legends: Arceus where we had several ancestors of modern characters, many of which have the same (or similar) hairstyles to their modern counterparts such as The Miss Fortune Sisters and Bertha, Candice, and Saturn, Colza and Gardenia, Rye and Riley, Choy and Charon, Arezu and Mars, Calaba and Gordie, Volo and Cynthia Etc. (they also share name origins, with their counterparts and similar parts of their names).

Now, comparing ancestors to descendants is a leap, so a more modern example is in Sun and Moon with Hala and Hau. Both of them have that ponytail and start with a “Ha”.

[Image 1: Penny and Peonia, their front hair bangs are very similar.

Image 2: Hala and Hau, both have a ponytail with Four Points]

Update: 12/13/2023

Exhibit G: The Mini-Series

Penny, Peonia, and Peony all make short cameos in the final episode of their respective region’s mini-series, and both cameo in the same location!

At the end of Twilight Wings, Peony is shown chasing Peonia on a train to the Crown Tundra. They are not facing the audience.

At the recent end of Paldean Winds, during a montage of people watching the final video, Penny is shown in the background, on a train, not facing the audience.

Now this would be nothing big… IF THE TWO TRAINS WERENT EXACTLY THE SAME:

Notice:

The rectangular Windows with curved edges

Orange text above the door

The yellow railings and curved railings towards the back of the train

The blue chairs that are shown to face each other.

The pokeball symbol on the back door.

Another important detail is that in the Paldean Winds Train, no one is shown wearing a Naranja Uniform, including the children, meaning this isn’t Paldea since EVERY OTHER CHILD WEARS THE UNIFORM IN THIS TRAILER.

Caph Squad still standing in the previous episode and the player character seeming to cameo at the beginning means that this episode takes place before the events of the game, WHILE PENNY IS IN GALAR.

I’ve also made a separate Post for more “Out There” pieces of evidence.

The End

In the Mochi Mayhem event, before the Zero Crew leave for Kitakami, Penny had to call her dad for permission and this is what we get:

[Transcript:

Penny - “Oh my GOSH, Dad, would you just drop it?! I told you—friends! I’m going with friends! No, you DON’T need to be worried about it! We are perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves! Ughhh, no, it’s not gonna be an “Adven-tour”—no one says that! Honestly. I’m hanging up now!”

Second Clip:

Penny - “Haaah. Suddenly I’m too tired for any of this…”

Arven - “Did you get your old man’s OK to go?”

Penny - “Yeah…in the end. But I had to put up with his ultra-mega-annoying dad talk to do it.”

Arven - “He just ultra-mega-cares, little bud!”

Penny - “Oh! Oh…yeah, maybe you’re right…”]

THERE IT IS “ADVEN-TOUR” THAT IS PEONY’S WORD, THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT THIS CONFIRMS:

Penny Is Peony’s Youngest Daughter

Almost 2 years of theorizing has finally led to confirmation, my life is complete.

[pokenimagines]

SFW | Marnie | Headcanons

So this stems from my hatred of Marnie's tournament outfit and just the Team Yell outfit in general. I hate the Team Yell outfit. They should have let her keep the jacket. Piers has a jacket. Give her her jacket back, Game Freak. And also a lack of platonic Marnie & older-sibling-like Reader.

So, how would Marnie react to older-sibling-like!Reader giving her a snazzy new jacket to wear with her new gym leader outfit as a congratulatory gift?

Marnie deserved the world. I've adopted her, Hop, and Bede; so I will gladly write sibling content for them. They deserve it. Also Marnie, you need a coat on bby, it's cold out there.

Rules | Discord Server (16+)

SFW Marnie: Respect the Drip

Marnie deserved better, in your opinion, when it came to the gym uniform. Leaders were allowed to customize their gym uniforms if they wished, but Marnie had literally just taken over the gym, and didn't have anything fun for it.

You, being her dear friend, and basically like another sibling to her, wanted to rectify the situation.

This led to you and Piers actually going shopping, searching for something for her. When you found it, you just knew it was perfect.

It was a leather jacket that closely resembled the one that Piers always wore, except the sleeves were now longer and the white parts were now an inky black.

So you waited until right before Marnie's next gym appearance to surprise her with it. You had it wrapped in a cute little gift bag and waited patiently by the door leading to the changing room.

When Marnie came out, she wasn't surprised to see you there at all. You often wished her good luck before battles. However, she did notice the item in your arms.

You smiled and handed it to her, and when Marnie opened it, you could see her eyes lighting up. She threw the jacket on immediately, loving the warmth it provided. While Spikemouth wasn't in the coldest areas in Galar, it still got chilly inside the dimly lit town.

"This is perfect...thank you."

She looked rockin in her new jacket and she even struck a small pose, though there was a faint blush on her cheeks at the embarrassing display.

At least now her outfit was a bit better than what she had before.

•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅• Thank you for reading! Did you know we have a discord? It has everything from RPs, General Discussions, and even an 18+ area to go hog wild in! We even do announcements early for when the inbox is opening for requests, as well as other events! Come in and join us!

[cherry-bomb-ships]

A Happy Ending

Word Count: 2,266

Content Warnings: None

Summary: Ruby tells her daughter, Olivia, a bedtime story that's not entirely a fairy tale.

Author's Note: I just wanted to write something quick and fluffy for the anniversary, so I threw this together in the span of like 5 hours. Also, this is the first time my fankid with Junkrat has been in a fic! Please enjoy! :3

Tag list below the cut. Click here or DM me to be added or removed. Reblogs are all seen and appreciated!

@ava-ships @bee-ships @beetleboyfriend @bonbonships @canongf @cloudyvoid @canonjunto @discountwife @dissonantyote @edencantstopfallininlove @final-catboy @gible-love-nibles @gothamcore @halsdaisy @hoppinkiss @hop-n-bedes-malewife @hyperionshipping @iyamifucker @lex-n-weegie @little-miss-selfships @little-shiny-sharpies @loogi-selfships @lovebugexe @mikaelrealman @mintpecks @mrs-kelly @nameless-self-inserts @nerdstreak @paper-carnation @patches-and-her-selfships @poghorn @radioromantic @red-velvet-ships @rexscanonwife @ship-trek @squips-ship @sunnysideships @toogayforthistoday @void-kissed @winterworlds

There was a full moon that night. It shone brightly over the countryside, piercing the mist among the stems of tall grass and the petals of wildflowers that blanketed the rolling hills, transforming the expanse of nature into a glittering oasis. Nestled deep within the prairie was a humble home, built from the ground up to have and hold an unorthodox but deeply-bonded family of four.

And it was within this sleepy home, hidden away from the world, where young Olivia Fawkes-Ramirez was being tucked into bed for the night.

"There we go," her parent Ruby cooed gently as she tucked the pastel yellow blanket under the mattress, knowing that her daughter slept best feeling a bit compressed under her covers. "You ready for lights out, jellybean?"

Olivia paused for a moment and looked up at Ruby with her wide hazel eyes; Ruby could already tell that that meant no, but she also knew that Olivia had a tendency to be too shy to ask directly for what she wanted.

"You know you have to give me the okay, Livvie," Ruby said. "If you don't say anything, then I can't go, and I'll just be here staring at you all night."

Olivia let out a weak giggle, but still didn't speak up.

Ruby continued, "That's gonna be very awkward for both of us, babygirl. And I don't think you're gonna get a lot of sleep like that."

Clutching her favorite stuffed animal- a piglet covered in polka dots- in her arms, Olivia looked to the side as she mumbled, "I miss Daddy and Uncle Mako."

Ruby's heart nearly cracked in two when she heard those quiet words, but she kept a brave face as she reached out to stroke her soft blonde hair. "Oh, I know, chickadee. I miss them too. But hey," she gently placed a finger under her chin to angle her daughter's face towards her, "when you wake up tomorrow, both Daddy and Uncle Mako will be back home, and I'm sure they'll have a present for you like they always do. So if you fall asleep quick, they’ll be here before you know it."

Olivia smiled a bit, but it was clear to see on her face that she was still a bit upset. Ruby thought for a second, brainstorming how to send her child off to sleep with happier thoughts in her young mind.

“How about this, Livvie,” Ruby proposed. “I can read you another story, but then you have to go right to bed. Does that sound like a deal?”

Olivia looked to the side again, pondering the proposal carefully, before looking back to her parent and nodding her head. At that approving nod, Ruby moved toward the bookshelf, when she heard another small noise of protest and looked back to Olivia.

“Umm, mumma… do you think you could tell me a brand new story? I heard all of those ones on my shelf before,” Olivia asked.

A soft smile spread across Ruby’s lips as she immediately took the request in stride. “A brand new story, huh?” she said as she sat back down on the edge of the bed, already thinking of a concept.

Olivia nodded happily, a smile finally returning to her face. “Yeah, and then I’ll go right to bed, I promise!”

Ruby smiled back endearingly. “Now that sounds like a good deal,” she joked, before looking down thoughtfully. “Okay, a new story… Alright, I think I’ve got something. You ready, jellybean?”

Once more, Olivia shook her head in approval and let out a soft “yep” as she sat up, eagerly awaiting her story.

“Alright, here goes,” Ruby began. “Once upon a time… there was a knight. This knight was sent far away from the kingdom that they called home, to protect a small island out in the middle of the ocean. Now, this island didn’t have any treasure or anything on it that made it special. It was just a simple little island, with palm trees and white sandy beaches. There were times when the knight even questioned why they needed to protect it in the first place. But they were a good knight, who wanted to make their king happy, so they devoted themself to protecting the island with their life.

“Many days and nights passed by, and no one, good or bad, came to the tiny island. The knight was starting to get bored, wondering why they were sent there when it seemed like no one would ever show up. But then, one day, someone finally came to the island.”

Olivia was listening to the story unfold with wide eyes, already captivated. “Who was it, mumma?”

Ruby’s smile grew wider, relieved that her improvised story wasn’t a bore. “It was… a pirate! And this pirate was known around the world for being ruthless, dangerous, and altogether just plain mean. When the knight saw the pirate, they got very excited, because they thought that they could bring the pirate back to their king and be called a hero! So, right as the pirate was getting off their little boat they brought to the island, the knight stepped forward.

Ruby put on a theatrical voice, imitating an old-timey English accent. “‘Stop right there!’ the knight said. ‘You’re under arrest, pirate, for stealing treasure from across the seven seas!’

“The pirate was caught off guard. He hadn’t expected anyone else to be on that tiny island. But even more than that, he thought that the knight in front of him was more beautiful than any of the glittering gems he’d ever stolen. ‘Pardon me, good knight,’ the pirate said back politely. ‘I’m just tired from traveling, and would like to rest here on your island. In the morning, I’ll be gone again.’

“Now the knight was shocked too. After all of the stories they had heard about this pirate being so awful, they couldn’t believe how friendly he was acting to them. Still, they didn’t let that distract them. The knight told the pirate, ‘you may rest here for the night. But in the morning, you must come with me back to my kingdom.’ And to the knight’s surprise, the pirate agreed. The two of them would set off across the ocean when the sun rose over the horizon.

“That night, the knight and the pirate laid on the beach together. The knight didn’t want the pirate to leave their sight, just in case he tried to escape. But for the entire night, the two of them just talked. The knight got to hear about all of the pirate’s exciting adventures all around the world, and the pirate heard about the knight’s life alone on the island, and for the first time in a long time, the knight was talking, and laughing, and smiling. They felt like they finally had a friend. But that was silly, because pirates are bad guys. And knights are good guys. They couldn’t be friends… could they?”

Ruby paused for a moment, seeing if Olivia would answer. To her delight, the young girl did speak up. “I think that, they should still be friends if they want to. Because the knight’s happy now.”

“Well, you’ll have to wait to hear how it ends,” Ruby chuckled, glad that Olivia was still on board with the story. “Now where was I… Oh, yes. So, the next morning, the two left the tiny island and sailed off for the kingdom far away. It was a long journey, and there were times when the seas would get rough. But no matter what happened, the two would look out for each other. During the mornings, the pirate would teach the knight about sailing his ship, and during the evenings, the knight would make the pirate a delicious meal. And every night, the two would sit under the stars and talk for hours. They would talk and talk and talk, and some nights they talked for so long that they would be too tired to go to their beds! So they would just fall asleep right there on the deck of the ship, lying next to each other.

“The two got to know each other very well during their long voyage, and once again the knight began to wonder why they had heard that the pirate was so mean and vicious. Sure, the pirate didn’t have the best manners, and he refused to bathe unless the knight begged him to, but he was always so kind and so cheerful, that he made the knight very happy when they were together. The knight wondered if anyone else had ever actually stopped to talk to the pirate, to hear his stories of adventure, to get to know him as a person like they had come to know him.

“But at last, after many days and nights of their long, long voyage together had passed, the two had reached the knight’s kingdom. But now, there was a problem. The knight knew that if they arrested the pirate and brought him to the king, they would never see the pirate again. This pirate, who was now their closest friend, would be lost to them forever. As the two pulled the ship into the dock on the shores of the kingdom, the knight came to the pirate, and they asked him a question.

“They said, ‘Pirate. We have been journeying for a long time now. We have braved the seas together during the days, and talked for long hours during the nights. Over this time, I have come to know you as a friend, a friend that I would be very sad to lose. I need to know, pirate. Do you feel the same way?’”

There was a brief moment of silence, leaving young Olivia in suspense. “What did the pirate say, mumma?”

Ruby smiled, “The pirate said, ‘Yes. I felt the same about you since the moment I saw you, dear knight. I sailed across the ocean to this kingdom with you, knowing what would happen when we made it here, because all of those days and nights spent together were all worth giving up my life of stealing. I want to stay with you no matter what, because I love you.’

“The knight was stunned. They had never heard anyone say that they loved them before, but here was this pirate, confessing his love for them just as they were about to hand him over to the king! The knight was nearly moved to tears as they replied, ‘Pirate, I want you to know that it means everything to me to hear you say those words. And over the days we’ve spent together, I have come to realize something of my own. I love you, too. And I don’t want this to be goodbye, but I don’t know what other choice I have.’

“There was a moment of silence between the two, before the pirate came up with an idea. He said to the knight, ‘Come with me, knight. Leave your kingdom behind, leave the island you were trapped on behind. Stay with me, on my ship, and we will sail the world together. Every day will be a new adventure, and every night, we can lie together under the stars. We can stay together, and most of all, you’ll be free.’ The pirate grabbed the knight’s hand tightly as he finished his proposal. ‘Please, dearest knight. Stay with me.’

“Well, the pirate didn’t need to wait long for an answer. The knight wrapped his arms around the pirate, and they said, ‘yes. Yes, of course I’ll stay with you! I’ll sail away with you no matter where you go. I’ll stay by your side, pirate.’ So, the two of them pushed the boat out from the dock, before anyone else knew who they were or why they were there.

“The knight knew that staying with the pirate would make them an outlaw too. It meant that they probably wouldn’t see anyone from their old kingdom ever again. But they didn’t care. It was worth giving up everything they had known to stay with the man they loved. So, the knight and the pirate sailed away, far away from the kingdom, far away from the island, to have countless adventures, and spend every night under the stars, together.”

Olivia rubbed her eyes, hardly able to keep them open, as she sleepily asked, “And did they live happily ever after?”

As Ruby reached forward to pull the covers back over Olivia, she caught sight of the golden band wrapped around her left hand’s ring finger, and for a moment she fought back the water welling in her eyes as she smiled and answered, “You know what, Livvie? I think that they did.” She kissed her daughter’s forehead gently. “I love you, chickadee. Sweet dreams.”

The young girl’s eyes were already closed, all of her worries now long forgotten as she contently mumbled, “I love you too, mumma.”

Ruby stepped away from the bed on her tiptoes, dimming the lights in the room before pulling the door shut, leaving it cracked just enough for a sliver of light to trickle in. She turned from the door and walked quietly into the living room, picking up a book from the coffee table before resting on the couch. She gave a glance to the clock; it was still early in the evening, and she had a long night ahead of her. After all, her pirate was sailing home to her that night. She wanted to be awake to welcome him back into her arms when he finally arrived.

[nightwatch-ithaqua]

i dont mind much, i get it anyways. i was too busy drawing to check this and then thinking of how to respond also takes a while so its not much of a problem if i have to wait sometimes ...

i like visually separating from nathaniel less because i dislike him so much and more just because.. i like having my own unique style. i dont mind looking as similar as we do, but i prefer to still have defining traits so we dont get mixed up constantly.. at that point id be no better than his shadow.

its really funny now having like, a ton of Proper brothers after the fucked up one. ..too many brothers, in fact. at least according to bede.. who is also one of my brothers лол. i kind of just.. collect them on accident, im very Little Brothjer Swag or someyhing like that. i only have like, 2 younger brothers, (one of them also being.. one of my older brothers), which normally isnt even really possible with me because i tend to get freaked out if im not the Most Little Brotherly around. didnt know that was even a thing, much less a competition, but it is apparently because my brain says so.

its even worse because i kind of just call all of them "my brother" with no sort of context or added name to specify which one im actually talking about lmao.. a bit confusing at times, but i find it funny nonetheless. i think ive been getting better about it lately because helel or andrew tend to ask which one when i mention a brother, so theyve been reminding me to be specific about it pretty well..

sorry if it seems like i change the topic too much or anything like that. if i cant think of a way to respond to something and continue that part of the conversation i kind of just ignore it and go on to the next thing i want to talk about instead. i find it more convenient, especially in cases like this where the goal isnt bonding, so needless small talk without getting anywhere important just seems unnecessary to me.. but i understand if its a bit annoying to deal with anyways.

🪷

Our ADHD allows us to switch between topics with ease. Because of how the mind is wired.

No the only annoyance is having to read such a large ask 5 times because we stop processing it midway through and also dyslexia. We meant to ask you to tone that down a bit the last time but they're still decent asks

- ☁️

[epicspheal]

This was a superb story! Pokemon Masters has been rather good about making interactions between characters who normally wouldn't have the chance to do so in the main series canon, and The Revel In Rivalry Event was no Exception" I really enjoyed how it started off with the (eventually former) mean rivals all together to battle. Props to Bede for having the balls to challenge both Silver and Blue at the same time with his Hatterene. Of course, he lost, but Silver and Blue both saw his potential and commended him for it And of course, this goes straight to Bede's head. I really love how Blue immediately tries to put those arrogant flames out which is no doubt him seeing his younger self in Bede at the very moment. Bede doesn't take this too well, but it leads to probably one of my favorite exchanges in the history of Pokemon. Even though Blue's matured, he can still be rather blunt. But being blunt isn't (always) a bad thing as sometimes dealing with someone like Bede needs more of a blunt approach. While Bede is rather stubborn about toning down his overconfidence he does at least take Blue's offer to join the tournament. It made me really happy to see him on a team with two of my favorite rivals Wally and Hugh. While Hugh is definitely not a mean rival he is rather no non-sense and I loved how he and Bede clashed with Poor Wally on the side trying to be the peacekeeper. Then came another highlight of the story. Hop's team is Bede's team's first opponent and HOP BEATING BEDE!!! Everyone who wanted Hop to get some sort of revenge for that sweep and crushing speech in the wild area can now rest easy. Even if it was a team battle, Bede still lost to Hop so it counts. It was really nice to see how after the loss, both Bede and Hugh got a bit of mentorship and advice from other trainers on Pasio which led to them coming to a temporary truce the day of the tournament. Seeing Bede and Marnie interact with Marnie imparting some useful wisdom on to Bede about fighting for something greater than himself was heartwarming. And of course Gladion, much like Blue cut straight to the chase and accurately reading the situation. Meanwhile we have Hugh getting mentored a bit by Cheren and Bianca. It was nice to see Hugh be reminded that he has to work on compromise. I can totally relate to Hugh in not wanting to work with or compromise with someone I don't mesh with and having to be reminded of teamwork. I love it when we get scenarios like this were both sides have to work on their own flaws. The Team Break part of the story I thought was a really nice way to tie loose ends. Seeing Gladion on Team Break's tail and making sure Wally, Bede and Hugh were caught up to speed. It was also hilarious to see Blue with the three Team Break grunts trying to attack him but he just manages to irritate the crap out of them with just a single sentence. But the really heartwarming part of this was seeing Bede and his team coming to check on Blue. It shows that despite Blue's blunt words at the beginning Bede still respected him and cared enough about his well-being. Hugh even gets to use his iconic "You're about to feel my rage!" line on the grunts. And it gets even better with Hop, Hau, Calem, Marnie, Gladion, Silver and Barry all coming together to take team break down. We even get to see it all end off with Bede's signature snap! I just really enjoyed this little story arc and I hope we get to see the rivals interact more like this in game!

[pokemonswshfics]

hello friend! :D i had accidentally posted this draft of it before i was finished, that's why the message of the request is a screenshot, so sorry for the slight wait :"D have a good read! + (i didn't really know what speaking up meant , so it's slightly different for each in terms of "speaking up" hehe i hope you all enjoy 💛)

// because of how long this post might be, I'm gonna leave the read more button right here before all of them. they're sfw but I wouldn't wanna clog up anyone's tl :'D k byee ^-^

Raihan/Kabu/Piers × Shy Male! Reader (Sfw)

Raihan × Shy Male!Reader // S/O (Sfw { mild cursing })

You stood outside Hammerlocke stadium waiting for your boyfriend as he said to meet you there. You had on his jacket, with the hood up because of how many people were around. This didn't stop reporters and fangirls from coming up to you, all bombarding you with questions.

You simply pulled the hood down and shoved your hands into the pocket. It wasn't that you were trying to be rude, you just preferred the attention be on someone else. Literally anyone else.

"How does it feel to be Raihan's first public boyfriend?"

"Hey! Look up here for a quick photo, it wont hurtcha. You're already so cute from what we've seen!"

"Do you love him?"

"Are you gonna stay under there?"

If it was up to you, you would stay in your boyfriend's clothes forever. It was a perfect hiding spot.

"I-I would prefer..not to answer." You stuttered out quietly and stepped closer to the gym doors. The attention got overwhelming at times but you would do this forever if it meant being with Raihan. He was worth it.

"What's annoying about Raihan? Isn't it tiring, that he puts his whole life on the internet?"

You scowled a little and pulled your hood down farther. "I think it's cute." You said under your breath.

"Don't you wish he was champion instead? He always fails at beating Leon!"

"What?" You said softly and lifted your head up a little, but not enough to be seen. The people surrounding you only saw this as invitation to ask more.

"Isn't he a little full of himself when it comes to battles? You can answer us!" Someone said excitedly and shoved a microphone towards you.

"Fine, take this for an answer." You almost snatched the microphone from their hand and frowned at them. "No, I do not find Raihan annoying. I'm very proud of him for even having a gym in the first place. He doesn't need to be Champion to be accomplished! Who the hell are you guys to even be asking stuff so rude? Are YOU Champion?"

Your hood fell back to your shoulders by the time you were done talking. Instantly, camera flashes hit your eyes and you tried to cover your face with your sleeves. You were still beyond angry, and it only increased as you heard the people begin talking again.

"Aw, so cute!"

"Are you really dating Raihan?"

"Raihan got lucky!"

You clenched your fists and dropped the mic you had snatched to your feet.

Then you lunged at a reporter.

Two women screamed, one yelped because of the sudden action and right before you actually touched the man you were going to attack..

"Hey." You felt a pair of strong arms pick you up and throw you over their shoulder. You were met with a back side that had a dark navy shirt on, and navy gym shorts. The Dragon Type uniform.

"Calm down, Tyrogue headass.." Raihan chuckled and you blushed at the familiar teasing. You could hear squeals from the crowd, the same one you would have attacked with your bare hands had it not been for Raihan coming at the last second.

"Put me down! Put me down! Put me down!" You said quickly and began waving your fists in protest. "They weren't being nice about you!"

"Not worth your time, babe. Thanks for keeping him occupied." You could practically hear the grin in Raihan's voice as he began to turn back to the doors of his gym to carry you in. You faced the reporters again and now looked up at them with a scowl. Their faces were all in awe at Raihan carrying you. Some continued taking pictures.

"Oouu let him put me down and I'll- do not very nice things!" You growled quietly and shook one of your fists at them.

"Baby, calm down." Raihan giggled from above you as he even paused for photos a few times just to frustrate you playfully. You pulled the hood further down your head, still cursing reporters as your boyfriend carried you past them.

***

Kabu × Shy Male! Reader (Sfw)

At almost all times you were sitting or standing next to Kabu. It wasn't that you didn't like the rest of the gym leaders, it was just something you did for comfort.

You were in a meeting with the rest of the Gym leaders, sometimes you tagged along with Kabu when invited. The other gym leaders didn't mind, they were the ones inviting you sometimes.

Right now they were discussing new ways to (as Raihan said it) "spice up" their gym missions. Kabu wasn't on board and it showed.

"Come on, you guys think challengers might not get bored of the same thing every year?" Raihan sighed and sat back in his chair. "Same old thing, I'd be bored out of my mind."

"Good thing you aren't a challenger then." Kabu replied, crossing his arms. His irritation showed to you and you nudged his knee with your own under the table lightly. "Our gyms will be led how we would like, and I like mine. I'm keeping it the way it is."

"Come on, no need to get mad." Raihan chimed back and half smiled. "Either all of us or none."

"I'm keeping mine how it is, I've done too much for it since Opal gave me the gym." Bede remarked.

"Come on, Bede..you're the newest of us, take some advice! Change it up a little." Nessa said and sat up.

"I'll k-keep..mine." Allister stammered out and looked down to the table.

"I'd like to change mine." His older sister, Bea smiled widely and pumped one of her fists up. Raihan high fived her, attempting to now convince Milo and Melony to change theirs.

Kabu's eyes furrowed then he looked towards you, smiling with tired eyes. He playfully rolled his eyes while nodding to the other gym leaders. You giggled quietly in answer.

"Come on Kabu, lighten up. Keep up with the times!" Gordie practically whined out. Kabu tensed up once again, and you could feel his anger rising once more.

"Don't tell me what to do. My gym, my rules." Kabu stood and looked around now with a frown. If provoked, his temper could easily appear. You looked to the other gym leaders, Allister (even with a mask, you could tell) was nervous because of how Kabu could get.

"Ugh. They're just ideas-" Bede groaned sassily.

"They're stupid ones!" Kabu slammed one of his now balled up fists onto the table you all sat at. The gym leaders were used to his hot headed self, so it didn't bother them and they never planned on telling him anything like "calm down", or "be nice."

"Kabs." You stood up, still slightly avoiding eye contact with the rest of them and grabbed his elbow softly. "Calm down, they were just trying to give some advice." The other gym leaders now all looked at you, some with slightly widened eyes. 

Kabu’s cheeks turned a light shade of pink, you could feel the tension in his body go away as you began to rub his arm. He turned toward you and the anger in his eyes was gone, now replaced by warmth when you looked into them. Raihan smirked from the other side of the table.

Kabu grumbled something then sat down, his face burning up. “I-Yeah. He’s right. I suppose I should calm down, you all are just trying to help me. I apologize for calling your ideas stupid.” He crossed his arms and avoided eye contact. You followed and sat back down with him, then looked up and realized all the gym leaders were now staring at you, either with shocked faces or grins.

“I’m so sorry if I interrupted your meeting- I just wanted Kabs to calm down and-” You could now feel your cheeks begin to darken with embarrassment and you hid your face in your hands, not even wanting to finish your own sentence.

“Why are you apologizing? You got Kabsy here to calm down, something none of us could do. And you did it without thinking he might take out a Pokemon and burn you alive or something.” Raihan chuckled and turned to Kabu, with his chin being held up by his palms. “You got a soft spot?”

Your boyfriend scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Let’s just get on with the meeting, I don’t have time to-”

“For me he does.” You teased softly and took one of Kabu’s hands in your own. This only caused the red in his cheeks to return and for him to hide his face in one hand, groaning. 

“You should come to meetings more often, dear!” Melony practically squealed out, Nessa nodding in agreement. 

Raihan laughed loudly then looked towards you. “No, seriously. Calm your man down sometimes.” He grinned.

“Let’s get on with it!” Kabu said loudly and waved his free hand in the air but was still looking away from everyone to avoid his blush being visible. He didn’t take his hand from you though, now he intertwined your fingers. You smiled a little more at the action and squeezed his hand in return. 

“Alright, Alright...” Raihan bit his lip and reached down under the table only to pull out a folder with a playful squeal.

“Let’s change our uniforms!!” There were chuckles throughout the table of people, and you began to feel more comfortable with all of them, simply by holding Kabu’s hand. He turned his head toward you and smiled a little, as to not make it obvious to the rest of them. 

You giggled again and prepared to listen to Raihan’s bright idea of changing the uniforms with Kabu already groaning when he realized what the younger gym leader had said.

***

Piers × Shy Male! Reader (Sfw {mild cursing})

You sat on a wooden crate besides Marnie, your boyfriend's little sister. You two were listening to him sing to a crowd of Team Yell members and other people from different towns.

The silence with Marnie was usual and comfortable.

"Look at my bro go. Always had it in him, singing." She said quietly and leaned slightly towards you so you would hear over the music.

You nodded and smiled a little. Your eyes couldn't come off Piers, you loved watching him sing. You put your knees up to your chin, and rested your arms crossed on them so they would hide your grin and pink cheeks.

"Still not much of a talker?"

"Oh! Uh, yeah- I like talking." You practically whispered. "Sorry, not really-"

"Hey. It's fine. Piers already told me you aren't that out there. I don't mind some silence." Marnie replied with a nicer tone now, since she meant it.

"Thanks." You quietly replied and looked back to the stage before you heard her speak again.

"What do you see in Piers? You can tell me, I'm not the judging type."

"What do I..see in him?"

"Mhm."

You looked to the stage again and watched Piers interact with the crowd. Your grin widened, you almost never see him smile as much as he did on stage unless he was alone with you.

"I see..a sweet guy. He looks all mean and hard but he's really the most gentle guy I know. He has this smile that drives me wild and.." You took your arms away from your face to talk more clear.

"And? Come on, don't be shy." Marnie encouraged and nudged you with her elbow.

"He's real funny. Piers makes me happy when I'm having a really bad day, he's got this thing to him that I can't stop wanting." You could feel your cheeks turning a light shade of red, and you cursed how easy it was for you to blush.

Piers looked towards you and Marnie and winked at you. Some people in the crowd cheered at the action, a few swooned excitedly. You buried your face in your hands and could hear Marnie laugh a little.

"A-Anyways..he doesn't let anything in his past or present get to him. His music..his music! It's so impressive. He's a singing gym leader. The way he manages both..I just-!" You dropped your knees from your face and squealed. "It's Piers!"

Marnie laughed a little at your excitement. "Anything else?"

"He's..SO cute. Gosh, I can't get over it. We've been together for a while and he still makes me all giddy and warm inside when he smiles or- does shit like that!" You spoke about his playful wink, and you stood up on the crate, not even caring about your fear of crowds anymore. "And I love it!"

The crowd was still practically screaming as the song ended. You cupped one of your hands around your mouth, waving the other at Piers frantically.

"Come on Piers! Give us MORE!!" You shouted out while grinning and quickly caught his and some fans' attention. You locked eyes with him, and made a motion to usher him for another song.

He raised his hand to the crowd to quiet them down then spoke. "Alright, hey. Glad you guys are enjoying the show. It was supposed to stop now but, how am I gonna end this when I got my sweetheart over there asking for more?" Piers nodded to you, causing multiple Team Yell members to turn your way, smiling.

You immediately sat back down on the crate next to Marnie and hid your face. "No.." You protested quietly against his teasing. He knew you never liked the acknowledgement, he just liked making you blush.

"So, Team Yell. I want you to be as loud as you can, this next one is for my cutie. Love ya." Piers adjusted the mic as Team Yell began what they did best again: cheering. They turned quickly back to the stage and you peeked up at Piers.

Your eyes' focus never left him, and you listened intently to his voice. A relaxed sigh left you as you felt yourself being caught up in the music. You and Piers continued to make eye contact throughout the rest of the show, as if no one else was there. The moment was like a trance and neither of you were really looking to get out of it.

***

thank you for reading ! requests always open! just might be a slight wait 💕 - 🥝

[uas-fics]

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2

Read on AO3

Title: How to Train A Champion and Keep Your Reputation Intact

Summary: Piers doesn’t want to coach Leon, but the last thing Piers needs is for everyone to know a cool punk like him used to perform in Pokemon Contests! If it means keeping his reputation intact, he’ll begrudgingly teach this ray of sunlight what he knows.

Fandom: Pokemon Sword and Shield

Ships: LeonxPiers | dnnz

Rating: T

Contest Warnings: N/A

Chapter 1: The Early Morning Visitor

----

Of the people Piers expected to be sitting across his kitchen table at eight in the morning, the former champion was not one of them. Leon wasn't even in the top ten, yet here he was, twiddling his thumbs behind a cup of tea with a peppy expression on his face.

Piers was barely a human being this early, yet Leon seemed to have the same energy as a particularly bushy-tailed skwovet.

"You have a nice kitchen," Leon commented, more to fill the silence than an actual compliment.

Piers glanced at the pile of take-out containers on the counter then the singular shoe that hadn't made it to his room with its partner the night before. His kitchen was nothing spectacular, and it didn't need to be. His home was a place to crash or bring a date, not some fancy townhouse. With only he and Marnie there, why should he bother fancying the place up?

"What do you want, Leon?" Piers took a sip of his tea.

Leon wrapped his fingers around his cup but didn't move to drink. If Leon would have preferred coffee, he could have said something before Piers poured him a cup. It'd be a waste to pour it down the drain.

"Well, it's a little silly, but I could use your help with something," Leon explained.

Piers narrowed his eyes.

Leon was the chairman of the Pokemon League. Piers gave his gym over to Marnie after the last Champion tournament. What could he want Piers to help with at this point? The only connection he had with the League was Marnie.

Unless...

"I swear if you're goin' to pull the same shit as Rose did and try to get me to make Marnie move the gym—"

"No, no, nothing like that!" Leon raised his hands, palms facing out. "It has nothing at all to do with Spikemuth or the gym."

"Then what does it have to do with?" Piers leaned back and crossed his arms.

"Uh, well, alright," Leon didn't meet his eyes, "it's about a rumor."

Piers' frown deepened. He always had rumors about him floating about. It came with his persona.

"I heard Piers beat a man to a pulp because he spilled his drink on him." or "I heard Piers took three girls back to his home and made them leave before the sun was even up." or he was a dealer of rare hallucinogenic flowers or that he used his pokemon to break into Rose's office and peed in a potted plant behind his desk.

There was rarely any truth to the rumors. He didn't care to squash them. He was a dark-type trainer, having everyone thinking he was a bigger badass than he already was could not hurt his reputation.

"C'mon, mate, aren't you a little old to be listenin' to rumors?" Piers cocked an eyebrow.

"It's not a bad rumor.”

"What's the rumor then?"

"Ah, well, I heard," He paused to clear his throat, "that you, ah, that you competed in pokemon contests when you were younger—and that you won."

Piers barely kept his face deadpan.

Where had Leon heard that? Those contests happened just before posting on the internet boomed, so it wasn't like the contests were live-streamed and archived. The only video that he knew existed of his contest days hid in a box in the back of a closet. Marnie captured it when she could barely see over the railings at the stadiums. Even then, the video quality was terrible and Marnie kept moving the camera around. He looked like a black and white blob in them.

He forced himself to calm down. He could easily deny this rumor. No one would believe he, Piers, former Spikemuth gym leader, head of Team Yell, the fierce trainer of powerful dark-types, would ever compete in a pokemon contest.

"Where did you hear that?" Piers reached for his tea just to have something in his hands.

What credibility did this rumor spreader have? Probably none. Denying this would be easy.

"Oh, I heard your sister mention it."

Piers nearly dropped his cup.

Shit.

He could not deny this, not without putting Marnie's credibility on the line. She was still a new gym leader. The last thing she needed was the chairman thinking she was a gossip.

He hissed out a breath. "Oh, did she?"

"Yeah, she was talking to Opal while Bede filled out some papers," Leon told him. "She said she remembered you used to be good at pokemon contests. That's why I'm here."

"So what?" Piers spat. "It isn't illegal, now is it?"

Why couldn't this have been about Malamar scaring passers-by on Route 7 when he was bored? Why could this have been about the rave Piers helped throw in an abandoned mine last month? Why could it have been about pissing in the potted plant? Why couldn't this have been about anything else?!

Leon frowned. "Of course not—"

"Then why are you askin' me about it?"

"Because I wanted your help to win one."

Piers' mouth gaped. Did he hear that right? Leon, the former champion, one of the strongest pokemon trainers in all of Galar, wanted to enter a pokemon contest.

He stuck a finger in his ear and twisted it.

"Sorry, say that again. I must have somethin' in my ear. I didn't just hear you ask for help in a pokemon contest."

"That is what I asked." Leon beamed. "There is one in Ballonlea in two weeks and I want to enter, but I don't know the first thing about them. If you know, you could help me—if you want to, that is."

"Why?" Piers held back from pinching himself. How was this not a dream? Maybe he was messing with hallucinogenic flowers after all.

Reaching into his pocket, Leon took out a folded piece of lavender paper. He laid it flat on the table, smoothing it with the side of his hand, before pushing it over. The faint scent of roses wafted from it.

"All are invited to the first Bellonlea Pokemon Contest!" It read in a flowing, elegant font. "Coordinators of all ages and skill levels are invited to the Bellonlea Stadium to participate in a Pokemon Contest. Please contact the Bellonlean Ladies' Society for more details and how to enter."

"Was this ‘ppose to explain somethin'?" Piers pushed the flyer back. "Why do you want to win a contest?"

"That prize, of course!" Leon took his phone from his pocket. He scrolled a moment then turned the screen to Piers.

A picture of a red and white hat with a black logo stared back. It honestly looked like something an overly-excited ten-year-old would win from a cereal box drawing.

"It's a hat." Piers peered over the top of the phone to look at the hat Leon already had on.

"It's not just a hat. It's a limited edition!" Leon pulled his phone back. "I had one when I was a little kid, but I lost it to an angry corvisquire. The first place in the beginner contest wins it."

"And you can't just, you know, buy one for yourself?" He rolled his hand. "I know you have sponsorships out your ass." Piers looked down pointedly at his Spikemuth Chamber of Commerce shirt for emphasis.

Leon shrugged. "What fun is that?"

Piers downed half his drink in one go. The burn on his throat reassured him he wasn't dreaming.

"Piers?" Leon leaned over the table, his face alight with a smile. "Can't I talk you into helping me out? Please? I promise to owe you one after this."

Piers groaned. What choice did he have? He couldn't deny it without hurting Marnie's reputation. Their reputation used to be the only valuable he and Marnie had to their names, besides each other. Lying to Leon to save his own skin was not an option.

"Yeah, yeah, alright." Piers raised his hands in defeat. "Fine. I'll do it, but," he held a finger up in Leon's face, "you have to swear on your life that you won't tell a soul about it. I don't need anyone thinkin’ I ever put any of my pokemon in a frilly suit or made them dance around like pretty ballerinas or some shit."

Leon nearly jumped across the table. He put his hands on Piers' shoulders and squeezed a little too hard.

"Thanks a million for this!" He hopped up. "Where should we train? I think I understand the rules, but maybe we should go over the rules first? Or outfit—"

"Tomorrow." Piers cut him off. "We'll start tomorrow."

Leon's face fell like a growlithe that just had his bone taken from him. Piers held his sad gaze. Marnie's morpoko did the same pout when she wanted something, and Piers knew better than to give in.

If Leon still wanted to learn how to be a coordinator, he had to prove himself first. A day would be enough time for Piers to think up obstacles to make Leon forget about the silly notion. Contests, despite the stereotype, were hard work. While beginner contests weren't all that complicated, Piers didn't mind sprinkling in some of the more difficult to grasp bits from the higher tiers. With any luck that would confuse Leon right out of the idea and out of Piers' life.

Leon took a breath. He pulled his hands from Piers and squared his shoulders.

"I'll meet you back here at eight sharp tomorrow and then we can get started."

"No. You'll meet me outside Spikemuth at noon."

"Oh, well, alright. It'll be a champ—" Leon caught himself from using his old catchphrase. "It'll be a fun time."

"That's one way to think of it," Piers muttered, feeling less and less enthused at the arrangement by the second.

----

True to his word, Leon stood outside the front gate of Spikemuth at noon on the dot. He perked up when he saw Piers and jumped in front of him.

"Good afternoon, Teacher Piers."

He winked.

Piers wrinkled his nose.

"Call me that again, and I'm callin' this off."

Leon laughed nervously. "Sorry." He whistled. "Sooooo, what should I learn first? How to use music? Or pose? I'm already pretty good at that."

"How about the rules?"

Piers waved him to follow down the road towards the Spikemuth Tunnel. People were less likely to eavesdrop on them if they walked.

"Alright, rules. I know there are two rounds, and each trainer uses only one pokemon."

"Coordinator," Piers corrected sharply.

He promised to teach, but he didn't promise to be entirely pleasant while doing it.

"Yeah. There are two rounds. The first round is the Performance Stage. You show off your pokemon's appeal with a choreographed set of moves. The judges will assign points based on how well the performance fits into particular categories."

Piers began to ramble on about the different move categories as if the contest in Bellonlea would be so complicated. Beginner contests weren't judged by the five categories individually like higher-ranked contests.

Back when Galar still had a contest circuit, the people in beginner contests were kids with weak pokemon that might only know two or three moves. A performance with a cool move first and a cute move next wouldn't be judged as harshly as the first rank contest would.

However, Leon didn't need to know that. If he thought that the category system was complicated and—in Piers' humble opinion—limited and stupid, maybe he would back out.

"And that's all there is to the appeals rules." Piers looked at Leon, expecting him to be confused and dejected at the long-winded explanation, but instead found him holding onto every word.

"Well, that doesn't seem too hard." He nodded. "It's just putting on a show in a time limit with your partner. Easy."

"We'll see how easy you think it is when you're doing it." Piers stood under a shade tree. "The next round is the harder one. It's the battle round."

"Battle? I thought contests were for show, not for fighting."

Piers cackled at the genuine confusion on Leon's face. Of course, he would think that. That silly stereotype about contests never seemed to die, did it? Coordinators didn't just train their pokemon to teach them new moves. Their partner had to be strong to last the battles against one another. Even though Piers was a gym leader when he did contests, he still struggled against the stronger opponents.

He idly grabbed a lower branch and bent it down. If he didn’t slouch, Piers was tall enough that he could just about reach into the pokemon nest a few branches up with relative ease.

"You would think that, wouldn't you?" He opened his hand.

The branch whipped up and hit the branch the nest was on. The skwovet in the nest jumped with a squeak. Its sudden movement knocked a sitrus berry over the side.

"In the second round, two coordinators battle to remove points from the opponent, usin' moves that fall into the contest categories." He snatched the sitrus berry out of the air.

The skwovet glared at Piers. Piers smirked at it before wiping the berry on his shirt. The pokemon chattered and hurried higher into the tree.

Leon frowned at Piers' interaction with the skwovet. Piers met his gaze, daring him to comment on it.

Leon cleared his throat. "That wasn't necessary."

"It was an accident."

Leon pursed his lips in doubt but didn't argue. Instead, he said, "So it's a battle, but it's an entertaining battle. I can do that."

Around a bite of berry, Piers shrugged, "It's a five-minute battle, but the point of the battle isn't to knock out your opponent with the first move. No one needs to faint. It's to show that your pokemon is better than theirs."

Piers half-expected Leon to go on about how no pokemon was better than another, instead, Leon stroked his chin in thought. Maybe Leon realized that a contest wouldn't be as fun as he thought and wanted to give up on the idea.

The branches above shook and the skwovet chattered. A leppa berry slammed into the ground near Piers' boot. The skwovet, arm loaded with unripe leppa berries, held up another. It threw it. Piers took a step to the side.

"Nice try," he mocked. The skwovet's fur bristled. It tossed down the rest of its armful and missed every time. With a huff, it stomped back towards its nest to rustle through its hoard.

"Alright. I think I can handle this," Leon said, moving into Piers' personal space and lifting his arm over Piers' head, "with your help."

Grinning, he stepped back then opened his fist to present an oran berry. The skwovet cried out in frustration. Piers rubbed the top of his head. He glanced up at the wild pokemon once more before walking away from the tree, with Leon in tow. It was best not to test his luck anymore. The skwovet might use a move on him and the last thing he wanted was to spend the night picking slobbery bullet seeds out of his hair.

The skwovet angrily chattered but seemed to give up. It hurried down the tree to gather its berries. Leon crouched to roll the oran berry over. The skwovet eyed him but snatched the berry up to shove into its cheeks anyway.

Piers raised an eyebrow. Maybe this training wouldn't be as bad as he thought.

----

The training area outside Spikemuth wasn't much, just a patch of barren earth that trainers from Spikemuth would come to battle when they didn't feel like using the gym. Currently, the only souls there were Piers and Leon. Since Marnie took over as gym leader, the younger trainers of the city moved their training back to the gym.

"They didn't want to come when you were the gym leader. They think you're scary," Marnie had explained. "Dunno why though. You're about as scary as a teddisuara."

Piers crossed his arms. "Do you know which pokemon you're goin' use? These are Hoenn rules, so you can only use one."

Leon tapped the pokeballs at his belt. "I'm not sure. I didn't think I could go in with Charizard, so I didn't bring him with me."

"Why not Charizard?"

"Everyone knows what my Charizard looks like," Leon explained. "And I don't think I can pretend not to be me if I use him."

Piers' brows furrowed. What in the world was he talking about?

Upon seeing Piers' expression, Leon chuckled to himself.

"I guess I forgot to tell you." He put his hands on his hips and set his feet a shoulder-width apart. "I'm going to do this contest in disguise."

The hope Piers just acquired vanished.

"You're what?"

"I'm going in disguise," He repeated. "I was the champion, and now I'm chairman. That would give me an unfair advantage, don't you think?"

Piers pinched the bridge of his nose. Of course, Leon would want to win on a level playing field. The Bellonean Ladies' Society would probably just give him the stupid hat if he promised to simply show up and bring more attention to the event. If he did that, Piers could have stayed at home and lazed about, but, noooo, Leon had to win his silly hat fair and square.

"How do you plan to do that?"

"Well, I hoped you could help me with that, too." Leon pointed to his face. "I've seen your stage makeup, and you're talented. I bet you could make me look like a different person."

Piers hated that he couldn't argue with that. Not long after he decided to follow his dream of being a punk star, one of the gym trainers offered to teach him the basics of cosmetics. Once he had the basics down, it only took a year of using his pokemon, friends, and Marnie as test subjects for him to perfect his art.

He could easily make Leon's face look different enough: soften his cheekbones, maybe a few freckles, pull his bangs back, color contacts, and glasses...Leon would look good in glasses, even if it meant hiding his natural eye color...

Piers shook his head. He hadn't agreed to anything but training for the contest. He was not giving Leon a makeover like they were preteens at a slumber party.

Leon pursed his lips. "It would be pointless if I won because of who I am. That wouldn't be fair to the other train—coordinators."

"No. Figure that out yourself."

Leon sighed, his shoulders slumped. He muttered under his breath, something Piers couldn't make out. Finally, he straightened and shrugged.

"You know, I have to approve the budgets for each gym provided by the league," he lifted one finger and wagged it as he continued, "and wouldn't it be nice if Spikemuth got a little extra in their budget so their new gym leader could fix up her gym stadium? I know the Spikemuth Chamber of Commerce can't always give too much to the gym, and it needs a few repairs."

Piers' mouth fell a gape. Did Leon just try to bribe him through his sister? He had to admit, he was impressed. It wasn't the best bribery offer he'd ever been given, but considering whom the offer came from and what Marnie would get in return, he decided to give in.

"Make sure the gym gets enough to replace the crumplin’ stadium walls, and I'll do it." Piers stuck out his hand.

Leon took the offered hand in his and shook once. "I knew you'd have a change of heart."

Piers yanked his hand back. "Change of heart my ass. Just send out your pokemon."

With a nod, Leon let out each of his pokemon in turn: Aegislash, Haxorus, Dragapult, Mr. Rime, Seismatoad, then Rhyperior. True to his word, he hadn't brought his ace pokemon with him. Like a well-oiled machine, they quickly lined up and turned their full attention to their trainer.

Pride rolled off Leon as he gazed at his team. Up until last year, this team was undefeated. Leon kept them at their best and even Piers could call that admirable.

"Alright everyone, listen here." Leon clapped his hands as if any of them didn't have their eyes on him. "Remember how I said we were going to enter a contest? Well, only one of you can enter it with me."

Leon's Mr. Rime leaned on his cane and Aegislash shifted his shield, though the other pokemon didn't react one way or another to the news.

"Contests aren't like normal battling. They're a performance." Leon gestured to Piers. "Piers is going to help pick the best one of you for the contest."

Piers snorted. "Oh, didn't I tell you? I'm not assessin' your team."

Leon's hand dropped to his side. He tilted his head.

"You're not?"

"No."

Piers took out the only pokeball he had on him. With a flick of the wrist, he released his own contest partner. The stench of rotten eggs filled the air. Everyone but Piers jerked back to cover their noses.

Skuntank shook himself out. He stretched his front paws forward then pulled the rest of his body up like a cat in a sunbeam. Piers crouched down and patted his partner between the ears.

"Skuntank here won nearly every contest he entered," Piers explained. "He knows more about them than even I do, I'd say. Even keeps track of the Sinnoh contests online. If anyone can give this team a proper assessment, it'll be him."

Skuntank lifted his head proudly then stomped forward. He stalked up, down, and around the line, eyeing each pokemon. He stopped in front of Haxorus, narrowed his eyes, and rumbled. Haxorus shuffled nervously. She looked to her team members then back at Skuntank. Siesmatoad shrugged, and Dragapult looked away.

Satisfied, Skuntank trotted back to Piers. He took a breath and stated something to the pokemon, loud and clear.

The other pokemon were taken aback. They muttered amongst themselves, all except Mr. Rime and Aegislash. With his chest puffed out, Mr. Rime strode forward. A moment later, Aegislash floated next to him. The rest of the team remained still.

"That's the two to choose from," Piers said. To the other members of Leon's team, he continued, "You can go over there. Take a rest why don't you?" He jabbed his thumb towards the grass at the side of the training area.

Without missing a beat, Dragapult floated away, soon followed by Siesmatoad, Haxorus, and Rhyperior.

Leon gasped. "That's amazing. How does Skuntank know?"

It wasn't as if Skuntank could smell contest talent on Mr. Rime and Aegislash. It just so happened that when Skuntank asked, Mr. Rime and Aegislash wanted to enter a contest. The rest weren't interested.

Ignoring Leon's question, Piers asked, "How do you want to decide between these two."

Leon blinked. "Isn't that what Skuntank is here for?"

With a thump, Skuntank flopped to the ground, paws under his chin, and shut his eyes.

"He's filled his quota." Piers said. "This is your job, Mr. Chairman."

Leon stroked his chin. He crouched down between his pokemon. Mr. Rime tapped his feet and spun his cane. Leon lifted his eyebrows at the impromptu performance. Not to be outdone, Aegislash held his shield up and spun it on the end of his arm. He tossed the shield then expertly caught it.

Mr. Rime danced backward. He spun in a circle, holding his cane up to the sky. From the tip of the cane, snow flurried around him, glittering like tiny diamonds.

Aegislash, upon seeing Leon's dazzled expression at Mr. Rime's performance, clanged his shield and blade together. With his trainer's attention back on him, Aegislash whipped his arm out. The shield rolled out on its side into the middle of the battle area. In the blink of an eye, Aegislash descended into his shadow. Using shadow sleek, he hurried in front of the shield.

Aegislash burst from the ground, large and dark. He whipped the shield up. the sun glinted off the polished metal. Contrasted against Aegislash's dark form, the shining shield appeared like a bright star in the night sky.

Leon's mouth fell a gape. "Wow, I didn't know you could do that, Aegislash."

Aegislash returned to his normal appearance and smugly shurgged. Mr. Rime stomped his foot in frustration. He put his fingers to his mouth and whistled for Leon to look at him. Once again, his cane spun. Around him, aurous panes of light screen appeared then frosted over. Mr. Rime stopped and raised his arms. The light screen panes shot up and burst like fireworks.

Aegislash bristled. His grip on his shield tightened and his single eye narrowed. Mr. Rime sneered at him as Leon carefully picked up the frozen light screen fragments to examine.

Piers clapped his hands once. "Don't you lot make this a battle." To Leon, he ordered, "You need to pick one."

Leon stood. "But they're both really talented."

From behind them, Skuntank snorted. Aegislash and Mr. Rime turned their glares from each other to the dark-type.

Piers agreed with Leon, even if his pokemon didn't, but leaving those two to keep one-upping each other wouldn't end well. Leon had to pick a partner for the contest, even if it would hurt someone's feelings.

Leon thought on his choice then slumped forward with a sigh. He rummaged in his pocket and held up a coin.

"I can't decide," he admitted. "Heads for Mr. Rime and tails for Aegislash."

He flicked the coin into the air. Like the oran berry before, he caught it from the air. With a hard smack that made the top of Pier's hand hurt, Leon slapped it on the top of his hand. Aegislash and Mr. Rime stood tense as Leon slowly lifted his hand.

"Heads."

Mr. Rime jumped up with joy. Aegislash dropped his shield to the ground with a thud. Leon reached out to comfort him, but Aegislash waved him away. Dragging his shield through the dirt, he trudged towards the other pokemon.

Skuntank lumbered back to his feet. He intercepted Aegislash. Skuntank rumbled at Aegislash. He silently mulled over what Skuntank said then lifted his shield from the ground.

In a voice like clashing metal, Aegislash yelled at Mr. Rime. Mr. Rime stumbled in his tap dancing, looking shocked at what his teammate said. Skuntank cackled, slapping the ground with his paw. With his mood improved considerably, Aegislash led Skuntank away to join the other pokemon.

----

Mr. Rime was a showman. Even with the occasional heckle from Skuntank, he and Leon managed to cobble together the start of an alright appeal round. After Piers finally admitted that the move categories meant shit all for the beginner contests, Leon decided to make use of what Mr. Rime already presented: sparkling snow and unique uses of psychic power.

Piers, for his part, offered critique when he saw a move that might be too showy or too dull, but mostly left Leon to his own devices. After all, Leon was the one entering, not him.

A thunderbolt tore through an icy column, shattering it. A glow of psychic power protected some of the ice from the heat. When the mist cleared, what remained was the carving of the Champion's logo.

Leon pumped his fist. "There we go!"

Skuntank muttered something to Aegislash, who replied in agreement. Though he hadn't been as loud in his criticism as Skuntank, Aegislash made snide remarks for every misstep.

Piers had more fun watching Skuntank and Aegislash than Leon and Mr. Rime, honestly.

As the heat both from the thunderbolts and the day wore on, Piers was thankful he choose to sit under the shade instead of directly interact with Leon.

Though on the field, he would have had a better view.

Every time Leon raised his shirt to wipe the sweat from his brow, Piers turned his attention towards him. Rehain once mentioned Leon weight trained and exercised to stay as fit as his team, and Piers could tell. He stared at the well-formed muscles usually hidden under Leon’s shirt several times before finally being caught.

“Is something wrong? Is this too much?” Leon gestured to Mr. Rime’s newest ice sculpture.

Piers made up a suggestion to save himself the embarrassment.

“It’s fine, but you’re rushin’. Slow down, if you know how to do that,” Piers replied, turning his head to hide his pink cheeks against his shoulder.

“Oh, alright.” Leon nodded. “Mr. Rime, take a few more seconds before calling down the thunderbolt!”

Stuntank chuckled and Piers sent him a glare.

“Shut up,” he hissed, earning another laugh from Stuntank.

Something pulled at Piers' sleeve. One of Dragapult's dreepy chewed on his jacket. When Piers acknowledged it, it flew in a circle trying to get him to play with it. It went to nip at the end of one of his ponytails.

Dragapult sighed and wrapped his tail around the dreepy to pull it back. He gave Piers an apologetic look.

The rest of Leon's team wasn't doing much better. They were bored out of their minds.

Siesmatoad ripped a clump of grass from the ground and tossed it in her mouth. Rhyperior and Haxorus took turns stabbing leaves through their horns or tusks, seeing who could make the biggest hole without tearing the leaf in half.

Before Leon and Mr. Rime could start again, Piers called, "That's enough for today."

He stood and put his hands on his lower back to stretch. Skuntank grumbled but got to his paws.

"Well, if you say so." Leon came over to the crowd of pokemon with Mr. Rime. "Everyone ready?"

Seismatoad spat out the grass clump, nearly hitting Rhyperior's foot. Dragapult cooed and the rest of his dreepy hoard hurried out of the tall grass. Aegislash refused to look at Mr. Rime, instead of staying close to Stuntank. Haxorus bent forward and pressed the button on her pokeball with her mouth scythe, returning herself.

When Leon took out Aegislash's ball, Piers put a hand on his wrist.

"Before you return him, can I ask you a favor?"

Leon raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"Aegislash and Skuntank seem to be havin' fun together. Do you think Aegislash could come back with me for tonight?" Piers asked. Skuntank stamped a foot and wheezed in approval.

Leon lowered Aegislash's pokeball. He bent down so he looked Aegislash in his singular eye.

"Do you want to have a slumber party with Skuntank at Spikemuth?" He spoke like a parent to a child. Mr. Rime snickered. Stuntank kicked sand at him with a short growl.

Piers pulled the bill of Leon's hat down over his eyes.

"Aegislash is probably older than both of us combined," he reminded. "Don't call it a slumber party."

Leon pushed his hat up and wrinkled his brow. Realization crossed his face.

"Ah." He asked Aegislash, "Do you want to have a date with Skuntank at Spikemuth?"

Piers went to pull Leon's hat clean off, but Aegislash took hold of the bill and pulled until it completely covered Leon's face with the bill touching his chin. He rolled his eye and shrugged towards Skuntank. Skuntank snickered and shook his head back in reply.

Leon laughed, taking the hat into his lap. "I'm joking. I'm joking. Sorry." He put a hand on Aegislash's shoulder. "Really, if you want to hang out with Skuntank for the night, you can." He smiled sincerely.

Aegislash paused, eyed his trainer, then seemed to sigh. He took the hat from Leon's hands and set it on his head. He patted his head, like a parent pacifying a child. Aegislash floated by him towards Skuntank.

-----

“Listen up.”

Piers whistled to the crowd of dark-type pokemon around the Spikemuth stadium. All heads turned towards him and the two pokemon by his side.

“This is Aegislash. He’s part of Chairman Leon’s team.” Piers nodded to Aegislash. “He’s visitin' for the night, so don’t be an asshole.”

He sent a pointed look at Malamar, who crossed his tentacles. Malamar only recently got out of trouble for scaring people around Spikemuth. Neither he nor Marnie needed Aegislash going back to Leon traumatized from Malamar's pranks.

The gym pokemon muttered and mumbled to themselves, eyeing Aegislash suspiciously.

Going well so far.

No one jumped to attack or called out an obscenity towards the new pokemon. Already it was going better when Raihan brought his pokemon over to play while he and Piers visited. Not one sucker punch to the back.

Marnie’s Grimsnarl picked up the toy ball and held it protectively. Both scrafty scooted to shield their tower of cards. Obstagoon took his nose out of a bag of crisps for a moment before shoving it right back in. Liepard yawned, purposely exposing her fangs, before laying her head on Toxicroak’s lap. Toxitricity peeked an eye open from his corner then continued strumming his chest. Morpeko jumped off the stage and scurried over to Aegislash and Skuntank.

She greeted them. Skuntank wheezed to her as Aegislash lifted his shield in a hello. Morpeko spoke with Aegislash a moment before turning to the rest of the pokemon. She took a deep breath and shouted to them her approval.

Malamar snorted but uncrossed his tentacles. Grimsnarl slowly took the ball back out. Neither scrafty moved from their hard work. Toxitricity waved idly. Liepard and Toxicroak and Obstagoon didn’t acknowledge the announcement, the former two napping and the latter still stuffing his maw.

Skuntank jerked his head towards Toxitricity's corner of the gym. Aegislash and Morpeko followed after. Grimsnarl and Malamar watched them closely.

Marnie took a bite of her hamburger. Around it, she asked, “Is that really Leon’s aegislash?”

Piers open the bag from Bob’s Your Uncle to dig out his order. “He is. He and Leon’s Mr. Rime got into a fight, and Aegislash wanted to be away.”

“So Leon asked you?” She swallowed.

Piers thought on his feet. “Dark and ghost types are pretty close when you get down to it. Born of night and the deepness of the soul and all that.”

“Shouldn’t he have asked Allister?”

Piers took a bite of his burger and slowly chewed. He swallowed and said, “Kid must have been busy. He’s still got school to go— just like you.” Piers smirked, leaning over. “And how’s that school work going, little sis?”

Marnie blushed. She huffed, snatched the bag from Piers, then marched to the stage at the other end of the stadium.

Even being a gym leader, Marnie still had to go to school like every other kid her age. Since she was still learning to juggle gym leader duties and school, Marnie fell behind in her classes and had to take extra lessons.

Piers had been the same when he took over the gym, but he usually skipped after-school lessons. She complained about the lessons often, and Piers offered an understanding ear.

He wasn’t above using this information against her, though.

With long strides, he followed his sister. He overtook her quickly. Holding his burger between his teeth, Piers hopped onto the stage and sat, his toes brushing the ground. Marnie walked up the steps to sit near him. She purposefully set the bag with their food on the side farthest away from Piers. He leaned across her to fish his chips out of the bag.

They sat in companionable silence, watching the pokemon as they ate their fast food.

When Marnie’s scrafty turned to open another pack of cards for their tower, Malamar raised a tentacle glowing in psychic power. With both scrafty backs to it, a card from the middle of the tower pulled itself out.

Piers’ scrafty gasped and tried to hold the wobbling tower together, but only managed to save the top two cards from falling. As the scrafty started to argue, Grimsnarl went to the wooden crate next to the stage. She sat her ball inside and began to dig through the pokemon toys until she found another ball. This ball was worn and patched up. She wandered over to Malamar to talk.

Skuntank, Toxtricity, and Aegislash lounged against one of the crumbling stadium walls as Morpeko chewed on a berry. They made friendly conversation until Grimsnarl and Malamar came over. Grimsnarl raised her ball.

Skuntank shrugged and spoke to Aegislash. Malamar sneered at Aegislash. Aegislash rolled his eye and pushed himself up. Skuntank slowly lumbered to his feet. Toxtricity shook his head. Morpeko tossed her berry up and caught it in her mouth before standing as well.

Piers nudged Marnie and pointed at the pokemon as they walked to the middle of the stadium.

Grimsnarl tossed the ball and hit it to Skuntank. Skuntank bopped it with his head. The ball dropped towards Aegislash. Aegislash raised an arm to hit it, but Malamar’s tentacle shot out and smacked the ball up. Aegislash snapped something at Malamar, who ignored him.

Piers chuckled to himself as the game of hot potato continued. Every time the ball neared Aegislash, Malamar or Grimsnarl made sure to hit it before he could. Of course, they were testing him. Being on the former champion’s team wasn’t enough to prove Aegislash worthy, even with Stuntank and Morpeko's approval.

Soon Aegislash had enough. When Malamar went to hit the ball for himself, Aegislash shadow sleeked behind him. He burst from the ground and slapped the ball towards Grimsnarl. The attack on her friend took Grimsnarl by surprise. She stumbled back trying to hit the ball but missed. For the first time since the game started, the ball bounced against the floor.

Skuntank cackled. Morpeko chased after the ball. Malamar stared at Aegislash, who held his ground.

Marnie started to push off the stage to break up the fight, but Piers put a hand out to stop her.

After a few tense heartbeats, Malamar coughed a laugh. He covered his beak and shook his head. Grimsnarl took the ball back from Morpeko. Seeing the newfound respect for Aegislash from Malamar, she went back over to the box to switch the worn, old ball, for a nicer ball with a pink and cream polka-dot pattern.

Marnie let out a breath. Piers tossed a chip in his mouth.

He knew things would work out well. Like his trainer, Aegislash was endearing in his determination.

He wondered what Leon was doing while the Spikemuth pokemon played. As late as it was, he was probably home, or maybe he was training with Mr. Rime for the contest. Piers could almost see him now working with Mr. Rime to pose in time with some pop song.

Leon worked hard for what he wanted. It's no wonder he became champ so young and held the title for nearly a decade. If Piers had that kind of drive, he wouldn’t have left Spikemuth fall into disrepair as he did.

He bet he could ask Leon to help him fix up Spikemuth, and not just the gym. The outside walls needed the myriad of penises and breasts painted over. He could do it, but it would be better with some company, particularly with company that had the energy of a sugar-high puppy. Enjoying the outside air, just talking and working—That would be fun. Piers would be willing to wake up early for that.

Piers reached into his chip container absentmindedly but found nothing but salt. He jerked out of his thoughts to see his last two chips disappear—one into Morpeko’s mouth and one into Marnie’s.

“The hell?” He held his hands out towards the empty container.

“Do you have a new girlfriend?” She asked bluntly.

Piers choked on his tongue. “What?” He shook his head. “No! Why would you think that?”

“A boyfriend? A non-binary friend?”

“No,” Piers assured. “I don’t have anyone.”

“Huh.” Marnie scratched Morpeko behind the ears. “You had that look on your face.”

“Look?” Piers’ stomach clenched as he asked, “What look?”

“That look.” Marnie pulled her pokemon to her lap. “The one you get before Morpeko and me find some gushy love song folded up on the living room floor. It happens every time.”

Piers’ ears grew hot. Twice, Marnie found his secret love songs twice. For that reason, he didn’t even write them on scrap paper anymore but in a nondescript notebook in his dresser drawer—which he hadn’t pulled out since he broke up with an ex gym trainer more than a year ago.

Morpeko stuck her tongue out in disgust at finding another love song. She clambered over Marnie’s arms to the chips container. Morpeko licked her paw, dabbed it in the leftover salt, and cleaned her paw before hopping off the stage to rejoin the game.

“I don’t have a look like that.”

“Yes, you do,” Marnie replied in a sing-song voice. “You get this far away look on your face and a little, tiny smile like you’re thinkin' of somethin’ soft. I only see it when you’re datin’ someone or,” her eyes widen in realization, “you gotta crush.”

Piers’ stomach unclenched and fell to his boots.

“You’ve got a crush, dotcha?” His little sister pried. “Who is it? Do they like you back? Can they like you back? Are they a trainer? What’s their pokemon team? Do you see them often?”

Piers' head spun, blurring the rest of Marnie’s inquiries.

No way. He was too old for crushes, for one thing. For two, if Marnie’s theory held any water, then his ‘crush’ would be Leon.

That wasn’t possible.

Sure, he admired Leon’s strength and his determination. His kindness towards pokemon and others was sweet if a little goody-two-shoes. He was much more clever than he first appeared. His athletic frame stole Piers' attention and he wouldn't mind leaning up against that strength-trained chest.

Oh. Arceus. No.

Piers’ face reddened as he cataloged his thoughts. He did have a crush. He had a crush on Leon. Leon was the Chairman of the League. Not only that, he was and still is the poster child for preppy, sporty trainers everywhere. Leon was the goal children were taught to chase if they wanted to compete.

Only the trainers from Team Yell ever wanted to be anything like Piers, a badass who sang to his own song, not the one society dictated.

Sponsors flocked to Leon like mothim to a flame for his perfect public persona.

Only the Spikemuth Chamber of Commerce ever sponsored Piers, and that’s only because they always sponsored the gym leader.

Leon was the light that the world idolized.

He was the darkness that fought back to prove to those that the shadows were protective and safe for people like him. He was a fierce dark-type trainer. He sang punk rock. He had a band of miscreants who would follow his every order.

He could not have a crush on Leon.

Yet, he did.

What if people found out? Arceus, if news got around he wanted some of Leon’s finely toned ass—

“Piers?” Marnie poked his cheek.

He jumped, losing his balance and tumbling off the stage.

At the thud of his fall, the pokemon stopped their game. Obstagoon tossed his crisps bag aside to barrel towards his trainer. He skidded to his knees, dramatically throwing his claws up and crying out as if Piers fell off a ten-story building.

Marnie hopped down. Crouching, she asked, “Did you break your face?”

Piers groaned loudly. “Dark void, open up and swallow me. I no longer want to live in this cruel world that would play my heart like a harp string and snap it with its sick, twisted irony.”

Once Piers went on with his dramatic monologue, the pokemon returned to their games, confident Piers was fine. Obstagoon patted the back of Piers’ head reassuringly.

Marnie crouched next to him. “Is the person you have a crush on that bad? Are they married or,” she lowered her voice, “old?”

“We’re the same age.” Piers didn’t lift his head from the ground. “He’s single as far as I know.”

Marnie poked his cheek. “So what’s the matter? Are you too scared to ask him out?”

“No. It’s worse than that.” Piers crawled into Obstagoon’s lap and leaned his back against the warm, somewhat smelly, fur. Obstagoon wrapped him in a hug. He’d seen his trainer confused and in a pansexual punk panic before. Piers needed all the comfort Obstagoon could give him.

Marnie tucked her legs under her and waited expectantly for Piers to clarify.

He sighed, slumping farther down Obstagoon’s lap. Obstagoon’s arm fur tickled his nose as he buried his face in it.

“I can’t ask him out,” Piers muttered. “He’s my opposite.”

“Opposite?” Marnie echoed.

“Opposite,” Piers repeated. He paused, then said, “I’m punk. He does ballet. What more can I say?”

Her brows furrowed. She opened her mouth, then shut it, opened, shut, then tilted her head with one eyebrow raised.

"He dances?”

Piers rolled his head away. “You kids have no culture.” He sighed. “He’s the kind of person every kid wants to be like. I’m the kind of person kids stop comin’ to community gyms to train because of.”

Marnie hit her fist into her palm. “Oh, I get it. You don’t want to drag down his rep ‘cause people think you’re a lazy delinquent.”

“Hey!” Piers bolted up, right into Obstagoon’s hanging tongue. He wiped the slobber off his forehead with his forearm. He jabbed a finger at Marnie.

“It’s the other way around. He’d pull mine up from a mysterious, cool rebel rocker.”

He cringed at himself. Out loud it sounded childish. What was he, a schoolboy?

Piers flopped back against Obstagoon, grabbed Obstagoon’s arm, and dropped it over his face.

“Suffocate me. Please. I need to die to escape this torment.”

With a humph, Marnie wrapped her arms around Obstagoon’s thick forearm and lifted. She looked down at her brother with a frown.

“That’s it?” She shook her head. “That’s sad.”

“You’re a kid. You don’t understand.” Piers countered, trying to pull Obstagoon’s arm back over his face.

Marnie wrinkled her nose and tugged against Piers’ attempts.

“I am not.” She dug her feet into the ground. “It is sad. If you’re a ‘mysterious, cool, rebel rocker,’ why should you care what anyone thinks?”

Piers dropped his hands to his lap.

Without the opposing force against her, Marnie fell backward, still clinging to Obstagoon’s arm. Instead of letting her fall, Obstagoon lifted his arm, leaving her hanging off the ground. He carefully lowered her, but she kept his arm pressed against her chest.

Piers pushed himself up to his feet. He patted the back of his shirt, throwing black and white fur into the air. Without a word, he headed to the stage and picked up the trash from their food.

“Piers?” Marnie hugged Obstagoon’s arm to her chest. “Are you ok? I didn’t break you, did I?”

Piers turned. “Yeah. Just fine.” He walked back, bag in hand. A smile spread across his face as he reached up and ruffled her hair.

“You’re right. I was being the opposite of cool.” He admitted, prying her hands off Obstagoon's arm. “Thanks for reminding me.”

Marnie was right. He was the cool, fierce master of dark-type pokemon. He became one of the strongest trainers in all of Galar without resorting to Dynamax in a pinch.

Why the hell should he give a flying ratata’s ass about what other people think about who he wants to make out with?

He still didn’t want people knowing about his contest days. The stereotype of elitist snob coordinators still hung too closely to contests. The attraction could excuse Leon, but he didn't have a good enough excuse for dressing skuntank in a tophat and glittery, purple bow tie when he was still a stunky yet. Maybe if the contest scene grew a little, he could try again, but until then best keeping that particular secret under wraps.

Marnie shrugged, aloof. “It’s whatever. Someone needs to help you keep your head spun the right way around. I'm the only one qualified for it.”

“What would I do without you?” Piers chuckled.

“Die, probably,” Marnie replied. “So can you ask this guy out? Does he like you at all?”

Piers shrugged.

He didn’t know if Leon liked men. As far as he could remember, Leon never dated anyone of any gender. Leon had always been laser-focused on training and being the strongest trainer in Galar.

But if he did like men, would he be interested in Piers? He didn't know, but given how much time they’d be spending together training for the contest, maybe he could figure it out.

Marnie, her ponytails somewhat righted, asked, “If you need help, Gloria and me could—”

“I’d rather step on a pincurchin,” Piers cut her off, crushed the paper bag into a ball, and tossed it to the side. It bounced and went right through Scrafty's new card tower.

"Sorry," he apologized.

Scrarfy sobbed and slumped back. Marnie’s scrafty looked towards him then sighed. She walked around and helped him pick up the cards, their friendship restored.

“I’ll tell you if I find out anything.” He pointed at the hot potato game still ongoing with his thumb. “Right now, though, you and me don’t need boys when we can play with the best pokemon in the Galar region, though.” To Grimsnarl, he shouted, "Oi, toss it to me!"

Marnie giggled as Piers took her wrist and led her towards the game.

----

AN: Shout out to my friend Sara for the help with this! You da best!!! ^-^)/ Next chapter should be next week? I'll probably post to A03 first though if you want less of a wait.

Also feel free to follow my art blog @uas-art if you enjoyed the chapter art.

[starkatana]

So Close

Pokemon Piers x Female Reader (OC)

Summary:

You and Piers confess your feelings for each other but you’re only in the Galar Region for a limited amount of time. What do you two decide to do with your newly professed feelings?

Notes before reading:

Originally from Unova, in Galar for research.

You’re working with Sonia researching dynamaxing pokemon.

You’re full-time job is working at the pokemon nursery, you rehabilitate injured pokemon and you take care of abandon pokemon.

You have a Levanny as your pokemon partner.

AN: I’m back! I’ve been sitting on this forever thinking “why do i always have an OC when writing for different characters, i don’t know” I’m going to post it anyway! Hope you enjoy!

You are at a party in Hammerlocke hosted by Raihan in honor of the new champion because it’s long overdue after the Rose incident and the twins' fiasco. A party was what everyone needed to celebrate and unwind. You’re Sonia's plus one, and once you had a moment by yourself Raihan came over, drink in hand, smug look on his face, “Hey, y/n are you single?” he’s straight to the point, “Asking for a friend.”

Your face immediately gets warm. Your eyes quickly shift over at Piers before looking back at Raihan. As quick of a glance you thought it was to Piers, Raihan noticed, and his smug grin only got bigger. “Piers?” he asks.

“Is that the friend?” you respond.

He simply shrugs in response giving you a playful smile.

You give him an eye-roll and followed by a light shove. Your cheeks are pink with embarrassment and you’re only a tiny bit upset that Raihan was able to read you so easily.

He lets out a laugh, “Don’t be embarrassed.” He reassured, “So you know. He stares at you every time you look away.”

“Why are you telling me this?” As cute as you think Piers is, the thought that he could like you back never crossed your mind. “I don’t think he likes me much at all.”

You’ve been in town for about two weeks now, and every time you are around, he never seemed to be interested in you. He would only talk to you if someone else was already talking to you. When you two got into a conversation, you thought he was just being friendly. There was that time where he invited you to Spikemuth, but he invited everyone, and when you said thanks, he ran off without another word.

Raihan lets out a small laugh, followed by a slight headshake, “I’ve known Piers a long time. As fearless as he is on stage, offstage, he’s shy. Keeps to himself, and never draws any more attention to himself than he needs to.”

For some reason you didn’t believe that, but decided not to push the topic. “Again. Why are you telling me this?”

“because” Raihan sighs, “I’ll say it outright. Piers likes you, and I’m letting you know that he’s not going to make a move. You’ll have to do that.”

You turn to face Raihan, who mirrors you and smiles at you, “He’s a good guy, but he’ll always put everyone’s feelings before his own. He’s focused on getting Marnie set up to take over the Spikemuth gym. So, he’s just going to stare at you from afar and use Marnie as an excuse to come over and talk to you because my poor punk baby is never going to do it himself.”

“Please ask my brother out, y/n.”

You turn around, and Marnie steps up next to you two. “We have to make this conversation fast.” She says, “It’ll only be a matter of time before Piers comes up to join our conversation.” You look over at Piers, who makes eye contact with you, and you look away again, heart beating fast and blush washing over your face.

“I don’t know what you guys are talking about. He doesn’t like me.” You try to lie to yourself. You are only going to be here for three months you live in a different region, even if things went well and things worked out, how long would it last with the long-distance?

Marnie and Raihan roll their eyes sharing a glance.

“Everyone can tell that you two have a thing for each other.” Marnie gestured at you.

“Everyone except you two.” Raihan continued.

You don’t know what to say. All this information was coming so fast.

“And then I whipped out a peace sign saying I would win the next one.” Raihan let out a hearty laugh.

“What’s going on, you guys?” Piers asked as he walked up to your group. “Hey, y/n.”

“Hey, Piers.” You quickly sink into your drink, at the same time trying to shrink into the background to disappear. Now that you knew that he liked you back, you didn’t know how to act around him. Not that you knew before, but definitely not now.

“Raihan was just telling us how he lost to Leon. Again,” Marnie said.

How were these two so good at lying?

“Now, my goal is to defeat Leon AND Gloria.”

“Good luck with that.” Gloria laughed, joining their group as well with Hop and Bede close behind. “These two nincompoops want to duke it out in the stadium, can they Raihan?”

“Oh, hell yeah.” Raihan cheered, “I’ll ref! But first!” he takes his Rotom phone out, “Selfie!” and he brings the group together to snap a picture. It felt purposeful where Marnie took a step forward, giving peace symbols as Hop and Gloria get close to you, pushing you into Piers. You and Piers lock eyes, you feel your face turn bright red while you give him a sheepish smile. He smiles at you in return. When the camera snaps, neither of you were looking at the camera.

“This one’s a keeper!” Raihan said looking at the photo, “Let’s go to the stadium!” Raihan announced to the room. The kids run off with Raihan as they run past you and Piers. Piers instinctively pulls you close as the VIP room empties, leaving you in a daze as to what just happened. You two are some of the few remaining people in the room. You look up at him, and the two of you share a moment where his arms are around you protectively.

“Thanks, Piers.”

“No problem.” He hesitantly lets go of you and pulls at the ring on his choker, “Raihan always manages to get people pumped up for Dynamax battles.”

“It's fascinating.” You say, looking through the window over at the stadium, “I’m just curious what the lasting effects on dynamaxing pokemon are.”

“Is that what you’re working on with Sonia?”

“A little.” You look over at him and catch him looking away from you when Raihan’s words go through your head: He likes you.

“Do you want to watch?” he asked.

You shake your head no, “I’m good after that Swordbert and Shieldbert thing, I’m good without dynamax pokemon for now.”

He nods, “Alright then.”

You suck in a quick breath, you take a shot, “Do you want to get out of here?”

“Sure.” He agrees without any hesitation.

Crap. You didn’t think you’d get this far this fast. “Let’s go to the daycare and see some baby pokemon.”

He gives you a soft smile, “Sounds like fun.”

He orders a Corviknight, and it takes you two to route 5. Not only were you working with Sonia on the lasting effects on Dynamaxing pokemon, but you also helped out at the daycare. Your fulltime job is daycare caretaker, you help rehabilitate pokemon and care for the ones abandon by their owners. You two go inside the daycare and see your Levanny sitting outside the door of the nursery spitting silk as if she was knitting.

“How are things?” you ask her.

She lets out a soft coo and points to the door, telling you to be quiet. Then she starts pointing at you two and nods.

“Okay.” You blush, “C’mon Piers.” And you lead him out of the daycare.

“She takes her job very seriously.” Piers joked.

You laugh, “Yeah, she’s great at it.” You breathe relieved. Even your pokemon seem to think you two would be good together. “Sorry, we can’t see any baby pokemon right now. They’re all sleeping.”

“It’s alright.” He was so go with the flow, it was nice change of pace from your crazy structured day-to-day life and his presence is just so calming, “It’s a beautiful night,” he gestures down the bridge towards Hulbury, “care to join me?”

“Of course.”

The two of you silently walk down the cobblestone together taking in the view and the fresh air. The night was perfect. The sky was clear, the stars shined bright next to the moon in the sky, there's was enough moon in the sky to illuminate your walk, but not enough to drown out the beauty of the night. It was a picture-perfect evening. Other couples were walking around and standing on the bridge.

“This is romantic.”

You blush at his voice and the thought. “Yeah.” You let out a weak chuckle, “I walk this every day, and I never realized.”

“It’s… beautiful.” He stammered. You looked at him, he was pulling on his ring again.

You gently touched his upper arm, “I think so too.” He lets out a light sigh followed by a smile.

You two stop in the center of the bridge, overlooking the wild area with a gorgeous view of the Hammerlocke gate, “This is my favorite view.” You say leaning against the railing as he takes his place next to you.

“It’s beautiful.” There’s a noticeable pause between the two of you as you looked over the wild area. “Just like you.”

You stop and look over at him. He lets out a low cough, obviously looking away from you trying to avoid eye contact. A lightbulb went off in your head, he was trying to do that earlier too. He’s so precious.

“Piers,” you pause, I like you.

“What's up?” his voice sounded hopeful.

“Nothing, it's dumb.” You shake your head, giving yourself an eye roll. While he turns to look at you, you turn away looking in the opposite direction.

“I’m sure it’s not.”

You face him, and for the first time, you two make eye contact without the other turning away instantly. Everything about him takes your breath away. You feel your face get warm again. He’s so cute, especially in the moonlight. His bright blue eyes were so easy to get lost in. It wasn’t obvious, but he has such a welcoming and friendly energy that once you got past an exhausted looking Piers, that did scare some people, he is honestly the nicest person anyone would be lucky to be around.

“What?” he asked, his face grows concerned. You look ahead of you again, taking a deep breath trying to find your composure.

“Okay.” You wipe your hands on your shorts. “I’m going to take a shot here because of,” you rotate your hands around each other avoiding his eyes, “ideas.”

“Yeah?” you could hear his confusion.

“Has anyone told you anything.” you wonder aloud, looking back at him.

“I mean.” He looks away this time but back at you before continuing. “I think you’re cool, but I know you’re only here for what two more months?”

“Yeah.” You sigh. That was a big factor in why you didn’t want to get involved with anyone here. You were only in Galar for three months, you had two and a half left. There was no need to get into a relationship with each other or even bother about letting him know how you feel. As much as everyone wanted to, there was no point. Why make your small group of friends here awkward?

“I’ll just come out and say it.” You look over at Piers. “I have a crush on you.”

“What?” you say instinctively. Raihan said he wouldn’t make a move, but apparently, he didn’t know Piers as well as he thought he did. You heard what Piers said your brain just needed a second to comprehend and register what he said.

“I’m sorry.” He apologized, pulling at the ring on his choker, “I just felt like I would’ve exploded if I didn’t get it out right now.”

“No, it’s okay. I just….I like you too.” You respond, “I just don’t know.”

“Same.” He lets out a weak smile.

The silence is tense between you two.

“You leave in three months, and I just don’t want to make things awkward.” Piers said. “I really like hanging out with you and I don’t want that to change, but if….” His voice trailed off.

“Yeah! I totally get that.” You agreed, “We don’t want to force anything.”

“No. No. Definitely not.”

“So, we could just take this as it goes.” You say.

He nods, “Yeah…”

“So, because you said it. I do like you too.” You reassure him.

He gives you a smile, “Thanks, I was getting nervous for a minute there.”

“Have you not been nervous this entire time?” you joke, “I’ve been freaking out.”

He laughs, “No, I’ve been a nervous wreck this entire time.”

You two share another laugh together as you have before. It felt natural and easy being with Piers. You deeply wished something would happen between you and Piers, but there was time to see where this would go.

“So, we’re just going to see where this goes?”

“I’m okay with that if you are.”

“I’d really like that.”

“Okay.” He smiles at you, “Want to come over for dinner on Thursday? I have this new song I want you to hear.”

“Yeah,” you agree, “Text me when you want me over.”

“Always.”

It was a good feeling to get that off your chest. You two lean against the railing looking back out at Hammerlocke gate in silence, but closer together. You lean your head on his arm and take in the moment you have together. Piers settling into being your pillow.

“Thank you.” You say, “I’m glad.”

“Me too.” He responds.

Thursday came. He was just finishing up a training session with Marnie, while you sat in the back watching the two battle. Immediately after Piers comes up to talk to you about what he was planning to make for dinner.

“I hope that sounds okay.”

“Sounds awesome. I can’t wait.”

“I really hope you like the song too. I wrote it with you in mind.”

“Piers.” you hold your hand over your heart, when Marnie walks over and starts stabbing the air between you two.You two stop what you were talking about and stare at her.

"What are you doing?"  he asks her.

"Trying to cut the romantic and or sexual tension between you two.” She continues furiously stabbing the air, “Crap, it’s not working!”

You and Piers blush furiously.

[piershoesz]

Do you think you could write something about bede comforting a sad/crying reader? By the way, I really enjoy reading the stuff you write! They always make me happy :D

A/N: First of all, thank you SO much anon! It always is a joy to know my writing makes people happy! Second, I made this a drabble, and I hope you’re alright with that!

Comfort Cuddles | Bede X Reader Drabble

Though his movements were a bit hesitant, his arms came around you.

“Darling... are you... are you alright?”

You turned in his arms and shook your head side to side. Tear streaks ran down your cheeks, and he could easily see them from the light of the moon outside.

“No... I’m just a little upset...”

Yet again he found himself moving slowly, as if one wrong move could send you make you more upset.

He gingerly brought a hand from your back and tangled it with one of your own, holding it just tightly enough to let you know he was there.

“Well, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to... but I’m right here, alright? Let it all out, my dear, it’s okay.”

He said, and with that, you let your tears flow freely, not bothering to hold them back after what he told you.

Bede was more than willing to hold you like that, and for as long as you needed, too.

After all, he loved you, and did he really need any other reason than that?

[cheeryfairygender]

— Welcome!!!

— ABOUT ME

I'm Azure, or Bede! I'm a young adult, bigender (both a man and a woman), bisexual, MLM, WLW, hyperromantic and a xenogender collector. Xenogenders help me understand how my gender feels to me, because it's a little wonky due to me being brainweird in multiple ways! (Including autistic, ADHD, BPD, and PTSD, amongst other things.) I hoard multiple xenogenders, but my main ones are autigender, bungender, drakocetan and bunmollis! I'm also fictionkin, and my main 3 kintypes are Henry Ledore from Professor Layton, Mondo Oowada from Danganronpa 1 and Gundham Tanaka from Danganronpa 2! I also have a delusional attachment to Bede from Pokemon Sword and Shield.

— WHAT I DO I can coin genders and pronoun sets, suggest names/pronouns based off of a given theme, make stimboards (either for an identity by itself or a character with that identity), and make pride icons, although I'm a slight bit picky on sources. (Click the 'read more' for my source list!)

— DO NOT INTERACT Please do not interact if you have an Ed Edd n Eddy icon (the show is a trigger, sorry), if you're interacting with a blog that has the cat word that rhymes with 'mitten' in the URL (again, it's a trigger, sorry), you fall under the typical DNI criteria (such as Nazi, an adult attracted to minors/pedo, a bigot), if you're a truscum/transmed/"gender critical"/"nonbinary skeptic"/against xenogenders (why are you even here?), if you ship incest/pedo ships or support those who do, if you think bisexuality doesn't include attraction to trans/nonbinary people, or if you're antikin. Please also respect the DNIs of those who I reblog from!

Check under the 'read more' for more info!

— DO YOU SUPPORT...? There are two popular sources of DNI criteria within the xenogender community; bi/pan lesbians and endo systems. I do not know anything about the bi/pan lesbian discourse. I do not consider myself a supporter, a non-supporter or neutral; I just have no clue what the "discourse" is about. I haven't seen it anywhere outside of DNIs. I may look into it in the future, but, for now, I literally do not know anything about it. I do not have an opinion on endo systems, due to being a singlet. The thing I see most agreed upon in the subject of that discourse is that singlets should not participate in it, so I'm not going to. I do not feel comfortable taking any stance, so, like the previous, I do not consider myself either for, against, or neutral on the topic.

— SOURCES? The sources I can coin genders/pronouns based off of/make icons for include the following: Professor Layton / Pokemon / Danganronpa 1 and 2 / Undertale / Deltarune / OK KO: Let's Be Heroes! / She-Ra (reboot) / Mother 2 / Kirby / Animal Crossing / Ducktales 2017 / Doki Doki Literature Club / Splatoon 1 and 2 / The Legend of Zelda / Stardew Valley / Smile For Me / Vocaloid / Monster Prom and Camp / My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

[misskikuwrites]

Recall

Bederia Week 2021: Day 5 - First ‘I love you’

Bede/Gloria (dressedinpinkshipping)

Tags: fluff, angst, mutual pining

Words: 4,031

@bede-x-gloria

-

It was a welcoming, albeit surprising, sight to see Gloria saunter into the Fairy Gym, as if nothing had happened between her and Bede. As if they hadn't kissed not once, but twice, in the past few days. Bede collected himself and straightened. He tried to hide his disappointment that the kisses they'd shared hadn't left a lasting impression on her. His heart flopped heavily in his chest. As she approached, he decided to greet Gloria as per usual.

 "Please tell me you haven't gotten yourself into more trouble so soon," Bede said, teasing her with the faintest of smiles on his face. "Need I remind you of the many favours I've already done for you this year?" 

 Gloria huffed, rolling her eyes dramatically. "What, I can't come visit you for no reason?" She stared him down for a moment, her reaction - or lack thereof - towards him giving Bede pause. 

 Perhaps nothing had changed between them after all. 

 "Fine, if you're so busy-" she whirled on her heels "-I'll go find someone else to bother."

 Bede bit back a smile. He could tell she was pouting, her cheeks puffed, by the sound of her voice. 

 "Hold on, I never said I was busy," he said quickly, making Gloria stop before she'd reached the automatic doors. She peeked over her shoulder at him, unconvinced. The fake hurt on her face, her expression an absolute put-on, made him want to laugh. He swallowed the mirth that bubbled in his chest, forcing down his grin. Arceus, she was adorable when she didn't get her way. It made him want to tease her more. 

 "In fact," Bede continued, thinking on the spot for a reason to make her stay, "I might just call in one of the favours you owe me." 

 Gloria slowly turned back to face him. Her brow furrowed slightly. "What sort of favour?" 

 "If you're willing to put yourself to good use, then come with me," Bede said, beckoning her to follow as he headed backstage. Gentle footfalls trailed behind him, the clasps of Gloria's bag jangling as she shifted its weight on her back, and Bede couldn't help but smirk at how she'd followed him without question. He led her into a room usually used for storage, the back wall crammed with overstuffed boxes, and gestured for her to take a seat at the table. 

 Gloria swept her gaze around the room in mute awe. Costume racks and half-painted backdrops lined the walls. The table in the centre of the room was covered with stationary and an array of books - notebooks, workbooks and dictionaries - and Gloria paused, craning her head to read one of them as she passed. She frowned in confusion, and glanced at Bede. 

 "What language is this?" she asked, sliding into a chair and depositing her bag on the floor.  

Bede shut the door behind him and took a seat opposite her. "Kalosian," he said. He slid a notebook towards himself, the pages filled with his cursive script. 

 Gloria blinked at him. "I can't speak Kalosian." 

 "I assumed as much." Bede acted as though he was paying little attention to her, flipping open a dictionary with his right hand to thumb through the pages. He found the entry he was after, and held the page open with his fingers as he jotted down the translation in his workbook. Next to it, he detailed the correct pronunciation.

 She watched him for a moment, confused, before grabbing one of the other books that were on the table, one that translated common Kalosian phrases. As her eyes trailed over the words, her brow furrowed more and more. Her lips twisted in thought. Lips that, a few days ago, Bede had felt against his own. He stole his gaze away quickly before she could notice that he was staring, before heat could rise up his neck and pool across his cheeks. He needed to focus. She'd only let him kiss her because he'd agreed that it wouldn't change anything between them, and he would uphold that, even as he desperately wished to kiss her again. 

 Damn it. Bede swallowed thickly, his mind vividly replaying that moment, from the sweet blush on Gloria's face as she closed her eyes, to how silken her hair had felt between his fingers, and the intoxicating sound that she'd made when he'd finally pulled away. That sound haunted him. A soft moan, felt against his lips as they'd parted, echoed in his mind as clearly as it had that day. He wondered what it would be like for her to say his name like that- 

 "Bede?" 

 Bede jolted, snapping the pencil in his hand. She gaped at him, at the wooden fragments between his fingers, in shock. Bede cleared his throat, tossing the broken pencil in the wastebasket beside him. 

 "Yes?" he answered her gruffly, his skin prickling as if all his nerves had come to life at once. So much for nothing changing between them- he couldn't get that kiss out of his mind, especially not with Gloria right in front of him. 

 "Uh…" Still a bit stunned, it took a moment for her to speak again. "What was the favour you wanted me here for?" 

 Right. The reason - the excuse - that he'd come up with in order to extend her visit for a while longer. 

 "I require someone to test my skills in Kalosian," he said. "That book you're holding details common phrases- as simple as it is to work through them myself, I need more of a challenge if I'm to achieve competency in Kalosian." 

 "Why Kalosian? Do you need it for a play or something?" 

 "If it was for a play, I'd be learning a script, not common phrases," Bede pointed out. "Kalos is our closest neighbour, and where the Fairy type was first discovered. That alone is enough of a reason to learn their language. I've also been advised that some of our most ardent fans are from Kalos- the kind of fans who may, perhaps, choose to sponsor us if we make a good enough impression the next time they visit." 

 Gloria nodded slowly. "How am I supposed to test you if I don't know the correct meaning, though? I don't think I can pronounce any of these!" 

 Bede resisted the urge to huff. She had a point. "I wouldn't be asking you to test me if I was so unsure of myself. All you need to do is point at a phrase, and I'll translate it. The answers are at the bottom, although I doubt I'll need them." 

 "So… you just want me to pick phrases for you to translate?" 

 "For now, yes." 

 It was a flimsy excuse. Bede could study Kalosian well enough on his own, and Gloria would be more distracting than helpful, but with the confusing moments they'd shared over the past few weeks, he longed to spend more time with her- especially if it meant getting closer to unravelling the conundrum that was Gloria. 

 "It'll be easier to point out phrases if I'm sitting next to you," she said, getting out of her seat before Bede could protest. He stiffened as she sat in the chair beside him, close enough that their arms almost brushed. For someone who had struggled to meet his eyes after they'd kissed, she had no issue with sitting so close to him days after the fact. Had she truly moved on so quickly? She glanced over at him and there it was- the infinitesimal widening of her eyes as she realised just how close they were sitting. Bede's heart lifted. Maybe he still had a chance.

 Maybe, just maybe, he could win Gloria over one day. 

 -

 Gloria almost turned to stone the second her eyes landed on Bede's. She'd jumped into the seat beside him without thinking, and was instantly taken back to that moment a few days ago, that moment where they'd sat side by side like this, where Bede's fingers had caressed her cheek. All she'd seen in the reflection of his violet eyes was herself, the cage around her heart falling away for the brief moment he'd kissed her. A jolt of warmth shot through her veins at the memory. 

 Don't think about that now! Gloria snapped at herself, tearing her eyes away from Bede's shapely lips, knowing very well how it had felt to have them meld against her own. Her lungs fluttered, leaving her to take a sharp breath, and she jabbed her finger at a sentence in Kalosian. 

 "What- What does this mean?" she asked. 

 Her heart pounded, and as Bede leant over to get a better look at the words she was pointing at, she shoved the book closer to him. His shoulder brushed hers, that slight contact bringing to the full force of her attention how it felt to have him so close. She felt dizzy and giddy at the same time. Unable to hear Bede's response despite the fact that he was close enough to be speaking into her ear. 

 As much as she'd pleaded with Bede to not let their kiss change anything between them, her heart had other ideas. The night after he'd kissed her, she hadn't slept at all. Whenever she had closed her eyes, the moment by the lake had come back to her. Now, every time she pursed her lips or chewed on a pen, she recalled the warmth of his lips. Every time she tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear, she recalled the sweep of his fingers through her hair, the way his touch had sent a gentle shiver through her body. It made her delirious. Breathless. And her eyes kept trailing to his lips whenever he spoke. It was maddening. Frustrating. Her feelings towards Bede had only grown since he'd kissed her, even though they hadn't seen each other after that until today.

 Gloria cleared her throat as subtly as she could, her mouth going dry, and she pointed to another phrase. 

"This one?" she asked. 

 "That means, 'can you help me?'" Bede replied. "Pouvez-vous m’aider," he read aloud.

 Gloria had no clue whether that was correct or not, as she rested her arm across the answers at the bottom of the page, but she nodded anyway. 

 "This one?" 

 "'Comment vous appelez-vous' means 'what is your name?'" Bede answered. 

 Gloria pointed to a different phrase. "And this one?" 

 "What's the time?" 

 "This one?" 

 "How are you?" 

 "This one?" 

 "I love you." 

 Gloria froze. Her mind stumbled, mouth hanging open as the words she was about to say got caught on her tongue. Heat blazed across her cheeks. 

 "That's- That's what it says," Bede said hastily. "'Je t'aime' means 'I love you.'" 

 "Right! Of course." Her voice came out as a squeak. "Th-That makes sense." 

 Nothing made sense to her now. 

 Bede cleared his throat. "Let's try some harder phrases," he suggested, reaching over to turn to the later pages of the book. Gloria yanked her hands to her sides, sitting as far back in her chair as she could, as Bede inevitably got closer to her as he flicked through the pages. A sweet smell reached her nose, making her draw in a deeper breath. 

 "You smell nice," Gloria said without thinking. 

 Bede stilled, looking at her in surprise. 

 "I, uh, assume it's you," Gloria added quickly. "There's a sweet smell in the air, I just noticed it." 

 Bede turned back to the book, having reached a page full of sentences for him to translate into Kalosian. Gloria leant forward to cover the answers with her arm again, still tasting that delicate scent on her tongue. It filled her lungs with every breath. 

 "That would be the perfume from our sponsors that you're smelling," Bede said. "We had a meeting with them earlier where they showcased their latest blends." 

 "It smells really nice," Gloria said, sighing faintly to herself. "Too bad perfume's exceedingly expensive. Even with my Champion's salary, I don't think I could justify buying it." 

 "If you like it so much, you can have the sample I was given," Bede said, "in exchange for your assistance today." 

 Gloria perked up. "Wait, really? Are you sure?" 

 The satisfied grin on Bede's face made her heart flutter. "That is, of course, if you don't mind smelling like me."  

She gaped at him for a second, feeling herself flush. "Why- Why would I mind?" 

 "No reason," he said with a shrug. "Although, people might begin to talk if you go around smelling like me." 

 "Talk about what?"  

"About what exactly the Champion of Galar was doing with Ballonlea's Gym Leader in order for his perfume to get all over her." 

 Gloria sucked in a sharp breath as Bede's insinuation hit her in the chest. The smirk on his face set her nerves alight, her mind already conjuring images fueled by their kiss a few days ago. Bede's close proximity to her now did nothing to help.  

"They- They wouldn't think that!" Gloria protested. 

 "Are you sure about that?" He turned to face her completely, amusement gleaming in his eyes. "All anyone saw was you following me into this storage room. We've been in here a while already, and there is a lock on the door if, perhaps, the occupants wanted some privacy…" 

 Gloria shot a glance towards the door. Her heart wedged in her throat, blood roaring through her veins. 

 "After all, we've already kissed twice-" 

 She slapped her hands across Bede's mouth before he could say anything more. His shock quickly turned to annoyance, and he took hold of her wrists to pull her hands away. 

 "Don't- Don't mention that…!" Gloria hissed, glaring at him as her cheeks burned. She fought his attempts to tug her hands off his mouth. "You need to forget that ever happened!" 

 Despite Bede's obvious displeasure at being silenced, he raised an eyebrow at her as if to say her demand was ridiculous. She knew it was, but couldn't bear to have Bede mention what happened between them out loud. The mere thought of their kiss was dangerous enough by itself. 

Bede's expression changed, shifting from irritation to one she couldn't read, and in the next moment, he tugged Gloria towards him by her wrists. Pulled from her chair, she ended up practically on Bede's lap, one of her knees wedged between his thighs, and her bark of protest died in her throat at the feeling of Bede pressing his lips to the inside of her wrist. His lips were soft yet firm. Sweet warmth scorched her skin, making her pulse spike beneath his kiss, and he held her gaze, looking deep into her eyes over the top of her wrist.

 An incoherent noise fled Gloria's lungs. "Wh-Wh-What are you-?!" She broke off into a squeak as Bede grazed his teeth over her pulse. She jolted away from him, tearing her arms free, and fell backwards over her chair to crash to the floor. She scrambled to sit up, holding her wrist protectively to her chest. Ignoring the pain thrumming from her shoulders, her back, and her legs from her fall. 

 "Sorry," Bede said, shifting the chair she'd toppled over to the side. His smile carried no amusement, eyes softening with regret, and he offered her his hand. "I didn't realise you'd react so strongly. I was merely trying to prevent you from silencing me so forcefully again. It's not exactly polite to smother someone's mouth when they're speaking." 

 "It-It's not polite to k-kiss someone's wrist either!" Gloria squawked at him. She glanced suspiciously between his hand and his face, trying to read his expression. 

 "I assure you I won't kiss you again," Bede said. A hint of a smile played on his lips, and she went to accept his hand. "Unless you want me to, that is." 

 Before Gloria could tug her hand back, Bede pulled her to her feet, and she ended up standing right in front of him. Barely a breath remained between them. 

 "I-I don't," Gloria said in a voice that didn't sound like her- like a whisper, breathless and light. 

 Bede looked into her eyes for a moment longer. "That's a shame," he said, before returning to his seat. The teasing lilt of his voice sent her heart racing again, and she huffed, as though incredulous. As though a part of her didn't want him to kiss her again.  

A part of her that was getting smaller and smaller every day. 

 "Are you alright, by the way?" he asked as she sat beside him. "That was a pretty impressive fall." 

 Gloria gave a sheepish laugh. She still felt flustered from the way he'd kissed her wrist- her stacking it was inconsequential.

 "That was nothing," she said. "I'll be fine." 

 Bede glanced at her. The amusement that had played in his eyes had all but faded. "I see." 

 "What?"  

He looked away. "It's nothing." A moment later, he said, "you don't need to stay any longer. I believe I can manage the rest by myself." 

 Gloria's heart plopped into her stomach. It felt like he'd knocked the wind out of her chest.  

"Are you sure? Don't you want me to test you…?" 

 Bede flipped open the dictionary again, a pen in his left hand, returning to the notebook he'd written in earlier. A few empty seconds ticked by. 

 "It will be better for me to study in silence," Bede said finally. 

 Gloria stood. She stepped around him as her throat tightened, and snatched her bag off the floor. 

 "Right." Heat built behind her eyes. She forced it down, forced her walls back in place. Forced a layer of cold steel around her heart. 

 Bede didn't look at her. 

 "I'll… just go, then," she said, unable to hide the hardness of her voice, and marched for the door. Gloria didn't look back once as the world blurred around her beneath a wave of tears. 

 Once again, Gloria fled from the Fairy Gym as she began to cry. Once again, her mind raced with thoughts. Why had Bede suddenly pushed her away like that? What had she done wrong? 

 Why did it hurt so much? 

 She knew why. It was love. The one thing she despised, the one thing she feared above all else. It opened her heart up to injuries she'd never faced before. The slightest rebuff from Bede left her wounded, as though his words, him merely turning away from her, had cut into her flesh. 

 She was pathetic. Weak. Vulnerable.

 That was what love did to a person. 

 And she hated it. She hated being in love with Bede. It spoiled their friendship, tarnished each and every interaction they had. Even her memories were tainted now, coated in a different light, permanently changed. It twisted everything Bede said. 

 Despite the joy being in love brought her, Gloria wished she could tear out her heart and throw it away, before she did something she regretted. 

 Before it was too late.  

Gloria marched through Ballonlea until she was out of sight by the entrance to the Glimwood Tangle, and reached into her bag. She dug out her Corviknight's Pokeball, ready to flee. Someone caught her wrist. She turned instinctively, tears spilling from her eyes before she could blink them away. Bede stood before her, breathless, his hand around the wrist that held her Pokeball. The Galarian cuff he wore around his wrist brushed against her skin. The bracelet she'd given him. 

 "What-?" She gaped at Bede in shock. He frowned at her, lips twisting in frustration, as he caught his breath. 

 "You're crying," he said. Confused. Concerned. A myriad of emotions flashed behind his eyes.

 Gloria swiped the tears off her cheeks with her free hand. "So?" she huffed. 

 "I'm-" Bede started, fumbling over his words. He took a breath. "That's because of me, isn't it?" 

 Gloria said nothing. Her chest, her lungs, her heart, burned with a fire of indignation. 

 His expression fell. Her silence gave him the answer he was looking for, and he let her wrist drop. Gloria held tight to her Pokeball, but didn't send her Corviknight out. Not yet. 

 She hadn't expected him to follow her. 

 "You're not alright, are you?" Bede asked. He exhaled softly, casting his gaze aside. "Look, I… didn't mean to hurt you. I went too far. I'm sorry." 

 Gloria sniffled. Her tears began to fade, and she let herself study Bede for a moment. The regret in his eyes looked sincere, despite him getting the reason why she was crying wrong. She was so surprised by the whole situation, she didn't know how to reply. He hadn't realised how brushing her aside was what had wounded her, not him teasing her by kissing her wrist, not her falling backwards over her chair. The ache in her heart thrummed over her bruised muscles. 

"Here," Bede said, holding out a small crystal bottle in his hand. It was shaped like a pair of delicate wings, a matching stopper at the top. 

 Gloria pocketed her Corviknight's Pokeball so she could accept it, and stared at the bottle in awe before realising what it was. "Is this the perfume…?" 

 "You said you liked the way it smelled, so…" Bede shrugged. "Take it as an apology. For hurting you." 

 Gloria's mouth dropped open with a protest she couldn't voice, her heart squeezing tight. Instead, she cradled the bottle close to her heart. 

 "Thank you," she said softly. "I accept your apology." 

 Bede nodded stiffly, still not facing her. The hurt, the regret, reflected in his eyes made her act on impulse, drawn by the desire to soften the pain he was feeling, and she stepped close to him, rising up on her toes. 

 And Bede turned to face her in that very second. 

 Gloria shot back with a squeak, almost dropping the perfume bottle as she slapped her hands over her mouth. Her lips tingled and burned. 

 "I-I didn't mean to-!" she stammered. 

 Bede stared at her in absolute shock, his eyes going wide, before he looked away hurriedly. He coughed into his hand and flushed to the tips of his ears. It had only been for a split second, but their lips had definitely met. Again. 

 "Of course. I know you didn't," Bede said, his voice cracking as he spoke. 

 Gloria stared at her feet as she blushed darkly, feeling her whole body burn with a dizzying heat. "I-I was going to kiss your cheek," she explained. "As- As a thank you. For the perfume…" 

 And she'd ended up kissing him on the lips instead. 

 "I-I see." Bede looked just as embarrassed as she felt. 

 "Please, can we… pretend this never happened…?" she asked, knowing it wasn't so simple. She wouldn't be able to forget this kiss, as accidental and brief as it was. 

 "Of course." He nodded quickly. "It was an accident, after all." 

 "Y-Yeah."  

An accident that she couldn't wholy regret. Something stirred inside her, a longing to do that again, to kiss him properly this time, and she stamped it out quickly. As nice as it was to kiss Bede, they were friends. He didn't like her in that way. 

 Although… he had been the one to offer to kiss her the other day… 

 Gloria shook that thought away. She wanted to quash her feelings for Bede, not fuel them! 

 "I… I should get going," Gloria said. 

 "Not on your own Corviknight, I hope." Bede raised an eyebrow at her, and she looked away sheepishly. "Let me call you a Taxi." 

 "Thanks." She gave him a sheepish, but grateful, smile. As Bede ordered a Sky Taxi, the pain in Gloria's heart settled. Standing next to him, enjoying his presence, didn't feel so bad. She didn't mind passing the time with him, even if it meant doing something as mundane as waiting for a Sky Taxi together. 

 Her impatience faded. The softening of her heart felt so natural, she couldn't place when it was she had begun to feel like this towards him. When, exactly, she had fallen in love with him. 

 Perhaps untangling and discarding her feelings towards Bede would be more difficult than she'd thought. 

[cherry-bomb-ships]

An Ultimatum

Pairing: Dr. Ivo Robotnik x Agent Ruby Ramirez (s/i)

Word Count: 2249

Warnings: MAJOR spoilers for the end of the Sonic Movie 2!! Brief mention of death

AO3 Link

Author Notes: I set this fic directly after the ending of the second Sonic movie, after being kind of scared by the implication of the last time the Doctor was on screen. That's all I can say without spoiling the movie or the fic, so give it a read and a reblog if you'd like! ❤

Tag List: (If you would like to be added or removed from my Tag List, click here!) @ava-ships @bee-ships @bonbonships @cloudyvoid @crosshairswife @cxrpsedance@deanportmans @dissonantyote @edencantstopfallininlove @fangedwife @final-catboy @froixcrossfanblog @takeyourheart @hirasols @hoppinkiss @hop-n-bedes-malewife @hyperionshipping @iyamifucker @juliettstarling @kissmatekitty @lex-n-weegie @licensedcrime @little-miss-selfships @logixlight @loogi-selfships @lovey-dovey-knifey @mintpecks @moonlight-shipz @nameless-self-inserts @nerdstreak @nnizumono @paper-carnation @poghorn @ponymagic @radioromantic @recordplayershipping @red-velvet-ships @ship-trek @smol-girl-shipping-the-world @sparrows-wren @squips-ship @toogayforthistoday @valeskasvalentine @vanityloves @void-kissed @wings-of-protection @winterworlds

There was nothing but darkness. There was nothing but silence. After so much light and spectacle, the emptiness that Dr. Robotnik found himself in was suffocating. He had achieved ultimate power, he had everything he’d ever desired. But just as quickly as he achieved it, he had lost everything. His power, his plans, his destiny, all snatched away by that accursed blue rodent. And now, here within the void, he didn’t even have his senses. He could only suppose that this was a punishment for his plethora of transgressions against the natural order of the universe. It seemed a bit much to him, though.

However, sometime within his eternity of nothing, when he thought that he was doomed to this reality for the rest of his days, suddenly, he sensed something. Even with his superior intellect, it was impossible for him to name exactly what he had sensed; only that it was… safe. It started at his forehead, hazy and unclear, and then, like a chemical reaction, more and more sensations cascaded throughout his body. He could hear, feel, smell and taste; the sound of a familiar melodic voice, the feeling of a warm and delicate touch, the scent of fragrant yet modest perfume, the taste of something metallic in his mouth. And as all of these senses were restored to him, he stirred and fought to banish the darkness, relieved to feel the light pouring in with the restoration of sight.

As he opened his eyes, although his vision was blurred for the moment, he quickly realized that he was staring up at a ceiling fan. He was laying atop something soft, and had a blanket draped atop him up to his shoulders, and from the smell of sweat and ash, he quickly gathered that he must still be wearing the coat he had on when he blacked out after being defeated by Sonic, extremely tattered and charred from the battle. Robotnik found it difficult to remain conscious, his feeble human body threatening to quit on him and return to the darkness which he had become so very unfond of, when he heard the lightest of noises, like a bell calling him back to reality.

“Ivo?”

He turned his head toward the source of the noise, and there sitting beside him was his right-hand-woman, his confidant, his savior, his beloved Ruby. Her silhouette was outlined by the light pouring in from the window behind her, giving her an ethereal glow as she gave him that smile that had eased his turmoiled heart so many times before.

“Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes,” he purred weakly, letting out a cough as his fully-alert brain realized how much pain his body was in. “And sore everything else, for that matter.”

He heard Ruby let out a light chuckle, followed by a choked sob, and she brought her hand up to cover her mouth as her eyes quickly became wet and glassy.

“Oh, thank God,” she muttered as she wiped a finger across her eye. “I was worried for a while that I might lose you again.”

“You always have been excessively emotional.” As cognitive function returned to him, Robotnik’s first instinct was to try to sit up straight, but Ruby quickly pushed him back down.

“Woah, woah, now wait a minute there, doctor. You just went through a lot. You nearly…” The word “died” caught on Ruby’s lips as all the fear and stress she had been feeling over the past few days came back to her, and she cleared her throat to try to regain her composure before continuing. “You have a lot of healing to do, so I need you to just take it easy for a while."

The doctor managed to cough out a strained “very well” as he slowly laid back down. As much as he wanted to stop wasting time and recompose a plan to destroy the hedgehog and return to his former glory, he couldn’t ignore the sensation that was now coursing through his fully-conscious body: pain. It felt as if every single one of the seven trillion nerves in his body were screaming in agony all at once, and he could feel every single bit of it. His devoted partner was right; this was absolutely no condition to be in whilst taking his revenge on that hedgehog. He wouldn’t even be able to enjoy the victory.

Ruby turned to the nightstand by the bed and grabbed a glass of water, waiting for Robotnik to steady himself up on his elbows before handing it to him. She watched him desperately guzzling down the cold water, finishing the glass in only a matter of seconds before letting out a satisfied sigh and wiping his arm across his mouth. “How long have I been incapacitated?” he asked in his usual commanding tone as he shoved the glass back to her.

“About four days now.” Ruby solemnly looked down into the empty glass with her brow furrowed. “You stirred every now and then, but in all honesty… I was terrified that you may not make it.”

“What a pity,” Robotnik groaned as he kept himself upright. “And here I’d always believed you had undying faith in me.” Before Ruby had a chance to rebut, he continued with a smirk, “I’m sure that your faith is restored, now that you’ve seen how I’m capable of defying death not once, but twice.”

Ruby let out a quiet huff, not able to chase away the slight grin forming on her lips. “That is true, I don't think any other human is capable of surviving what you have, doctor. But to be fair, you never would have survived this time if it weren’t for me bringing you back here and taking care of you.”

A wide smile, grateful yet tinged with malice and madness, spread across Robotnik’s face. “Yet another one of the many reasons I’ve kept you around over the years, my dear. Now,” he spoke with urgency, “although I am physically incapable of, well, anything, my mind is as sharp as ever! With you here to assist me, I have no doubt that I will be able to concoct and implement a new plan to destroy that hedgehog within the next month! So, I’ll need you to begin to rebuild-”

“No.” Ruby’s tone cut through the air and through Robotnik’s near-rambling like a laser; she needed to be heard.

The doctor turned his head to look her dead in the eyes as he lifted his chin slightly and sneered down at her- an intimidation tactic that had served him well many times in the past. “I’m sorry, I must have misheard you. Did you just tell me… ‘no’?”

Ruby sank back in her seat and looked down at the floor, anxious about continuing, but she just couldn’t allow this to go further; she couldn’t allow the man she loved to continue to destroy himself. She took a heavy breath and slammed the water glass she’d still been holding back down on the nightstand as she met Robotnik’s glare with a steely gaze of her own. They had been together for three years; it was time for them to have a conversation like equals.

“Doctor, I just can’t allow you to keep up this fruitless mission, for both your sake and my own. Twice now you’ve… you’ve almost d-died. I almost lost you twice. Please, you’ve already achieved so much, and there’s so much still that you can pursue elsewhere. I would be willing to follow you down any other path, but this revenge quest is just… I can’t allow it. I won’t allow it.”

There was a long pause as Robotnik continued to stare down Ruby, making her even more anxious about how he would respond. “My, my, Agent Ramirez, you have changed,” he growled in a quieter tone. “The agent I knew two-hundred and forty-nine days ago would have been willing to live and die-”

“Ivo, I am not an agent anymore!” Ruby suddenly shouted as she stood from her chair so quickly that it was pushed backwards, falling to the floor with a poignant thud. “The government took my job away, they took my home, they took everything from me! And do you know why that is? It’s because I wouldn’t stay quiet about you. They erased you from every possible record and we were ordered to act as if you’d never existed, but I stayed loyal to you. And when I was thrown out onto the streets, the first thing I did was exhaust my resources coming here, to Green Hills. And guess what?! Again, it was all for you.

“I had hoped that perhaps, if I could come here, the last place you’d been on Earth, I could find a way to bring you back. At first, I was even plotting my own revenge against Sonic, because I knew it’s what you would have wanted! And when you returned, and you extended your hand and once again asked me to join you, I could have said no! I could have kept this new, quiet life I’d developed. But I didn’t. I came with you, even though everything you’ve said and done since you’ve been back has been absolutely insane, because I wanted to be with you.” Tears welled up in Ruby’s eyes as she continued. “I needed to be with you to assure that I’d never lose you again. Every single choice I’ve made over the past two-hundred and forty-nine days have all been for you.

“But this is the one choice I need to make for myself. If you want to throw everything away to try and crush one measly blue space creature, then that’s your decision. But I won’t be there to save you next time.”

The room was deafeningly silent as Robotnik stared up at his partner, his bushy mustache drooping and eyebrows arched in utter shock. Ruby let out a heavy sigh, feeling her heart pounding in her chest as she tried to compose herself again. After everything she had done, to hear him try to call her disloyal nearly broke her heart. A few stray tears made their way down her cheeks, and she quickly turned away from him, distancing herself with a few steps to unsuccessfully hide her crying. She hated showing weakness in front of him, but she couldn't stop the tears from flowing.

Robotnik was still absorbing everything he'd just heard; he had never seen her so angry about anything before, and especially not with it directed at him. If anyone else had spoken to him like that, he would have most likely sicced one of his drones on them without a second thought. But Ruby was different. In all the years they’d spent together, starting as a worker and superior, but eventually becoming a couple, she was the only person that Robotnik had ever considered to be close to his equal. She was the only one who had a chance of matching his intellect, who he would ever let correct him, who had ever made him feel as if he didn’t regret being human. As he sat there in her own bed, with bandages on his beaten body that had been placed there by her, inside the home she had bought in a town she lived in only because there was a possibility being there would bring her back to him, it became immensely clear to the doctor that, perhaps, what he’d said to her was wrong. And as hard as he tried to suppress those pesky human emotions of his, watching her cry made his heart ache more than any other pain he was feeling.

He cleared his throat to get her attention and waited for her sobs to quiet down before speaking in a soft tone, “I will concede that perhaps I’ve been a bit hasty. After all, it will be much more gratifying to watch my own flawlessly designed plans be executed in person at peak robustness, and I’m sure it will be quite some time until the ‘heat dies down’, as they say.”

Ruby turned back around, her eyes wide and glassy as she sniffled ever so slightly. As the two locked eyes, Robotnik offered her a gentle smile; not evil, or unhinged, but a grin of genuine fondness as he outstretched a hand to her. “I’m sure there’s plenty of other things I can knock off the bucket list before trying world domination again. And I want you there to see it all, Ruby,” he said as he gave her the briefest of winks.

She let out an enamoured sigh, wiping the remaining tears from her eyes before gladly taking his hand, letting him pull her into the bed with him as they laid down together. Mindful of his sore injuries, she sidled up beside him and rested her head on his shoulder, sinking into his touch as he began to stroke his fingers over her scalp. “I missed you,” she whispered.

Although he didn’t respond, he leaned his head forward to press his face into her hair and take in her warmth and her scent. He truly had missed this just as much, if not moreso. When he had lost the Master Emerald, he’d thought he had lost everything he ever wanted; but right then and there, for the briefest of moments, he thought to himself that maybe this, maybe she was all that he would ever need.

[more-pokeimagines]

Stone Cold Body [09] - Chapter 8

A/N: Here's the next chapter. A good portion of it is written from Carlina's POV, so I apologize if that's not your cup of tea. Please let me know what you think of the chapter in general! <3

Warnings: mentions of violence & death

Taglist: @piershoesz @alovestruck-fool @shaak-ti-s @spair-m [If you want to be added to/removed from the taglist let me know.]

Past

The days passed without anything special happening. Since their last conversation and his refusal to help her, Bede hadn’t seen Brigid again but he was actually quite thankful for her absence. It spared him from overthinking his decision once again, from wondering what would have happened if he had chosen to turn against his family.

Well. It wasn’t too hard to figure that out: she probably would’ve declared war to the king, trying to get the ordinary people who didn’t practice magic on her side by showing them that even their crown prince supported her cause. There weren’t many sorcerers left but still enough to tear the kingdom apart if they really wanted to – and if they could count on the other people to hide and protect them from the vigilant eyes of the royal guards.

Just the mere thought was enough to send a shiver down Bede’s spine. His father had oppressed and persecuted the sorcerers for so long, killing them without hesitation when he got ahold of one of them, and the thought of their uprising was more than scary, especially since they could probably take out a whole battalion with just a wave of their hand.

With that in mind, Bede managed to convince himself that it had been the right decision to keep faith with his family. Yes, he risked his own life by dismissing Brigid’s offer and it was likely that she would kill him sooner or later but at least, his family would be safe. Brigid was brave and courageous, yes, but she wasn’t stupid, and Bede doubted that she would dare to start a war without him as her ally, mostly because she needed someone like him to convince the people to support her. Someone the nation trusted enough to revisit their opinion about the sorcerers.

Except that Bede hadn’t agreed to help her. And judging from her reaction, she never expected him to refuse which meant that she needed time to reconsider the matter. Hoping that she would give up her plans to take revenge on his family would be foolish, and Bede wasn’t stupid. The fact that she had shut herself away didn’t mean that she surrendered; no, she was only trying to find another way to bring everything to an end.

From a tactical point of view, it would be wise to find more allies first. Maybe she would go around, telling the people the same story she had told him, attempting to weaken the nation’s trust in their monarch, just as she had tried with him. But the people had no reason to believe her; in fact, most of them wouldn’t even listen to her and report her to the guards instead. Surely, Brigid would be smarter than that.

Bede shook his head. It was a waste of time to wonder about her next steps, given the fact that he was still sitting in this dim cell. As long as he was in here, there was nothing he could do to stop her – and he doubted that he would ever get out alive, so it really was pointless to try to figure out her plans.

But, and he couldn’t help but shudder at the thought, it was better than thinking about the fact that she probably already gave out the order to eliminate him. Or would she prefer to do it herself? She didn’t seem like a person who enjoyed taking others’ lives but who knew? Maybe this was her way to take proper revenge for her younger sister, an eye for an eye, as his father always said when he tried to reason the things he did to the sorcerers.

And it wasn’t like Bede couldn’t understand her. If something would happen to Carlina, he would want revenge too, but all of this didn’t change the fact that he was afraid. It didn’t change the fact that he didn’t want to die.

The thought of death had always scared him but now that it seemed inevitable, it was even more frightening. He was still so young, and there was so much left he wanted to do; things and places he wanted to see in his life, and having these decisions taken away from him by someone who was only striving for revenge made him angry and sad at the same time.

Angry because it wasn’t his fault what his father did to Brigid’s sister and the other sorcerers. Angry because he could still understand why she thought that it was necessary to kill him. Why she thought that this was the only way to take vengeance on King Lewin.

Sad because he felt like every single dream he ever had was taken away from him in the blink of an eye. Sad because he knew how devastated his sister would be after she learned about his death.

Sad because there was nothing he could do to prevent the inevitable catastrophe.

*

When Brigid returned, night had already fallen. The full moon was hovering in the pitch-black sky, casting a cold, ominous light over everything. The expression in her eyes was just as cold, just as merciless, and Bede felt a shiver running down his spine as she stared at him through the bars of the cell door.

“Welcome back,” he greeted her, careful to hide every single emotion that was rushing through his body behind the arrogant mask he had worn for most of his life. Most of the time, no one was able to tell what he was actually feeling when he acted like that but Brigid wasn’t as gullible as other people. An amused smile tugged at the corners of her lips. “There’s no need to hide your fear,” she said, the soft tone of her voice a harsh contrast to her frosty gaze. “I can read your face like a book, little princeling, but I have to admit that it’s quite adorable how you try to act brave.”

Bede didn’t reply. There was nothing left to say, nothing left to do, and so he just stared at her and waited for her next move.

She let out a deep sigh. “You had the chance to help me and my people but you decided to stay loyal to your murderous father. You chose the wrong side, my dear, and you will pay for that. Your family will pay for that.”

“I know,” he stated simply. It was time to accept his fate; after all, there was nothing he could do to change Brigid’s mind. She would do what she deemed right, no matter what he said or did.

Her hands were shaking ever so slightly as she reached out to unlock the cell door but the expression in her eyes was still cold and calculating. When she raised her hand to touch his face, he flinched just the tiniest bit but the way her lips curled into a smile once again made it clear that she had noticed it nevertheless. “I promise it won’t hurt,” she said softly, almost as if she wanted to calm him down. “Well, not for long, at least.”

She took a step back, raising her hands in front of her face and pressing her fingertips together. With her eyes closed, she started to mumble something, words in a foreign language Bede didn’t understand, and then, a wisp of wind breezed through the cell. Brigid’s mumbling grew louder, the words now more audible, her hair flying in the wind as she folded her hands.

The next second, Bede felt a sharp pain in his chest, and he fell down on his knees. “What- what are you doing?” he managed to choke out. His heart was racing, every beat sending another wave of pain through his entire body, and he gasped for air. “I- I can’t breathe.”

He stretched out his right arm, trying to reach for Brigid to stop her from whatever she was doing. His hand felt numb, as well as his legs, and when he realized what was going on, his heart skipped a beat. His fingertips were covered in something that looked like stone; stone that began to creep up his arm, coating every inch of his skin and clothes. It felt like a hundred tiny needles stabbing his skin, and he blinked hastily to fight back the tears that were welling up in his eyes.

In front of him, Brigid sank to her knees, her breathing unsteady, her hands shaking. But she still continued the spell, even when she started to cough, barely able to get out the words.

Bede wasn’t sure if he started to imagine things but the ground beneath him felt as if it was shaking, and there was dust falling from the ceiling. A portentous rumble reached his ears, the wind grew stronger for a few seconds as the stone continued to creep up his body.

The pain was unbearable now; he felt like he couldn’t breathe, and by now, it was pointless to try not to cry. He couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. His heart skipped another beat when the stone reached his chest, then his neck and his face. The last thing he saw before he lost his consciousness was Brigid who collapsed on the floor, her eyes closed, her skin an sickly color.

And then, there was nothing.

*

“He should have returned days ago.” Carlina’s voice was filled with concern as she took a step back from the window and turned around to face her parents. Her mother looked up from the book in her lap, her brows furrowed. She didn’t like getting interrupted while she was reading but as soon as she noticed the sorrowful expression in her daughter’s eyes, her anger melted away and she reached out for Carlina’s hand to pull her towards the chaise longue she was sitting on.

“I understand that you’re worried about your brother,” she said, her voice unusually soft. With graceful movements, she brushed a strand of hair out of Carlina’s forehead. “But you need to stop bothering your head about him. He rarely abides by an agreement when it comes to his travels, as you know.”

Carlina let out a deep sigh. Her mother was probably right about that; Bede took every opportunity to get away from his duties as crown prince and enjoy the rare moments of freedom he could only experience while he was away from the castle. It wouldn’t be unlikely if he had decided to prolong his stay in Hammerlocke but on the other hand, she was sure that he would have sent a short letter back to the castle to inform his parents about his whereabouts, just like it was expected from someone in his position. Of course, he liked to break their parents’ rules but when it came to official travels and his reputation, Bede knew exactly that he couldn’t afford overstepping the mark. And since Carlina’s engagement party would happen in a few days, Bede’s presence was absolutely necessary.

He knew that, and he would never risk missing an event like that or make their parents furious with such actions, just for the sake of getting a few more hours of freedom. After all, he was a responsible young man, although he definitely liked to try their parents’ patience.

“But he surely would have informed us if he decided to travel for a little longer,” Carlina finally replied. “Maybe something happened to him. What if he is hurt?”

The queen raised her eyebrows. “You have quite a vivacious imagination, my dear. Who would dare to hurt their crown prince? Everyone knows that your father makes short work of everyone who doesn’t obey the law.”

Carlina bit her lower lip to stop herself from blurting out her thoughts. How could her mother be so blind? After everything that had happened over the past few weeks and months, after everything King Lewin had done to the sorcerers, it wasn’t farfetched to assume that they had something to do with Bede’s disappearance. They had nothing to lose, so they surely weren’t reluctant when it came to desperate measures – such as kidnapping the crown prince while he was alone and attackable.

If only her father were here… he surely would’ve listened to her concerns, contrary to Queen Alviva who was convinced that the sorcerers constituted a threat to the kingdom but refused to talk about political affairs with her daughter. Whenever Carlina had started to ask questions about it in the past, the queen always reminded her that topics like that weren’t suitable for a conversation among ladies before eloquently changing the subject. Most of the time, Carlina obeyed and didn’t mention anything like that for a while.

She knew that it would be wiser to keep quiet but that didn’t silence the voice in her head that tried to goad her into telling the queen about her suspicion. But maybe it would be a better idea to ask her father to grant her an audience. Surely, he’d listen to her concerns, maybe even consider to take action…

With that thought in mind, Carlina stood up and smoothed down the fabric of her skirt. “Please excuse me, mother,” she said, politely curtseying before the queen. “There is something I need to do.”

*

Three and a half weeks had passed since the kingdom had learned about the disappearance of their crown prince. Three and a half weeks in which the Royal Guard searched high and low, pursuing each lead as fierce as a dragon.

Every time the posse of searchers returned to the castle, Carlina anxiously waited for news, always on the verge of tears when she realized that they hadn’t found her brother yet. With every minute that passed it got more and more likely that he was already dead. Even her parents couldn’t deny it, although they still tried their best to pretend that everything was fine.

And then, five days later, two of the scouts finally returned with news. While they spoke to the royal couple, Carlina had been instructed to wait outside of the throne room where she nervously paced about, silently praying for good news. But as soon as her parents called her inside, as soon as she noticed the petrified expressions on their faces, she knew that something terrible had happened. There were tears in her mother’s eyes, something Carlina had never seen before, and even her father, the cold-hearted and composed king, seemed to be deeply upset.

“They have found him,” Queen Alviva said, her voice shaking ever so slightly as she reached out to place her hand on Carlina’s shoulder. “They have found your brother.”

Carlina felt a lump in her throat. “Where- where is he? What happened to him?”

“We don’t know for sure,” her father said. “But it seems that the sorcerers used some kind of spell on him to…” He cleared his throat and straightened himself before continuing, “They used some kind of spell to turn him into stone.”

There was a long silence, then. Carlina’s thoughts were racing; it almost felt like her brain was unable to comprehend the information she had just gotten. A spell… a spell that turned her brother, her beloved, loyal brother into – stone?

“I – I don’t understand,” she finally replied, her glance darting back and forth between her parents. “How is that even possible?”

“Magic,” her mother stated simply. “It seems we have made the mistake to underestimate the sorcerers’ true powers. No one knew they were capable of spells like this. If we had adopted more rigorous measures to stop them… maybe we could have prevented something like that happening.”

The king nodded, a saturnine look on his face. “They have sealed their fate now. I won’t accept this dastardly plot against our kingdom. They will pay for what they have did to my son. Carlina,” he added and pointed towards the door. “Please leave now. I need time to think about the way forward.”

In silence, Carlina turned around and left the throne room. Her hands were shaking, her palms sweaty, even after she tried to wipe them at her dress. With mechanical movements she made her way to the eastern wing of the castle and into her room. By the time she closed the door behind her, the tears were already streaming down her face, and she sank to the floor, her face buried in her hands. How could she live in a world where her brother couldn’t be with her? How was she supposed to accept the fact that she would never see him again? And – her breath hitched in her throat as soon as the thought appeared – did that mean that she would become Queen after her father’s death?

She wrapped her arms around herself in an almost desperate attempt to hold herself together but no matter how hard she tried to regain her composure, the tears kept on streaming down her face. All she could think about was that her brother was dead and gone.

– But was he really dead? What if… what if there was a way to save him?

A thought, a vague theory began to sprout in the back of her mind.

“They used some kind of spell to turn him into stone,” her father had said. A spell… Carlina gnawed on her lower lip as she tried to hold onto the thought before it could disappear again. She didn’t know much about magic but she knew that every spell could be undone. Maybe, and this was the straw she grasped at, this spell – this curse – could be reversed too.

She gasped for air, her heart racing in her chest as she jumped to her feet, not even bothering with wiping her tears away before she rushed out of her room and headed straight to the dungeons where the imprisoned sorcerers were held captive while they waited for their verdict. It was foolish to get her hopes up but she needed answers; she needed to know if there was a way to get her brother back. And the only people who could unravel that mystery for her were the sorcerers.

It wasn’t hard to convince the guards to let her pass, telling them that King Lewin had sent her to interrogate one of the prisoners about the crown prince’s whereabouts, although she knew very well that it wouldn’t be hard for them to convict her of lying. Her father would be incredibly mad when he found out that she interfered in his affairs but right now, she couldn’t care less. All that mattered was to figure out a way to save Bede.

She took a deep breath before she made her way along the hallway. The air was muggy, smelling like death and misery, and the few torches on the walls gave the whole place an ominous and menacing atmosphere. Carlina shuddered at the thought of being imprisoned here, just waiting for the king to hand down a sentence, knowing very well that every breath could be the last. This part of the dungeons had been exclusively built to lock up the sorcerers, although Carlina exactly sure how her father managed to suppress their magic. But maybe they were simply too weak, starved or sleep-deprived to use their abilities to attempt an escape. Hopefully, at least one of them would be willing to help her.

A thought that presented her with another problem. Her father had hunted them down for years now, mercilessly ripping apart families and killing them without hesitation. No one here had a reason to help her; if anything, they’d believe that Bede got what he deserved which meant that Carlina needed incredibly good arguments to convince them to give her some answers. Or she could try to bribe them. But what could she offer them? Money? No, they probably had no use for it, so it would only be a waste of time to even suggest it.

It was only then when it hit her. There was exactly one thing all of them desired: freedom. And with that in mind, Carlina approached one of the cells.

*

It took her two hours to find a prisoner that was willing to speak to her. His name was Emmeric, imprisoned for allegedly killing one of his neighbor’s children with a backfired spell, and although he held a deep grudge against the royal family, he agreed to at least listen to her request. He didn’t interrupt her once, even as she mentioned the spell and that she wanted to find a way to save the crown prince, although his dark brown eyes widened in surprise when she told him that she would convince her parents to bestow a pardon on him when he agreed to help her.

“No,” he finally said, shaking his head at her words. “A curse like that can’t be undone, at least not in the way you want it to. If what you say is true, I need you to understand that most of us aren’t even capable of spells like this one. It’s against the laws of nature to turn a living being into stone. No one I know would dare to even think about it.”

“So you say that it can’t be true?”

Emmeric chuckled hoarsely. “Just because I haven’t seen a spell like this with my own eyes, it doesn’t mean that it’s not true. You see, my dear princess, I consider myself being quite powerful but of course there are others who perform far more advanced magic. And the spell you told me about… well. There’s only one of us who would be capable to do something like this, and if this is really her spell I’m not sure if there’s anything I can do to help you.”

Carlina’s heart skipped a beat, a wave of disappointment washing over her. “I see,” she mumbled. “But thank you for considering it anyway.”

“Not so fast,” Emmeric said. “I’m not saying that it’s impossible. I might not be able to break the spell but perhaps I can mitigate against it. In exchange for my reprieve, of course.”

When Carlina nodded, he continued, “Tell the king’s guards to bring your brother back to the palace. I think there’s something I can do to help him.”

Quietly, he told her about his plans, not without mentioning that it was entirely possible that it wouldn’t work at all but Carlina didn’t want to hear any of that. “If there’s a chance,” she said, “we need to try it.”

“Alright. Then I’ll look forward to our next meeting. Now go and inform your parents. Meanwhile, I shall prepare myself for the spell.”

Even though there were tears welling up in her eyes again, Carlina didn’t feel as hopeless as before. A soft smile flashed over her face as she thanked Emmeric, knowing that someday, her brother would be freed from his prison by his soulmate.

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