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Gou had thought he was prepared.
After all, one doesn’t leave home without accounting for danger—environmental hazards, hostile Pokémon, unpredictable humans.
He’d planned for injuries, setbacks, even the possibility of failure.
That was his first mistake.
His second was underestimating the sheer power of obliviousness.
(He would only fully realize that one later.)
“You know what?” Satoshi said cheerfully, like they hadn’t just narrowly avoided dying.
Gou was starting to suspect that it was a normal Tuesday for him.
“It was amazing meeting so many Pokémon!”
Gou blinked.
Amazing wasn’t the word he’d use, exactly. Terrifying. Overwhelming.
Scientifically fascinating in a way that made his hands itch for a notebook.
Still, the first-hand encounters had been rare—most Pokémon didn’t usually allow prolonged contact without attempting bodily harm.
He smiled despite himself, letting out a small laugh.
“You’re really cool, you know,” he began. Completely unhinged, yes—but impressive.
“I wish I had your confidence—”
“Especially since I got to see Lugia again!”
Again.
The word hit him like a dropped plate, sharp and final.
It echoed in his head, bouncing around until it fractured something important.
Gou opened his mouth. He wanted to ask—clarify, demand context—but no sound came out.
His brain refused to cooperate.
Satoshi, of course, didn’t notice.
He moved forward and wrapped his arms around the massive white-and-purple Legendary Pokémon as if it were a plush toy instead of the Guardian of the Seas. The Stormbringer.
The subject of several academic papers Gou had bookmarked and never dared open because even reading about Lugia felt like tempting fate—
Lugia made a low, pleased sound.
Gou’s thoughts ground to a halt.
Lugia could purr.
Pikachu chirped happily, completely unbothered.
He even responded to Lugia, sparks flickering lazily across his cheeks like punctuation.
Like this was normal.
Like this wasn’t reality folding in on itself.
“… What?” Gou finally managed.
His knees felt weak. Or maybe the ground was tilting. It was hard to tell.
Satoshi glanced back at him, confused—still holding Lugia, Gou noted distantly.
“Huh? I didn’t tell you? Lugia and I are friends.”
Friends.
Gou stared at his face, desperately searching for the smile. The laugh.
The moment when Satoshi admitted he was joking.
Nothing came.
“What,” Gou tried again. His voice cracked. “Do you mean… by friends?”
Satoshi hummed, thoughtful in a way that didn’t suit him at all.
“Well, I usually meet one or three Legendaries, Guardians, or Mythicals per region. Sometimes more.”
Per region.
Gou’s mind went blank.
“Saving the world all the time is kinda tiring,” Satoshi continued easily, “but you get used to it after a few years. Nearly dying helps.”
Gou dimly registered that his hands were shaking.
Nearly dying. Often enough to be casual about it.
Satoshi kept going.
“Celebi sends updates sometimes. Or I visit before heading out again. Same with Pokémon I released—Pidgeot, Butterfree—oh!” He blinked. “I wonder how Greninja’s doing.”
The names stacked one after another, crushing the air from Gou's lungs.
Legendaries weren’t contacts. They weren’t pen pals. They didn’t just check in.
“H-How many regions?” Gou whispered, dragging the words out like broken glass.
He felt absurdly proud of managing that much.
Satoshi grinned. “This one makes eight, I think?”
Eight.
Eight regions. More than half the known world.
“I actually befriend more Pokémon than I catch,” Satoshi added. “Giratina’s intense. Rayquaza’s kind of a grump. Arceus is… a lot. Too much ‘balance of the universe’ stuff. But Latias, Victini, and Keldeo were fun!”
Gou’s vision tunneled. The edges of the world went soft and wrong.
Reality was unraveling.
“Some of my Pokémon can fight them too,” Satoshi said casually. “Pikachu barely wins against the stronger ones, though.”
Gou looked at Pikachu.
At the one being he’d assumed was the sane constant.
Pikachu waved.
Something inside Gou snapped.
“D-Do you know M-Mew?!” He blurted, scrambling for purchase on the last solid thought he had left.
Satoshi blinked. “Yeah? I’ve got Mew on speed dial. Same with Mewtwo—”
That was as far as Gou made it.
The world tipped violently, rushing up to meet him.
“Gou?!” Satoshi yelped, catching him clumsily as his legs gave out. “What did I say?!”
Pikachu sighed, pressing a paw to his face.
Lugia nudged Gou gently with its snout.
Gou saw none of it.
His last coherent thought was that maybe—just maybe—joining Satoshi had been a terrible, terrible idea.