#pokemon reader insert

Valentine's Day always made you feel a little bad, at least since you were thirteen or so.  Before that, it was just a fun day where you shared cards with your classmates, had a little class party, and got gifts from your parents.  Usually consisting of candy, a card, and some sorta stuffie.  Now it was just a brutal reminder that you were alone.

Usually, you wouldn’t really care, and if you did you’d try not to let it sting too badly.  But recently things had changed, for about a year and a half now you’d slowly been falling in love with one of your best friends, none other than Galar’s reigning champion Leon.  Your feelings had come to a head back in October, up until then you’d done well to ignore and suppress them, but throughout the month it just kept getting harder and harder.  Then, the party happened.  It was a costume party held by Nessa on Halloween night, Leon was going to be there, but you didn’t know what he was going to be.  When you finally saw his costume it left you unable to deny your feelings for him any longer.  The costume itself did a lot for you, but the fact it was on Leon?  The way it hugged his form, and sparked your imagination with fantasies and scenarios?  Well, that was just the icing on the cake.

You agonized over your feelings for a bit, having finally admitted to yourself that you were absolutely head over heels for the man, unsure of how to proceed.  At first, you were convinced that he wouldn’t return your affection, how could he?  In your eyes, he was a god amongst men, and you were a lowly mortal.  But, after a short bout of self-deprecation, you were finally able to come to the conclusion that you just needed to tell him how you felt, no matter the cost.

Easier said than done.

You’d tired, really you had.  But something always got in the way, whether it be your nerves winning out in the end, someone interrupting you just as you were about to confess, or something happening to pull either of your attention away from the conversation.  Eventually, the holiday season rolled around as well, leaving both you and Leon busy.  By the time things calmed down you’d honestly lost all the courage you’d once had, and once again your mind raced with negative what-ifs.  Your main concern being that if you did confess and he didn’t reciprocate, then your friendship would be ruined.  All though, it had also occurred to you that if he didn’t feel the same then you weren’t sure if you would even want to be friends anymore.

Your feelings were all over the place, the thought of not having Leon in your life, whether romantically or platonically, physically pained you.  But so did the idea of all the embarrassment and awkwardness that would come in the aftermath of professing your love for Leon just for him to hit you with “I think we should just be friends.”  Despite it being unideal, you found a sort of sad comfort in the sort of Schrodinger's Delcatty situation you were in.  If you didn’t tell him how you felt, Leon couldn’t reject you nor could he reciprocate, either way, you kept him in your life and things didn’t change.  Even if that change could be for the better.

Except, as Valentine’s Day drew nearer, you grew more restless.  TV ads, shop displays, and the general talk of the holiday you heard wherever you went were starting to get to you.  The thought of happy couples spending the day together hugging and kissing and just being in love?  It made you jealous, but more so, self-conscious.  So, for the first time in a while, you’d started thinking about confessing again.

And goddamnit, you almost did it.  You had gotten so close to just spitting it out, but that Arceus-forsaken lump in your throat reared its ugly fucking head again.  And when you were alone in the comfort of your own home, you cried, and it was ugly.

That was yesterday, the 12th, this morning you woke up to a text from Leon asking if you’d want to spend Valentine's Day with him and some others who were without dates this year.  Truth be told the idea of spending Valentine’s Day with him platonically hurt a lot more than the idea of spending it alone, but you could never turn down an offer to hang out with him.

‘Sure, what are we doing?’

He responded a moment later saying that you were all going to be hanging at Gordie’s for the day, watching TV/Movies, playing games, and whatever else might be suggested.  It sounded nice, and you quite enjoyed hanging out at Gordie’s, he had a bunch of cool stuff.  Sometimes the thought had crossed your mind that if you weren’t madly in love with Leon, you could just seduce Gordie to have permanent access to his things.  But that was just a joke, mostly.

After confirming a few more details with Leon you readied yourself for the day and headed out.  You tried not to think about your love problems too much, desperately attempting to distract yourself with battling and various other tasks.  Yet the thought nagged at you in the back of your mind.  By three o’clock your stomach started to growl rather prominently and you realized you hadn’t eaten anything in a while.  Making your way to one of your favorite restaurants you took a seat at one of the patio tables and waited for the waiter to take your order.  As you waited, you happened to tune into the conversation from the next table over.  A pair of boys, who you’d assume were somewhere in their late teens, were discussing Valentine’s Day.

“So, you’re planning on asking out Derrick?”

“Yeah, I figure doing it tomorrow would be romantic, right?”

“Definitely, but how are you gonna do it?  Any big plans?”

“I’m gonna give him an Applin, you know what they say about giving someone an Applin, right?”

“OH!  That’s a great idea man.  He’ll say yes for sure.”

You froze for a moment.  An Applin, why hadn’t you thought of that?  It would be easier to give Leon an Applin than it would to sputter out some nervous confession.  You smiled, plan in mind, as soon as you were done eating you’d head straight over to route 5 to catch the perfect little declaration of love.  Love, Loveballs?  LOVEBALLS!  You nearly jumped out of your seat as the thought raced to mind, you had a whole mess of Loveballs back home.  Honestly, you had a whole box full of random Pokeballs shoved in your closet, ones you had acquired through various means over time that you saw no real need for, until now.  Course, to use a Loveball you’d need to battle with your own Applin, but that was no problem for you and your precious little À la mode.  A Loveball would be perfect for this, maybe a bit extra, but it would certainly get the point across.  Something that could come in handy with Leon, you loved the man to bits, but he could be kinda dense at times.

Finishing up at the restaurant you hurried home to retrieve your Loveballs, stopped at the nearest Pokecenter to add À la mode to your team, and finally made your way to route 5.  Taking a deep breath to steady your nerves, you stepped into the tall grass and began your hunt for an Applin.

It took a bit to find one, and even longer to find a female one.  Yes, you knew that you could still catch a male one with the Loveball, hell you didn’t even technically need À la mode himself for the task, it just made the catch rate higher.  And seeing as Applin on route 5 were usually between Lvl. 16 and 18 it wouldn’t be too hard to catch with the regular catch rate of a Pokeball.  But if it hadn’t already been proven to both yourself and countless others, then this whole situation would be proof enough that your natural instinct in life is to make things way more complicated than they have to be, even if it was just for show or better yet, pride.

After about 2 hours you finally had a brand new Applin in a Loveball, you grinned ear to ear as you made your way home, excitement building in your chest.  Yet, by the time you passed through your front door, that excitement had turned to anxiety.  Sitting at your dining table you stared at the Loveball in front of you, your heart beat a bit faster than usual and your stomach was tied in knots.  Were you really gonna do this?  Were you actually gonna confess your feelings to Leon on Valentine’s Day?  This could end badly, just oh so badly, there was still time to back out.  You could release the Applin and pretend the whole dramatic idea had never crossed your mind.

No.

You were gonna stand your ground, you wouldn’t let your nerves get the better of you again.  Not this time.  Nodding to yourself you placed the Loveball on the small table next to your front door, ready for you when you left the next day.  The rest of the night consisted of you deciding on an outfit for tomorrow, cooking dinner, and relaxing the best you could until you went to bed.

Surprisingly you slept well, at least in the sense that you actually slept, normally your nerves would have kept you up all night.  But they did manifest in your dreams, one after another depicting various ways your love confession could go sour.  Finally rousing from your own mental torture you rubbed the sleep from your eyes and set to work getting ready.  When the time finally rolled around to head off for Gordies you halted a moment at the door, staring down at the Loveball you’d nestled amongst the fake decorative fruit you kept in a bowl.  Why you kept decorative fruit was a mystery even to yourself.  Groaning faintly you grabbed the Loveball and stuffed it in your bag, finally heading out for the day.

Hanging out with everyone at Gordie's was a blast, though throughout the day you kept trying to figure out when would be a good time to give Leon the Applin, you wanted it to be just the two of you, but couldn’t devise a good enough excuse to get him alone.  As the day was winding down, and talk of ending the “party” was brought up Leon commented that he needed to be heading out soon anyway, apparently, he was gonna be spending time with his family tomorrow and had planned on staying the night back home in Postwick.  You had a wonderful idea.

“Leon?”

You approached him near the door, where he was getting his shoes and jacket on.

“Yeah?”

He smiled at you, straightening up from slipping on his sneakers.

“I was wondering if you would be willing to join me on the train ride home, it’s on the way to Postwick and I’d love to spend some time together, just you and I.”  You flashed him a grin.

“Of course, anything for my biggest fan.”

Leon laughed as he slung his arm around your shoulders, you just groaned.  He’d started calling you that a while back as a joke, it had since grown a bit old for your tastes, but it made him smile, and you liked it when he smiled.

Gathering your things you headed out with Leon to the train station.  It was a relaxing ride, and for a moment you’d forgotten about the Loveball Applin rolling around in your bag.  That is until you’d reached your stop.  It was a little after 11:30, and you still had a bit of a walk to your place, as Leon strolled alongside you, your deadline of confessing on Valentine's Day was soon to pass.  It was now or never.  Fortuitously, the quickest way to your place was a shortcut through a rather beautiful park, the perfect place for a love confession.  In the middle of the park was a gazebo, and the city had lit it up with pretty pink and red lights, as well as decorating it with fresh arrangements of roses.  Stepping into the gazebo you turned to look at Leon.

“Beautiful isn’t it?”

“Gorgeous.”  The lights reflected in his eyes as he looked up at the ones hanging from the beams.

“It looks like it could be the setting for a confession scene in some cheesy romance movie.”  You gripped your bag tightly.

“Haha, yeah.  I can just imagine it.”  Leon smiled, Arceus, that smile could make your heart flutter every time.

Checking your phone it read 11:56, four minutes, it was REALLY now or never.  Swallowing the infamous lump in your throat you opened your bag.

“I actually have something for you.  I didn’t want to make a big deal back at Gordie’s but now that it’s just us, I want to give it to you.”

“Oh?”

Finding the Loveball you quickly grabbed it and presented it to Leon, holding your breath.

“A Loveball?”  Leon blinked a few times before taking it from your hand.

“T-there’s a Pokemon inside.  You should, um, let it out.”

11:58

“Oh!  Of course.”

The Loveball opened and a small burst of light shot out, fading away to reveal the Applin.  Time seemed to freeze as you waited for Leon’s response.  He grinned, an excited laugh escaping his lips.

“Ah sweet, you caught me an Applin?  I’ve wanted one for a while now.”  Reaching down he scooped the Pokemon into his arms.  “How’d you know?”

Dense, the man was fucking dense.

“Lucky guess I suppose.”

“Haha, well it paid off, I love her.  Now I just got to decide what to evolve her into.  You have an Applin too right?  Any suggestion?”

“Uh, I’m partial to Appletun, but it’s up to you.”

“True, maybe I should talk to Raihan about it.  He is a dragon trainer of course, or maybe Milo?  He’d have input on the grass typing.”  Leon started to ramble a bit.

Looking down at your phone it now read 12:02.

“Fucking hell.” You mumbled.

“Did you say something?”

Leon cocked his head, shaking your own you stuffed your phone in your pocket.

“Just talking to myself, it’s past midnight though, so we should probably get going.  You still need to head for Postwick.”

“Oh right, I nearly forgot.”

Leon returned the Applin to its ball and motioned for you to lead the way.  The rest of the walk home was filled with Leon telling you about the plans he had with Hop and the rest of his family later that day.  Despite the failure of a confession, it still warmed your heart to hear him talk so lovingly about them.

Making it to your place you stopped out front.

“Thanks for walking me home Leon.”

“It’s no problem, I love spending time with you.  Thanks for the Applin again, I’ll make sure to take great care of her.”

“I know you will Lee.”

Smiling, Leon placed his hand on your shoulder.

“You’re an amazing friend, I’m really lucky to have you in my life.”

Schrodingers fucking Delcatty.

“Back at ya.”

Waving goodbye Leon headed off for the train station, in the completely wrong direction.  After you quickly reminded him where it was he set off on his second attempt, fading away in the dark of the night.

“Back at ya?”  You groaned, heading inside.  “Fucking stupid.”

Hop woke up to the smell of coffee wafting upstairs from the kitchen, seeing as his parents were more avid tea drinkers it could only mean one thing.

“Leon!”  Hop jumped out of bed, not bothering to change out of his sleepwear.

Hurrying downstairs Hop practically drifted into the kitchen, Leon stood at the counter fixing himself a cup of coffee.

“When did you get home?  I waited a long time for you, but you never showed.”  Hop mildly scolded as he made his way over to Leon.

Leon chuckled apologetically, giving Hop a wave.

“Morning, I got back kinda late, well past midnight.  I was hanging out with friends yesterday, then I ended up accompanying [Y/N] home last night.”

Hop sighed, rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

“Well, you’re here now, I guess that’s what really matters.”

“Of course, glad you understand.”  Leon patted Hop on the shoulder

“I’d understand a lot more if you made me pancakes.”  He grinned mischievously.

“Why didn’t I see that coming?”  Leon sighed turning around to gather the needed ingredients and such.

Hop laughed, heading for the kitchen table, huffing as he saw Leon’s backpack lying on it.

“How many times do you need to be told to hang your bag up in the entryway?”

Hop reached for the bag, pulling it from the table, as he did so the pink Loveball rolled out from the open top.

“What the?”

Hop was certain he’d seen all of Leon’s Pokemon, and he was even more certain that none of them were in Loveballs.

“What’s the matter?”

Leon turned to him, a bowl cradled in his arm as he whisked a batch of batter.

“Since when do you use Loveballs?”  Hop asked, holding up the pink ball.

“Oh, [Y/N] gave it to me last night, it’s an Applin.  I guess they noticed I’d wanted one and got it for me.”

Hop blinked.

“What?”  Leon stopped whisking.

“[Y/N] gave you an Applin in a Loveball, on Valentine’s Day?”

“Yeah, why?”

Hop knew his brother could be a little oblivious at times, but this was a level of stupidity that he’d never seen Leon reach before, and he prayed to Arceus he’d never reach again.

“Lee, I’m gonna need you to think about that statement very carefully, and focus on what all those aspects could mean together.”

Leon scrunched his face up in confusion, setting the bowl of batter down he crossed his arms in thought.  Hop could almost see the wheels turning in Leon’s head as he thought hard.  And as if he were the human lead in that silly little kids show from both their childhoods, with that funny little shiny Rockruff, and her perfectly placed blue pawprint clues, Leon connected the pieces of the mystery together masterfully.  A look of realization, and a bit of horror, took over his face as he finally came to the conclusion.

“Was [Y/N] trying to confess their feelings to me!?”  He hollered.

“Keep your voice down, Mom and Dad are still asleep.”  Hop hushed.  “And I don’t know for sure, but I’d assume they were.”

“That would make so much sense, especially with the Gazebo.”  Leon gripped the edge of the counter tightly, staring down into the bowl of batter without actually looking at it.

“Gazebo?”  Hop questioned lightly.

“Doesn’t matter.”  Leon shook his head lightly, pushing himself back from the counter.  “I gotta go talk to [Y/N]”

Leon rushed for the entryway, grabbing his jacket and starting to put his shoes on.

“Woah there, slow down Lee.  What are you doing?”

Hop followed behind, placing himself between Leon and the front door.

“I have to clear things up with [Y/N].”

Hop sighed, shaking his head.

“Lee, we have plans today, besides, you’re still in your pajamas.”

Leon looked down, noting that he was, in fact, still wearing his ratty old tank top and loose sleep pants.

“You have a point there, but I feel terrible, they did something so romantic and I went and ruined it by letting it all soar right over my head.”

Leon rubbed at his face, hiding behind his hands.

“Lee, it’s gonna be fine.”  Hop placed a hand on his brother's shoulder.  “You’ll clear things up with them later, after you’ve gotten dressed and we spend the day together, besides, it’ll give you time to think about what exactly you’ll say right?”

Leon lowered his hands, giving Hop a tired smile.

“Yeah, you’re right.  Maybe I can ask Mom and Dad for some advice.”

“That’s the spirit.  Now, can you finish making my pancakes?”

Leon huffed, breaking out into a grin, ruffling Hop’s hair he slung his arm around his shoulder and dragged him back into the kitchen.

“Is that all you care about?”

It had been about two days since ‘The Incident’, you hadn’t tried talking to Leon yet and he hadn’t messaged you either, which had you feeling conflicted.  On the one hand, you weren’t particularly ready to talk to him, on the other, the thought kept running through you’re mind that he’d finally realized what the loveball Applin meant and was now actively ignoring/avoiding you.  It was definitely paranoia, you understood that, but understanding it didn’t make it go away.  Regardless, you laid back on the couch, looking through the videos YouTube suggested for you, you desperately scanned over the thumbnails looking for something to distract yourself with, unfortunately, nothing caught your eye.  Suddenly your phone buzzed.

‘Are you home?’

It was from Leon, your blood ran cold.

‘Yeah, why?’

You felt you knew why but needed some confirmation.

‘Can I come over?  I need to talk to you, it’s important.’

You felt your stomach tie into knots.  You, REALLY, didn’t want to see Leon right now.  You weren’t mad of course, but after the other night's failed confession?  You were feeling less than stellar.  You hadn’t even left your apartment since then.

‘Are you sure?  It’s getting kinda late, isn’t it?’

It wasn't that terribly late, but it was worth a shot.

‘That doesn’t matter, we need to talk, and it can’t be done over text.  Please?’

You wanted to say no, Arceus you wanted to say no, yet despite everything that had happened Leon was still your number one weakness.

‘Okay, you can come over.’

Leon thanked you, saying he’d be over in a few.  Taking a deep breath, you calmed your growing nerves and waited.

Leon must have been nearby already, seeing as it only took about ten minutes for him to knock on your door.

"Hey, Leon."

Opening the door you greeted him with the happiest and calmest tone you could muster.

"Hey, thanks for letting me come over."  He smiled nervously as he stepped inside.

“Well, you did say it was important.”

You gave a forced chuckle, your heart pounding in your chest as you shut the door.  Leon nodded without a word, though his eyes spoke plenty enough for him.  You could tell he was just as anxious as you, yet it didn’t make you feel any better.  You stood in silence a moment, the two of you just staring, you’d expected him to say something.

“Sooo, what did you want to talk about?”  You finally decided to break the silence.

Leon swallowed heavily, blinking a few times before seemingly mustering up the nerve to speak.

“It, uh, has to do with the Applin you gave me.”  Slinging his bag off from his shoulders Leon rummaged in it a moment before pulling out a loveball. “I’m a little embarrassed to admit it, but it took Hop pointing out the significance of everything for me to realize what you were trying to say.  Or, at least, what I think you were trying to say.”

Leon stared down at the ball in his hand, running his thumb back and forth across it.

“I’m sorry I didn’t get it at first, I certainly feel like an idiot, it’s so obvious in hindsight.”  He gave a soft nervous laugh.

Clearing his throat he looked up at you.

“Regardless, I um, I keep finding it hard to, uh, find my words.  So, here.”  He held out the loveball.

Your heart skipped a beat and your breath caught in your throat, was he returning the Applin?  Tears welled in your eyes, threatening to spill over as you slowly reached out to take the loveball from him.  You felt weak and shaky, half expecting your legs to give out on you at any moment.  Holding the loveball in your hand just made it worse, quickly, you moved past Leon to set it on the counter separating your kitchen from your living room.

“T-thanks.”

Wiping the tears from your eyes you wondered why thanking him was your immediate response, though to be honest, you weren’t sure how one would normally respond to a situation like this.

“Oh, uh.”  Leon seemed confused, looking back and forth between you and the loveball. “Aren’t you gonna let it out?”

Oh, that felt like adding an insult to injury.

“No.”  The word came out a bit angrier than you’d intended, you adjusted your tone going forward. “I get it, Leon, you don’t feel the same way about me as I do you so you’re returning the Applin. I don’t need to see it.”

You’d taken to squeezing your hands, your gaze drifting away from Leon.  If you were looking at him though, you would have seen his eyes widen and his complexion pale a bit.  Suddenly he was waving his hands.

“NO!  No no no, you misunderstand, that’s my fault, I’m sorry.  I should have been clearer.”

You looked back in time to see Leon grab the ball off the counter and place it in your hand, his one hand holding your wrist his other keeping the Loveball in your palm.

“Just open it, I promise.  Trust me.”

You blinked a few times in shock, but seeing Leon's soft hopeful smile filled you with comfort.  You nodded your head and went to send out whatever was in the ball.

“Wait, wait.”  Leon stopped you suddenly.

Looking around, Leon proceeded to move your dining table and chairs over to the side, as well as push some other furniture and stuff around.  Once he seemed pleased with the space he’d made he came back over to your side.

“Okay, you can continue now.”

Giving a small laugh you smiled and called out the Pokemon.

A flash of light shot out from the loveball, and even before the Pokemon had fully appeared you could tell it was bigger than an Applin.  Once it was fully present it took you a second to register what you were looking at, but once you had, you gasped.

“A Ponyta?”

You grinned and squealed in joy as you approached the adorable little pastel Pokemon.  It whinnied and danced around a moment before coming over to where you’d settled on your knees near it.  You ran your hands through its mane and over its coat of fur.

“I know how much you’ve wanted one, and how unlucky you’ve been with finding one for yourself.  So, I spent the majority of today and last evening looking for this little guy.  I actually got lost in Glimwood Tangle for a bit, Madame Opal had to help me find my way back to the main path.  I’m not sure how she knew I was lost but thank Arceus she did.”

You laughed along with Leon, combing your fingers through the Ponyta’s mane some more.  Giving it a final scratch behind its ear you returned it to the loveball and stood up.  Holding the ball with both hands you smiled looking down at the heart on the front of it.

“You didn’t have to do all that.”  You said softly.

Leon stepped closer, gently taking hold of your wrists.

“I wanted to.”

Looking up at him you smiled, moving your right hand up to cup his cheek.

“Oh, Lee.”

Moving your hand to the back of his head you pulled him towards you as you leaned in closer, connecting your lips.  Leon wrapped an arm around your waist, the other coming up to cradle the back of your head as well.  The two of you stayed like that for a moment, enjoying your first kiss, after breaking away Leon spoke.

“I’m sorry I caused you so much stress.”

“Well, if I’d been able to gather enough courage to confess properly in the first place there wouldn’t have been any confusion.”

Leon laughed a bit.

“Why don’t we say we’re both at fault and call it even?”

Warden Ingo

(Close call)

Ingo carried you, blood staining his coat and your outfit. He carried you going as fast as he humanly could down until the nearest doctor, anyone who could help—screaming for help, keeping you warm, and losing more blood in any way he could. When you finally wake up, Ingo is out of breath and on the verge of tears. He holds you close, tight, and protective. He couldn't get mad at you. He could never be mad. He was just relieved you were all right. However I would be lying if I said he wouldn't be a little more protective from now on.

(reader dead)

He stared at a shaky palm, remembering the way you went slack in his arms, bags under his eyes from sleepless nights filled with new and old nightmares. The painful feeling of losing something was so painful; however, what scared him more was that this feeling was familiar to him. The emptiness inside him was only doubled after. He can't even look at himself anymore because whatever stares back is your smiling face and deja vu. Even though he knows he must take care of himself, he has to admit it's hard even to bring himself to eat these days without looking over to your smiling face how he misses you're warmth in his arms. Now, all he feels is the cold, howling wind of Coronet Heights. Once again that loneliness fills him in this time; it will be there till his grave. Ingo cannot love again for he can not feel that love again.

Cyllene

(close call)

Survivors guilt, as you lie there on the ground losing blood at an alarming rate. She's frozen. She's almost in denial as other survey members rush to your limb body. Cyllene finally snaps out of it all. Her panic hits her all at once, barking orders to get you back to camp.

Unfortunately Pesselle running low on supplies and with time running out she wasn't sure she would be able to save you. Upon hearing this Revelation something inside her stoked a fire Cyllene took it upon herself to go out and find every single ingredients she needed helping her nurse you back to health, of course you being unconscious from blood loss for a few days you had no idea all you woke up to was an angry rant from a very very pissed captain.

(Death)

After all she did, she couldn't save you. Sadness and rage bubble into one, gritting her teeth, nails scratching at the cold ground; she wants to scream. Damn it why wasn't it her? Damn, it should have been her! The job of the Galaxy Core was to protect people and she couldn't even protect the one person she cared most. She needed to get stronger she needed to be more so this would never happen again. And that's why her heart grows three times colder that day.

Laventon

(close call)

Laventon drag you outside of Camp to look at some Pokemon well he asks you to ready your pokeballs for a catch, but he doesn't notice the alpha Garchomp that had their eyes on you. Everything was a blur then helplessly sitting still as the rest of Team Galaxy tried everything to use your Pokemon to fight the alpha back off as they get you back to safety. If only he could throw a Pokeball if he were good at raising Pokemon. Laventon felt like a burden to you here he was having you risk his life to do his work any friendly wake up he's on the verge of tears holding you closely his hands shaking the sinking feeling of uselessness does not leave.

(Death)

He drowns himself in his work. It is the only way to make him forget about his constant nightmares of that day. He still loves Pokemon. He does not blame Pokemon for taking your life, but he recognizes more than anyone else that Pokemon are as dangerous as they are fascinating. It'll be a while since he touches one without his heart beating with anxiety. He barely eats. He sleeps. All he does is work on his Pokedex. He has to finish it for your sake, or else all the dangerous work you did, the work you died for, will be for nothing, and when he finally finishes, it will say, "With the help of my beloved, thank you. I will miss you."

Adaman

(close call)

If it wasn't for Leafeon who growled at the large Pokemon making sure it didn't take a step closer as his human brother held you in his arms, blood staining his fingers. Leafeon successfully holding back the Pokemon that threatened your life walks over to Adaman whining as he looks your arm giving him a worried look. Adaman knows the natural remedies around these parts you are too far from the settlement and the village to take care of you so he does all that he can using leafeon's aromatherapy to soothe you as he begins to use natural herbs and revenues to calm the bleeding as much as he can while ripping apart his own clothes for makeshift bandages rumoring through your bag for anything he could use anything at all to help.

Upon waking up, Adaman almost tackles you, holding you close to his body, careful not to hurt you. He squeezes you gently. "You're an idiot..." he whispers, his hand shaking, his voice breaking. "don't you ever scare me like that again."

(death)

The waiters and waitresses continued to check on you while you waited for Leon. You were suppose to meet up at 7 PM but it was going on 11 PM and the restaurant needed to close. They gave you a complimentary plate of food with the wine after you paid for sitting there for four hours.

It hurt. It hurt extremely bad. You would have thought Leon was better than this. So you went back to your hotel room and tried to call Leon. He didn't pick up so you left a message and decided to go to your hometown Ballonlea in the morning.

Leon was busy training with Raihan and hanging out with him to hear his Rotom phone go off. It wasn't till Leon and Raihan woke up the next day that Raihan asked about you.

"How's your darling Y/n? I bet she's keeping you strong. You still pack a punch in battles." Raihan teased as Leon froze. "Leon, what's wrong?"

"Yesterday was her birthday! I promised not to forget important dates!" Leon exclaimed.

"Try calling her?" Raihan suggested as Leon grabbed his phone and saw a voicemail.

"She called last night." Leon said before clicking the voicemail.

Leon, I can't do this anymore. I understand you are the champion of Galar and you are busy. But you don't leave your girlfriend at a fancy restaurant for four hours and the wait staff have to give you a complimentary meal to feel sorry for. It was my birthday Leon. I was hoping we could spend this but I guess not. I'm brea-breaking up with you. You deserve someone who is eas-easier to be around. Bye.

Leon dropped the phone hearing your calm voice say these words until your voice began to break at the end. You were hurt by what he did and you thought he needed someone who is easier to be around. Leon's heart was torn apart thinking about you in a hotel room and crying your eyes out. He hurt you.

"Leon?" Raihan asked as Leon dropped to his knees.

"I hurt her Raihan. I hurt her." Leon said as Raihan sighed.

"Do you know where she went?" Raihan asked. "Maybe back home?"

"That's it! I'll go to Ballonlea and apologize!" Leon exclaimed before calling Charizard to fly to Ballonlea.

As Leon arrived at your house, your Hatterene attacked him and Charizard with a psychic and moonblast. He and Charizard ducked for cover until they saw Mrs. Opal come out.

"Mrs. Opal, is Y/n in?" Leon asked as Hatterene glared at Leon and went back in the house.

"She is but she is hurt my dear. She doesn't want to see anyone." Opal sighed. "What is the matter with her? She's always so kind and excited about fairy and psychic pokemon. Now she is gloomy and sad."

"I hurt her Mrs. Opal. I did a terrible thing of forgetting important dates and she does not want to date me anymore." Leon explained and a few tears cascaded down his face.

"Leon I know you know better. I hope you are here to help her." Opal said before swatting him with her purse. "That's for hurting dear Y/n."

Leon rubbed the arm where Opal swatted and sat down with Charizard outside your doorstep. He waited for a couple of hours to see if you would come down but you didn't. He knew he had to get your forgiveness but wasn't sure how to do it. It was going to be harder than a simple give a pokemon to you.

Raihan ended up pushing Leon for his plan. He wasn't too sure if Hatterene would attack him but he went out of his way to get you a shiny Slurpuff. Leon also set up an entire meal near the entrance of the Ballonlea gym. Leon also asked help from Opal to use fairy pokemon to make a romantic atmosphere with music.

You had been in bed for about a week and Opal asked for you to meet her and Bede at the gym with Hatterene. She wanted you to get out of the house. As you put on your normal outfit and freshened up, you and Hatterene made your way to the gym.

As you got in the vicinity of the gym, you smelled sweet baked goods, blooming flowers, and your favorite meal. You were quite surprised to see a dinner set outside the gym. But you noticed Leon and Opal walked out of the gym and Leon was warning his gym uniform.

"You made it dearest!" Opal said as Leon was shyly smiling at you. You began to turn back to your house when a Shiny Slurpuff stopped you.

"Please don't go Y/n." Leon said softly as you sighed.

"We're through Leon. Don't you understand?" You sighed as Hatterene slouched forward towards the Shiny Slurpuff.

"Allow me to apologize and you can decide from there if you do not want us to be together." Leon said as you still didn't turn around but also didn't move.

"Go on." You said as Leon walked forward. You could feel his presence near you and heard the gym doors open as if Opal left.

"Y/n, I made a promise when we got in a relationship to not forget the important dates. I promised to always be there and treat you well. I have failed at that. I know that I have hurt you. Not a single apology can mend the hurt but it will allow me to confess a few things. I love you too much to let you walk away from me without an explanation. I cannot function without you. And lastly, while I am a forgetful person who gets lost, I am not a man who will leave you alone again and make you feel less than you deserve." Leon said as you sniffled. "Y/n?"

"I'm sorry. You brought some emotions out of me." You sniffled as Leon touched your shoulders.

"I see that also your new Slurpuff is warming up well." Leon sighed.

"He's mine?!" You exclaimed.

"You mentioned on our first date that you always wanted a shiny Slurpuff so I got you one." Leon said as you felt your heartbeat faster. He remembered that.

"Leon, you do have a lot of making up to do but I'd love to move forward." You said as you turned to face his solemn face. You touched his cheek and kissed it.

"I would love to make it up to you starting with this dinner." Leon said as you took his hand and went to have dinner with him.

-Lunch Break-

It wasn't a new occurrence to hear people make fun of your colleagues and subordinates, as the Chief of the Department. The mindless gossip never disturbed you, knowing well how draining and monotonous the daily assignments of everyone's jobs were first hand. Never had you gone out of your way to participate nor break their fun, deeming it an unnecessary activity for yourself. If anything, it seemed to have had a stress relieving effect on the employees, so you thought: as long as it stays harmless, you wouldn't intervene or react.

Except for that very day, apparently. One name made your ears clatter like a passing truck, your eyebrows furrowing until your forehead hurt. "Larry". The energy with which it was said was undeniably scornful, jeering, an urge to crush the knees of and crack open the skull to whomever had started it steadily arising within you. Your eyes scanned the area where Larry was usually seated. Almost hidden behind stacks of papers and binders was his head laid upon the desk top, fast asleep, one rarity that struck you as entirely odd.

Larry was a hard, responsible worker. He didn't quite enjoy his position, maybe even less so than others, having heard him mutter complaints under his breath and sigh miserably every so often. He wasn't violent or ungrateful whenever those would slip, nor were they aimed at anyone besides himself to hear. 'So unfortunate, I'm really so unfortunate', you've caught him murmuring. You'd glanced at him to see if you could assist him, hear him out at least, yet the chance didn't seem to have existed after all. He'd already begun doing paperwork, an aura of inaccessibility and distance constructed all around his work desk. As per usual.

"Larry?", you put a hand on his shoulder, gently rocking him back into consciousness.

He hummed in a low, tired tone, not exactly realizing who was speaking to him, why, or where he was at the moment.

"Are you alright?", your palm pressed against his forehead gently, checking for a fever.

That seemed to have woken him up immediately, as he quivered and jerked away from you, catching your wrist.

His eyes widened ever so slightly in surprise and embarrassment:

"Chief… Excuse me. This must be bothersome", he averted his eyes to the crushed up documents whose lettering was a little faded, the handwritten notes at some spots barely legible.

"No", you shook your head reassuringly, covering up the preceding exasperation exceptionally well, "You need a break, pronto. Come with me", you tugged the wrist in his grasp gently to guide him up, which he released right away, saying another apology.

You smiled at his caution and care. There weren't many instances of you two communicating before, however, from what you've gathered so far, he was often grouchy on the surface, but in reality a really sweet man who just needed someone to look after him when it gets especially tough. You wondered if he had anyone like that; a close friend, a lover, a spouse perhaps. Despite the curiosity, you forcefully disregarded the thought. Your personal crushes should lay low after all. That's what you've always been telling yourself, in fear that your professional demeanor would falter, that you'd lose the little authority you held at this part of the building. Yet you didn't manage to hold your enthusiasm in check that afternoon. And how could you? It was that perfect of a chance to make acquaintances, let Larry know you were available to communicate with on a less formal basis, emphasize on your presence in his everyday office life.

"I'll be back to work, I apologize. It was a shameful moment of weakness."

What was actually shameful was the way your thoughts would focus on him at all the wrong times in a variety of equally wrong ways. Sometimes him being unsociable and too lost in his tiredness to notice the existence of those anomalies was desirable.

"And you risk it happening again. Come on. Have coffee with me at least", the way he still didn't look convinced that he should be taking care of himself more made you change your stance, "Just for a little while. This can wait. Your health cannot. Don't make me turn it into an order."

"Chief-"

"The big bad boss won't hear about this", you played that one off as a bit of a joke, ensuring it would be understood as such by sealing it with a wink.

Larry cleared his throat and stood up with a groan, some joints even letting out a crack. You could tell he secretly longed for leaving that chair, maybe even quitting work for that day altogether. Frankly, you'd happily join him if that were possible, as monitoring, check-ups, paperwork and phone calls weren't fun for you either.

"Mind telling me what happened? In secret, of course", you struck up conversation as you two were making your way towards a nearby coffee vending machine.

His eyes were on the verge of closing, taking him a considerable amount of time to come up with an acceptable explanation:

"Trouble sleeping, I guess. That's all there is to it."

You crouched while waiting for your drinks to brew. Looking him up and down, his undesirable posture standing out the most, a worried 'I see' crossed your lips. You considered asking whether you could give the man a hug, a pat on the back, a few meaningful, reassuring words you'd sprinkle in, hoping they'd get to him, enough to soften him up. You hated seeing him so down in the dumps all the time; a depressing sight, really. Nobody deserved to feel like that, passion and commitment to excellence and improvement destroyed, squashed down and shattered, leaving behind an empty husk, an individual who might've been an accomplished young man in the past.

Hoping to see him smile, you sent the best one of your own his way while handing him a steaming paper cup, the scent of coffee tickling your nose. It wasn't returned.

"Can I help you somehow, Larry? Please tell me if you need to talk about it, I promise to at least hear you out." To that he didn't respond. You tried again. "If you have any doubts about being a burden, clear them up right away. Let's go sit outside on the balcony. There are benches there; not too uncomfortable, if I may say so."

"Alright, if you so insist. I don't have anything to say, however."

"That's alright. We can just relax", you paused for a second, having just remembered a little something about him. Larry really liked food. "Would you… want half of my sandwich? It's not too big, and I don't know about the quality, but I'd-", he cut you off, putting his hand up, not needing an excuse of any kind.

You made eye contact with him again, his bushy eyebrows just barely raising for the first time that day. He almost looked excited. In a very Larry way. Your heart fluttered for a moment. You swallowed a lump in your throat.

"Thank you."

You tilted your head gently. In case that was an agreement, you couldn't have been more joyful. Fortunately, he noticed your puzzled expression and curtly nodded. You desperately needed to control every atom in your body not to approach and tightly embrace him. Your arms were a bit faster though, raising themselves half way before you caught yourself, lowered them and turned around to make your way towards the door leading to the outside lounge.

You wished he'd grab you by the shoulder, stop you, like in romance movies, having cleverly read your intentions, and hold you close for a while, share body heat and ardent emotion.

But, no, that's Larry, actually. Just Larry. Your most 'unfortunate' instance of puppy love yet. And you should expect nothing.

Then you did a double take when he surpassed you and held the door for you. You blinked, mouth half open. Larry didn't seem to think much of it, gaze focused on the coffee he was delicately swirling around in his cup.

He positioned his foot to stop it from closing, running the now free hand through his hair. He looked at your figure frozen in place, then motioned for you to come through.

"I'm sorry, I zoned out for a second", you tried covering up your flustered poise with a cough, "Thank you kindly."

When you got out of sight, your hand flew to your mouth, locking away a squeal. You couldn't fathom how the most basic of gestures sent your tummy in a state of ache, wings of those persistent butterflies grazing your insides.

"Chief", Larry called out in a monotonous volume, "If I'm being impolite, I apologize in advance, but in all honesty you seem of worse state of mind than myself at the moment."

The length of his sentence made you look over your shoulder. He suddenly wasn't so far away from you, and you didn't know how to respond, surprise and shock winning you over.

"Mm, I might just…"

He pointed at the bench, implying you should continue there, ingeniously passing you the spotlight, something you didn't plan on having. Did he do that often? You doubted so. How many people converse with him on a weekly basis anyways?

'Just some average nobody', you've overheard the employees today, 'He's kind of weird, in my opinion. Does he creep you out a bit, or is it just me?'

Before you knew it, you were seated next to each other. Both hunched forward, leaning against your knees, sharing your lunch. Yet mostly in silence. You'd steal glances at Larry, him patiently chewing, perhaps savoring it. He hadn't looked at you once.

"What is it?", he asked after a few minutes, taking a small sip.

"Huh?"

"You seem like you want to say something."

So he's been paying attention.

"I've asked you before, though. However, I get now that you prefer not mentioning it."

"It's not just that, is it?"

"Now I myself am not sure whether I'd want to talk about that."

"And why not?"

"You might not be too thrilled to hear it", were you really brave enough to shoot your shot?

Rejection didn't sound desirable, but as things were going, it seemed like the most plausible scenario. You didn't know what to expect otherwise.

He sighed again:

"It's alright. Go for it, I suppose. What's the worst that can happen?"

"Look at you, reading my mind. Been wondering the same", you fiddled with your thumbs nervously.

Larry just shrugged.

You continued with a laugh:

"I know we don't know each other that well, but I'd really like to get to know you better, if that's alright with you."

"What?", his expression drastically changed from before, into a mix of astonishment and badly suppressed joy.

His chest rose and fell more dynamically while he was struggling to find convenient words. He started stuttering, not sure where and how to start answering.

You yourself were taken aback, relieved to see him so innocently vulnerable. Your heartbeat picked up its pace.

Darn it all.

Your hand enveloped his, giving it a firm squeeze in an attempt to snap him out of that nerve wracking state.

"It's alright! Sorry if I upset you too much, it wasn't intentional."

He blinked at you, his grip ever so slightly tightening as well. Your other hand was shaking, which you weren't aware of, the tingling in your legs becoming too much to bear.

All of it stopped the moment he regained his composure, your small smile replaced by a grin so wide you thought your cheeks would hurt for the next few hours:

"D-Do you want to go have dinner with me after work…?", it wasn't an upbeat kind of voice, yet you had seen through it, confirming that he was just as eager.

"I would absolutely love that", then you proceeded to fantasize about sharing bites of your meal with him. Maybe seeing him smile just once.

Arezu was waiting for you at the village gates with a smile, only for her expression to drop as soon as she saw the state you were in. She hurriedly brought you to her quarters and ordered you to take a hot bath while she haggled at the clothier for something you can change into. The rest of the night was a blur to you. You could somewhat piece together a soft towel on your head at some point, and being tucked into the blanket gently.

Almost too soon, morning came, and you feel the warm rays on your face.

“You look pathetic… like a newborn Wurmple.”

Oh, Arezu. Bless her.

You shoot her a weak glare, and burrow even further into the blanket.

A few seconds pass and you feel her poke your sides. “How do you feel? Shall I bring you out to the grass? Would you like to hang out with Beauregard?”

You know she cares a great deal for you, and she was only teasing, but the stress the past few weeks and your fever ruining precious Adaman time made you bitter.

“Peachy, thanks,” you reply drily. “Please don’t drag me outside.”

“Are you gonna be okay?”

You mumble a weak yes, and she takes that as a good enough sign to take her leave.

“Okay, great! I have to get to work so I’ll see you later.”

“‘kay”

She crouches in front of you and pulls the blanket from your face. Her hands are cold on your cheeks as she studies you. She nods to herself and walks away, pausing by the door.

“Make sure to eat! I left you some tea and a couple mochi, but I’ll bring something better for lunch.”

You couldn’t find it in you to fight the dazed smile on your face. You could always count on the Diamond Clan to take care of you.

She clears her throat, and awkwardly wrings her hands together. You see her bounce on her feet as if still contemplating whether you, a grown adult, could take care of yourself.

“Come send Sylveon if you need anything.”

With that, you eye her suspiciously. She of all people knew how much Starly took pride in being your little messenger.

“She’s a lazy bum. I’ll have Starly do it.”

“Err, about that… I sent him out on errands,” she awkwardly admitted.

Of course she did, and your Starly was such a sweetheart, he’d do anything for anyone in the Clan. She offered her apologies, and suddenly couldn’t look you in the eye, obviously feeling guilty. You snort as you realize she now had no qualms about leaving you to yourself. You bury yourself in her blankets again as you hear her leave for work.

“Get better soon, hun.”

“Thank you.”

A couple hours later, you woke up feeling hot. Blankets and pillows strewn about carelessly, as you sat up munching on the mochi at risk of choking. On your third piece, your jaw started feeling heavy. It was when you heard Arezu’s door open.

“Arezu, you better have brought me something good. I’d much rather be eating something easy to swallow.”

“Well, great news! I brought your boyfriend. I hope that’s good enough.”

You turn your head and the mochi in your mouth drops pitiably on the floor and rolls by their feet. Adaman stands next to Arezu, looking at her unimpressed.

“Sinnoh have mercy.”

The aroma of hearty vegetable stew is enough to pull a whine out of you, and Adaman snaps out of his glaring contest with the Warden. He rushes over to you, a concerned look painted all over his face. He takes you in, and holds you plush against him. The closeness sends you reeling.

He was actually here. You were actually together again. You could hear his heartbeat, or perhaps it was yours because you couldn’t seem to tamp down the excitement at finally having him so close to you. A great weight is off your shoulders, and it feels as though everything is at peace again.

Arezu takes in the scene before her and swoons. Great Clan Leader Adaman, resident tough guy, is honest-to-Sinnoh cooing over you. Deciding that the teasing could be saved for another day, she takes her leave.

But not before getting one last shot in.

“This is my room, so you better save the rest for when you get home!”

Adaman groans, and pulls away to give you a commiserating look. He taps the tip of your nose when you give him a pout.

“Food first. Cuddles later.”

He gets to work setting your meal, and your stomach growls at the spread. Before you could reach for your spoon and help yourself to some stew, he levels you with a stare. You sit back, and watch as he scoops up some stew and gives it a taste test. Humming to himself, he grabs another spoonful, this time bringing it to your lips. You graciously let him feed you. This wasn’t the first time he’s done this but you couldn’t quell the heat on your cheeks. He always reminds you how much he cares.

About a cupful of stew and an onigiri later, your hunger is sated and you politely refuse another bite.

“You should eat something too,” you tell him.

“Don’t worry about me.” He waves off your concern, and holds your hand. “What do you wanna do now?”

He shifts closer to you when he doesn’t quite catch what you said.

“What was that?”

“You said we could cuddle after food.”

“Oh,” he murmurs. A soft pink dusts his cheeks. “Well, c’mere then.”

Strong arms wrap around your waist and you feel him rest his chin on your head.

“Is this okay?”

You nod once, and stifle a chuckle when you feel a sort of rumble from his chest. A purr? His “eevee tendencies” as you had dubbed it was a source of great entertainment to you. A laugh escapes you when he starts to sway. Soft lips press your temple, and you feel him smile against your skin. The pull of sleep is on you once more, and despite your best efforts to fight it, your eyes close and you concede. Just a little while.

A voice sings you a lullaby.

You dream of hot chocolate shared on a cold night, and bright stars dancing in the moonlight. Soothing music played on the flute, with lanterns leading you along a festival. Thunder roaring outside a cave as a voice whispers promises of protection. The feeling of grass tickling your bare feet as you run carefree under the summer sun. Splashing into the lakewater, blissfully unaware of how freezing it actually was. Secrets shared in a single-person tent while you huddle for warmth. Getting lost in the mountains, with only your most precious gem in your hand.

You felt warm and fuzzy.

Light footsteps bring you back to reality. You blink the sleepiness away, and the lack of sunlight creeping through the window tells you it’s well into the night. You follow the source of the sound and find your Starly and Sylveon sharing a meal with Adaman’s pokemon.

“Oh, did you sleep well?”

Adaman’s voice is deep and a little strained. You start to catch on to how tired he must’ve been too.

You realize he must have stayed put the entire time you dozed off. Did he really just spend his day off being your personal pillow? You turn your head, and his eyes display nothing but kindness and patience. The warm, fuzzy feeling stirs in your soul yet again.

“Yes.”

Adaman’s eyes widen when he sees the look of pure love and adoration in your eyes. That delightful pink color in his cheeks is back.

You press a kiss on the underside of his jaw, and whisper, “All thanks to you.”

For a few seconds, he stammers through a response. To be fair, you did not intend for your actions to be interpreted in… that manner. After what you assume is an internal peptalk, his eyes darken and you realize you’re definitely in for it now.

“Is that right?” His voice is husky. If you didn’t have him wrapped around you, you would’ve probably melted into a puddle by now. “You wanna tell me how grateful you are?”

“Umm…”

You think you hear the door, and it had you looking away for a second. He did not like that at all. When it was Adaman time, he wanted all the attention on him.

“Umm…,” he mocks. “Use your words, love.” His hand grips your neck and he trails his fingers to your lips. He whispers, “…or perhaps you would like to show me instead?”

Before you could even think of what to say, the door slams open and there, Arezu stands with a pair of scissors in her hand.

“This is a house of Almighty Sinnoh, and I will not allow it to be defiled by our Leader!”

You try to jump away from Adaman but he just holds you tighter against him, though spooning you in a more innocent fashion than earlier.

“Alright! I get it!” He sounds angry but you could hear the little waver in his voice. Arezu notices and smirks.

“Sorry, ‘Rez.” You couldn’t quite look her in the eye as you sheepishly apologize for intruding on her space.

Adaman, trying so desperately to remain on the high ground, asks, “How did you even know? Were you spying on us?”

“I had eyes on the situation.”

Together your eyes trail down to the pokémon by her feet.

Suddenly, the two of you felt even more shame.

“What were you thinking? There’s a child here!”

The child in question was Adaman’s year old Eevee.

Despite that, it was still humiliating to have been caught like two hormonal teens. The fact you were tattled on by pokémon has to be some kind of first in history.

In unison, you murmur, “Sorry, ‘Rez.”

She stares at you both expectantly, and waves her hands around your pokémon. You never knew pokémon to be adept at expressing disappointment.

After apologies to each and every one of them, with a few (see: Leafeon, Sylveon and Eevee) requiring bribes, Arezu pulls you away from Adaman. Now that you were feeling better, she no longer “felt the need to stay strong,” and told you how scared she was when you walked in the village “looking like death.”

It was a challenge for Adaman to pry you away from the still wailing Warden.

“I’m the best friend! I actually took care of—“

“And I’m the boyfriend! Yes, I’m grateful you were here but I already told you what happened.”

“Maybe if you weren’t too busy cursing me out via Starly mail, you would’ve gotten here earlier!”

“And what part of Braviary was taking too long do you not understand?”

“We were literally sending messages via Starly.”

“For the last time, ‘Rez, I am not flying via Starly. He would die.”

The poor bird chirps helplessly.

Promises to visit soon were made, and one group hug with a begrudging Adaman later, she finally lets you go. She saw you off at the gates, flanked by Akari and Rei. The two kids standing next to her look far too pleased to see you.

“Don’t forget! I am your favorite Warden after all!”

You half-jokingly tell her, “Don’t let Sabi hear you.”

As Adaman helps you up Wyrdeer, you see the two kids whisper something to Arezu who merely shrugs in response. When they realize you’ve been watching them, they turn their heads back to their private conversation.

“Do you know what that’s about?”

He snickers. “Probably wondering when our next life-or-death adventure would be.”

An uneasy feeling sets in your stomach. You know Adaman better than anyone, and while he may have fooled anyone else, you know better. He just lied to you.

“Oh.”

He’s never done that before.

Halfway through the Fieldlands, he lets out a sigh. You don’t bother to look behind you.

“I can tell you’re overthinking it. It’s nothing bad, I promise.”

“What do you mean?”

“C’mon. I can see through you as well as you see through me.”

Damn it.

“Hey.” He rests his chin on your shoulder. “Do you trust me?”

You turn your head just enough to look him in the eye. “Of course, I do,” you tell him in earnest.

He beams.

“Then don’t dread the surprise, silly.”

You let out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding. Given the kind of devotion and loyalty Adaman has always shown you, it would be selfish of you to question his intentions.

“Okay, Adaman, Leader of the Diamond Clan—“

He groans.

“—Why don’t you tell me about your recent excursion?”

You feel him shake in laughter.

“You’re never gonna let me live that down, are you?”

“Obviously not.”

“Alright…” He adopts a theatrical voice. “I, Adaman, Leader of the Diamond Clan shall regale you of my tales across the… well, few miles around our home.”

You bust out laughing at his absurdity, and he feels as though he’s achieved something great.

The rest of the trip home doesn’t feel as long as it should. The past few weeks he’s spent with the Survey Corps has filled him with more anecdotes than anyone could ever write down. You felt particularly smug at the story of Rei absolutely demolishing Melli in battle. The part where Akari apparently made him cry using only her words does not at all seem embellished. You’ll have to remember to be extra delicate with the Warden next time you see him, lest he go on another temper tantrum.

Soon enough, you arrive at the settlement. Only the few people on night watch were still up. They approach, and ask if they could be of any assistance but Adaman waved them off. Before they could walk away, you dig into your satchel and offer them the treats you’ve been steadily collecting throughout your trip.

When you look back at Adaman, you hurriedly make your way to your home. The proud look in his face has you blushing again.

As soon as you stepped inside, he pulls your hand and gives it a gentle kiss. His eyes are shining.

“The way you take care of the Clan brings me joy.”

Hearing that from Adaman was no small thing. He took pride in being the Leader, and was meticulous in Clan business. To hear him approve of you in that context wasn’t something you’d take lightly.

“S-Stupid. Of course, I have to take care of the Clan.”

You try to look at something else. Anything else. He was still staring at you with that look. Pure fondness and affection.

“Of course, but you don’t have to spoil them either.”

“I—“ You had no arguments for that. You give him a sheepish smile. “I guess I just love the Clan.”

He gives you a soft smile in return.

“…And speaking of spoiling the ones you love...”

His free hand reaches into his pocket, and he hands you a pokéball. Before you could even ask, it opens and a pokémon you’ve never seen before appears.

“It’s called an Applin.”

You’re at a loss for words. The Applin’s eyes are wide and staring up at you. If it weren’t for that, you would’ve mistaken it for any other apple. It’s so tiny and delicate.

“Rei mentioned it once. Apparently in his time, this pokémon is a gift amongst lovers. Legend goes…” His breath hitches. You raise an eyebrow at him. He continues, “…when you offer this to the one you love, you’ll be together forever.”

“Oh,” you respond lamely.

He rambles on. “I couldn’t stop thinking about it, and I have been looking for one for weeks. Anytime a space-time rift formed, I went—“

“You went where?!”

The little Applin cries, and you soothe it with a little pat on the head.

“ —I couldn’t find one… apparently even back where Rei’s from, these little rascals are rare… but on our way back… I couldn’t explain… maybe it was because I had spent so long looking… or maybe Sinnoh heard my prayers … As we were leaving the area, one more rift formed. I just knew I had to be there.” He smiles at Applin, and the pokémon yips. “Lo, and behold… this little guy was the first thing I saw.”

He holds the pokémon in his hands. His eyes staring deep into yours,

“I know Almighty Sinnoh rules over time, and we are but mere mortals who have no say or power… but if this Applin can promise us what time we have to spend together, I hope you accept.”

You open your mouth to tell him yes, obviously — but a sneeze comes out instead.

Oops.

Guess you weren’t as well as you thought.

“Sorry—“

He shushes you. “Don’t you dare apologize for being sick.”

He hands you some tissue, and you blow your nose while he rubs your back. Afterwards, you mutter, “There’s no need for that.”

“What?”

“Look at you. You’re taking care of me even though I must look like a mess— Ah, don’t you dare deny it. You… you always protect me from anything that could hurt me or anything that scares me. You never let me do stupid things alone. You started out making the worst hot chocolate I’ve ever tasted and kept trying to do better until I can only ever drink the ones you make. You jumped in after me in the lakewater when I didn’t believe you when you said it was cold. When I got chased down by a pack of alphas, you fended them off as best you could and hid in that cave with me…” With every memory out of your mouth, Adaman’s lips quiver and you catch the tears welling in his eyes. “I meant what I said. There’s no need for some pokémon to ensure our being together. I’m gonna spend the rest of my life making up for all the things I put you through… That and, you’re probably gonna have to keep cleaning up after whatever mess I get into.”

He pulls you to him, rubbing soothing circles on your back.

“You’re right. You do look like a mess. Your nose right now could put a Cubchoo to shame. I protect you from anything that could hurt or scares you because I don’t want anything to take you away from me. I never let you do stupid things alone because doing stupid things with you is much better than doing anything with anyone else or alone. You still drank the ones that tasted bad, and that’s why I worked so hard to make sure you never have to deal with drinking bad hot chocolate from me ever again. I mostly threw spoiled apricots at those alphas, and hoped for the best. I didn’t want you to be trapped alone in that cave, so I hope you didn’t mind being trapped with me.”

“I didn’t.”

“You never have to make it up to me for anything, but I will be happy to keep on cleaning up after whatever ‘mess’ you get into… So long as you’ll have me.”

The ignored Applin makes its return.

You both snap your head towards the crying pokémon. Adaman holds it out to you.

You graciously accept. “I guess this makes it official?”

“So, yes?”

“Yes.”

You share a chaste kiss to seal the deal. The Applin squeals in delight.

A few seconds later, Starly pops out of his pokeball, and flies out the window.

A piece of paper lands on the floor.

“Don’t worry! I just trained him to fly here once you said yes <3 Congrats btw -‘Rez

It was afternoon by the time you reached the graveyard. The place wasn't far away from Hammerlocke, just about a mile or two. You parked your car alongside a black and white colored motorcycle and another car with a dark blue color. You stepped out,locked your car and made your way into the graveyard. You put out your phone an read through your notes. People entering the place has reported a strange feeling of being watched over years, the victims said they suddebly lost cautiousness and woke up outside the graveyard wall, no one ever get's hurt but it was still a shock for everyone. As the champ of the region they thought it was your work to check what's going on, since it was most likely that a pokémon was responsible for it,a wild pokémon just playing a prank you thought.

Maybe i can catch and release it somewhere, far away from anything so it can't cause anymore problems.

You made your way through the place , you didn't like it here , but then again ... no one seems to like graveyards at all for obvious reason. You opened the map on your rotom phone and -after what feels like an eternity- you reached the area most victims went through before they got attacked by that troublemaker of pokemon. You couldn't help but look at the gravestones, it was one of the older part - but not the oldest- of the graveyard , some graves are fully overgrown and abandon while other - not many -seems to get regular vitis by family and friends . Carved into the stones you could read that this place seems to be used to bury people that died between 1980 and 1990.

You continued your way. Slowly your feel a soft sleepyness crawl into you. At first, you thought it was because of the warmth of summer and the peacefull silence of the place, not to mention your exhaustion after the battle against gym leader Raihan earlier that day .Your eyes slowly began to shut,but then right before you fully closed them, you heard a crack, you shot your eyes open again, shaking the feeling of tiredness away and you trow one of your pokeballs out into the direction of the crack you heard.

" come out who or whatever you are ", your Cinderace stood , ready to fight , right before you.

" you are strange , are you a skilled trainer ? My attack usually never missed "

The voice was strange , you wasn't even sure if you really heard it at first .

"Cinder!" Your cinderace shouted and pointed into a direction , there -not far away the crack was coming from- a guardevoir levitated from it's hiding place ,onto the path connecting the graves.

" your pokémon seems to be strong too, are you a gym leader? I saw them wearing uniforms ", the Guardevoir spoke again , well not really spoke , it seems to use an ability called telepathy , you remember your soon to be professor friend Hop talked about it.

" ehm ... no , not exactly, i'm the champion ... that's..."

" ... the strongest trainer in the region , i remember, it truly is an honor to meet such a skilled trainer , but ... what are you doing here ? I never saw you before , i thought i already knew everyone coming here to visit their loved ones."

You have to damit , a real conversation with a pokémon was nothing you thought you would ever experience in life, you called your cinderace back into it's pokeball before you started talking to guardevoir again.

" you are right , i've never been here before Guardev..."

"Tirilia"

"What?"

"Tirilia, this is my name , the nickname my ... my trainer gave me", she looked back at you , now with a sad expression in her face.

" alright, T...Tirilia? What i wanted to say is , that I've been called here because people recorded to being attacked here , they said they got put to sleep and woke up outside the wall and ..."

" no no, i never attack , i always protect "

" excuse me ?", you looked back at Tirilia ," it really looks like you attack people crossing this area constantly, you even attacked me with ...hypnosis?...i think, it felt like that"

" yes , i use hypnosis on people i think they don't have the right to be here , but as i said , i don't attack , i only try to protect"

" protect? But protect what?"

Tirilia starts levitate again and she made her way trough the graves, you followed her until she stops at the side of a grave just a few steps away. Unlike the most graves in this area, this one was clean of any kind of overgrowing, fresh flowers blooming in a pot and a grave candle burned, you could even saw a figure showing a pokémon , an umbreon you thought, standing on the platform, this wasn't one of the abandon graves.

" as a Guardevoir it is my instinct to, at all cost, keep my trainer save... but i failed, i couldn't protect her during her life , this ... is her grave"

You watched Tirilia as she removed a leaf stuck in the metal letters of the stone with her psychic abilities. You took a closer look at the dates ," 1970 -1986 ... she died as teenager ... what happened?" There was a time of silence before Tirilia answered , you used this time to take a closer look at her , it was always hard to tell the age of a pokémon, especially ones without fur, but as you looked at her closer and more carefully , you could clearly see that this guardevoir was far away of beeing young , her skin seems to be a bit rougher ,her colors seems dull , not as bright as it's used to be and you could even see small wrinkles around her eyes.

Tirilia began to spoke again ," after we beat the fairy type gym and went into glimwood tangle again, she got attacked by a man, she had a shiny Umbreon and a shiny phantump , that's what the man wanted from her , he was a shiny collector i think, at first he was polite and asked her if he could buy them , of course she didn't want to seel her friends , she made that clear and wanted to go and his behavior changed in an instance ,... i was stuck in my pokéball , by the time i managed to break out it was already to late , she ... was gone "

"I...I'm so sorry... , you didn't really know what to say , not to mention a conversation like this was the last thing you expected as you made your way to the graveyard, you kept listening.

"i was able to stop him before he could steal her pokéballs and even people came to help from the village, they probably heard her screams...the police took him away ", she shook her head ," i'm sorry , i didn't mean to steal your time with my story ..., you said you are here because people got attacked , i didn't want to cause any trouble , i only tried to keep the grave save , i heard other pokémon talk about people robbing and destroying graves and i wanted to protect my trainers grave from that"

You got a bit cought of guard because- after this story- you almost forgot why you came here in the first place, you cleared your throat and started focuse again on the problem, you watched at Tirilia , " i can understand why you did this ,but you can't just attack everyone that seems unfamiliar to you , at least wait until you are sure a person is really up to something, and then not just drop them off at the wall , instead look for someone to call the police ,there is an office house near the entrance they can help, pleas promise me that you will do that and i can leave you here , this sort of random attacks have to stop!"

Tirilia nodded ," i promise ", she started to levitate again ," it was nice to meet you , i won't steal your time any longer "

Ready to leave she turned around.

" Tirilia wait , one last question , what did you mean when you said - other pokémon -?i didn't saw any besides you"

She turned her head again and smiled.

"Listen closely , watch closely , this place is more filled with life than you may expect"