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Gary liked bringing Tracey along for field research expeditions. Tracey’s skills made him good to have around—he had the strength and endurance to keep up with Gary, could be quiet as a rattata and make observations in the blink of an eye, and was just good company, warm and easy to talk to.
Gary just had to ignore his grandfather’s amused, knowing looks and remarks about young love as they headed out the door.
This time, they’d traveled all the way to Galar’s Crown Tundra, where there had been sightings of prehistoric pokémon—pokémon thought to be extinct outside of being revived from fossils—living naturally out in the wild. It was, in Gary’s professional opinion, cool as hell, and he had to see them himself.
The weather was frigid, and Gary was delighted at the blanket of snow on the ground and the bite of cold air against his skin. Even before the years he’d spent in Sinnoh, he had always loved the cold.
If it were possible for Gary to forget Tracey’s presence, his loud sneeze—followed by a quiet apology—would’ve been an effective reminder. At Gary’s side, Tracey was shivering and tugging at his coat like that’d make him warmer somehow, but still gazed with wide-eyed awe at how beautiful everything was. Looking at him made Gary feel warmer.
It was hard to resist the temptation to talk him into a snowball fight, but they had more important things to do. Gary wanted to see if aurorus really did move in herds. “They were spotted around here, weren’t they?”
Tracey pulled the notes out and nodded. “Looks like it. There don’t seem to be any in sight now, though… maybe they’re nocturnal?”
“It’s been speculated that they originally were,” Gary replied, feeling a rush of excitement at getting to share his expertise. “Amaura only evolve into aurorus at night, and it’s possible that they’re given power by the moon.”
Tracey looked thoughtful. “So they’d most likely find somewhere secluded to sleep, and emerge after sundown. We can either search or wait.”
“Aurorus is big, a herd of them would have trouble staying hidden,” Gary pointed out. “I say we look from a higher vantage point and see if we can spot anything.”
Before Tracey could reply, Gary headed for a nearby tree and started climbing.
Gary was good at climbing trees—Ash could climb like a mankey, and Gary always had to be better than him when they were kids. Even now, the strength, agility, and sense of balance were useful when Gary was out in the field, and being able to climb quickly helped in a number of situations. The snow and ice on these trees made them harder to climb than the ones in warm southern Kanto, but he could still manage.
“Be careful, Gary!” Tracey warned, a nervous edge in his voice.
“Don’t worry!” Gary called back. “I’ll be fine. Come on, I need your keen eyes up here!”
Tracey soon joined him, moving at a more cautious pace. The ice must’ve made him nervous—Gary had seen him scale cliffs like it was nothing, but he didn’t have the experience Gary had with colder climates.
Gary kept an eye on him, moving a bit more slowly so he could be within reach. Tracey was completely focused on his process, testing each branch carefully and taking a firm hold before pulling himself up.
Maybe Gary should’ve been paying closer attention to what he was doing. He heard a loud crack and suddenly he was falling. Tracey reached for his hand, but their fingers only brushed against each other and next thing he knew, Gary was on the ground.
He lay there in a daze, too stunned from the impact to move. The breath had been knocked out of his body and he had to try to remember how to breathe. He heard Tracey’s voice. “Gary! Gary, are you okay? Can you hear me?”
He groaned as his vision cleared. Tracey was knelt at his side, looking down at him with eyes brimming with worry. “I’m okay, Trace.”
To prove it, he attempted to get up. A stab of pain shot through his foot and he stopped with a pained hiss, curling into himself. Tracey put a hand on his back. “Easy, you don’t have to get up now. What hurts?”
“I think my ankle’s twisted,” he said. “Or broken. Fuck, that hurt.”
“Let me see.” Tracey pressed a hand against Gary’s ankle and he winced, biting back a whimper. “Yeah, I think that’s a sprain. Must be a bad one if it’s that tender.”
“Thanks for clearing that up,” Gary muttered.
Tracey ignored the sarcastic remark. “Are you hurt anywhere else? Do you have a concussion?”
“I don’t think so,” Gary answered. “Other than my pride. Probably gonna have some nasty bruises too, but I’ll live.”
“Good.” Tracey gave a soft, relieved smile that made Gary’s heart flutter. “You better stay off it. Here, let me carry you.”
The next thing Gary knew, Tracey had one arm around his back and the other around his legs and was standing up with him, holding him like he was the most precious thing in the world and weighed nothing at all.
Gary suddenly felt very warm. He wasn’t sure where to look or where to put his hands when he was being princess carried by a beautiful boy.
And damn, Tracey was beautiful. Gary wanted to spend the rest of his life basking in that gorgeous coffee-dark gaze. He would make a fool of himself a million times to see that gentle smile. He really wanted to kiss that perfect nose and caress those soft cheeks.
“This isn’t uncomfortable for you, is it?” Tracey asked.
Gary shook his head with a small laugh. “Not at all. And believe me, you’d know.”
“That village we passed through had a doctor and an inn, we can get you taken care of and get a place to sleep tonight.” Tracey had started walking, apparently intent on carrying Gary the whole way to said village. “Tell me right away if anything else starts hurting before we get there, okay?”
“Oh, I will,” Gary promised. He’d learned from years of chronic migraines that sometimes complaining shamelessly about the things that caused him pain was the only way to feel the tiniest bit better.
“Good.” Tracey gave him an amused look, then sighed. “I’m sorry you got hurt so soon. I know how excited you were about this trip.”
Gary’s heart sank a little at the realization his injury had thrown a wrench in their expedition, but he waved it off. “Don’t feel sorry for me, it happens. And you can still go looking.”
Tracey looked reluctant. “I don’t want to leave you alone when you’re hurt.”
“I won’t be alone,” Gary said, willing himself to brighten up a bit. “Umbreon can keep me company. You can even leave Marill to babysit me if you want. And when you find those aurorus, you can make some sketches to show me. It’ll be almost as good as the real thing.”
It was hard to tell with his face already flushed from the cold, but Tracey might’ve blushed at the casual praise. “Are you sure you wouldn’t mind?”
“Sure I’m sure,” Gary promised. “Remember to show me those sketches, ‘kay?”
“Will do,” Tracey promised.
It turned out Gary’s ankle was, in fact, badly sprained, and he was told to stay off it as much as possible. He pouted about it, which Tracey found kind of adorable.
They got a room and dinner from the inn, and were both too tired to care much when they realized the room had only one bed.
Tracey was willing to let Gary take it. “You’re hurt,” he said as he put a pillow beneath Gary’s injured foot. He put ice over it, wincing sympathetically when Gary let out a pained whine. “You need somewhere comfortable to sleep.”
“It’s big enough for both of us,” Gary said flippantly, closing his eyes as he adjusted himself to find the most comfortable position for his injury. “Don’t sleep on the floor when we can both have a soft bed and I can have you all warm next to me.”
Tracey couldn’t bring himself to argue. “You sure you don’t mind?”
“Sure I’m sure, now get over here!” Gary grabbed Tracey’s wrist and pulled him onto the bed. Tracey yelped in surprise, but once he was on the bed… it was nice. Soft, just like Gary had said.
He got under the covers beside Gary, blissfully relieved at the warmth of it all after a long day out in the cold. Gary moved only to snuggle closer and use Tracey’s chest as a pillow. Tracey’s heart skipped a beat, and he wondered if Gary heard it.
“Is this okay?” Gary asked.
“Yeah, it’s… nice,” Tracey said. “You’re warm.”
He half expected to see Gary smirking playfully at him, but instead Gary was tense. He was probably still upset about getting hurt, more upset than he’d wanted to let on earlier.
“Today really hasn’t been your day, has it?” Tracey could at least offer some small comfort. He ran a hand along Gary’s spine. Gary relaxed at his touch, sighing softly.
“It hasn’t been all bad,” Gary murmured, sounding about as tired as Tracey felt. “You’re with me. Thanks by the way. For you know, everything. It would’ve sucked to not have you with me out there.”
Tracey knew Gary would’ve had his pokémon to protect him and get him to safety, but still didn’t like the thought of him getting hurt without Tracey around to help. “It was nothing. What’re friends for, right?”
“It wasn’t nothing,” Gary said. “You carried me all the way here like some valiant knight rescuing a princess.”
Tracey’s face heated up. “You make it sound so… romantic.”
“You just read too many romance novels,” Gary teased, giving Tracey’s arm a playful swat. “Dork.”
“You’re the one who described it like that!” Tracey protested lightly, returning the gesture.
Gary opened his mouth as if to retort, only to yawn instead.
“Tired?”
“Exhausted, ” Gary replied. “I can’t imagine how you feel. You did most of the work today.”
“Yeah, I’m beat,” Tracey admitted. “You’re heavier than you look.”
Gary responded with an amused snort. “Get some sleep, sir knight.”
“As you wish, my prince,” Tracey said lightly. “Goodnight.”
“Yeah, g’night.”
Tracey closed his eyes and sleep quickly took him.
Tracey was woken by Umbreon pawing at his face. His first worry was that something was wrong with Gary, but Gary was still peacefully asleep, snoring softly.
If Gary was okay… something else had to be up for Umbreon to be waking him up. “What is it, Umbreon?”
Umbreon hopped off the bed and bounded over to the window. “Brebree! Breon!”
Tracey got up to look out the window and his breath caught in his throat. He rushed back to the bed to wake Gary. “Gary, wake up! You have to see this!”
Gary groaned in protest. “Trace, it’s late… or early… whichever, go back to sleep…”
“I will, but first you have to get up. Trust me, it’ll be worth it.”
“It better be,” Gary muttered, climbing out of bed and yawning. Both remembered his injury at the same time and Tracey swooped to catch him as his foot gave way. Tracey helped him to the window.
Gary rubbed sleep from his eyes, blinking as he looked out into the distance. “Is that an aurora?”
“It’s an aurorus,” Tracey replied softly. “A whole herd of ‘em.”
“They do move in herds,” Gary murmured. He nudged Tracey with a grin. “Should we head out there and get a closer look?”
“But your ankle…”
“I can hobble a ways,” Gary said. “For the aurorus.”
“If you say so…” There was little use in arguing with Gary when he had his mind set on something—he was even more stubborn than his grandfather, and the professor could be as stubborn as a tauros. “You’d better lean on me. And let me help with your shoes.”
As they headed out into the night, Tracey barely felt the cold. Gary was warm at his side, and the air was electric with excitement. Umbreon flanked Gary’s other side, rings glowing faintly.
When they got as close as they dared, they stopped. Still supporting Gary, Tracey knelt low to the ground, where they wouldn’t be spotted.
The aurorus continued to amble past, taking no notice of them. The pokémon were beautiful—their sails really looked like an aurora against the night sky.
Just as Tracey realized he’d left his sketchbook behind, Gary handed it to him, dark green eyes shining with starlight.
With a grateful look, he got right to work. Such a gorgeous sight would be hard to capture with just pencil and paper, but Gary had looked away from the aurorus just to look at him with earnest admiration, so he had to do his best.
As Tracey was completing his sketch, an amaura broke away from the herd and headed their way. It must’ve seen them, but it didn’t look afraid or hostile—just curious.
It nosed Gary playfully, making him stifle laughter, and Tracey immediately started another sketch. He had to capture this adorable moment.
One of the aurorus called out and the amaura raised its head. It gave Gary a lick on the cheek before frolicking to its family.
As they watched the procession, Tracey started to really feel the cold, and shivered. Gary sidled a little closer to him, leaning against him, and a rush of warmth flooded Tracey’s heart.
Before too long, Gary started to doze off against Tracey’s shoulder, and Tracey nudged him. “Come on, let’s get back inside,” he murmured.
He helped Gary up and, Gary leaning heavily against him, they headed for the inn.
Tracey was cold and exhausted, and Gary looked asleep on his feet too. They fell easily into bed together, tangling in a heap to share each other’s warmth, and the last thing Tracey heard before sleep took hold was Gary’s contented sigh.