let's rock.

@nezupunk

They tell you to never meet your idols, but Sonia is not gonna believe all that blabber, that’s the kinda talk her Gran would pull off- and she isn’t here. And while she misses her Gran dearly, she can also appreciate the freedom that comes with being a young adult alone.

Even if that freedom leads to her pretending to stumble onto the Very Well Known, dark type gym leader, and rock star, Piers “Oh– excuse me, I must be so clumsy…. wait, do I know you from somewhere?”

Looking at him closely, there’s something that jumbles her memory.

piers’ eyes widen slightly as he turns around- feeling someone bump into him. he’s always looked kind of scary at first glance, so his soft-spoken voice is an incredibly huge contrast. (especially considering how loud he can get during his performances). he raises his hand lightly, moving it to scratch at the back of his neck. 

Several different scenarios that can be combined or modified for your pleasure:

"Uh, hi there."

"I was here first. Go to the back of the line!"

"Excuse me, is there any way you could let me go before you? I'm in a hurry."

"Service here is TERRIBLE today!"

"Is this seat taken?"

"Do you have a moment to talk?"

"Hi, listen, there's someone following me, and I'm paranoid so can you talk to me for a few minutes to make it look like I'm not alone?"

"Here, take this and run with me. I'll explain later!"

"Do you have some cash? This vending machine just ate the last of mine..."

"Hey, were you going to use this machine next? It gave me a free bag of chips, and I don't need to eat that many!"

"Do you work here?"

"Look, I'm not an employee, but the ____ are right over there."

"Hey, is this yours? It was by your feet."

"Are you from ____ or ____?"

"Hello, ____."

"I swear I've seen you on TV."

"Yes, I'm ____, and I can take a picture with you if you want."

"Oh my gosh, can I pet your dog?!"

"Sorry, there was a hair hanging off of your sleeve, and it was bothering me."

"Oh I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to walk into you!"

"Wait a minute! I think they mixed up our orders."

"Ugh, this isn't my food. Did anyone here order a ____?"

"You look so cold. Do you want to borrow my jacket?"

"H-Hey, I'm freezing. Is there any way I can s-stand close to you and maybe get warmer?"

"You poor thing, you look like you're cooking! Here, take a bottle of water."

"It's so hot I think I might pass out. Can you help me?"

"Are you okay?"

"Oh, good, you're awake. What happened to you?"

"Where am I?"

"Get in! You're in danger!"

"Please, let me ride with you. There's someone after me!"

"Grab the spare helmet and jump on."

"Are you playing ____?"

"Hey, do you want to trade friend codes?"

"Hi, my date just stood me up, so now I have a free ticket."

"I'd love to take that free spot as long as you don't mind sitting next to me."

"Have you seen a lost child around here?"

"I found this child, and by the look on your face, I think they're yours."

"That coat isn't real fur, is it?"

"If you can't tell the difference between real animal pelt and fake, you shouldn't be harassing people on the street."

"Are we locked in here?"

"Can I use your phone?"

"Here, take my phone. No questions asked."

"What's cookin' good lookin'?"

as he listens to piers, raihan takes another bite of the pie. his gaze slowly moves down to the dish, chewing slowly as something strange passes over his face. it isn’t that piers’ cooking is bad, nothing could be further from the truth. however, as raihan really takes it in, he feels his chest fill with warmth.

looking back up, raihan’s expression morphs into something impossibly warm.

“i think it’s amazing, piers,” he answers, eyes crinkling with his smile. “it reminds me of the shepherd’s pie my mom made when i was a kid. it’s ace!” to prove his point, raihan lifts another forkful to his mouth.

if at all possible, raihan would be glowing. he misses home now more than he has the entire month he’s been in koi. his mom is the most important person in his life— feels tiresome to be too far from her for too long.

“i’ll have to come up with something to make for you, then. or,” he snaps his fingers, “better yet, how about i be your cooking partner next time? i make a mean curry!”

at first, piers’ eyebrows furrow as he sees raihan’s expression change, but his face lightens with the dragon leader’s, smiling brightly to compliment raihan’s warmth. it’s a very genuine look- not that raihan isn’t always genuine- and if piers had a photographic memory, he’d take a mental picture to keep with him forever. 

he can’t help but feel bashful, exhaling lightly and tucking some hair behind his ear. “thanks. means a lot comin’ from my wonderful audience.“ 

though... piers raises an eyebrow when raihan mentions his mother. they weren’t very close friends before coming to koi, and as far as piers can recall, raihan doesn’t mention his mother often, if at all. for a second it looks like piers is trying to focus.. the only family he can think of is marnie. (aside from team yell, of course.) “your mother, aye? i’m glad i could make it with one of the greatest.” he does feel proud that raihan considers his cooking that good. 

piers’ response tickles raihan and he laughs harder, the noise bubbling out of him uncontrollably like foam from a champagne bottle. he raps his knuckles against the edge of the table, other hand pressed against his stomach, as he tries to dial himself back. summarily, a knuckle is dragged over the corner of his eye.

“that’s wonderful— really!” raihan beams at the other. the dragon leader smiles quite a lot, but this one seems different somehow. “pokémon helping with cooking is a good idea, in my experience. flygon has a funny talent at picking the sweetest pecha berries.”

when piers cuts the shepherd’s pie, raihan’s eyes practically sparkle as the scent hits his nose. it smells incredible and while raihan can’t say he’s ever eaten a pie that’s really blown him away before, he suddenly thinks that this one might do just that. once a slice is placed upon his plate, he plucks his fork from the table.

“you’ll have to tell me what kind of food you like. so i know what to make.” raihan shoves a forkful of pie into his mouth, barely batting an eye at the temperature. he, against his better judgment, mumbles around the food in his mouth. “know y’like spicy, tho.”

any time raihan laughs, it causes a bright smile to grow on piers’ face. he loves that laugh, and whenever he hears it, it feels like it spreads to him. he feels proud of himself for making a joke that funny.

piers leans on the backs of his hands, his wide smile now fully visible. he laughs, light and breathy, shaking his head. “i find they always run the dish over with their tastes. obstagoon likes it spicy too, but his tastes’re a lot spicer than mine.“ imagine one too many tamato berries. “havin’ a cookin’ partner makes it fun, too. i always thought cookin’ was at least a little fun, though.” he used to do it just for marnie, but found a habit of it when the food he made actually tasted good. 

although raihan nearly rolls his eyes, he suddenly seems taken aback, as though he’s ashamed of himself and very terribly faking it. “you’re right! oh, goodness, how could i ever imply that obstagoon isn’t the real rattatatouille here?” he swivels his wrist, giving obstagoon a short but fancy bow from his seat. the facade breaks and raihan immediately starts laughing.

duraludon stares at obstagoon as the other pokémon approaches. he remembers the dark-type leader’s partner pokémon— but only from battle. the steel-type exhales a soft noise and turns away, grumbling for the other to follow. he’s going to show him the ball leon got him for christmas!

“you’ve got a point there. i’m thankful for it, almost as much as i am for having good company!” raihan hums an amused noise, offering a soft applause for piers at the reveal. “next time i’ll make something for you.”

“c’mon,” piers waves his hand. “you’re talkin’ about ratatouille’s monster. he wasn’t the chef.” he was able to fake it for a while, but the second raihan bows- obstagoon doesn’t look nearly as amused as piers is, but he’s enjoying it- the dark leader laughs as well. “he did help. he picked out the ingredients. couldn’t ask for a better sous chef.“

obstagoon grins, stomping after duraludon! this pokemon acted like an oversized dog that walked on two legs- excitable and generally friendly with anyone, as long as they’re not stanced up for battle. even though the two pokemon haven’t hung out before, obstagoon treats duraludon like they’ve been friends forever. it’s time to play fetch. 

     As the Obstagoon calms down Alexia lets out a prideful chirp, as if insinuating her victory. The action does little to surprise her trainer; with the Empoleon’s hardy nature such things were commonplace to witness. The natural pride of an Empoleon did little to help matters. Gentle pats to her wing are enough to make the Pokemon docile, and she gives Dawn a soft coo. There we go, much better.

     “Heh, sorry about this one,” she murmurs, giving her partner another soft pat. “Pride gets the better of her sometimes, but Alexia has a heart of gold.” Nodding her head in agreement, Dawn’s partner pats her chest with a wing - a trait she’s had since her early days as a Piplup. “She was my first Pokemon ever, so she can get pretty protective.”

     It baffles her a bit that anyone would think the Obstagoon to be scary looking. Then again, she’s crossed paths with (and captured) ancient Pokemon revered as gods. Compared to them, anything might as well be like a puppy. “He’s so cute though! How could anyone be scared of this face?” Her grin grows five times brighter as the Blocking Pokemon lowers his head, which is swiftly bombarded with scritches and delicate strokes. Utmost care is put into each motion; the last thing she wants to do is hurt her new friend!

     Piers’ question causes a slight pause in her doting. Galar? Was that a region of some kind? Certainly not one she’s heard of, and the mention of it alone causes her curiosity to rise. Before she asks any questions of her own, it’s best to answer his first. “Nope, I’m from the Sinnoh region. My name’s Dawn if you were wondering!” The fact he recognizes her in some capacity does little to surprise her. She is the official Champion after all. “I’ve never heard of Galar though! Is it a newly discovered region?”

     though obstagoon willingly resigned in this ‘battle’, he still looks to piers with a defeated expression, and the dark trainer gives him another reassuring pat. “y’did your best, mate. that one’s pretty tough.” he gives alexia a smile and a thumbs up. good job! 

     “no worries.” piers shakes his head. “pride’s a good quality to have, if y’don’t have too much of it.” even when slouching, piers still finds himself looking down at alexia. “wantin’ to protect your trainer no matter the cost shows a sign of loyalty. that’s somethin’ special between partners.” he idly begins to pet obstagoon as well. “that’s how i feel about my mate here, too.” they have been together since piers was younger, so he relates to the bond that dawn shares with her empoleon. 

     when dawn calls the obstagoon cute, he smiles, leaning in to give her plenty of loving kisses! he’s a sucker for compliments it seems- piers has to pull him back slightly so dawn has some room to breathe. “you’ll inflate his ego like that. i’ve been told i look pretty scary myself...” with his tired-looking gaze, his hunched over posture, and his impossibly fluffy hair, it kind of makes sense. “maybe we’ve got that in common.” 

“i don’t know that you need to hope for anything,” raihan responds, closing the door once his guests pass the threshold. “you made breakfast for me the one time— your cooking is pretty ace.”

raihan meanders after obstagoon and piers. duraludon emerges from one corner of the living area, a dark column in a dimly lit room. he stares at obstagoon with bright golden eyes. his trainer, from across the room, gives the pokémon a sharp stare before smiling at piers and turning toward the food.

“then let’s get on with it! i was thinking about going out to get something, but you saved me a lot of legwork and some money.” the edges of his eyes crinkle as he sits down, smile wide and warm as usual. “thanks, piers.”

for some reason, piers is still trying to play along. he puts a hand to his chest, feigning surprise. “aye, thank you-- i didn’t make this one, remember? my pal here did.” he points at obstagoon with his thumb. his partner pokemon has a deadpanned expression as well- as deadpan as can be when its tongue is sticking out like that- and it lets out a snort. there’s a silly little smile on piers’ face, however. 

obstagoon makes its way into the apartment, walking over to the duraludon and looking at it. it crosses its arms and raises an eyebrow. a very cool greeting! piers stifles a laugh and begins to set the table. 

honesty asks! | accepting! 

“weren’t they?!” he barks, leaning the chair back on two legs briefly. “it was always stuffy, being all pent up in the same dining hall with the lot of you! i mean, plenty of kudos to each and every league member, but it felt more like a corporate luncheon. and i even think of some of them as friends, like nessa and leon, but it was still a bit silly, if you ask me.”

raihan scoffs and frowns sarcastically at piers’ comment. “i’m a master of these things, doll. you don’t have a bad side.” with the food placed before him, raihan sits more properly and snatches up his utensils with an obvious excitement. he spares piers a glance, a shake of his head, and an amused snort of his own. “alright, jester jeremy.”

“yeah.” piers laughs along with, waving his hand around. “the most i got out of it was free food, and some awkward small-talk. stuffin’ that many people in a room n’ forcin’ them to talk to each other for money... that stuff never works out. especially since we had the big suit watchin’ everything we do.“ his expression sours for a little bit. corporations. “would’ve liked a smaller dinner with everyone a lot better.“ everyone... minus rose, most likely. 

upon his reveal, raihan notices the sweater near-instantly and busts out into a wide grin. he reaches out and adjusts the collar slightly so that it lies flatter without much thought. it looks nice on piers!

“did he?” raihan isn’t so sure about that and snickers openly. “i’ve been in your apartment, mate— how much fur did he get into it?” turning his gaze back to obstagoon, the dragon trainer replaces his hand on the pokémon’s head. “sorry, no offense.”

stepping aside, he waves for both pokémon and trainer to enter his place.

piers notices that raihan’s smile gets bigger, and he finds himself grinning as well. he’s happy that he made raihan happy!

the obstagoon snorts in raihan’s face, but it still looks like it’s grinning. piers leans up against his pokemon, covering his mouth to stifle a small laugh. “i checked it myself. this one’s hair-free. this guy’s probably the best cook i know, i hope you enjoy it.“ and with that, piers straightens himself and enters raihan’s apartment, taking the food from the obstagoon as it follows him into the apartment. 

“yeah, that, too!” raihan smiles like he had, in fact, not at all considered that to be a possible reasoning for going out. “i think it’d be nice to just have a couple of us out together without all of the league stuff to consider. all those fancy dinners and functions rose threw for us were stifling at best.”

waving a hand, raihan sighs dramatically. he turns in his seat with anticipation when piers collects a couple of plates. a rumble threatens to shake the confines of raihan’s empty stomach as he watches the dark type leader prep the plates. it smells really good and he ponders how piers might’ve gotten so good at cooking.

“that filter suits you,” he declares, reaching a hand out and making a grabby gesture toward the plates. the childish display is punctuated by a wink.

piers snorts. “those kinds’a dinners were never my style. barhoppin’ fits a lot more, don’t you think?” it’s true, whenever they had to do a get-together as gym leaders, piers always detested it- and he’s sure his coworkers could see the distaste on his face. at least the food was good, most of the time. “we can get away with a lot more, considerin’ we aren’t exactly celebrities here.” there’s a smile on his face, piers is really enjoying not having the public eye over his shoulder all the time. it’s a nice break, and now he can shape an image for himself in his way.

     Feeling like her pride is on the line, the Empoleon puffs out her chest and stands as tall as she can. It isn’t much considering she’s only 5′ 7″, but she’s got a whole four inches on Obstagoon height wise. Of course Alexia would attempt to make the most of it. The Pokemon notices the rather docile way it regards her trainer however, so she won’t make a move to start a fight. She trusts Dawn.

     When the strange Pokemon’s trainer arrives it takes a moment for the Champion to register his voice. Lost in her own thoughts again! Blinking owlishly, his question goes unanswered for a moment. Until her lips curve upwards in a smile.

     “No, he isn’t bothering us at all! Quite the opposite actually,” she beams, folding her hands behind her back. “So his name is Obstagoon? Is that a nickname or the species name?” Holding back the flood of questions is near impossible, but she tries to limit herself. There is one thing she has to know, though…

     “…Can I pet him?”

     though the obstagoon is shorter, that doesn’t stop him from puffing out his chest to try and look as big as possible. piers can’t help but breathe out a light chuckle as he watches his pokemon try to win a silent-showdown. he raises a hand to the obstagoon’s neck, giving it some reassuring pats. “c’mon, mate.” and with that, obstagoon calms down much more than before, as if giving up the showdown. 

     when he speaks to the trainer, it does seem like she’s spaced out for a moment... piers doesn’t mind this at all however, and waits patiently for her to ground herself. 

    “that’s a relief.” he scratches at the side of his head. “obstagoon means well, but a lotta people think he looks scary.” he gives dawn a nod. “yeah. obstagoon’s the name of the pokemon, i had this guy since he was a little zigzagoon...” with that, piers’ pokemon smiles brighter, nodding his head along with! 

piers thought it would be funny, but he was caught too quickly for it. when raihan’s hand lands on obstagoon’s head, the pokemon smiles and leans in to give the dragon trainer’s face a lick! piers steps to the side and comes into view, leaning on his pokemon somewhat, giving it pats of love. he’s casual-looking today; a torn pair of jeans and the striped sweater that raihan had gifted him.