Chapter Text
When Bede got off the Corviknight taxi, he immediately found the motorhome. Mostly by sound. There was some really loud music blaring in a language he didn’t understand. Through the curtains, he could see silhouettes moving.
He tightened his grip on his flowers, took a deep breath, and marched up to the back door. Bede had to pound on the door several times before someone heard it over the music. The door slammed open, and he took a step back to protect his gladiolus flowers.
“-ka? Ah. Who are you?” the girl asked. “Are you looking for someone?”
Bede looked her up and down, taking in her paint-stained cutoff overalls, her dark hair piled into a messy bun, pale purple shirt covered in even more paint, bright silver eyes staring him down as well, observing every part of him.
“Oh,” she seemingly realized. “You’re the boyfriend. Schilly !” she screamed. “Turn down the volume!”
“WHAT?!”
“He’s in his room,” she told him, waving him inside. “SCHILLY! I SAID TURN IT DOWN!”
Bede winced, then smoothed down his hair and stepped inside. As he suspected, paint was splattered across some sheets spread across the main area. The professor was nowhere to be seen, but Schilly was dancing around in the middle, bopping her head to the music and shaking a paintbrush. The other girl stormed over to a stereo in the corner, shouting the whole way, and lowered the music to healthy levels.
“Aw, Moonbeam… oh, you. Does Sou-chan know you’re coming? Hi Bede,” Schilly rambled, dropping her paintbrush and hopping over puddles of paint to him. Her hair had grown out somewhat, tied in two lopsided braids and secured with a pastel purple ribbon and a neon yellow rubber band. She’d traded in her usual pink dress for a bright green long sleeved shirt and ripped jeans, although Bede couldn’t really see it under the paint splotches. “Sorry about the mess. College is… hectic.”
“Aren’t you fifteen?”
“Hey, I’m sixteen,” Schilly defended. “Sou’s in his room. It’s about time you showed up. You know he’s been dying to see you.”
“He won’t eat. He won’t sleep. He made Marvin cry because he shouted at him,” Moon added. “Would you go and make him be sensible again?”
“It’s not like I care if he wants to see me,” Bede snapped. “Women. Can’t even fix a guy…”
He ignored a sarcastic retort from one of them and headed towards Sou’s tiny, screened off area.
"Hey, Soudo?" Bede asked. He entered the room. Sou was sitting at his table with noise cancelling headphones on, a scarf wrapped around his ears. "Soudo."
Sou didn't appear to notice him. Bede sighed, stomping forward and tapping his arm. "Hey, Soudo! I didn't come all the way here to be ignor-"
Faster than lightning, Sou whirled, a knife in his hand heading towards his eyes. Bede barely had time to blink before it stopped, and Sou pulled it back, putting it down on the table and removing his headgear. “Oh. Bede. I’m sorry, I didn’t notice you were there.”
“What the fuck, Tsurugi?” Bede demanded.
Sou shrugged apologetically. “I get really into my work sometimes. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m really sorry.”
“Whatever,” Bede said dismissively, trying to ignore the way Sou ran his hand through his hair, the way he stared at him that somehow seemed so kind and gentle without any kind of change, the way he- ugh. Was he doing it deliberately? “Schildemilia said you hadn’t been eating.”
“Did she?” Sou smiled, the kind of smile that made Bede want to either punch him or kiss him. “So you do care about me?”
“I didn’t say that.” Before Bede could chicken out, he shoved the bouquet of flowers into Sou’s hands. “I found these on the way here. It’s not like I got them for you. I just don’t have anything to do with them.”
Sou looked down at the bouquet, still smiling his smile that drove Bede insane, noting the fancy ribbon, the scratched off price tag, the logo printed on the tip of the ribbon that both of them knew. Sou, because Schilly often bought flowers for her girlfriend there. Bede, because he’d bought the flowers for his boyfriend there. “Sword lilies.”
“Yeah. Don’t get too excited, they’re just flowers-”
“They’re the same color as your shirt.”
Bede glanced down at his pale pink shirt, then at the pale pink flowers in Sou’s hands. “That’s- that’s a coincidence.”
“Because you want me to remember you?”
“I-” Bede glared at him. “Are you trying to do this?”
“Do what?” Sou asked, then lowered his voice. “Why, is it working?”
“No,” Bede lied before changing the topic. “Why haven’t you been taking care of yourself? And why is your room filled with massacred logs?”
Sou sighed, running his hands through his hair again, and Bede swallowed hard. “I’ve been trying to make something. It’s been harder than I expected. I- I keep trying, but it won’t come out right.”
“What is it?”
Sou rolled his chair to the side so Bede could see what he’d been using the knife on. It was a carving of a Sirfetch’d and a Galarian Rapidash. The Rapidash was rearing up majestically, fluffy mane blowing in an unseen wind. Alongside it, the Sirfetch’d thrust its leek blade forwards, as if the two of them were fighting together.
“Sou… it’s amazing,” Bede whispered. “Why would you think that isn't right?”
“Because there’s something missing, but I can’t figure out what it is,” Sou groaned. “It’s… it just doesn’t show what they are. It’s just two Pokemon fighting standing next to each other. It’s ordinary. It’s nothing like- like us.”
Bede picked up the carving, then picked up the carving knife Sou had been using. It took a bit of struggling to actually cut the wood, but once he’d figured it out, it was easier. Slowly, he carved away at the unfinished part, leaving the Rapidash’s tail curled around the body of the Sirfetch’d. He had to stop there because of a particularly bad blister on his hand, but Sou took it in his calloused hands and finished the carving, adding the other wing of the Sirfetch’d reaching up as if to reassure the Rapidash that he was still there.
“I think it’s finally perfect,” Sou said, smiling again and passing it to Bede. “This is my gift to you.”
“I- uh- ah-” Bede forced himself to stop sputtering like an idiot and composed himself. “Thank you. It’s beautiful. I love you.” He quickly realized his slip-up. “I love it. The carving, not you.”
Sou ignored his correction. “I love you too.”
Impulsively, Bede leaned forward, but before he could even get close to Sou, the door banged open and Marvin burst in. “Guys, it’s dinner and Professor Magnolia is- oh. Sorry, Sou, I didn’t know you were…” he backed out, closing the door, and Bede just died .
“Maybe next time,” Sou said calmly, as if he wasn’t as red faced as Bede felt. He ran his hands through his hair again, and Bede cleared his throat.
“So… I guess I should take off so you can have dinner,” he said reluctantly.
Sou looked him in the eye, and Bede looked away. “Shi-chan isn’t the only one allowed to have romantic partners over for dinner.”
“Wha-”
Sou, being annoyingly tall, leaned over and kissed Bede’s cheek. “Come on. It’s about time you had dinner with my family, anyways. Professor Magnolia would be furious if she discovered she hadn’t been introduced to my boyfriend.”
In the common area, Professor Magnolia was serving dinner, still chuckling while Marvin apologized repeatedly. Schilly had her arms crossed, looking literally anywhere but Moon, who was playing with her loose hair, using it to hide her face.
“I’m sorry! But if you weren’t all dating , I wouldn’t keep walking in on you guys kissing!” Marvin protested.
They were so busy arguing, only Professor Magnolia noticed Sou and Bede’s intertwined fingers.