Summary: Satoshi is tired of being surrounded. Shigeru is tired of being alone. The two of them begin to bond together when they’re set up to work as a pair for a magic assignment. Part 7 of @catsubun‘s Birthday Conga series, featuring casual magic!AU

Note: If you like my work, please consider donating to my Ko-Fi account - Seniichi.

Shigeru’s never been the most social of people. When you have a elemental leaning towards shadows, people tend to avoid you. No amount of skill would endear them to him, regardless of what was done otherwise. It was considered an anomaly on the Ookido record, actually. Everyone else in his family was Light-based - he was just the freak. And for a while, that suited him just fine.

But after nearly seventeen years of it, it really was just lonely. He props his head up, stares out of the window in silence as he hears the class chatter excitedly about the upcoming Magic assignment. In front of him, he can see the class darling chattering back with them, an amiable smile on his face.

Satoshi was Masara’s only Light Elemental user of this generation, and it had netted him the spot of the most popular kid of his age. When he was younger, Shigeru had been completely resentful of Satoshi because of it - Satoshi had the very element that made the rest of his family so famous, and here Shigeru was, with a lousy Dark Element specialty. He’d gotten over it after a while, but life was lonely. He had nobody to practice rune work with, casual magic games would dissipate if he showed interest. He was alone, and it was exhausting.

“... For this assignment, you will be assigned a rune to work with. You must research the history, the uses, and the compatibility of this rune with your element and your partner’s element. I will be assigning the pairs,” Shigeru barely pulls out of his silent brooding to look at the teacher. “Shigeru Ookido.” The teacher’s lip curls in faint sympathy towards him.. “You will be partnered with Satoshi.” Immediately, the class burst into horrified whispers, and Shigeru’s gaze flicks over to Satoshi, who seems - to his own surprise - unbothered by the partnership. The boy catches his gaze, and Satoshi smiles at him warmly. Shigeru blinks, but offers a lopsided smile that felt slightly too odd on his face. Satoshi beams at him brightly, and he ducks his head lightly, looking at his desk without a word.

He expects Satoshi to disappear with his assembled friends, but to his own surprise, the boy ambles over after waving off his many friends, dragging over a chair with a sunbeam smile. He sticks out his hand, and Shigeru stares blankly at it for a long moment. Satoshi’s smile doesn’t dim, but a couple of the assembled onlookers begin to snicker spitefully. Eventually, he accepts the handshake, and Satoshi’s smile seems to get brighter.

“Uh... nice to meet you.“ Shigeru murmurs at last, and Satoshi’s sunny smile could light up the night with how bright it was.

“Nice to meet you too!” He’s so sunny in every conceivable fashion. It’s the way he curls his warm magic around Shigeru without reservation, the open and obvious affection meant for him and him alone. Shigeru smiles awkwardly at him, tries to avoid being rude as best as he can. “I don’t really know a lot about Runes,” Satoshi tells him with a smile as he lets go. “But I’ve heard you’re one of the best at it.” Shigeru’s cheeks flush at the unexpected compliment, but he manages a more genuine - if surprised - smile at the boy. He was top of his class - but he hadn’t thought anyone knew - he never let anyone know how good he was.

“And you’re the best at flight magic,” He counters carefully. “I’m a little jealous of you, getting to touch the stars.” Satoshi’s cheeks flush prettily, and on impulse, Shigeru shifts so that his desk - which has enough room for two even though he’s always sat alone - offers enough space for the boy to join him properly. “Do you want to get started on the project early?” However, one of the girls loitering by the door butts in, and Shigeru is reminded - unfortunately - of his status.

“Shigeru can do the project without you Satoshi - you promised that you’d join us for lunch.” A tired expression flickers over his face, and Shigeru is surprised to see what looks like annoyance cross his temporary partner’s features. He can see Satoshi’s reluctance to leave, wonders at it. But before the boy says anything, he decides to go ahead and be the bad guy for this one, if only to spare him.

“Actually - uh, what was your name again?” Shigeru dons an arrogant smirk, flicks his hand left and right as  the girl glares at him. He knows her type well - nothing but a weak pansy - she didn’t have the strength to match up to him, and they both knew it. “Nevermind, I’ll just forget it,“ He says arrogantly. “I’m not allowed to touch books on Light magic, so I can’t actually do this on my own.” He can see the badly hidden relief when the girl backs off, and he offers Satoshi a smile as the boy fits his stolen seat next to Shigeru’s.

Summary: Satoshi’s a new contortionist with a unique act. Shigeru, a fortune-teller, decides to show him and his Pikachu around. Part 5 of @catsubun‘s Birthday Conga series, featuring Shigesato Carnival AU

Note: If you like my work, please consider donating to my Ko-Fi account - Seniichi.

Shigeru has always been able to read the shadows of others. It’s interesting, what the shade can tell him of their guests. Their hopes, their fears, their dreams. It tells him other things, which makes him well-renowned as one of the finest fortune tellers in all of Kanto. Though the title discomforted him, he couldn’t help but feel a bit of pride in how many people believed his prophecies.

(the fact that they all came true was certainly good for him as well)

So when his grandfather came up, Shigeru only needs to glance at his shadow to understand what he wants.

“I’ll be happy to show him around,” Shigeru says without preamble, and his grandfather sighs, plants his hands on his hips. “And to answer your question, it would be no fun if I let you speak first.” Shigeru stands up from his work, looking up from his loom and smiling at his grandfather’s amused frustration.

“You incorrigible brat,” he chuckles, scoops Shigeru into a quick hug and plants a kiss to the top of his head. Shigeru doesn’t squirm - rather, he accepts the affection as it is, knows how much his grandfather needs it. They stay closely intertwined for a moment, before he shoos the boy away.

“Come along Noir,” Shigeru tells his Umbreon, whose ears perk up. He gives a wide yawn, pristine canines glinting in the sun before Umbreon bounds along behind him, curling the shadows around his master like a cloak, protecting the fortune teller from stray stories and glimpses into the lives of others.

The boy he had glimpsed in his grandfather’s shadow is holding still, curiously scanning the crowd without leaving his spot. On his shoulder lays a Pikachu. The joltrat sees him first, gives a cry of greeting towards Umbreon, who he ushers on ahead with a smile. Noir easily clears a path for him, and Shigeru follows sedately, unhurried movements so smooth that he seems almost untouchable. The boy is kneeling to greet the Umbreon himself as well, and Shigeru allows himself a smile. Finally, he looks up, and Shigeru gets the oddest sense of... peculiarity.

There was a lot of electrocution in this boy’s future... He glances at the Pikachu, wonders if he is a deterrent or an attraction, but the Pokemon’s future is deeply muddled. Shigeru had never read a Pokemon before... He shakes his head, offers a shadow-wreathed hand to greet the boy.

“You must be Satoshi,“ He gives the boy a smile, but doesn’t lower his hood. Satoshi peers curiously up at him, and the boy pouts adorably when he cannot see through the veil. “My name is Shigeru - I’m the Grandmaster’s grandson.“ Satoshi’s hand is impossibly warm, though he can feel rough calluses on the otherwise delicate-seeming fingers. He lifts the hand up to his mouth, and presses a soft, delicate kiss to pretty fingertips, watching with amusement as the boy’s cheeks flush appealingly red. “A pleasure to meet you.“ The word rolls off of his tongue in a soft caress, the younger of the two flushing even deeper.

“T-the pleasure is mine,“ He stutters, and Shigeru’s lips curl up hungrily into an amused grin. How cute. On the ground, the Pikachu gives a disapproving squeak, startling Satoshi out of his adorable daze. Shigeru grins, and holds onto the boy’s hand.

“Come. I’ll show you around, help you get acquainted with your new home..” Watching Satoshi obediently trot ahead of him, Shigeru admires the pretty figure, hand resting almost possessively over a perfectly tanned shoulder.

Summary: It’s not a date. Kaki will take what he can get anyways. Duo Shigesato and Kakisato for @catsubun/ @beriskara‘s birthday conga.

Note: If you like my work, please consider donating to my Ko-Fi account - Seniichi.

Satoshi is having a great time. He’d gotten lucky and asked Satoshi out, and the boy had lit up, before asking if Shigeru was coming too. So the three of them were walking through the park, Kaki and Shigeru glaring at each other when Satoshi was out of reach.

"Look!” Satoshi tugs on the Policeman’s sleeve, and he obediently looks towards where Satoshi is pointing, Shigeru looking faintly amused. It’s a bunch of carnival games. Kaki smiles at the sight of it. “Let’s go play!” He insists, and the two boys immediately spark with competitive energy.

“That sounds like a great idea Sato-chan,” Shigeru cuts in smoothly. Satoshi blushes happily, and Kaki glares at him. You snooze you lose, Shigeru mouths over Satoshi’s head, grinning smugly. Kaki’s hand settles on Satoshi’s back, and nudges him forward. He raises an eyebrow, and Shigeru glares. He winks, and Satoshi goes on ahead. “Getting kind of cocky there Kaki,” Shigeru murmurs, walking past them both. “I think I see a target game - want to give that a try?”

“Sure!” Satoshi beams, accepting Shigeru’s hand as it’s offered, the boy happily getting swept away. “C’mon Kaki! Shigeru’s a real whiz at target games!” Kaki scowls at the ground, but chases after them both anyways.

Much to his vast annoyance, Shigeru actually was really good at these kinds of games. For every target he managed to get, Shigeru could get a dozen with such graceful ease it was a little horrifying. How did people compete with this kind of bullshit skill? Kaki grumbles under his breath as Shigeru wins again, Satoshi cheering them both on from the sidelines.

Kaki makes it into second place, which is a consolation, but Shigeru still won, which was really annoying. Kaki accepts his tickets, seeing Shigeru do the same and pocket them while asking the vendor a question. Before he can listen further, Satoshi barrels into him, babbling about how cool he’d been, and he was the first person he’d ever seen give Shigeru a run for his money before. Even if Satoshi was lying to spare his feelings, it was certainly a sweet gesture. Shigeru walks over, ruffling Satoshi’s hair and making his cute hat fall off, though he catches it with ease.

“I’m still unsure as to why you two are wearing your uniforms.” Kaki admits at last as they’re walking to the next game. “I’m required to, but I can’t see why either of you are.“

“I don’t know either,” Shigeru muttered, and he had to bite his tongue at the sour tone in his voice. “Satoshi has to wear his uniform during the week because that’s when he’s on duty, but I’m stuck wearing this all of the time.”

“At least you look good in blue,” Satoshi offers both of them. Shigeru dips down to kiss the top of a fluffy crown, and the boy squeaks up at him, cheeks turning an adorable shade of pink. Kaki glares at him for it, and Shigeru smirks.

“Thanks honeybuns,” Shigeru chuckles. Predictably, Satoshi only blushes deeper. Kaki can’t echo the sentiment without seeming slow on the ball, and Shigeru smirks - playfully this time. It doesn’t take long before Satoshi is distracted, and Shigeru leans in, smirking. “C’mon. Up your game Kaki. This game’s no fun if I’m always winning.” He winks, and Kaki regains his senses enough to quickly dart past him, arm settling on Satoshi’s shoulder.

“You look like you’ve found something,” He says, flipping Shigeru off from behind his back. Shigeru gives a strangled noise that sounds almost like a laugh in response, and he continues to smile.

He’d won this one at least. There’s still a few hours, so Kaki has to be on his best behavior. The three of them continue to play, and while Kaki continues to lose to Shigeru, he gives it his best shot anyways. Shigeru is light and nimble, but Kaki has power behind him, and they’re starting to tie, Satoshi excitedly cheering for them with every game won or lost, beaming at them both.

The evening is drawing to a close, and Shigeru is staring at a vendor thoughtfully.

“I’ll be back in a minute - I’m going to cash these in.” Whatever he’s planning, Kaki is grateful, it allows him talk to Satoshi alone.

“I had lots of fun with you guys,” Satoshi beams up at him, and Kaki grins back, warm. “We should do it again sometime.”

“Likewise. But maybe next time, we can do it alone? Just the two of us.” Satoshi thinks about it, and hums.

“Like a date?” He asks curiously. His heart thuds, but before he can go too far, lean in closer to kiss Satoshi’s cheek, the boy’s phone rings. He jerks back, and Satoshi is too distracted to notice, lighting up at the sight of the caller ID. He looks up though, with an apologetic smile.

“I can wait.” But Kaki knows that Satoshi will have forgotten the question before the call was over. Satoshi gives him an absent pat on the face, wandering away to answer the phone with a big smile.

“Man, bad timing,” Shigeru’s voice is dark with humor, the teenager joining Kaki. Kaki glares at Shigeru.

“You set up that call,” He accuses, and Shigeru grins.

“My, you think I’m that much of an evil mastermind? I’m flattered, I really am.” Shigeru’s shit eating grin is truly something to behold. “Next time though, if you’re gonna get him to agree to a date, don’t do it somewhere that I can still hear you.“ He winks, tucking the small bundle into his apron pocket. “But I gotta give it to you, that was pretty fucking smooth.” Kaki glares, but his lips twitch.

Alright, Shigeru wanted to play hardball?

Summary: Pearl hunting. Kaki didn’t know how to hunt for fish - how was he supposed to hunt for pearls??? Lucky for him, he’s got a cute admirer who keeps throwing things at him.

You know the drill by now. I haven’t made @beriskara​ / @catsubun​ scream with joy recently so I thought I’d do something new for cutie OTP, and because I’ve never participated in MerMay before.

Note: I have made a Ko-Fi account - Seniichi

“Pearls they said. It’d be fun they said.” Kaki glares down at the water, kicks at the sandy beach with a snort of irritation. He turns on his heels to storm away from the beach, muttering obscenities under his breath. He was a Fire-dancer, the Trial Captain on top of a Volcano, for the love of Tapu Lele! Who expected him to be able to fish for Pearls!?!?

His friends thought it was funny that he couldn’t. It wasn’t. Ever. He crosses his arms and huffs as he sits on the rocky outcropping. He’s being childish, yes, he’s aware, but there was something inherently not funny about this. He hadn’t gone swimming in enough ages that he didn’t even want to risk it. After a moment, his temper cools, and he stares down at the water.

What a time to not have his father’s support. His father was a pearl diver, he didn’t doubt that he -

Something hits his forehead, and startled, he looks up as it plops into his lap. He peers suspiciously out towards the ocean, wonders if Lana had gotten her Pokemon to annoy him.

Nothing. He gives a last suspicious look, before looking back down and making a surprised noise at what he finds. It’s a pearl. It’s about the same color as his eyes, and he rolls it between his fingers, confused and a little wary. Another little plink, and another one joins itself in his lap. Again, his head shoots up, and he doesn’t see anything. Only the sound of the waves, and a couple of leaping Wishiwashi. It is a little strange to see Wishiwashi in this part of the ocean, but he dismisses it. There’s no way that it’s important. He picks up the other one eyes it suspiciously. It’s a pretty sea-blue, and he admires how it catches the light, shining gold in the right angles.

Well. It was kind of strange, but he’d take it. It’s not like he could swim all that well anyways.

As he left, he failed to notice the sight of dark hair bobbing in the water, watching him leave.

He’s back the next day, renewed determination to look and find his own pearls. There’s Wishiwashi everywhere, and he’s swarmed immediately around his feet, the fish eagerly rubbing up against him, creating a froth of white water. Looking around, he notices that the beach is empty - this many Wishiwashi usually make a school, but as far as he could tell, they weren’t forming one. It was a little weird, but hey, beggars weren’t to be choosers. He pats the top of one’s head, and he has to yelp when he feels his pockets gain weight.

The suspicion nagging in his mind is proven right when he pulls out a handful of pearls.

He eyes them, but they have the most innocent of expressions - and the fact that he knows what the guilty face upon a Wishiwashi’s face looks like actually makes his head hurt a little. He observes them again, but sighs slightly and pockets them, reaches his hands out to pat the assembled fish. They swarm up under his hands, wriggle eagerly around him, and he can’t help but smile. They’re like Rockruffs of the sea, he supposes, once he’s finished patting them all as thanks for a job well done.

“Thanks.“ He says at last. “But you know, I’ve gotta learn on my own somehow,“ He says that with a smile, tries to soften the blow so they don’t get upset. The water froths up again, but they assemble and make an arrow, and then a question mark rather than mob him. Carefully, he treads through the water, swimming deeper into the ocean. Immediately, they swarm around him, wrapping around his body like a shield and swimming in one single direction. He laughs a little - this is kind of weird, but he’s been working with an even weirder Salazzle for months, so this he could handle some overly affectionate fish. It doesn’t bother him, and he manages to reach the spot he’d been directed to.

Well. Here goes nothing. He shakes his head slightly to himself, diving under the water. He dives deep, slowly following the Wishiwashi. His lungs are burning, but he manages to reach the area and plucks up a few of the oysters before beating a hasty retreat back up into the surface. He’s desperately gasping for air, so he can be forgiven for not noticing that there was someone next to him until they poke his forehead.

His surprised scream is totally justified - there is no way it isn’t.

The boy is pouting at him, arms crossed - and how was he swimming like that?

“You know, I threw those pearls at you so you wouldn’t do this,” He says accusingly. He’s open-mouthed, trying to keep up with the conversation. “I can’t understand why you’d swim again after you almost drowned years ago!” He said, uncrossing his arms and poking his chest. He looks down at the boy, and that’s when he sees it.

The boy has a tail.

Kaki is utterly justified in his next move.

He faints.

When Kaki wakes up, he’s on the beach, and the strange boy is scowling at him, tail stretched  out and dipping into the sea. He pokes Kaki’s nose, and he flaps his hand in front of his face to keep his hand away.

“You fainted,” The boy says accusingly. Kaki stares at him.

“You’re half fish.” He says, as though it was self-explanatory. “You’re half fish.” Satoshi scowls and he’s abruptly hit in the face with seaweed. Spluttering, Kaki pulls the seaweed out of his face and throws it back.

Summary: I saw Policeman Kaki and I decided that today would be dorks fighting for one (1) oblivious adorable boi. Feat. Pikachu who is done with this already. For @catsubun / @beriskara because she needs cute.

Note: If you like my work, please consider donating to my Ko-Fi account - Seniichi.

Kaki is being awful nice, Satoshi thinks as he locks up the Centre for the evening, the other boy trying very hard to hold a conversation with him. Kaki was a new Police-hopeful that had been assigned to Pallet Town, and Satoshi - as he always would - had greeted the newcomer with open arms.

“Thanks for keeping an eye on me,” Satoshi smiles at Kaki, hefting his bag with Pikachu inside, the little mouse giving a tiny squeak, before going back to sleep. “You really didn’t have to,” He says, walking down the street towards the Pokemart.

“Someone should,” Kaki says modestly, scratching a finger against his cheek as they draw nearer. Satoshi gets his keys out, and Kaki blinks. “You work here too?“ He’s curious, but Satoshi doesn’t notice the frown on his face, intent on unlocking the door.

“Mmh? No, but Shigeru does. This is one of the bigger Pokemarts, and he’s left alone most of the time to close up, so I lend him a hand - the Centre doesn’t take nearly as much work, so I generally get done about an hour or two before him.” He misses the look on Kaki’s face, opening the door. “Do... you want to join us? I’m sure Shigeru would really like the help - customers can be a little mean.”

Kaki, meanwhile, is staring at the mess on the floor from spilled product.

“Only a little?” He questions incredulously. “If this was outside, I’d have to arrest someone for vandalism.” Kaki says to Satoshi, disbelieving.

“You could arrest them inside, but the Jenny clan doesn’t usually patrol inside of a building. We’re supposed to have security for that.” A third voice makes Kaki jump, and he meets eyes with a boy just slightly taller than him, a crooked smirk on his face and an attitude that makes Kaki itch to pull his handcuffs out and arrest him. He strides past Kaki and pulls Satoshi into a hug, kissing his cheek in greeting, much to Kaki’s nonverbal but noticeable irritation. “They never do, since the customer can do whatever the hell they want.” Satoshi is beaming, bright cheeked and soft pink flush over his skin at the open affection as he looks up at Shigeru with an adoring smile.

Kaki’s stomach does a flip, and after Shigeru has let Satoshi know what he should be okay with doing, the two are left alone. Shigeru draws up close, fingertip pressing against his chest, cocky smirk firmly in place as he gives Kaki a look.

“Let’s make something clear hon.” Shigeru smiles, and it’s not at all nice. “Don’t think you have any chance with my Satoshi.” He pulls back, pats Kaki on the head, and walks away, cool as one might please, leaving Kaki furiously scowling after him. Satoshi putters back, arms full of cleaning supplies, when he looks between them. Shigeru is undeterred, still smiling warmly at Satoshi, but Kaki doesn’t have the chance to pull his expression into line after that infuriating brat’s words. He sighs, gives them both a look.

“Are you two fighting already?” He complains good-naturedly. Shigeru raises an eyebrow.

“Not that I’m aware of,” Shigeru says with a smile, pulling the objects out of Satoshi’s hands and planting a kiss to the top of a head. “Thanks for finding these for me Sato-chan.” Satoshi turns a pleased pink, and Kaki has to bite a growl from escaping his throat. “I should have the displays cleaned up in about ten minutes, and then all that’s left is... eugh. The food section.” He pulls a face, and Satoshi pats his arm gently.

“I can at least mop up the mess,” He offers. “I’m used to it, I work at the Centre, remember?“ Shigeru shakes his head.

“No, no, you know how it goes. I need to stop being so squeamish. Just fix up the displays, and if you want, you can spend some time with your friend. I’ll finish up here.” Shigeru offers it out, and Kaki manages to unweld his jaw long enough to speak himself.

“I don’t mind staying - there must be something I can do.” Shigeru eyes him, before giving Satoshi a significant look that he feels he missed out on.

“You any good at cleanliness codes?” He gives a slight shake of the head. “You’ll have to be up to date with it before I can let you clean up anything or fix the displays.” He sounds apologetic, but when Satoshi’s head swivels his way to give a reassuring pat to his arm, Shigeru lets himself smirk at Kaki in challenge.

His right brow twitches. Oh, so that’s how he wanted to play it.

Since then, Kaki had been a nigh-constant presence in their afternoon visits, stealing Satoshi away after work before Shigeru could get even two words in. He’d also brought himself up to speed on the codes, and since he got off even earlier than both of them thanks to the labor laws, he would help Satoshi close up for the evening at the Centre, doing his best to make up for the lost time.

But no matter what he did, Satoshi seemed glued to Shigeru, their shared history a hurdle for him to overcome, and Shigeru’s familiarity with him had done more to endear Satoshi to him than Kaki could imagine. He’s finishing up a display when he overhears them, and he wanders a little closer.

“Shige-kun, you don’t seem to like Kaki much,” Satoshi is sweeping debris while Shigeru is wiping down each shelf, getting rid of stray chips or broken bits of packaging from where customers had tried to steal stuff.

“Mmh? He’s nice enough, but I think he’s the one who doesn’t like me. I mean, I’ve barely seen you in the last couple of weeks, and I’m starting to miss having my cheerful partner around.” Satoshi’s quiet for a while, and the sound of the broom is all he hears.

“I hadn’t noticed,” Satoshi admits shyly. “I didn’t mean to leave you out of so much Shige-kun.” The other boy laughs softly, and though Kaki can’t see it, he’s sure Shigeru is shaking his head.

“It’s fine Sato-chan, you should be having fun with your friends. But come visit sometime, would you? Eevee is starting to pine for you, and I never made good on that promise to help you learn how to cook that one meal you really liked because of the blackout.” Satoshi’s breath hitches, and Kaki desperately wants to know what that was all about. What blackout? He mechanically moves back to the display, and finally, Satoshi speaks up again.

“Y-yeah. I’d like that.” He hears a soft puttering of feet, and he finishes the display as Satoshi comes around the corner. Satoshi eyes the display, and he immediately checks it for flaws. He can’t see any... “Kaki, I’m going to stay with Shige-kun tonight, so you shouldn’t wait up for me,” he says with a smile. Kaki gives a stiff nod.

“Yeah. Have fun.” Kaki notices how Satoshi’s smile dims, and he realizes belatedly how the tone of his words comes out. Dammit. “Argh... I mean - I just, really like spending time with you,” He blurts out, and that seems to do something, making the smile reappear at full strength.

“I like spending time with you too! But I’ve been ignoring Shige-kun a lot, and that’s a bit unfair to him.” Frankly, Kaki didn’t care what was unfair to Shigeru, but he knows better than to say so to Satoshi’s face. Satoshi’s smile dims slightly again, and he curses internally because he’d done something wrong again. Shigeru comes around the corner, before glancing at both of them. It takes him less than a second of glancing between them to realize the issue, and Shigeru immediately plasters on a smile that looks so effortless that Kaki envies it.

“Is something wrong?” Shigeru asks in that cool tone of his, and Satoshi nods a little. Shigeru hums slightly, before hugging Satoshi with an arm. “If you’d like Sato-chan, you can head home, I’ll take a raincheck on what we were discussing earlier.” He says the words lightly, but Satoshi shakes his vigorously.

“I want to spend time with you.” He insists, before giving Kaki a slightly disappointed look. “I’ll see you around Kaki,” He doesn’t quite tell Kaki to leave, but he knows that tone well enough. He hated seeing Satoshi’s smile turn so dim, and this time it was his fault. He makes his goodbyes, and he can see Shigeru giving him a frown, which only incenses him more.

He doesn’t see Satoshi for a few days after that, the boy obliquely avoiding him to a point that Satoshi had left the center before his usual visits. Shigeru he sees more of, but he doesn’t seem too pleased to see him either, which is a surprise given how smug he’d been at having Satoshi to himself.

Kaki is doing another patrol when at last he sees Satoshi, the boy carrying groceries up the hill to his home. Satoshi trips, and it’s instinct that makes him immediately lunge and catch Satoshi before he or his things fall to the ground. Pikachu, perched on Satoshi’s shoulder, is a lost cause, falling off of his human with a squeak.

Satoshi looks grateful for all of two seconds, before realizing who it is and his smile turns into a scowl. The boy yanks himself away, and Kaki gives him an apologetic look. Pikachu gives a quiet ‘chaaa of hello, but doesn’t do anything to help him fix the mess he’d made.

“Satoshi - I’m sorry,” He stutters over his words, and if anything, that seems to make the boy angrier at him.

“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to,” The boy says stiffly. “Shigeru at least apologized for being a jerk about wanting to keep me to himself,” Satoshi’s head is held high, and Kaki realizes that he’s staring at Satoshi in disbelief, which he snaps out of, though it doesn’t do anything but irritate the cute boy. “You should be apologizing to Shigeru for how you treated him. He’s my friend too, and the way you two are acting is just stupid.” He turns on his heel and stomps off cutely, skirt fluttering in the wind. Pikachu rubs against his leg briefly, before chasing after his human. Kaki heaves a sigh, and an amused voice drifts up to him from behind.

“Well, that’s you told, hm?” Shigeru sounds amused, the teenager carrying his own groceries in hand. “Don’t mind Sato-chan. Give him another week and I’m sure he’ll forgive you without the need to apologize to me. He doesn’t hold grudges very long.” The boy doesn’t seem to care about getting an apology at all, and Kaki eyes him suspiciously. “What?” Shigeru doesn’t look pleased at the scrutiny, and hefts his bag up higher.

“What’s your angle?” He says suspiciously, and Shigeru sighs, rolling his eyes.

“I want to date Sato-chan. I’d have thought that was obvious. Thanks to the stunt you pulled, He’s just barely talking to me again, and that’s annoying. I’ve been trying to get Satoshi to go out with me for months, and then you show up.” Shigeru shakes his head, annoyed. “He’s very cute, but the lovable idiot is dense as a rock.” Kaki can’t help the snort that leaves his throat, because that sounds exactly like Satoshi. “All that aside - I’m sorry.” Kaki jerks back, surprised. “And don’t think I’m doing this because Sato-chan told me to. I’m not good at handling threats to what I consider mine. And you are most definitely a threat. I can’t say I’m not going to still be a pain in your ass, but I won’t be quite so mean in the future. Just don’t expect me to make it easy for you to woo Sato-chan.” The boy hefts his groceries higher up on his hip, and he smirks. “Who knows, maybe having a rival for his affection will be fun. Just don’t expect to win, loser.”

Kaki’s lips pull into a faint scowl, but there is something there, a hint of amusement on his face. “Now you’re the one dreaming too big,” Kaki says with a huff. “I’ll win Satoshi back before you can even dream of it.” Shigeru’s lips curl into a proper smile, and he chuckles.

“That’s the spirit.” Shigeru says the words in open amusement. “Later loser. I’ll let Sato-chan know you apologized in your own bastardly way,” He laughs. “That’ll put us on even footing, but don’t expect mercy from me after this - Sato-chan is mine.” The teenager saunters off, and Kaki gives a half-hearted scowl, before grinning himself.

Gift for @catsubun/@beriskara​ - Pokémart Shigeru and Satoshi for Palletshipping day. Also partly inspired by the song Monody. Setting for this one is a tweaked scenario of number six of their cute ideas - post is HERE.

Satoshi usually wasn’t so late helping him out. Shigeru’s lips press into a frown, the young Pokémart worker hefting another box higher so it settles comfortably on his shoulder. He’s halfway to putting it on the shelf when Satoshi finally appears, his usual excited footfalls tinged with a bit of squeakiness.

He’s a little too occupied with putting everything away to actually look at Satoshi until after he’s sure it won’t fall off of the shelf. When he finally does, turning with a faintly exasperated expression, he has to restrain a snicker. Satoshi looked adorably pathetic, dripping water over the tile, fluffy hair dragged down into tangled snarls over slim shoulders.

“Shigeru, it’s not funny.” The shorter boy pouts, arms crossing as water drips off of his hair. “I almost tripped while locking up the Center!” Shigeru’s expression twitches, and Satoshi glares at him, adorable pout firmly in place.

The staring contest lasts for as long as it takes for Satoshi’s hat to fall off of his head, landing with a pathetically wet splat. Shigeru finally gives it up as a lost cause, chuckling richly even as the nurse kneels down to pick up his hat, still pouting.

“You have to admit it’s a little funny.” Shigeru continued chuckling, taking the sodden cap and squeezing it out until it was mostly dry. “I’m actually almost done for the day - all that’s left really is the mopping. Think you can do that without knocking over my display?” Shigeru teases, and Satoshi sticks his nose in the air.

“Of course I can!” He huffs, stomping off. Of course, the effect is ruined by the squeak of his cute little shoes, but Shigeru simply bites back the amused laughter that wanted to bubble up his throat, instead going back to stocking the shelves.

As clumsy as Satoshi was, he was at the very least good at cleaning - no doubt from the sanitary requirements of the Centre. So he’s not too much later than usual - but it’s still enough that the storm is most definitely hideous when they’re stepping out at long last, rain pelting them with warm water, splashing over his skin in sharp contrast to the cool air of the Pokémart, and with a bit of worry, he can see that Satoshi is already starting to shiver. The moment he locks up, the boy reaches out to carefully wrap an arm around his shoulders.

“Can’t have you getting cold now,” Shigeru teases lightly, tugging the boy closer. “Or tripping. I’m sure the path to my house is already muddy enough.” And with that thought, the idea of Satoshi walking the rest of the way to his home, which was somewhere on the outskirts of town, was frankly terrifying. The boy merely shivers, but manages to stick his nose up in the air, trying to fight back against the onslaught of affectionate teasing.

“I’m not that clumsy,” He protests indignantly, before pushing a bit closer. “But I am kinda cold,” He mumbles, and Shigeru tries to ignore how that makes his heart flutter a little against his ribcage.

The walk is silent - rain pouring down hard enough that they would be hard pressed to carry on a conversation, even with how chatty the younger of the two could be.

It was with some relief that he finally steps under the awning of his house, only noticing belatedly that Satoshi hadn’t joined him.

“Where are you going?” He questions, expression incredulous at Satoshi. The boy pushes his hair out of his face - a futile attempt, since it merely slaps back down over his forehead, making him wrinkle his nose adorably.

“Home,” Satoshi pushes the fringe of his hair up again, and again, it hits his face. “I can’t leave Pikachu alone,” Satoshi insists, but Shigeru isn’t having it, pale hand wrapping around a slim wrist and tugging the boy under the shelter of his front porch.

“And what would your starter do if he found out that you got sick silly Satoshi?” He immediately rebuts, cheeks warming at his own forwardness. “You can stay at least until it stops. I still have a spare set of clothes you can borrow.” Saying that aloud was a little embarrassing, but he persists, looking down at his liquid chocolate eyes. The boy’s nose scrunches up slightly, but he can’t deny that his partner would probably get very mad at him for running around like an idiot in this weather. Pikachu wouldn’t shock him, but there would be a lot of rump presentation in his future if he dared walk home in this weather. Sighing, Satoshi agrees.

“Oh, alright,” he accepts Shigeru’s invitation with a slight smile, squishing his way into the darkened house. Eevee immediately scrabbles to the door, squeaking excitedly at the sight of a visitor. The boy’s expression brightens, and he kneels, skirt pooling around his feet as Shigeru closes the door behind them both, darkening the entry hall. As he coos to the soft brown Pokémon, Shigeru turns on the lights.

“You should go take a shower,” Shigeru suggests, watching Eevee lick the boy’s tanned fingers eagerly in open affection. He drags his gaze away from Satoshi’s adorably open expression. “Spare clothes are in the closet in the bathroom - and maybe I can teach you how to cook something that won’t burn,” he adds the last bit with a slightly crooked grin, making Satoshi huff from where he’s spoiling Eevee with scratches to her neck ruff.

“Okay,” He pouts, expression turning soft with disappointment. “I’ll be back pretty girl,” Satoshi promises, the boy hurrying off to shower.

Shigeru in turn, shakes his head. “Pull it together Ookido,” he mutters to himself, ignoring the knowing look his starter gives him.

The shower passes too slowly for Shigeru’s overactive imagination, the boy deliberately not looking at the younger boy on his return, ears pink as he busies himself with setting everything up. The soft touch of a hand to his skin makes him jolt, but it’s just Satoshi, giving him a hesitant smile. He’s just wearing a oversized shirt that Shigeru had loaned him before on one of their days out together. His legs are bare and free for viewing, the smoothness of them a bit new. When he looks up, Satoshi’s cheeks are a bit pink.

“When did you shave?” He asks, nearly slapping himself in the face for asking when it makes Satoshi’s adorable cheeks burn bright pink. “I-I’m going to go shower,” he answers instead, hurrying off towards the shower.

No matter what, this was going to be awkward one way or another. He scrubbed down quickly, doing his best to pretend that Satoshi hadn’t been in here, using the same soap as him... smelling like Shigeru. His face burns, and he flips the water to cold, cursing at the change.

When he emerges in the kitchen, toweling his hair off, Satoshi is blushing, cheeks pink from where he’s looking at his hands. The boy looks up after a moment, before turning even redder and looking back down. Eevee is sitting in Satoshi’s lap, and if there was ever a time for Eevee to not have that smug look on her face now would have been great.

He flushes a little, and Satoshi looks up from where he’s scratching Eevee’s ears. The silence is awkward, but he moves closer anyways.

“I didn’t think you would have noticed...” his skin is so red, but there’s a pleased sort of smile on his lips. Eevee looks between the two of them, before bouncing out of Satoshi’s lap, tail in the air as she smugly gave her owner a look. A tiny paw swipes at his ankle, forcing him to stumble closer to Satoshi, Eevee disappearing into the hall.

“I notice everything about you.” The words are blurted out, but his face is bright red at the words, matching Satoshi’s flushed skin. At that moment, the storm cracked the sky outside, plunging the house into darkness, startling them both. Shigeru can barely see Satoshi, but he knows every inch of his kitchen, steps forward to carefully wrap his hands around Satoshi’s own. “The power will come back on soon,” He promised softly. Trembling, Satoshi stands up, pulling closer to him with clear nerves. His arm slowly wraps around Satoshi’s waist, and the boy doesn’t resist, a far cry from his usually independently stubborn nature. With nothing more than his memory, Shigeru manages to arrange for them to sit on the couch in his living room.

“Did you mean that?” The vulnerable quaver of his voice makes Shigeru’s heart ache slightly for him.

“Yeah. I noticed you, since the first time you knocked over my display.” He teases lowly, getting an embarrassed squeak.

“That was once!” He whines to the rich chuckle of Shigeru’s laughter.

“Oh yes. After that, you knocked over everyone else’s.” A blooming warmth fills him as he realizes that Satoshi, aside from the initial settling into the couch, hadn’t pulled away from him. Satoshi rests against him, and he can feel the soft puff of his cheeks against his collarbone.

“I didn’t...” His protest trails off, cheeks warm against Shigeru’s skin. Shigeru doesn’t want to say anything, instead, pulling back so that he and Satoshi are laid out on the couch. He gets a squeak for his troubles, but it’s so very satisfying to feel Satoshi settle into him rather than pull away. “You’re mean Shigeru,” He huffs against his skin. Shigeru grins, fingers settling into soft hair.

“Maybe you can help me with that,” He teases, the two lapsing into comfortable silence once more.

Summary: Kissing is Satoshi’s favorite activity, and Kaki won’t admit it, of all the kisses Satoshi gives him are all his favorites. Of course obligatory yelling at @beriskara / @catsubun because this is to make them scream of joy.

Note: I have made a Ko-Fi account - Seniichi

Satoshi will sometimes kiss for no reason. The boy ignores standard convention for couples, cheeky grin and playful giggles and kisses to his lips to shut him up. Olivia never lets him live them down when Satoshi does it in front of her, and begging requests for Satoshi to avoid kissing in front of her just ends up with him getting more kisses. Kaki might grumble, but he always loves it when Satoshi will swoop in, cut their conversation (read; one sided teasing) off to plant a kiss on him, chaste and sweet and always loving. Sappy grins on his face, he knows he’s whipped.

Other days, Satoshi kisses like an earthquake, clinging to Kaki after a nightmare he never explains, shaking against Kaki’s chest, silent tears from his unspoken terror. He kisses Kaki like he’s drowning and he’s air, holds to him and throws blue sparks of light in his profound and unending fear until Kaki can soothe him and press away all of his worries through the kisses he delivers, loves him in the way only he can. When it’s over, Kaki always pretends he can’t hear the quiet, muffled crying as Satoshi mourns his old home, wonders to himself what happened to cause such misery.

His least frequent kisses are slow. Deliberate. When Satoshi feels overwhelmed by human issues - a common thing when they’re exploring Alola together - or when he merely wants an escape, he kisses Kaki like this. They set fires in Kaki’s heart, curling in his veins and licking flames to the tips of his fingers and hazing his gaze until all he can say is Satoshi’s name and pull his beloved little supernova closer. Satoshi always has a lazy little grin, sated from all the kissing, a mischievous edge to his gaze, nuzzling him when he was done kissing and constantly refusing to let him go.

But by far and large for Kaki’s favorite, are the kisses he gets when he finds another Z-Stone. He only has ten of them, has a long way to go before he has them all, knows without thinking that he will get them all for Satoshi, his sweet starboy who glows like a galaxy with them curling over his skin, flush pink sparkles and appealing smile on his lips. Watching him glow all the colors of the galaxy always tempts him into kissing Satoshi first, and his starboy is forever delighted to kiss him, humming into the kiss and holding onto him eagerly, unwilling to let him go.

But he never quite notices Satoshi’s favorite. They’re extremely soft - always the ones he initiates, gentle press of lips against skin when he wakes Satoshi up in  the morning before his chores. The ones he gives when Satoshi arrives for breakfast, and especially the ones given to Satoshi when the boy is overwhelmed and merely wants affection, not words. These are all little treasures, and Satoshi loves and savors them most. In a galaxy of stars, these handful of cherished kisses are his favorite.

“I love you,” Kaki tells him one evening, softly pressing his lips against the soft skin of his throat, maps his heartbeat. Satoshi’s skin blushes blue where his lips touch, and Satoshi thinks he can spend forever like this, forever cradled in warmth and love. He sighs, happily.

“Love you too Kaki.” He says, melting into his grasp. He misses home, sometimes.