Chapter Text
Chapter One: Strangers to a Distant Land
Umino Kagami and her twin brother, Hansha, found themselves one day in a new and yet familiar land. There was one problem. It was a strange world, with familiar rules, like her blood saying she was home, but she didn’t have her Pokemon nor was she in Sinnoh. She was with other fellow trainers but all she could think of was. ‘I miss Sun Wukong.’
Sun Wukong was a Monferno that Kagami received upon doing something incredibly stupid with her neighbor and friend Barry by almost stepping into the tall grass. ‘At least Barry admitted that he goaded me on.’ Kagami thought as she walked through the forest, a makeshift sword at her side. Hansha himself actually got his first Pokemon by challenging it to a sword fight with his odachi bokken. She had just gotten through the second gym and was going around looking for Pokemon when she was swept away to this new world. She sighed before hearing a tune being played from an ocarina. It was one of her isekai’d companions. Other trainers without their Pokemon. The one playing the song was from Unova, a rather timid girl named Ciara O’Cuilinn who loved to play music. However she avoided people like the plague. ‘And for some reason was the only other person to panic about this… besides Haku and Momochi-san. But we aren’t going to talk about them’ Kagami huffed as she slid down the tree she was in and landed on the ground. Her hair flowing behind her. So far it retained the hair dye that she put on it. Black was always her original color but for some reason it had changed to a platinum silver and white one day. She didn’t know why, her brother didn’t know why. ‘Guess that is going to be a mystery fo….’ Kagami’s thoughts cut short as her foot hit a patch of snow and sank in deep. She let out a yelp. It was nearing the end of winter, but having chosen a mountain to live up on it meant that the snow stayed. Kagami let out a deep breath before making her way to the house.
“Karasuko-san! Mori-san! Dinner!” she shouted as she grabbed the bag of rice that she had gotten from doing some part time work of cleaning and repair in the village. The main part of surviving with introverts was sending the one person who didn’t mind talking to people into the village. Which meant Kagami and her brother. Her other companions, Ciara who seemed overwhelmed by people, Mori Yuki who liked people but kept his distance, Karasuko Kisuke who just avoided everyone unless he trusted them, Haku who followed the orders of Momochi Zabuza, and Zabuza who apparently was charismatic but had the personality of a wet cat and spent his time scouting the area.
Kagami made it back to the house as the two boys helped prepare the rice. Yuki was crouched in front of the fire, his ankle length white hair pooling around him like a blanket with his periwinkle eyes watching the water bubble. Kisuke, with his short golden blonde hair and soft blue eyes hunched over with an oversized haori covering something on his back, was washing the rice. Ciara was prepping the meat that Zabuza brought in. Hansha was prepping the vegetables and tofu.
“I’ll get the miso soup ready.” sighed Kagami as she started the charcoal stove that they had managed to get with saving money for almost half a year. ‘Still a year and Yuki mentioned things roaming at night.’ she thought as she started prepping the ingredients for dashi stock. She poured water into a pot to put near the fire. She waited for it to simmer as she added in the mushrooms which earned a stare from Hansha.
“Kisuke likes them and it’s what we can forage.” Kagami told her twin as Zabuza walked in. “Shoes.”
Zabuza didn’t reply, he normally didn’t. Almost as if he was still watching them. Seeing if they were going to try to kill him in his sleep or something. However since they were stuck together due to this mysterious H-san, he normally left them alone under the watchful eye of Haku.
“Welcome back, Momochi-san!” Yuki said with a big grin on his face as he ran up. “Do you want dinner?”
“No.” Zabuza said as he flopped down on the cot in their small house. Yuki hesitated a bit before nodding his head.
“Alright!” Yuki seemed to hide his hurt as he went back to the fire. The air around Yuki was always as cold as winter so Yuki could really help with Yuki but he liked being a part of the process. Kagami couldn’t fault him for that. The door opened again.
“Haku-san!” Yuki said as he ran up to Haku a happy smile on his face. “We’re making dinner! Do you want to join us?”
“Is Zabuza-sama going to join?” Haku asked and Yuki glanced off to the side and Haku patted him on the head as he crouched down in front of the ten year old. “I’ll make him his food, alright?”
“Okay.” Yuki said back with a nod. “But what about you?”
“I….” Haku looked at Zabuza for a moment. “I ate already.”
‘Liar.’ Ciara thought, she could sense his emotions, like she could sense the emotions and surface thoughts of others. ‘He’s trying not to say that he doesn’t trust us because Yuki is similar to him. Except one is an embodiment of winter and the other can make ice because of a bloodline jutsu.’
Ciara’s orange eyes glanced at Kagami who’s blue green eyes were trying to focus on the task in front of her. Kisuke even knew, but Yuki was so trusting to people who pushed him away. ‘Even without his Pokemon… he still looks for the good in people. Why?’
‘I want nabe. I want huǒguō. I really enjoy warm foods!’ Yuki sang in his head as he hummed, staring at the boiling water as he bounced from side to side. ‘Hmmm, I don’t want to go back to my universe! I like my parents in the Pokemon universe! And I like being here with Haku-san and Momochi-san! I don’t want to go back to the orphanage! No cold rice. No cold room… no… shizun.’
Yuki’s hands trembled as he remembered the first person to show him kindness. Like now he had been playing with a strange artifact in the basement that he was kept in the orphanage. He had found himself on a strange mountain, dealing with an even stranger man speaking in a language that Yuki didn’t know. However he had been quite irritated when he somehow managed to figure out that Yuki had eaten nothing but cold rice and gave him a nice warm pork bao. He even taught him how to read and write, even speak. Yet Yuki couldn’t remember a lot after a strange trial that took his shizun away from him. However Zabuza reminded him of his shizun, which is why he liked Zabuza. And Haku reminded him of another side of winter. ‘But I do want to go back to Pokemon and live with my parents there.’
Yuki laid on the ground to see where the fire was at as he rested his head on his arms. Kisuke put the rice into the steamer and let it sit over the boiling water.
“Do you guys need anything else?” Yuki asked as he sat up. “More water?”
“No, we’re fine.” Kagami told him and Yuki pouted before heading to the door. “Be careful out there Mori-san and don’t forget your boots!”
“Ehh? But my feet aren’t cold!” Yuki called back.
“I don’t care if your feet aren’t cold, I’m cold just looking at you barefoot in the snow!” Kagami retorted and Yuki put on his boots before heading out. The sun was setting and when Yuki was out he took the form of a white wolf before running out into the woods. He had been keeping the area clear. The creatures who hunted at night always tried to attack his friends and he had seen how strong they were. Against him, who couldn’t die or fade until he had a child to take on the role of winter, it was easy. However for those who weren’t they could die, and were squishy, and would be eaten. So Yuki trapped the oni in ice and stayed with those that showed regret until dawn. Right now he was just catching them before they could reach the house or the village. He was sniffing the air when he paused and looked to the side where he saw a man with white hair and fuschia eyes.
“Tengen-sama! It’s cold!” a young woman of short height with pale skin, shoulder-length black hair, short bangs, and blue eyes. She, like the two other women, were of shapely figures and dressed in warmer clothes. However it was obvious that they weren’t used to the weather of the mountains. “Ehhhh! Tengen-sama! Wolf! Wolf!”
Yuki sat down and blinked. He was a white wolf, but with his age he looked more like a pup. His tail wagged as he barked. The young man that was with them, who was wearing a sleeveless top, wearing a headband with jewels on it. He seemed to be about twenty one. The two other kunoichi with the man moved in front. So Yuki moved on, after yawning. He wanted food, so he bounded back to the house, right after diving into a snowmound just for fun and transformed back. Of course once he was out of sight. These people didn’t know anything about other universes, just like they didn’t know about embodiments of the seasons, so to them they were just strangers who moved there. He retook his human form, since being winter he could turn into the winter forms of animals. Yuki’s eyes shimmered as he scanned the area for demons but there weren’t any. So he went inside.
“I’m back!” he called out as Kagami stared at him.
“Wash up. Dinner is ready.” she told him softly. Yuki headed to a small bowl of warm water and washed his hands. “Anything out there?”
“Just a guy and three women, but… they were just complaining about the cold.” Yuki said as he sat down at the small pile of wood that was Hansha’s attempt at a dinner table. “Itadakimasu!”
The group began to eat, Haku and Zabuza eating off to the side.
“Waaaah! I fell!” the same kunoichi cried before.
“Shut up Suma! Why are there still snow mounds?!”
“It is still late winter.”
Then there was just a sigh as two of the voices fought. Zabuza’s eye twitched before he got up, his hand reaching for his Kubikiribōchō, but Haku stopped him.
“Haku….”
Kagami stood up quickly before walking to the door and sliding it open with a loud bang.
“Will you three shut up?!” Kagami shouted at the people who were across from their shack. “We are trying to eat and you shouldn’t have come up here while it’s night!”
Yuki poke his head around Kagami. “They might be having a night hunt.”
“A what?” Hansha asked as he plopped some meat in his mouth as Yuki faced the table again.
“You know, hunting for creatures that predominantly are evil and cause harm to people.” Yuki said as he ate some rice. “It’s rather common in wuxia worlds. You know with cultivators of the dao, immortals, grumpy peak lords who remind me of Momochi-san.”
“Do I look like a pretty boy to you?” Zabuza asked, looking at Yuki who blinked.
“I think everyone around me looks pretty.” Yuki answered honestly. “Besides the matron at the orphanage. She was ugly when she was angry.”
Yuki grinned. Kisuke paused as he looked at him. The way he said it was almost like Yuki was calling himself ugly.
“You are pretty too.” Kisuke said, assuring Yuki that he wasn’t a monster. Unlike him. The crow wings Kisuke had twitched under his haori. Besides Haku and Zabuza, the rest of them were ten. Kagami shut the door with a huff, her dyed black hair whirling around her.
“Just hunting my butt. And why do they think I sound weird?”
“Because technically you would be from Hokkaido.” Yuki answered as he picked up a mushroom and ate it. “And dialects are a bit weird. I would be Kansai, because of Johto.”
‘In my universe, which isn’t Pokemon. I guess it is the same as Kyushu, but he has more of a Tokyo dialect.’ Yuki thought as his eyes lit up at the warm food. “Delicious!”
“I’m still learning. Conversations are hard.” Ciara sighed as she rubbed the back of her neck. Since she was from Unova and her parents were from Galar, she wasn’t that good at speaking Japanese just yet. However it was mainly from lack of conversations. She could still read and write many different languages, since her parents were renowned Breeders and had many clients.
“They’re still out there.” Zabuza called and Kagami glanced towards him as she straightened her back. “Watching.”
“Then let them watch.” she answered as her eyes flickered to the room. This was their eating arrangement half the time. Zabuza ate in the other room with Haku and they ate out there. Zabuza kept an eye on them but would often leave them to their own devices. ‘Which sucks. He’s the only adult we have and Haku is only fifteen, but the problem is if Zabuza tells him to leave us alone… we have to fend for ourselves. So it’s not like we can complain, since he’s the one hunting all the time.’ Kagami thought as she ate but after a bit the food didn’t taste good and she went to bed. Hansha and the others helped clean up before following suit. Yuki sat by the window looking outside as he heard the strange hunters talking in the distance before the clang of metal. The roars of an oni. He formed a small snowflake on his finger tip before blowing it out as snow began to fall outside.
“Get inside soon.” Yuki muttered as he slipped into his cot by the window. It was just so no one got too cold for getting too close.
The next morning it was Hansha who was heading into town. He normally made charcoal which was especially popular and was up early enough to make a good amount to sell throughout the day. However when he was about to make his way down the mountain Yuki was sitting on a rock waiting for him.
“Can I come?” Yuki asked as he slid down the rock to look at Hansha. “Haku is looking for herbs in the woods and I’m bored.”
“No turning into animals.” Hansha sighed and Yuki cheered. He was the smallest of the group, looking younger than ten. ‘More like six or seven, but he’s ten.’ Hansha sighed as Yuki grabbed the second basket that Hansha had over his other shoulder. Yuki was dressed warmly this time, trying to appear normal, the only thing that wasn’t was his long white hair. Which was bound up. ‘Though having Yuki while I’m navigating the snow isn’t a bad thing.’ Hansha mused as Yuki walked around certain areas and Hansha followed, finding that the snow was shallower in those spots.
“Morning Haku-san!” Yuki called out spotting the feminine looking shinobi looking around for certain herbs. Haku looked up, wearing warm winter clothes and bowed in greeting. Hansha bowed in reply as Yuki bounded over to him. ‘I know… he wanted to see Haku but we were told that if we don’t have any business in the village we should stick to the house.’
After a little bit Yuki went back a little more quiet. It looks like Haku scolded him a little for using this as an excuse to see him. “Hey, Haku.” Hansha called out as they were walking out. “Yuki is working hard, maybe you should see him as a little brother rather than a bother.”
Yuki blinked in confusion, not understanding what Hansha was talking about. However they continued their way to the village. Once there they began to sell the charcoal, Yuki’s enthusiasm catching the attention of elderly women who was treating him like a grandson. Piling his arms full of sweets and coos. The elderly men were a bit more worry but they needed more charcoal to keep their houses warm. Families needed a lot, while single people didn’t need too much. However they were few and far between.
Then they went shopping. More rice for one and cloth. They couldn’t always use the money they got from H-san, since he was like a patron sending them an allowance and some tasks to do for the day and for the week.
“Yuki-kun.” Hansha said as he looked around at a restaurant. “We do have more money than expected. Did you want something to eat?”
“Hm? Sure! Can it be warm?” Yuki asked as they sat down with their purchase. Hansha nodded as they took a seat.
“Why warm?” Hansha asked as he ordered at the counter.
“Mmmm, well because I’ve always been used to cold rice, because the matron didn’t see it as conducive to a good environment for the other orphans if I had the same thing they did.” Yuki said, quietly enough that Hansha could hear him. Hansha went still but he patted Yuki on the head. “Well as long as it isn’t cold rice, there are plenty of cold things that taste great. So I’ll have to introduce you to those.”
Yuki smiled brightly as he nodded his head. That was when the group of people from the night before walked in.
“Food!” sobbed the black hair woman. The other two, one with black hair tied up, with yellow bangs framing her face, a curvaceous figure, pale skin, and large light brown eyes framed by prominent eyelashes on both her upper and lower lids. While the other one was a young woman of average height with a curvaceous yet slender figure, pale skin, and long black hair typically styled in a ponytail. Her large, almond-shaped violet eyes are framed by thin eyelashes and eyebrows, and a distinctive beauty mark under her left eye caught Hansha’s attention. Yuki noticed them but he went back to enjoying the warmth of the restaurant, his legs swinging under the bench.
“I want to do this again.” Yuki called out to Hansha, distracting him from the four people. “It was fun being able to help you with the charcoal. Do you think we should sell more next time?”
“Since winter is going to end soon we might not need to sell as much.” Hansha mused as he finally looked away from the group.
“Tengen-sama, we worked so hard last night.” Suma called out as she clung to the shinobi and Hansha rubbed his forehead. “Even though Makio bullied me!”
The waiter set down the bowl of ramen in front of them both. “Itadakimasu!” Yuki called out before slurping down the noodles. “Tasty! So tasty!”
‘He said when we first met that he was the embodiment of winter.’ Hansha thought as he watched Yuki before thinking of that day they arrived half a year ago. Yuki glanced out as he muttered. “A storm is coming.”
-Flashback-
“What does that mean?” Hansha asked as he walked with Yuki while Kagami was looking through the small house that they were staying in for clothes so they would blend in.
“Well my dad was the embodiment before me.” Yuki said as he kicked at a rock that bounced around. “Since the first one, we represent winter. There is also Spring, Summer, and Autumn as well. Like I control ice, snow, it’s always cold around me, I can change the weather to resemble what happens to winter, the temperature around me is always cold and I’m not affected by the cold, I have some control over earth. I can travel through water, snow and ice. I can turn things into ice and shatter them, look through the snow and ice. But once I get to a certain age I stop aging and if I have kids I disappear. Oh I can also shapeshift! Mainly into winter creatures or give myself features of them, and I can talk to beings that hold the name XuanWu. I also have a sense of the weather during the winter time.”
“A sense of the weather?” Hansha paused as Yuki looked at him.
“I can tell if something is natural and supernatural.”
-End of flashback-
‘So it’s a natural storm.’ Hansha thought as he ate his own meal. Their clothes mended over and over again because they were already rather worn when they found them in the house. Most would assume that they were leading a poor and simple life. That all of the kids were helping out, because Haku was doing a lot of the work but sometimes wasn’t around. It was the reason why the people of the village weren’t too worried at the others were doing odd jobs. Yuki munched on the food as Suma glanced over at them.
“Tengen-sama look! He’s so cute!” Suma said happily as Yuki munched happily on the rice, Hansha’s eyes narrowed before reaching out and cleaning some of the rice off of his face.
“Stop staring, Suma!” shouted Makio as Tengen rubbed his head before looking at Hansha.
“Actually I think he’s the brother of that angry chick from last night.” Tengen said as Hansha stared at Yuki who got even more rice on his face as he ate. Then Hansha corrected the way he was holding chopsticks. Tengen’s fingers twitched. “Unflashy.”
“Awww, but he has potential, right?” Suma pouted.
“Wait, which one?” Makio asked with an eyeroll before staring. “I mean the white hair stands out, but the way the other kid holds himself is like he trained before.”
“We shouldn’t bother them.” Hinatsuru told them gently. “They seem to be ready to head up the mountain. If they head out now they should make it before the sun sets.”
“Hopefully we find Nijimaru before then.”
The door opened as Kisuke, Ciara, and Kagami walked in. Kisuke was wearing a lot of hanten over his shoulders and his arms were full of them.
“Kisuke!” Yuki called out as he waved. “Has it started snowing yet?”
Kisuke nodded his head before opening his top layer revealing all of the crows that had decided to huddle there.
“Looks like it is going to be a bad storm. Momichi-sama told us to bring you back before it gets worse.” Kisuke told him honestly, Yuki sipped his soup.
“Well the storm is going to last a few hours. If we head back now we’re going to be in the worst of it before we make it halfway up.” Yuki answered as he looked at the door. “However, I don't want him to be disappointed.”
“Or him having us train out in the snow?”
“I don’t mind that one so much.” Yuki answered honestly, Kagami’s eye twitched and Hansha went to pay as Kagami dragged him outside by his collar. Yuki waved with exaggeration. Ciara bowed as she apologized before leaving. Kisuke quietly behind her and Hansha took up the rear. Halfway up the mountain Kisuke was riding inside the basket that Hansha had used for the coal in order to keep himself and the crows warm. Yuki was looking through the snow for any birds that weren’t quite ready before putting them into the basket. One was a crow with jewel beads on it. Yuki knew that this one was a crow that belonged to someone.
The crow squawked indignantly. Kisuke pulled him into the first hanten, his hidden black wings shifting as all the other crows began to squawk.
“Nijimaru?” Kisuke asked and Yuki looked in the basket. “What?”
“A man and those three shījiěmen from last night were talking about a Nijmaru!” Yuki said as he turned into a rabbit as he crawled onto Kisuke’s lap. “Ask him if he knows a flashy guy!”
“Caaaw!” The crow flapped his wings as the other crows taunted him. Kisuke’s eyes flashed purple and they settled down.
“I take that as a yes.” Kagami sighed as she continued to walk. The snow started to fall harder. “We better hurry. Sorry Nijimaru-san, but we’re heading home. There’s a storm coming.”
Once back, Kagami got straight to dinner, Ciara by her side. Kagami pulled her hair back as she slipped on a fake pair of glasses. She used to wear them before the incident. Ciara was shifting uncomfortably as they sliced up some radishes as Kagami shaved the fish.
“What is it?” Kagami asked and Ciara hesitated. “You’re always nervous around me.”
“Well… ever since I was a kid I could pick up on strong emotions and… thoughts of other people.” Ciara admitted as she chopped up the slices. “It gets bad when I’m around big crowds or if someone is thinking loudly.”
“And?” Kagami set the flakes off to the side to dry for next time and pulled out a container that had her prepared bonito flakes.
“Well… I’m getting more than one thoughts from you.” Ciara admitted and Kagami’s hand froze. “But…”
“Would you be able to get rid of it?” Kagami asked and Ciara made a noise before jumping. “Please? If I get stressed out too much I keep blacking out and later find out from Hansha that I hurt people. Zabuza stresses me out, Haku stresses me out, work is stressing me out, being without my Pokemon….”
“I get it.” Ciara said as she held up her hand before looking behind them. Everyone else was chatting. “But probably not here?”
“Eh! Right?” Kagami sighed before looking away. Yuki poked his head past her shoulder.
“Here might be the best place.” Yuki pointed out and they both jumped.
“How did you not sense him?!” Kagami shouted and Ciara clung to her.
“I get snow when he’s around!” Ciara called back before calming down. “Yuki, what do you mean by that?”
“Because Zabuza, Haku, Kisuke, and I are here and two of us can keep you frozen while Ciara sorts out your head.” Yuki said and both paused before looking at each other. “You didn’t… think of that?”
He held up the letter that was sent to them by the enigmatic H-san. “Remember, we have lessons that we need to learn! And I know all of you are curious on what’s going on. It’s why you haven’t accepted any of the options from the catalog that sends us home.”
“It’s because we don’t trust him.” Kagami sighed. Yuki blinked.
“He’s not bad, he even brought me to your world because he was tired of me getting hurt! He’s just like us! A kid… who takes a really long time to age. So what’s in there, is honest.” Yuki said as he walked back to his seat. “Maybe trust should be the first thing we learn.”
Zabuza made a noise like a disbelieving snort.
“Can we hurry up and get Kagami’s mind clear so we can accurately figure out the lesson we’re supposed to learn?” Kisuke called out as he kept the crows warm. “Because it puts her at an unfair advantage the more she relies on what she was infected with. All corruptie and gross parasite from the stars.”
“I’m not even going to ask.” sighed Kagami as she shook her head. “Alright, let’s do this, but if the soup spills you’re all remaking it.”
“Understood!” Yuki called out as he waved his hand.