Chapter Text
A loud yell made the foreign Pokémon run away from Red. He frowned. Someone must have stumbled over something. He didn’t know how; the terrain was far from difficult to navigate. Another yell, followed by a girlish giggle, made him stand from where he was crouched against the floor. From what minimal Kalosian he understood, this was supposed to be some sort of “a space to be quiet.” To not disturb the wild Pokémon, or something.
Two girls rounded the corner, one tall and blonde and the other short with pigtails. The shorter one paused when she caught sight of Red. She gave a friendly smile. “Oh, bonjour!”
He knew that. That was “hello.” He gave them a curt nod in response.
“Parle-vous Kaloçais?” The taller asked, and the other girl’s mouth made an “o” shape, as if the thought hadn’t occurred to her.
Red held out a hand and shook it slightly, the universal sign for “kind of.” “Uh…” He started, voice quiet. “Mon nom est Red?”
The shorter girl giggled. He probably sounded like an idiot. “Je suis Shauna,” she introduced. “Voici Serena.”
Shauna and Serena. Those were pretty names. He kind of wished he could express so, but that was…the limit of his Kalosian. He slowly nodded. Serena rolled her eyes. “Do you speak Unovan?” She asked, accent heavy.
“Yes,” he said, and the girls smiled in relief. “Your names are pretty.”
Shauna laughed. “So, what brings you to Kalos? Terminus Cave isn’t that much of a hotspot for tourists.” He shrugged, and Shauna giggled again. “There’s rumors of a monster here.”
“That’s not true,” Serena scolded, pushed the girl with her elbow. “There’s not a monster.”
“I know,” he interrupted quietly, gaining the attention of the girls. “That’s…why I came.”
“Where are you from?” Shauna asked, eyes wide with interest.
“Kanto.” He brought a hand to his hat. “Pallet Town.”
“Ooh, Kanto! I’ve always wanted to go there, Serena, we should go someday!” Shauna exclaimed, grabbing at Serena’s hand. “I heard it’s really nice and quiet!”
Red frowned. Yeah, maybe. In the right spots. Some spots on some routes were nearly absent of trainers all the time. He shook his head. “…sometimes. It’s cloudy. Cold, a lot. Um…the forest is quiet. But there’s…a lot of trainers. Kids.”
The girls nodded in unison. “I’m guessing you’re a trainer?” Serena asked, gesturing to the line of Pokéballs on Red’s waist. At his nod, she grinned. “I’m a bit of a trainer, myself. Care for a battle?”
“That’s hardly fair,” Shauna pouted, her face scrunching up. “He’s a tourist!”
“No,” Red said, a hand hovering over Pikachu’s ball. “It’s fine. We can battle, if you want.”
The battle was quick. Red knocked out most of Serena’s Pokémon with Pikachu before she could manage a hit on the rodent. She gave him an exasperated smile when she recalled her last Pokémon, holding out a hand to shake. “You oughta challenge the league,” she complimented, her hand small and warm in Red’s. “In another setting, you could be Champ.”
Red held back a smile. They didn’t know who he was, and honestly, he was willing to keep it that way. It was refreshing, not being hounded for interviews and pictures and signatures and ugh, it was awful. This was nice. These kids were nice. “Maybe,” he finally said.
“Hey, Serena,” Shauna said, tugging on her friend’s sleeve. “You know, isn’t the Professor working with someone from Kanto?”
Red frowned. Someone from Kanto could be anyone, but for some reason, he just knew. “Blue Oak?” He asked, and both girls looked at him like he was crazy.
“…yes,” Serena said. “You know him?”
Did he know Blue? Sometimes, he sure wished he didn’t. But he couldn’t deny that yes, he did know Blue, he had known Blue for most of his life, if not all. He couldn’t remember a time when he didn’t know Blue. He gave the girls a tense smile. “…you could say that. He’s…” Red trailed off, thinking. “…a friend.”
A loud roar cut them off. It was piercing and sounded like it was inside his head rather than deeper in the cave. Serena and Shauna clung to each other, eyes closed tight and teeth bared in pain. Red couldn’t blame them; the sound hurt. But as soon as it started, it was over. They all stood in silence for a minute, too scared to move.
“…I think,” Shauna stage-whispered, shivering. “We should go.”
Red blinked as the sudden harsh light attacked his eyes. Serena and Shauna bid him adieu after Serena gave him her number (For battle reasons, she said), taking off on Serena’s Charizard to some city that he didn’t quite catch the name of. He looked at his map and called out his own Charizard, who nuzzled into his cap cheerfully. His eyes lingered over Lumiose for a while. “…let’s visit someone,” he said softly, pointing to Lumiose for Charizard to understand. “He deserves a visit.”
Professor Sycamore greeted him with wide arms and a bright smile. Red had already met the man, technically, over video-call with Professor Oak when he was preparing to leave for Kalos. Funny, Red thought, how Oak completely negated to tell him that his grandson was in this same laboratory. Maybe he just forgot; the man was old. But…
He let Sycamore hug him tightly, rambling in energetic Unovan about how happy he was that Red had come to visit the lab, that he should’ve stopped by sooner, he had so many questions about how his journey through Kalos had gone so far and Arceus please stop talking please, please slow down.
“I heard Blue was working here,” he said, trying his best to interrupt Sycamore’s current rant about Mega Evolution. “Is he in?”
“Oh, yes! Well, no, but yes!” Sycamore laughed. “Yes, he’s working here. No, he’s not in right now. I gave him a bit of a…vacation, so he can focus on studying for finals.”
“Finals?” Red frowned. Blue was in college? What the fuck? “…do you have his number?”
He got Blue’s number. He also got his address, and work schedule for the next month after his exams were over. Red didn’t really think he needed the schedule, but the address could help. He’s sure Blue would totally appreciate a random visit from someone he hadn’t seen in five years. Red smiled.
Blue had an apartment in the middle of the city. Red already hated it. It was too loud, too busy, too confusing, too many streets, too many people. This was the worst. Pikachu let him hold her tightly in his arms, relieving some of the tension in his body. He had no idea where the street was. Just off of Vert Plaza, Sycamore had told him, right by the river.
Where the fuck was Vert Plaza??
No matter which way he turned his map, he couldn’t figure out where he was. Finally, he caved and asked someone, oú est Vert Plaza? in hopes his Kalosian was good enough for them to get that he was completely lost.
Apartment 203. He found it, finally, and he could’ve cheered from how happy he was. He was tired, he was sweating, he probably looked like a total mess. But that was fine. He was here. Red huffed a sigh and knocked on the door.
…no answer. Red frowned. Please. Let him be home. Please let this mean something. He knocked again, louder. Pikachu squeaked sadly.
…shit. Well, that was fine. He had Blue’s number, he could…text, or something, tell him he stopped by maybe?
Red knocked again, maybe third time’s the charm. He started turning when a voice asked through the door, “Qu’est-ce?”
…what the fuck did that mean? Red pursed his lips. “…it’s Red,” he tried, and a moment passed right before a lock clicked and the door was yanked open.
“Red?!”
That was definitely Blue. He looked almost the same as the last time Red saw him. He was taller, now, and had a decent haircut. He looked exhausted, in his very ugly bright yellow I Love Lumiose!! sweatshirt and green plaid pajama bottoms. “La merde?! Qu’est-ce que tu fais ici?”
“I have no idea what you’re saying,” he interrupted, gaining a mean look from Blue. “You look horrible, by the way.”
“…me?! I look horrible?!” Blue scoffed, finally in something that wasn’t Kalosian. “You oughta look at yourself, pal. Can’t even bother to buy yourself a new hat? What, are you living on volcanos instead of snowcaps?”
Red avoided the want to pull at his cap brim. It was his style, why should he change it? It was what people called iconic. No one cared if it looked torn up. In fact, people preferred the torn-up look. They thought it was cool.
“Well, come in,” Blue said after a moment, stepping away from the door. “Do you plan on just sitting outside or what?”
Blue’s apartment was small, but…nice? The couch was comfier than the hard, cold, ground that he had been sleeping on for the majority of the last few weeks. It was warm; it was dry. That’s…really all he could ask for. The living space was right next to a criminally small kitchenette, and a couple doors off to the side were what he assumed were a bedroom and bathroom. Just as Blue was sitting on the opposite end of the couch, Red spoke up:
“…do you have any food?”
Blue paused in setting his laptop on top of his legs. “…what? Really? Did you come here just to eat all my food?”
“No.” Yes. “I came to visit.”
“Well, it’s a bad time.”
Red frowned in Blue’s general direction. He wasn’t being a very good host. Maybe Red wasn’t being a very good guest. Well, whatever. If Blue didn’t care enough to offer food, Red would help himself. He stood and made his way into the kitchen.
One cabinet revealed dishes. Another, some pots and pans. Cups and mugs. Coffee, both instant and ground beans. Cereal. That could work. He shook the box. …empty? Time to try the fridge.
“…you have no food.” Red let the fridge swing shut. “What the hell?”
“Well, I said it’s a bad time,” Blue said from the couch. “Guess I need to go shopping.”
“What…” Red started, quietly. “Have you been eating?”
The silence spoke. “…I’ve been busy.”
“I’ve heard.” Red sat back down on the couch, watching Blue do whatever he was doing on his laptop. “You’re being a horrible host.”
The laptop was slammed shut. “Well, sorry for not being prepared for a guest that I didn’t know was in the region!” Blue’s eyes narrowed, disdain very obvious. “Usually, I like some sort of notice. I’m sorry for not catering to you.”
Red tensed up in his spot against the armrest. This suddenly got personal. “…I heard you’re in school.”
“Hm.” Was that a yes? Red was taking it as a yes.
“And you’re working at the lab.”
“Yeah?”
“That’s a lot of work.”
“Guess so.”
“…well—”
“How did you find where I live?” Before Red could open his mouth to respond, Blue held up a finger. “Actually—why the hell are you even here?”
Red bit his cheek. Honestly? He…didn’t really know. Why did he feel the need to visit Blue? Clearly, he was annoying him more than anything else. He just felt the urge when those girls mentioned that Blue was actually here, in Kalos, at the same time as Red. He looked up. Blue was staring at him, waiting for an answer. Oops. “…in Kalos?”
“I—” Blue cut himself off, rolling his eyes. “Sure. Why are you in Kalos?”
That one was easy to answer. “Zygarde.” He thought for a moment. “And Mega Evolution. But mostly for Zygarde.”
“Zygarde? The monster in Terminus Cave?” Blue narrowed his eyes. “…it’s real?”
Red had a problem. The moment he heard of this “monster,” misunderstood and abandoned by society, terrorizing the population because it didn’t know any better, he had to help it. It was his nature. He just…had to. He couldn’t help it. “I think it is,” he said softly, earning a loud snort from Blue.
“Is this another, ‘oh, a Pokémon in trouble! It just needs a friend!’ type of situation?” At Red’s silence, Blue burst into laughter. “You’re kidding, right? You can’t keep doing this. Mewtwo should’ve been your first warning flag.”
Mewtwo was a different situation, and he knew Blue knew that. Mewtwo was dangerous, actually dangerous, with multiple accounts of killing and injuring trainers. Someone had to do something, and that someone was him, and that something was capturing it. It was the same as Team Rocket: someone had to do something, and that someone was him and the something was dismantling it at the source. The someone was always him. He couldn’t help that; no one else ever did anything.
When it got to the point where Cerulean Cave had to be shut off from trainers, Red knew something had to be done. He couldn’t understand why people would just let this mentally and physically abused Pokémon just…be angry at humanity, instead of trying to help it through its problems. Mewtwo could be helped; he knew it. It was just taking longer than he thought.
“You’re too nice, you know,” Blue said quietly, startling Red out of his thoughts. “It’s gonna get you killed.”
“…not my fault.” Red looked down at his lap. “Someone has to do something.”
“You don’t always have to be the someone, Red,” Blue snapped, making Red jump. “I don’t know why you keep thinking you do, but you don’t. What if it doesn’t want your help? Mewtwo sure didn’t.”
But he did have to be the someone, no one else ever did anything! Not when it came to criminal syndicates, not when it came to Pokémon in need, not when it came to the scarred minds of eleven-year-olds who had no idea how the world worked and got thrust into positions of power too soon and too fast. Yes, he had to be the someone. Someone needed to do something. “Mewtwo is learning,” he finally said. “It’s learning. Just…”
“’Just give it time,’ yeah? Yeah, right.” Blue scoffed. “The thing nearly fucking killed you, and it ‘needs time.’ Sure. What happens when Zygarde tries to kill you? What if you aren’t around someone else this time? Take care of yourself before you worry about some damaged Pokémon.”
“That’s a lot coming from someone who hasn’t eaten in days,” Red countered.
Blue’s face flushed, like it always did when he was super embarrassed. Red won this round. He took great care of himself, in his opinion. He wasn’t nutritionally challenged, he ate well enough, he got exercise, he showered, he brushed his teeth…what was he not doing? “I’ve…eaten,” Blue managed to say, and Red gave him a look. “It’s not your business.”
“My business is your business, apparently.”
“Red—”
“Don’t worry about what I’m doing,” Red interrupted, leaning back into the couch. “You’re not going to help, so don’t worry about what happens. If something happens, it happens. Like with Mewtwo.”
Red wasn’t scared of Zygarde. He hadn’t been scared of Mewtwo, either. Not too many things did scare him. The ghost in the Pokémon Tower hadn’t scared him. Pokémon in general didn’t scare him. People, on the other hand, and how they treated Pokémon? That was what scared him.
Mewtwo wasn’t natural. Neither was Zygarde. They were similar in that aspect. They shouldn’t exist, was a thought that crossed Red’s mind constantly. Humans shouldn’t mess with nature like that, creating things that shouldn’t be created, experimenting and acting as God when they had no right to. It wasn’t natural. It was terrifying. He wasn’t worried about Zygarde killing him. The danger never even crossed his mind. He was focused on help, on helping it, on getting it to understand that it’s okay to be alive and it was okay to feel resentment, but it wasn’t okay to hurt others because of it. He had to.
Someone had to do something.
He wasn’t sure what he did to earn a right to sleep on the couch, but Red stared up at the dark ceiling, a frown on his face. He was thankful that Blue even let him spend the night, honestly, but it was done in sort of a resentful way. Blue didn’t look like he wanted Red to be there in the morning, which was fine, because Red wasn’t planning on being there in the morning. This apartment had almost a hostile air to it, and Red couldn’t tell if it was because of him or if it was because Blue was so busy right now.
The sound of the toilet flushing jolted him out of his thoughts. A light still peeked out from under Blue’s door. Was he still up doing things? Studying or whatever? It was past midnight.
*Me: are you okay?
He could hear the faint ding of Blue’s messages going off and a hushed curse.
*Blue: Leave me alone, thx
*Me: are you okay?
*Me: why are you up?
Blue stopped responding for a good five minutes. Red had almost fallen asleep until his phone started buzzing like crazy on his chest. Great. He probably pissed off Blue again. He seemed to be pretty good at that. He bit his lip and waited for his phone to stop making noise.
*Blue: Listen
*Blue: I don’t really know what gave you the idea that we were friends all of a sudden now
*Blue: What gave you the right to be asking me if I’m okay
*Blue: I’m busy
*Blue: I’m studying
*Blue: I’m trying to graduate
*Blue: I’m trying to be *something*
*Blue: I Don’t Want You Here
*Blue: Maybe I didn’t make that obvious enough?
*Blue: I’m incredibly stressed, I haven’t gotten more than like five hours of sleep over the last three days, I’ve barely eaten, I barely go out
*Blue: Please leave me alone.
Good fucking grief. Well, that sort of answered his questions. No, Blue wasn’t okay, and he was up because he was taking horrible care of himself. Red set his alarm early.
It was still dark when he woke up. If Blue was the same as he was when he was younger, he wouldn’t get out of bed until around ten. That gave him plenty of time to find his way around the city, get to a grocery store, buy some food, and make breakfast. Blue was right; Red didn’t really have the right to ask if he was okay. But when someone needed help, he helped. Even if they didn’t want help. Blue sure as hell didn’t want help.
It was light by the time he got back to Blue’s apartment. The door was still unlocked, thankfully. Red did his best to close the door as quietly as possible, hoping that Blue was in fact still sleeping. He honestly hoped so; he was still moving around when Red decided to go to sleep.
It wasn’t a well-known fact that Red was a decent cook. He kind of had to be, when he’s practically lived outdoors for the last ten years. He could barely hear the creak of a door over the sizzle of eggs. He turned his head and looked at Blue, who looked…horrible. His hair was sticking up all over, and he really looked as if he just fell out of bed. “…good morning,” Red tried, holding up the spatula he was using. “I’m making food.”
Blue gave an indecipherable grunt, shouldering up to Red and opening the cabinet right next to the stove for coffee. He turned on the pot and turned back to Red, eyes squinted. “Why,” he mumbled. “I didn’t ask you to.”
“I know.” Red kept stirring the eggs. “I was hungry.”
They sat beside each other at the small island that separated the kitchen and living room. Just as Red shoved a piece of toast in his mouth, Blue’s knee knocked against his. He glanced over. “Sorry. About. Last night.” Blue’s words were curt and quiet. “I, uh…shouldn’t’ve. Said that stuff. So, sorry.”
That was weird. This was weird. Since when did Blue ever apologize for anything? Maybe college was changing him, or something. Maybe it was Kalos in general. Red swallowed his toast and turned so he was facing Blue. “Is it good?”
“I—…what?”
“The food.” Red pointed to Blue’s nearly empty plate. “Is it good?”
“Well, yeah.” Blue took a sip of his coffee. “Didn’t know you could cook.”
They were both quiet for a while. Red hadn’t even been mad at Blue, and he didn’t know why Blue thought that he was. He wasn’t the type to get upset when someone was having trouble. His eyes flicked up when Blue scooted his chair back. “Help me with Zygarde,” he said softly.
He assumed Blue hadn’t heard until he heard back, just as quiet: “Maybe.”