MJ

bajaberries on ao3 this is where I post pokemon related content <3

[radiantraichu]

📌

Heyo, I'm MJ! (20, she/her) Here you'll find my fics cross-posted from my ao3, as well as other ✨exclusive✨ short fics/drabbles/etc.

I do Pokemon Horizons content right now, primarily Friede/Reader, but I absolutely take requests for both that and other Horizons related writings! May post/reblog other things Pokemon related :)

[feyzichris]

happy belated raichu daaaaayyyyyy

[braveolivine]

redraw

[braveolivine]

long time no friede

[braveolivine]

my favorite duo

[braveolivine]

what if ... mega glove

[braveolivine]

telling the professor that you like him

[braveolivine]

peak form

[braveolivine]

assorted doodles

[braveolivine]

if you're cold, he's cold

[radiantraichu]

Didn't mean to disapear off the face of the earth guys. Working on Friede/Reader requests again.... yes i still have all the ones i've gotten so far. Hope you dont mind your fics a year late LOL

anyway i love his new design he looks so adorable.

[rising-volteccers]

Getting this printed out so I can add it to the shrine. Need to survive the coming months for him.

[radiantraichu]

Whisper in the wind

Friede/Reader The winds of happiness and grief seem to fly in the same direction. Major spoilers for HZ089, a/n at the end

ao3 vers: https://archiveofourown.org/works/64187152

tags: Gender Neutral Reader/No Gender Mentioned, Established Relationship, Marriage Proposal, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Hurt no Comfort, Pokemon Horizons Spoilers

1,443

Different colored bags were scattered across the conference room table, various food items and camping supplies surrounding them in neat, organized piles. You silently watched as Friede packed, insisting to the kids he would take all the heavier gear in his bigger utility bag, only leaving the smaller items like flashlights and matches to Liko when she begged to take something. Roy otpted to carry all the food in his bag, go figure, and Liko and Dot ended up splitting the toiletries and the rest of the clothes the boys couldn’t carry in their bags. Murdock handed Roy a few boxes.

“Will this be enough food for you guys?” Murdock was full of worry, and before he could ramble on about preparing more food, Friede had cut him off with a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“It’s plenty, Murdock. We’ll only be gone for a day or two, tops”

Murdock still sneaked a few more breakfast bars in, but he seemed satisfied at Friede’s words nonetheless. 

Once Roy stuffed the last snack in his bag, he let out a rather loud yawn, stretching his arms back. His face resembled that of a tired child, Liko not faring any better as she let out a yawn of her own. 

“Sounds like you kids need to go to bed,” You joked as you zipped up one of the pockets on Friede’s bag. The kids started to protest, insisting they had more to, but you waved a hand. 

“We can finish up here. Rest is just as, if not more, important than the packing.”

Liko let out another yawn. Accepting defeat, she scooped up Terapagos in her arms. “Goodnight everyone.”

Roy and Dot gave their farewells, following after Liko as she left for her room. After tucking the last few items wherever they would fit, Murdock and Mollie bid their goodbyes as well, leaving just You, Orla, and Friede. There was light chatter, but otherwise, the three of you were just burning time until you felt tired enough to sleep. You heard Orla and Friede whisper about something, but you definitely weren’t paying attention, too focused on the article you were reading on your Rotom phone. 

Without any warning, Friede came up to you and wrapped an arm around your shoulder. His lips brushed against your temple. 

“Mind coming with me real quick? I need to talk to you about something.”

You put your phone back in your pocket, a questioning look on your face. Friede didn’t make haste to explain, and a quick glance towards Orla to see her smirking just gave you more questions. She definitely knew something. You rolled your eyes at her.

“Let me use the bathroom first.”

“Sweet! Meet me on the deck!” Friede practically bolted out the room, Cap following close behind. You chuckled. Orla came up to your left and patted you on the shoulder. You could see excitement behind her eyes.

“Have fun!”

“You two confuse me.”

The air, slightly cold from the elevation, seemed to re-awake you as you stepped out of the observation deck’s doors. The battlefield was down, Friede standing back towards you in the middle. For a moment, you thought Friede was challenging you to an impromptu battle, but you pushed that thought away when you saw Cap dozing off on the side. This was something else entirely.

You made your way over to where Friede stood. He made no move to turn around, but he did start talking, you name gliding off his tongue.

“We’ve been dating for years now,” His voice was steady, as if he had been practicing what he’d say for some time now. “And we’ve been best friends for even longer.”

Your body froze. This couldn’t be.

But, it was. Friede turned around, and while he wasn't wearing any special clothes or holding a bouquet of flowers, the look on his face was more than enough for you to know he meant everything he was saying. Friede fished through his jacket pocket and pulled out a small black box. He held it towards you, but didn’t open it quite yet.

“I love you dearly. Since the day we met on that beach, I knew there was no way I could just leave the region if you weren’t coming with.”

You thought back on the moment you met him– you were upset, having just lost the Mossdeep City gym for the third time, and were doubting your battling skills. In your frustration, you challenged the first trainer you saw, which happened to be him. Even if that battle was a total blunder, you would never deny how much you’ve come to cherish the moment. How it had turned into something incredible . Friede had too, it seems. Your eyes started to sting. 

Friede took your left hand in his. “I want to be by your side for the rest of your adventure– the rest of our lives .”

He popped open the box. Resting on a dark velvet cushion was a simple ring that shimmered in the light of the setting sun. 

“I was going to wait until after we took Terapagos to Laqua, but something is telling me I need to do this now.

“Will you marry me?”

You ignored the tears that streamed down your face, hastily letting out a yes before pulling him into a kiss. Sure it was simple, an action the two of you shared almost every day, but this time felt better . It was pure love and happiness all wrapped into a soft feeling against your body. The feeling of bliss stayed even after Friede pulled back, his arms wrapping around you and his warmth blocking the cold air. The two of you stood like that for a while. The sun had long since set when you finally pulled away, a laugh leaving your body as Friede made a show out of slipping the ring around your finger. The stone shimmered in the moonlight, and you knew you’d have to go get a better look when the two of you got inside. You loved it. Friede pressed a kiss onto the top of your hand.

“I have another question,” You hummed, smiling when he pecked your cheek. Cap jumped on his shoulder. He let out a soft yawn.

“Mind watching the ship while we’re out?”

You rolled your eyes– way to jump out of the moment. “I was wondering when you were going to ask that.”

Friede laughed in response. 

“If I make it back in one piece–”

“When.”

“When I make it back in one piece, we can start planning a wedding. Since I know you’re already itching to do it.”

You had to admit, visuals of a possible ceremony had been drifting around in your head since the moment he opened the box. You definitely wanted to bask in the engagement a little bit, but you knew if you waited too long Friede might forget.

“I’ll be sure to remind you.”

“I would never forget!”

The rest of the night was spent laughing and reminiscing on the years you’ve been together. The two of you had opted to formally tell the entire crew about the engagement after Laqua, but you decided to keep wearing the ring in the time being. When you headed back inside, Orla had congratulated you– of course she knew– and soon after you found yourself drifting off to sleep in Friede’s arms. 

Wind whipped by, slapping against your face and whistling by your eyes too loud for you to hear anything but Orla’s frantic yelling. The two of you had gone to the deck to motion Friede and the kids inside before the smoking engines gave out. Now, you stood with dot, helping them keep their balance as they held themselves on the railing of the ship. The two of you were momentarily distracted by the popping of the engine, not noticing how Friede and Charizard were swept up with the wind until you heard Liko shout out. 

It all happened too fast– Friede holding onto Charizard with all his strength, handing Cap and his now chipped goggles over to Liko, the engine letting out another terrified screech as the force started to become too much. All you could smell was smoke. You remember reaching out towards Friede, feeling your hand barely graze the fabric of his jacket and the crushing feeling of Orla holding you around your midsection. The ring on your finger sparkled in the sunlight, and for a moment all you could register was the calm look Friede wore as he stared back at you.

That day replayed in your mind for the next year that followed.

--

a/n: Got mild writers block but after this writing exercise I'm back in the groove. And to those that have requested writings, I did get them, and am working on them :D

[spoopyium]

So I started watching Pokemon Horizons (this is a redraw of this meme just for context)

[radiantraichu]

Hi, your works with Friede are so good they make me love this man even more♥️. Can I request something where (gn)Reader and Friede are really close friends (like giving little kisses, going on dates) but Reader is not sure what they are to each other while Friede thinks they are already dating? Whatever you will do, your fluffs are adorable♥️

Thank you for the kind words!! Hopefully this story satisfies your request ❤️I enjoyed writing this one, even it it turned out double the length I intended haha

Too Casual

You were in your own little world, your heart beating hard and your fingers trembling against the fabric of his jacket. The light from the Sunny Day soon faded behind you, and you remembered where you were. You weren’t in some mystical dream– you were standing in the middle of a tiny area, staring at your crush like he would disappear if you looked away for even a second. People were definitely staring. You untangled yourself from Friede’s grip in a panic and shouted out some excuse before rushing off to the nearest bathroom, your Liepard following closely behind you. "What the hell was that?"

ao3 vers: https://archiveofourown.org/works/63630637

tags: POV Second Person, Gender Neutral Reader, Pre-relationship, Getting Together, Situationship, Best Friends to Lovers, Miscommunication, Fluff

3,415 words

“Liepard, Sunny Day!” A faint glow surrounded the feline pokemon, her nose pointing to the sky as she let out a howl. The once cloudy atmosphere gave way for light to filter through, the battlefield turning blazing hot. Perfect. You looked over to Friede, who winked back at you.

You were at a terrible type disadvantage with Liepard against two bug pokemon– a Scyther and a Scizor– but fortunately Friede had chosen Charizard for this fight. And supporter moves were your specialty. This battle was going to be over quick.

“Flamethrower!” Friede called out. His Charizard immediately took flight, rising up to block the sun off from the ground with his massive wings. The sun glistened off its red, scaly, body, a translucent glow of power circling around the pokemon as he charged up its attack. Charizard opened his mouth and unleashed Flamethrower. 

It hit the Scyther spot on, burning the pokemon and immediately knocking it out before it could react. The Scizor narrowly avoided it, its claws lighting up when its trainer shouted out a command. The pokemon made a mad dash towards yours. 

“Block it with Night Slash!” The pokemon was too close to dodge, so Liepard did her best to counteract the move. They met in the middle, claws pressed against each other with equal power before Liepard was knocked back to her original position on the field. 

The opposing pokemon attempted to use the same move again, but Charizard had finally regained its barings and let out another Flamethrower before the Scizor could do anything. This time the attack hit dead on, knocking out Scizor. 

You won.

The referee called it out, and both you and Friede shouted in victory. You turned to Friede, intending to give him a high five for his battling efforts, but was caught off guard when his hands went to your hips. He raised you up from the ground without warning and spun you around. Your arms instinctively wrapped around his shoulders to keep you from falling. The look on his face was that of pure delight, and before you could tell him to put you down, he lowered you down, keeping a hold of you even after you regained your balance. Your arms stayed around his neck. Yellow eyes stared into yours, and you could’ve sworn he looked down at your lips once or twice. He said something, but you didn’t hear it.

You were in your own little world, your heart beating hard and your fingers trembling against the fabric of his jacket. The light from the Sunny Day soon faded behind you, and you remembered where you were. You weren’t in some mystical dream– you were standing in the middle of a tiny area, staring at your crush like he would disappear if you looked away for even a second. People were definitely staring. You untangled yourself from Friede’s grip in a panic and shouted out some excuse before rushing off to the nearest bathroom, your Liepard following closely behind you. 

Friede, completely unbothered by your antics, “I’ll go check on the kids!”

The door clicked shut behind you and Liepard, the single stall bathroom greeting you with a questionable smell and an average cleaning job. Your back slid down the back off the door until you hit the floor. Covering your face with your hands, you let out a loud, annoyed, groan. 

“What the hell was that?” Liepard laid down next to you, her head resting in your lap to ground you. You ran a hand through her dark red fur.

“He was just holding me. Like it was nothing. I have to be imagining things.”

This wasn’t the first time something like this, Friede being touchier than normal, that is, has happened. It was just because you were friends. Best friends. Obviously! But the raging crush you’ve been forming on the man over the last few months made moments like this drive you nuts. To your displeasure– or maybe pleasure, only future you would be able to decide– this wasn’t the last time this was going to happen. 

It was earlier in the morning, the sun barely peeking through the alleyways of buildings and reflecting a pretty orange across the windows above. The medium-sized plaza had an array of stands, both with various options of produce and way too much junk year nor Friede could imagine people actually wanting. It was advertised as a farmers market, but it was more like a flea market.

You and Friede walked the aisles all the same, stopping occasionally to observe the random knick knacks and to pick out the produce for the week. The rest of the team was split across the city gathering other supplies, leaving you and Friede to get the food. You looked over to Friede, who was holding an apple with a puzzled expression.

“You good there, Friede?” You questioned, a smirk rising on your lips. 

Friede looked over to you and held the apple in your direction.

“Looks like a good home for an Applin. Pretty sturdy. Surprised it made it to a market in one piece.”

Of course that’s what he was thinking. You plucked the apple from his hand and placed it in your basket. Friede grinned. “We’ll be sure to leave it out for one, then,”

You felt your stomach grumble. Skipping breakfast this morning might not have been the best idea, but you figured you could find something fun to eat while out and about. Looking around the plaza, your eyes landed on a sweets shop not too far from you. What better breakfast than a donut? You tapped Friede’s shoulder to get his attention and pointed towards the shop.

“Wanna get a donut?”

Friede immediately agreed, and after paying for the vegetables you got from the sweet old lady, the two of you made your way over to the food. The line wasn't too long, they likely had just opened, but the menu options seemed endless. They have a display of other treats, too, making your mouth water. You ended up deciding on your favorite donut, while Friede chose something with cherry filling. The two of you got some treats for your pokemon as well. 

After finding a free table, you let Liepard out of her pokeball and handed her a pastry. You then handed Cap the donut he had been eyeing since you got to the stand. They were grateful. Finally, you took a bite of your own donut.

Delicious!

You practically melted at the taste. Sure, you get this flavor every time you go to a donut shop, but you couldn’t deny it was the best thing you’ve ever had. Friede seemed to be enjoying his donut too.

“Why don’t we come here more often?” Friede asked, mouth stuffed with food and a little bit of cherry filling stuck to the side of his lips. You tossed a napkin at him, which he accepted. 

“I dunno– don’t you drive the ship?”

Friede busted out into laughter, laughter that was too contagious for you not to join in. If you had to make a guess, Friede was definitely going to make this a regular supply run city. That is, if he remembers how much he enjoyed the donuts here.

The laughter soon died down, and you eventually finished off your donut. As you were about to ask Friede where to next, you paused. He was staring at you, intently.

“You got something on your face,” Friede said. Before you could reach for a napkin, Friede held his hand out towards your face. Your breath hitched. His fingers cupped your cheek, while his thumb grazed the corner of your mouth. He pulled his hand back and inspected the syrup. Without giving it much thought, he tasted it. A burning feeling rose up your body. 

“Not bad,” he declared. Friede pushed himself up from the table and grinned. “Let’s go get the spices Murdock wants!”

Without waiting for an answer, Friede and Cap walked off into the direction of the spices. Liepard started to go with them too, before she looked back to see if you were coming. 

You stayed still on the bench, mouth agape and your face on fire. Your lips almost felt numb, and the feeling of his hand on your face lingered. If it wasn’t for Liepard nudging her nose against your knee and almost hitting you with Iron Tail, you would’ve stayed on that bench for the rest of the day. 

Rocks crunched beneath your feet as you made your way up the path. Liepard was next to you, her red and yellow fur all dusty from the environment. Friede was on your other side, a bag slung over his shoulders and a water bottle in hand. He offered it to you, which you graciously accepted. You tried to ignore it when Friede took a sip out of it right after you. The two of you stopped in front of a steep wall of rocks. 

Friede took the climb first, scaling up the section of mountain like he was a professional. Considering all the stuff you’ve seen him do, you wouldn’t doubt that. Liepard and Cap jumped up after him. Friede held a hand out to you.

“This is the spot!”

You took hold of the wall in the same way Friede did, rising a few steps before you allowed him to take your hand in his. He yanked you up effortlessly, and after you regained your balance, your eyesight settled over the horizon.

The chunk of mountain the two of you were on looked over a small forest that bordered a large, blue lake. The cloudless sky was colored a deep blue that faded into a bright orange the lower it went. The reflection of the sunrise bounced off the water.

“It’s beautiful,” You whispered.

Friede, instead of looking off towards the sunrise, had his eyes on you. His hand was still in yours, the calloused skin warming your near frozen fingertips. Friede gave your hand a squeeze before letting go and stretching his arms. You mirrored the motion. 

Friede’s arm then wrapped around the back of your shoulders, and you let him pull you into a side hug. The moment was borderline romantic. Watching the sunset together in the brisk morning, all by yourselves? The light of the new morning gave a soft glow on Friede’s face, his eyes sparkling as they looked into yours. It felt like a scene out of a romance movie. If only you had the courage to lean in and kiss him.

Friede seemed to not get the memo, and without warning, he leaned in and pressed his lips against your cheek. 

The motion was quick, his soft lips only lingering on your skin for a few seconds before he pulled back, a goofy smile on his face. You tried to say something, but he beat you to it.

“I could go for a sandwich.” It was casual, the way he spoke, like he didn’t just do something that turned your whole perspective on your relationship upside down. Up until now, you’ve been writing everything off as a cruel coincidence, but now you had no idea what to think. Liepard nudged your leg, her cute face looking up at yours. Friede had started walking away now, back towards the direction the two of you came from. One of your hands touched your cheek. 

This was getting out of hand.

“Sounds like you,” Orla pointed a finger in your direction, “are in a situationship.”

“Ughhh!” You buried your face in your hands, a warm feeling rising up through your body. You spent the last thirty or so minutes complaining to Orla about the various encounters you’ve had with Friede over the last few months, and as much as you didn’t want to admit it, she was totally right. There is absolutely a situation going on, and you didn’t know how to proceed. Orla was amused. 

“Been there, done that. It’s not that bad.”

You huffed. “It totally is! Am I missing something?”

Orla shrugged in return. “You know Friede, always forgetting to tell people things and instead taking actions that confuse everyone. Maybe he likes you, and just hasn’t said it yet.”

It was plausible. But the doomerism in you wanted to say there was no way. Orla chuckled. She was about to say something else before the door to the conference room slid open. You turned to look behind you and were greeted with the sight of the very man you were complaining about. Friede walked over, plate in hand.

“Thought you might be hungry.” He placed the plate in front of you. Orla crossed her arms, a playful frown on her face.

“You didn’t bring me anything?”

Friede shrugged. “Murdock has sandwich stuff in the kitchen.”

He then leaned down next to your ear, saying your name to get your attention.

“I was wondering if you wanted to get dinner with me? Tonight?”

You raised your eyebrows. Glancing over at Orla, you saw a surprised look on her face. She mouthed something along the lines of ‘say yes’.

“Sure. Sounds like a plan.”

Friede grinned. He casually kissed your cheek, just like he did earlier in the morning, and started to make his way out of the room. 

“Great! See you later!”

The moment the door shut behind him, Orla started laughing. You groaned.

“See what I mean?”

You looked down at the plate before you. A twisting, warm feeling settled in your stomach– Murdock usually left the ingredients out, separated, for everyone to make their own choice. Friede had taken it upon himself to build your favorite sandwich.

The place Friede suggested wasn’t overly fancy, but you still dug out some nice clothes for the event. As Orla theorized, the rest of the crew wasn’t invited, and it was almost certainly a date between you and Friede. You argued that she was wrong, but you couldn't shake the feeling of excitement for the night. And nervousness. You were so nervous.

The hostess led the two of you to a table near the window, dimly lit and most of the light coming from the evening sun outside. Friede pulled a chair out for you, which you accepted. He took the one across from you.

The waiter had come by quickly to take your drink and food order, then left the two of you alone.

“So,” breaking the silence, you started, “what have you been up to all day?”

Friede went off into a tangent about the afternoon he had, which included updating parts of his environment map. Apparently an area he needed to look into again was overrun by Spheal, and despite how cute they were, they were extremely rude, hitting Friede smack in the face with Water Gun a couple times. His environment map was a passion project since high school, and you couldn’t help but marvel at how fondly he spoke about it, partially wishing it was you he spoke about with such love. During the conversation your drinks arrived, and midway through your rant about the training you did with Liepard today, your food arrived too. You originally weren’t sure how this night was going to go, but you were pleasantly at the outcome. It felt natural, the best friend side of your relationship wiping away any awkwardness as the prospect of this being a date. You were glad for that, as you weren’t even sure this could classify as a date.

The meal was over as quick as it began, and after paying for the food, you found yourself walking side by side down the sidewalk. The sun was almost down by now, a soft orange glow and newly turned on street lamps lighting your path. The moment felt like the morning you had, but Friede somehow looked better, that dopey smile melting your heart. 

It was too perfect to not confess everything on your mind.

Friede slowed to a stop next to a water fountain. The clear water glistened in the light. So did Friede’s eyes. You sucked in a breath. This was the moment. Friede stared at you, an indecipherable look in his eyes. 

“Friede, I have to confess something.” 

“No,” your name followed next. “I have to tell you something first.”

It caught you too off guard to object. Friede grabbed onto your hand and raised it up to his face. He pressed his lips against your knuckles. 

“We’ve been dating for three months now, and I can’t keep waiting any longer to say it. I love you.”

Friede’s hands cupped your cheeks as he pressed his lips, soft and wistful, against yours. It felt different than when they ever did against your cheek, and you couldn’t help but internally punch yourself for missing out on something like this for so long. His breath was warm on your cheek and you weren’t sure what to do with your hands. You weren’t sure what to do with anything, really, the thoughts racing through your mind as you failed to reciprocate his actions.

He loves you?

Friede pulled back, a look of confusion laced through his features. You stared at him, the words getting lost on your tongue. You barely registered him saying your name.

“What’s wrong? Are you not…”

“You love me?”

“Yes, I–”

Suddenly it hit you. You took a step back. “Wait. We’ve been what?”

It was Friede’s turn to be confused. “We’ve been… dating?”

You couldn’t stop yourself. Your shoulders shook as a wheeze passed through your lips, and not even the lack of proper airflow could stop you from laughing. 

Friede started to panic. “Are you okay?”

“We–” Your voice was broken up in gasps. “Aren’t dating!”

Maybe that was the wrong thing to say at the moment, the visual of Friede’s heart getting shattered to pieces squeezed at your own. Before Friede could make any brash movements, you grabbed ahold of his shoulders. 

You took a few breaths to steady yourself. “Let me rephrase that,”

“I wasn’t aware we were dating, Friede.”

One of your hands trailed down his arm, stopping above his hand as you laced your fingers together. He accepted the affection, but he still seemed confused when he spoke.

“At the battle tournament.”

You pinched your eyebrows together, thinking back at the day. Friede had spun you around after you won the qualifying match, and while you didn’t go on to win the whole thing– Liko and Roy did, actually– you had fun with him. But you couldn’t remember any significant moments from that day. When you didn’t respond, Friede continued.

“After we won that one match. You looked so happy, and I realised how much I wanted to see you happy forever. I asked you out.”

“You did?”

Friede raised an eyebrow. He was more amused than concerned now. “Yeah? You said ‘yes, yes, sure, I need to go pee I’ll be right back’ and ran off. I thought it was kinda weird but you act weird sometimes so I didn’t think too much about it.”

Upon seeing the look on your face, he continued. “Maybe I should have thought about it more.”

You hit the palm of your hand against your forehead.

“I’m sorry Friede. I didn’t know what you said, I was distracted.”

He released your hand. Friede rubbed the back of his head. “No, it’s my fault. I should have noticed how awkward you got whenever I did something romantic. I just thought you wanted to take things slowly. Like really slowly.”

Friede took a deep breath. 

“I get it if you don’t want to continue–”

“No!” You cut him off. “I mean, yes, I do want to continue. That day I was distracted by you. Because I like you. And I wanted to tell you that tonight, after dinner, but I guess you had something more shocking to tell me.”

That stupid grin was back on Friede’s face. He pulled you into a hug.

“This time, we’re actually dating?”

You pulled back and cupped his face in your hands like he did to you. You leaned forward and pressed a light kiss to his lips. 

“I thought we were already dating?” You joked. Friede laughed and grabbed a hold of your hand. The two of you continued your way down the road, a new-found connection between the two of you that made your heart flutter. Guess that nervousness was all for nothing, huh?

[radiantraichu]

An Applin A Day Keeps Friede Away

Friede/Reader Valentine’s Day was drawing near, and you decided to bite the bullet and ask Friede to become your Valentine! Unfortunately, asking someone to be your sweetheart is a lot harder than it sounds, especially when every plan you have goes wrong.

ao3 vers: https://archiveofourown.org/works/63044161

tags: POV Second Person, Gender Neutral Reader, Valentine's Day, Pre-Relationship, Rising Volt Tacklers Shenanigans, Applin as a Declaration of Love, Jealousy, Fluff and Angst, Miscommunication, Implied Orla/Friede

4,435 words

Monday

It had been awhile since you were last in Levincia, the lavish city you once called home greeting you with open arms as you stepped away from the docks. Every once in a while the Brave Olivine’s motors needed work from wear and tear, and ever since Iono first offered the dock, it’s become the spot Orla preferred to land in. You wondered briefly how Iono was doing, but the thought was shoved aside rather quickly– you had a plan for today.

Friede and you hit it off instantly the day you met, being paired for a project for the Exceed company. You both enjoyed pokemon, and had a passion for learning more. On top of that, you got along quite well, often getting together after work to discuss research or life in general. Even after Friede quit the job the two of you stayed in touch, and the day Friede invited you to explore the world with him, you said yes with no hesitation.

Over the last few months, your once friendly feelings towards Friede started to shift. You’d often find yourself trying to spend more time with him. Laughing a little harder at his jokes, and feeling your face heat up whenever he’d touch you– whether it was a friendly pat on the shoulder or a tug of an arm to keep you from getting hit by a stray watergun, it didn’t matter. At one point, after spending a good chunk of your morning staring at Friede like a lovesick fool , Mollie started teasing you for having a crush on him. One realization-induced crashout later, you accepted that she was totally right. 

The original idea was to just. Wait it out . But after two days of scrolling through your Rotom phone pretending you weren’t looking at Friede during breakfast, you decided that you absolutely need to do something about this. And if you were going to do something about it, you need to do it right .

Valentine’s Day was right around the corner, and after stumbling upon a couple articles talking about a sweetheart tradition in Galar, you settled on a plan.

The once paved street gave way to grass under your feet as you passed through the gates of Levincia. Your partner, Jolteon, walked closeby. You weren’t going to spend your day in Levincia, no– you had all week to do that–instead you were going to track down a rather elusive pokemon found in the outskirts of East Province. Applin.

You pulled up the map on your Rotom phone. 

“If we head in that direction,” You pointed to the west. “We should be in their territory.”

Jolteon let out a cry in response. The walk to the targeted area wasn’t too bad, a few pokemon jumped out here and there, but Jolteon was able to handle any obstacle with ease. A few inclines later, you made it to a patch of grass that was said to have frequent Applin sightings. All you had to do now was wait.

And wait.

Aaaaaand wait.

You sighed, your head dropping against the palm of your hand. You’ve long since sat down on the dirt, and while Jolteon had spent time jumping around at every bit of movement she spotted, she eventually curled her tired body up to yours. The daylight hours had long since passed. The sun was setting now, and you knew you needed to head back to Levincia before you weren’t able to see your own hand in front of you. You shivered. The thought of a ghost pokemon jumping out at you was enough to raise you to your feet. Jolteon yawned.

“Guess let's get going.” You took one last look at the grassy area, and just as you were about to turn around, you saw a flash of red.

Your eyes widened. Could it be? You crouched down, tapping Jolteon on the head and motioning for her to stay quiet. The red creature shuffled through the taller grass. A few moments later, it jumped out.

An Applin!

“Now, Jolteon! Quick Attack!”

Jolteon sprung into action, her yellow body giving off a soft, white glow as she sprinted towards Applin. The tiny pokemon had no time to react, and got knocked back a few feet. Jolteon jumped back in front of you, ready for your next command.

You dug into your coat pocket, fishing out a red pokeball. One more hit and it should be easy to catch. You called out the same move to Jolteon again, but as the pokemon was running forward, Applin seemed to be more prepared. Before Jolteon could make contact, Applin cried out, a purplish glow surrounding its body as it whacked Jolteon square in the face. While both Jolteon and you were momentarily stunned, the Applin booked it back into the tall grass.

“Wha– wait!” You held an arm out, running a few feet forward after it before slumping over in defeat. You groaned. Jolteon nuzzled her head against your leg.

“Let’s just… go back to the ship.”

Tuesday 

The next day, you and Jolteon were sitting in Murdock’s kitchen. You were once again scrolling through your phone. Various different recipes flashed by the screen, but you passed by them all with a frown on your face.

“Okay,” Murdock set the bowl he was washing down, and leaned over the counter to get your attention. “Something is obviously wrong. Spill.”

You set your Rotom phone down. “I’m just… stuck , is all.”

“On?” Murdock nudged. He took a seat next to you, briefly looking at the screen of your Rotom phone before back at you. 

“I spent all day yesterday looking for an Applin, and the moment I find one– it runs away!” You considered going back out into the field again today, but the experience from yesterday left too sour of a taste in your mouth. Murdock nodded along with your words. 

“I’ve never had luck looking for them either, but,” Murdock’s eyebrows pinched together. “Why were you looking for one?”

You felt your face start to heat up, and before you could look away, it seemed to click in Murdock’s brain. 

“Valentine’s Day!” He looked like he had stars in his eyes. “Now you have to tell me who it was for!”

Leave it to Murdock to be obsessed with the thought of your love life. He’s always wanted to know what was going on in your head, and you hung out enough times to become really good buddies since he joined the crew. It was natural he wanted to know what had you so turned around.

“Promise not to make fun of me?”

Murdock raised both his hands in front of him. “I promise- when have I ever made fun of you?”

You thought back to that one time you burnt a batch of cinnamon rolls, Murdock laughing his ass off and not letting up about it for weeks. You bit your tongue. 

“It’s Friede.” You closed your eyes, not wanting to see Murdock’s immediate reaction. But when he said nothing, you opened them back up. Murdock’s mouth was hanging open. 

“No. Way! You’re joking,”

“Why would I be joking!?” You tried to defend yourself, crossing your arms over your chest with a huff. “I told you not to make fun of me.”

Murdock waved his hands in a panic. “I’m not, I’m not! I’m just surprised– I would’ve never guessed.”

“Mollie knew it instantly,” you dragged a hand across your face. Still warm. You glanced back over at Murdock. 

“You don’t think I’m weird, do you?”

“The more I think about it, the more I can totally see it– the way you two are always around each other, and the way you look at eachother– chef's kiss!” He did the motion with his hands. You chuckled. It soon faded back to a frown.

“Do you think I have a chance?”

“I can’t say I know for certain what Friede thinks of you, but,” Murdock picked up your abandoned Rotom phone, opening up one of the last recipes you scrolled through. He turned the phone towards you. It was a recipe for heart-shaped donuts. 

“I think I can help you try and win him over.”

The plan was put into action, and soon you found yourself cutting a sheet of dough into different heart shapes. Murdock helped you prepare the dough, and took it upon himself to cook the treats to perfection. Once they were cooking, you and Alcremie put together various different pinks and reds for frostings. You dunked a donut in each color, and few got heart-shaped sprinkles on them. In the end you had a plate with nine different donuts. Grateful for Murdock’s help, you promised the next shopping spree was on you.

Murdock placed the plate in the middle of the island. 

“I’ll head to the conference room so you can have some privacy.” Murdock winked. He patted you on the back before heading out the room.

You took a deep breath. All you had to do now was get Friede. Easy-peasy. It was likely he was in the Captain’s deck, so you and Jolteon made your way over, only bumping into Dot and making small conversation. Apparently they were looking for Liko and Roy. After confirming you hadn’t seen either kid in a while, the two of you split off and you continued on. You and Jolteon stopped in front of a large metal door. 

“I got this.” You whispered. You could hear Friede’s voice on the other side of the door, likely talking to Cap, so you wasted no time raising your fist. But just before you were able to knock, you heard someone yelling your name.

You and Jolteon looked at each other, before immediately sprinting off into the direction of the shout.

You were back in the kitchen, and this time instead of just Murdock, he was accompanied by the three kids, two of which looked incredibly embarrassed. The plate, once filled with donuts, was left empty on the counter, crumbs being the only remaining evidence they were ever there.

“I forgot something in here after I left and was going to grab it before you got back. I was greeted with Roy and Liko eating the donuts we made.” Murdock explained. Roy had a guilty smile, frosting still on the corner of his lips, and Liko looked downright apologetic.

She bowed her head. “I am so sorry!”

Roy nodded along, also giving an apology. Their pokemon cried out in agreement, also having eaten a treat or two. 

“There wasn’t anyone in here, so Roy and I thought they were just set out for whoever,” 

“We didn’t know you had plans for them!”

You leaned down, putting a hand on each of the kids’ shoulders. They both looked up at you. You gave them a smile.

“It’s okay,” you reassured them. You could never be mad at the kids– they were young! And besides, it’s not like you labeled the donuts anyways. You looked over at Murdock.

“I guess I’ll have to come up with a different plan. Thank you for the help anyways, Murdock.”

Looking back down at the kids, you noticed Liko had a smirk on her face. You raised an eyebrow.

“So, Friede , huh?” She teased.

You felt your face heat up. “Murdock! Did you tell them!?”

Wednesday

You woke up the next morning with a knock at your door. You groggily got up, sliding your feet into slippers. Jolteon stayed on the bed. After making your way to the door, you opened it, greeted by the sight of Liko, Roy, and Dot. They each had a smile on their face.

“Goodmorning?” 

Liko held up a blank card. You stared at it for a few moments, before frowning.

“I don’t get it.”

“We want to help you,” Liko started to explain, a determined look in her eyes. “Since we messed up your Valentine proposal yesterday.”

“We’re gonna help you make a card!” Roy butted in, grinning. You glanced over at Dot. They shrugged.

“I wanted to be included.”

“That’s really sweet of you three–” Roy grabbed ahold of your wrist, and started to tug you down the hall. 

“Come on! Let’s get started already!”

With no room for objections, you let the kids take you along, barely having time to shut your bedroom door behind you.

It seemed that Liko, Roy, and Dot had been planning this activity all morning. The conference room table was littered in various different craft materials, from an unnecessary amount of scissors to several stacks of love-related stickers. Liko explained that it was a lot more fun to do crafts with friends, so the kids were also going to work on their own Valentine gifts. You couldn’t argue with that logic. It took a lot of trial and error to create a card design you liked enough to give to Friede– and you eventually settled on something Charmander themed as an homage to his beloved partner. After writing a cheesy pickup line and adding a heart sticker to the front of your card, you were ready.

The kids approved of the final design.

“It looks incredible!” Liko doted. She showed off her card in return. It was grassy themed, and had various stickers relating to her partner pokemon on it. She planned to give it to Floragato on Friday. Roy and Dot had similar cards, each decorated for their respective pokemon. 

“You should totally go give it to Friede now!”

“Yeah?” You went to pick up the card, but was stopped when someone knocked. You looked over at the kids. They shrugged. Weren’t expecting anyone. You walked over to the door, opening it to reveal Mollie. 

“Oh, Hi Mollie,”

Mollie smiled. “You haven’t seen Tatsugiri around, have you?”

You shook your head. “Not since yesterday, are they–”

“Wait!”

You and Mollie whipped your heads around. On the table were the three Tatsugiri that lived on the ship. Liko was reaching out to them with a panicked look, trying to grab the piece of paper they were tossing around. Upon a closer inspection, you realised it was your Valentine’s Day card. 

You jumped forward and tried to grab the card mid throw, but missed by an inch. The Tatsugiri seemed to catch wind of how important the object was. In return, they knocked it further away from you. This went on for a few minutes. Almost grabbing the paper, then the Tatsugiri whacked it to the other side of the room. Mollie tried to help you, and eventually the pokemon hit it far to your left. 

Right out the window.

You cursed, rushing over to the opened window and leaning out, Mollie coming up right next to you to do the same. The two of you watched as the card floated down. A plan started to formulate– if it just landed on the ground, it should be fine enough to grab and continue onward. It seemed too far away from the water to get soaked. Just– as if fate were making fun of you, the card landed square in Noctowl’s face. You winced. It’ll be fine, just –

You and Mollie watched in horror as the Noctowl panicked, its first reaction to the foreign object being rip it to shreds . You groaned. 

“Why me?” You whispered, slumping against the window sill. Mollie patted you on the back.

Thursday

You found yourself sitting in Mollie’s infirmary, spinning around in one of her chairs. You told her about your failed declarations of love over the week, and she listened on like she worked. Mollie was pulled up to the exam table, a pair of tweezers up in Noctowl’s mouth. Due to yesterday's events, Noctowl needed a check up. Turns out Mollie missed a couple pieces of paper out of its mouth. You grimaced when she pulled out a heart sticker.

“Maybe that idea was too cheesy– but now I don’t know what to do!” You rolled your chair over to Noctowl and pet the pokemon’s back. It cooed in response.

Mollie set the tweezers down. She leaned back in her chair. “Have you tried just asking him?”

“What?”

“Just ask Friede out to dinner. You don’t have to be all fancy about it.”

“What if he thinks I’m being lazy?” 

Mollie snorted. “I don’t think he would care, trust me. Plus– it’s not that hard to mess up words, is it?”

You frowned at her. “I don’t know…”

She placed a hand on your shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. “Just give it a try. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll help you come up with a new idea.”

Eventually, you gave in. Mollie told you she last saw Friede in one of the buildings nearby. So you and Jolteon made your way off the ship. There were at least five different buildings on the dock, so you and Jolteon decided to go down the line.

You opened the doors for the first two, peering inside to see nothing but brown cargo boxes. There were a couple Ratata around, too. In the process of your search, you practiced what you’d say.

“Hey Friede, wanna catch dinner tomorrow– eugh, too nonchalant. Hi Friede, do you want to accompany me to dinner tomorrow night? No– that doesn’t even sound like me!”

Jolteon chirped in response. You rolled your eyes– she, of course, thought anything you tried saying was fine. You tried to push open another door, but that one was locked.

“Not here either– there’s one left.” This last building had a window, and light was pouring out of it. You and Jolteon stopped in front of the window. Peering inside, your face lit up when you saw Friede. He was leaning against one of the crates, Cap on his shoulder as usual. In his hands was a pokeball. You were about to try and open the door but stopped. Friede was clearly talking to someone in there. A few feet away, your eyes landed on Orla.

Jolteon made a noise, but you shushed her. Something told you not to walk in there just yet. You adjusted your position, just out of the way enough to not be seen but be able to watch the two. They seemed to be having a good conversation, both smiling as they spoke. It was a bummer you couldn’t hear them.

Friede clicked the pokeball, a flash of light revealing an Applin. The pokemon sat in his hand, blinking over at Orla before closing its eyes to sleep more. Orla’s hands slapped against her mouth, eyes wide. Friede rubbed the back of his neck. There was a blush forming on his face.

You stumbled back. Your breathing started to quicken, tears forming at the corners of your eyes. It couldn’t be.

Friede gave Orla an Applin . 

You cursed. The two had always been close, way before you ever met Friede. They grew up together. Orla was the one who built his ship in the first place! You felt like a fool for even thinking you had a chance. Jolteon rubbed her head against your leg, trying to console you. You just stood there. Letting it all soak in. Glancing up at the window, you saw Friede and Orla start to walk towards the exit. In a split second decision, you sprinted back to the ship. Mollie saw you and tried asking how it went, but you brushed her off.

You skipped dinner that night, and never showed your face for breakfast the next morning.

Friday

Leaving Levincia this morning brought a different kind of feeling. Instead of the hopefulness you wore on Monday, you were utterly grouchy. You were originally going to spend the day wandering around the city, visiting shops and maybe going to say hello to Iono, but as the morning progressed, so did the decorations. The tech-y city had plenty of love-related ads playing. Couples roamed the streets, and most of the vendors started to put out Valentine’s products. You were fine with it at first. But by the time the afternoon rolled around, it was getting to be too much. A constant reminder of the failure that was your love life.

Jolteon ended up leading you out the city, and you decided the two of you could use some training before you took to the skies again tomorrow.

It didn’t take long for the two of you to find a spot– It was rather far from the city, but you kept an eye on the time to make sure you weren’t going to get back too late. At first you and Jolteon worked on her agility. Battling random pokemon here and there with her quick attack. Your mind flashed back to how you missed out on Applin. You just weren’t fast enough, and it slipped away from your grasp. 

But that didn’t matter now, did it?

Next you worked on her electric type moves. Jolteon hadn’t always been the way she was– a few months prior she was still an Eevee. The two of you had been partners for a while, and it was surprising when she decided she wanted to evolve. You took the decision with open arms. So far she only knew thunderwave, and you wanted to work on channeling that into an actual attack.

“Jolteon!” You threw your hand forward. “Store the energy,”

Jolteon did just that, the spikes of her fur standing up as she focused. 

“Just a bit more,” You threw your hand to your side. “Now!”

Jolteon let out a cry, a bout of electricity exiting her body. Instead of the opponent just paralysing, it was properly shocked. The wild pokemon fled soon after.

You cheered, dropping down to the dirt in exhaustion. Jolteon came up to you, and you gave her pets as she licked your face in glee. 

“Amazing!”

You and Jolteon looked behind you. Standing there next to a large, familiar Charizard was Friede. Cap was on his shoulder. The Pikachu looked proud.

“She finally learned discharge,” You smiled. 

“Just had to work on projecting the energy. Took all afternoon.” You explained. Friede held a hand out towards you, and you accepted it, letting him pull you up off the ground. He didn’t let go of your hand. Your smile faded into a frown, the events of yesterday flashing through your head. You pulled your hand out of his.

Friede didn’t comment on it. “So this is where you’ve been all day?” 

“Yes.” Your reply was short. You weren’t trying to be rude, but you couldn’t stop yourself. Friede leaned closer to you.

“I’ve been trying to find you all morning.”

You backed up from him.

“Why? Shouldn’t you be spending your Valentine’s Day with Orla ?” You snapped.

Friede tilted his head. You bit your lip– okay, that was rude. You were about to apologize, but Friede cut you off.

“Orla? Why would I do that?” Friede dug through his jacket pocket and pulled out a pokeball. He clicked the button, the Applin from yesterday coming out. The pokemon looked at you and chirped. You glanced back up at Friede.

“I’ve been looking for this since we landed here– turns out they’re a lot harder to find now than when I did research on them a couple years ago.” Friede chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. “I wanted to give this to you this morning but you were gone. Mollie said you went out.”

Friede placed the pokeball in your hand. Applin jumped on your head, letting out another chirp. You didn't respond, instead you stared at Friede, lips parted. The sun was setting now, the orange glow lighting the two of you up from the side. Friede was blushing.

“I was going to wait until you got back, but it was getting really late. I was kinda worried something happened.” Friede swallowed. He took your other hand in his. “Glad to see you’re okay!” Silence.

“Please say something?”

You looked down at the pokeball in your hand. “It’s for… me?”

Friede smiled. He held the back of your hand up to his face, pressing a kiss to the skin. You felt your face heat up. Your name gently rolled off Friede’s tongue.

“I know the day is almost over, but, will you be my Valentine?”

Yellow eyes stared back at your own. Looking hopeful. This wasn’t at all what you planned to happen, and yet, this is how things turned out. Friede couldn't contain his grin when you said yes, the man pulling you into a warm hug that you graciously returned. As Friede pulled away, he pressed a tender kiss to your cheek.

“If we hurry, we might be able to get dinner. That’s if you want to, anyways.” You smirked, thinking back to the plan you and Mollie came up with yesterday.

“I’d love to.” Friede started to pull you along, but you paused. Applin jumped down into your arms. The pokemon snuggled against you.

“I saw you in a dock hut. Giving Applin to Orla.” Friede seemed to piece it together, a sheepish look on his face.

“Orla’s too invested in my love life.” He chuckled. He wrapped an arm around your shoulder. Comforting. “She just wanted to see the Applin. I told her Monday I was going to start looking for it, which was why I wasn’t going to be able to help her with maintenance.”

You nodded. That made sense– leave it to you to overcomplicate things. Thinking back on the moment, Friede never did give Orla the pokemon. Just showed it off. Applin chirped.

“Are you going to evolve it?” Friede questioned. Friede hopped on Charizard’s back, holding a hand out for you to join him. You returned your pokemon to their pokeballs and took a seat in front of Friede. You responded with a shrug.

“You know how well that went with Jolteon.” You leaned back, humming when Friede wrapped an arm around your waist. It wasn’t the first time you’ve ridden his pokemon with him, but this time gave you Butterfree.

“I’ll let Applin decide.”

Charizard rose up to the sky. The breeze felt great against your skin. “It was an absolute pain to get that thing.” Friede grumbled. You raised an eyebrow, glancing behind you.

“Yeah?”

“It kept running away! Then the first time I had it cornered, it used astonish– I forgot it could even do that!” 

You snorted. “That’s what happened to us!”

Friede leaned his chin on your shoulder, smirking.

“You were trying to get an Applin?” You felt your face heat up.

“That’s not even half the story.”

[radiantraichu]

Snowpoint City. So Close, Yet So Far

Friede/Reader A journey to Snowpoint City takes a slight detour when a snowstorm comes in. You and Friede hunker down in a cave, and the close proximity reminds you that your attraction for him will always be one-sided. That's what you think, anyways.

ao3 vers: https://archiveofourown.org/works/62942968

tags: Second Person POV, Gender Neutral Reader, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss, Blizzards & Snowstorms, Cuddling for Warmth

1,712 words

At first, the snow was light, dusting the ground beneath your boots but doing very little to stop the quick pace you walked. It occasionally fell in your face and on your hair, but you shook it off just as quick. Then it came down harder. The once lightly covered ground seemed to swallow your shoes with every step. It was getting harder to see, and while both you and Friede wore goggles, the white-out conditions were becoming too much. Friede practically dragged you to the first cave he saw. 

“Charizard!” A flash of light, and the draconus lizard was out, the fire on its tail lighting up the surroundings. The snow beneath you started to melt with the heat. You stretched your arms out, a soft sigh escaping your lips as your fingers started to warm up. You glanced around the place. The walls were rocky, go figure, and there were long stalactites hanging from the ceiling. It was impossible to tell how deep the cave went, but as long as the heat stayed right where it was, you didn’t need to worry too much about that. To your left, Friede was already on the ground, leaning close to Charizard’s tail. His shoulders were shaking. 

Charizard lightly growled when you pat its head, flashing you the best smile it could make.

“Thank you.”

You sat next to Friede, not enough to be touching, but enough to get his attention. Yellow eyes glared over at you.

“Remind me again why we’re doing this,” his voice was shaky, teeth clenched together. 

“We have to get to Snowpoint somehow.” You hummed. You pulled your hands back, resting them on your lap. “It's getting pretty late anyways. We can wait for the snowstorm to blow over in the morning.”

Charizard let out a grumble, slumping down onto the rocky floor. It sighed, smoke blowing out its nostrils. Friede reached over to Charizard and stroked the top of the Pokemon’s head like you did before.

“Take a nap,” Friede whispered. He looked down at Captain, who was already snuggled up in his lap, dozing off. “I think Cap is alright with that.”

“Friede, um,” You avoided his gaze, instead looking down at your own hands. Despite being so close to Charizard’s fire, your own arms were still cold under your jacket. “Sorry for dragging you all the way out here with me. I know you hate the cold.”

A hand touched your shoulder, and you couldn’t help but melt into the feeling.

 “It’s okay. I’ll survive,” Friede joked, giving your shoulder a squeeze. “I’d do anything for you– as the commander of the Rising Volt Tacklers, and your best friend.”

You returned his sentiment with a smile. Friede would let you drag him all the way to Alola for a malasada if it made you happy. Because you were good friends. Nothing else. You clenched the fabric of your coat sleeve and took a deep breath. It was hard feeling just friendship for Friede. He was a great leader to the team, that's for sure, but he was also an incredible person, caring for you and helping you reach your goals when things got tough. The two of you always joked around with each other, going on weird adventures and stupid side-missions much like this one. Whenever you were sad something didn’t go quite the way you wanted, he’d always be around to cheer you up and remind you just because you failed, didn’t mean you were a failure. You’d go as far as to say you loved the man. If only he returned your feelings.

Friede laid back, his upper body resting against Charizard. He took his goggles off his head and set them off to the side. White hair fell in front of his face, and you resisted the urge to read over and push the strands out of the way. He grinned in your direction.

“I’m going to sleep, and dream about being on the beach in Hau’oli City.”

You shook your head. “Pfft– Good luck with that, Friede.” 

It took a little maneuvering, but eventually you found a comfortable, pebble-free spot on the ground near Charizard’s tail to lay. The air was still bitter on your cheeks, but you dozed off quickly.

The wind whistled in your ears, snowflakes gently falling at the opening of the cave. You weren’t sure what time it was, but it was still pitch dark, safe for the glow of Charizard’s tail. You moved in your sleep it seemed, now a foot or two more away from the fire than you were before. You sat up. Your arms were shaking, and your fingers felt twice as cold. Looking up from the ground, you immediately made eye contact with Friede. He was still laying against Charizard, his arms crossed over his chest. Captain Pikachu was nowhere to be seen.

“Cap’s back in his ball,” Friede supplied, as if he had read your mind. “Is it me or did it get colder in here?”

Careful not to touch Charizard’s tail, you scooted your body closer to Friede, just inches away like before. You didn’t have any fire type pokemon with you. The best you could do was just be semi-close to Friede. If only…

“Would be nice if we had blankets or something.” 

Friede’s eyes were on you. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but nothing ever passed his lips. 

“Maybe we should try and go deeper?” You looked into the narrowing section of the cavern. Water was dripping down from the ceiling. “Actually maybe that’s not a good idea–”

Your words cut off at the sound of your name. You glanced back over at Friede. He was holding a hand out to you.

“Get closer to me.”

“Huh?” You felt your face heat up, and you were grateful the red light of the cave left no trace of it. 

“We can share body heat. At least until morning when it finally warms up.”

Leave it to Friede to be level-headed even in a situation he hates. You bit at your lip. That definitely was a good idea, but the last thing you wanted to do was freak out on Friede over your own feelings then have an awkward journey to Snowpoint and back when he told you he doesn’t feel the same way. The two of you would pretend things were fine but he'll eventually kick you off the crew from how weird it got between you two. Then you’d never see Friede again– 

An arm tugged at yours, pulling you out of your catastrophizing and onto Friede’s lap. Your chest was pulled flush against his– as much as they could with the coats, anyways– and his arms wrapped securely around your waist. You instinctively shifted your legs, now fully straddling him. Being warm was the last thing you had to worry about now, with your body burning from the situation. Friede grinned. 

“You were taking too long.” He hummed, leaning his head back against Charizard. His next words came out in a whisper. “You’re really warm.”

Friede noticed pretty quickly how stiff you were. One of his arms trailed up your back, pushing you towards him. Your head landed on his shoulder. 

“You can lay on me, I’ll be fine.” 

“Y– yeah,” Friede tilted his head, yellow eyes staring into your own. His eyebrows pinched together. His bangs fell back over his face.

“Are you okay?”

You didn’t respond. Instead, before you could stop yourself, you reached up, taking the hair and pushing it back behind his ear. Your hand stayed on his cheek. 

“Your hair was bothering me,” you tried to reason, and it came out as a whisper. You glanced down at Friede’s parted lips. He licked them.

Friede said your name, but you looked away this time, eyes focused on the scales of Charizard’s head. It was certainly asleep by now. You heard your name again.

“Friede,” 

A short moment passed, and before you could even say anything else, a pair of cold, slightly chapped lips pressed against your own. You weren’t sure what you were expecting out of a moment like this, but it left you unable to move. To even think. Part of you was convinced you were still on the hard floor, dreaming up the situation as you always did back on the ship. You wished you could pinch yourself, but your hands wouldn't budge. Friede pulled back. He looked at you with half-opened eyes. There was a frown on his face.

“I–” Your body finally caught up. You cut off the rest of Friede’s sentence, pushing your lips back into his. He hummed, pulling your body even closer to him, and one of his hands pressed itself against the one on his cheek. You felt the same relief as the warmth of Frede’s Pokemon provided, but this warmth felt better. It felt natural, and you couldn’t get enough of it. Your other hand pressed against his arm. 

Friede soon pulled back again. The fingers on your hand interlocked with yours, falling down to rest on your leg. He cleared his throat.

“I like you!” you blurted out, your free hand slapping against your mouth immediately after. Friede laughed.

“Really? I thought you kissed me back because you hated me?”

You playfully punched him in the shoulder. He laughed even more, his body underneath shaking yours.

“Shut up!”

The laugher soon died down, the cave being filled with the sounds of wind and dripping once more. You yawned. 

“Let’s talk about this in the morning,” Friede whispered. His thumb rubbed the top of your gloved hand, his other hand stroking your back. You rested your head against his chest.

“Okay,” you responded, closing your eyes. The faint beating of Friede’s heart lulled you into a warm sleep, dreaming of the two of you on Hau’oli City’s beach. 

The wind died down with the setting of the moon. Through the light snowflakes, the sun reflected off the ground and onto your face. To your left, Friede’s shoulder was against your own, walking side by side with gloved hands interlocked by your waist. With his other hand, he pointed out a quickly growing city in the distance. Snowpoint was near.