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“Okay, Keahi! Use Bite!”
Incineroar dashed forward, jaw opening and revealing fearsomely sharp teeth. The Clefable he was fighting froze, panicked. It looked back towards its trainer, who seemed to be trying to come up with a strategy. It was too late, however. He bit deep into the fairy Pokemon’s side, eliciting a high-pitched squeal. Incineroar released it, tearing the wound a bit to cause more pain. As he dashed back to his trainer, the Clefable fell with a sigh and was then sucked back into its Pokeball.
“Great job, Keahi!” she said, reaching up to his face to scratch at his ears. He purred deep in his throat and closed his eyes to relish the praise. It was over too soon, though. He watched as she pulled a little baggie of berries from her bag and trotted over to the other trainer. They exchanged a few words, laughed, and then exchanged items. She came back over and patted his arm. He huffed and look at the retreating human heading back to the Pokemon Center.
“They said you were a bit rough,” she said, looking up at him, “And I have to agree. That thing you did at the end is gonna need a bit more than just standard healing.”
He crossed his arms and turned his head away. He was just doing it for her; she loved to win and that final blow won them the battle. Why was she complaining?
“I didn’t mean it like that! You did a good job, I just don’t think you should go out of your way to KO your opponent like that. A regular Bite would have been okay.”
He sighed. Incineroar supposed she was right; when he pulled away he had tasted that sticky sweet essence that Fairy Pokemon harbored under their thick skin, a tough feat for any Pokemon. He looked back to her and nodded. Smiling, she hugged his arm and he felt a deep adoration settle in his chest. He’d do anything for this little human.
--
They were deep in the Lush Jungle when it started raining. She claimed that the Goomy came out when it rained and she had been wanting to catch one for a while now. Incineroar was willing to stay out in a drizzle to amuse his trainer, but it didn’t take long for the rain to turn into a driving downpour. She refused to look for shelter, though, and left him to pout under a particularly large leaf as she searched for the gooey Dragon Pokemon.
His eyes followed her movements as she walked back and forth in the patch of grass, ruining her shoes with the mud that accumulated with the increasing rain. He began to grow concerned as less and less Pokemon showed, least of which a Goomy. Her shoulders slumped as time wore on and her face betrayed her disappointment. Brow furrowed and the corners of her mouth tugged down, his trainer continued to search for the illusive Pokemon.
“Ah, there!”
He leapt to a standing position, ready to launch into action. A few yards ahead of him, a purple, slimy orb shuffled along. It was startled when his trainer exclaimed and it started to move faster away. His human ran towards it, all excitement and glee at finally seeing her goal. After a few steps, however, she slipped in the mud and fell face-first to the ground. Incineroar raced to her, alarmed at the sudden tumble.
When he had lifted her from the ooze, the Goomy was gone and she was a mess. Her eyes shifted frantically, trying desperately to spot it. She took a few steps away from and placed a heavy paw on her shoulder to keep her from going too far. He was deeply saddened by look of absolute misery on her face.
So, he picked her up, cuddling her to his chest and quickly set about finding them a shelter for the time being. He grimaced in distaste as the mud from her clothes dirtied his precious fur, but eh supposed he could bear it for her. After a few minutes, he found a small cave that had been carved out of a cliff bordering the jungle. He quickly trotted inside and sat her down, checking her for injuries. She only seemed to be cold, though, and she sneezed violently to reinforce it. Incinceroar shook off the rain from his own body before pulling her close and increasing the heat intensity of his belt.
“Wait a minute, Keahi,” she said. She took off her soaked shirt slowly and wrung it out. He felt something stir in the pit of his stomach as she revealed her smooth stomach and pillowy breasts. He had never really felt anything for anyone, much less a human, until right at this moment. His trainer was…beautiful, to say the least. Before, he had thought her soul as much, but now he found her body attractive as well. He blushed, reprimanding himself for such thoughts. She was his trainer, no more no less.
She leaned back against him and it took him a moment to realize that she had left her shirt off. He blinked at the display of trust and then wrapped his arms around her. His belt warmed them both pleasantly and he had to say that the skin to fur contact was also pleasurable. His thoughts sobered a bit, forcing himself to keep everything strictly platonic. Although he wasn’t the first Pokemon, nor would he be the last, to fall in love with their trainer, he knew that such could never be. To most, he was no more than a pet. She thought more of him; the cat was her partner, her best friend, her confidant on this journey they were undertaking. He would go so far to even say they were soulmates, though he wasn’t sure what she thought.
He would give everything for her, but this was something he couldn’t have. The other humans would disapprove if she accepted him. And if she didn’t…things would be irreparably broken and Incineroar wasn’t sure if he could stand that.
Instead, he settled on the feeling of her body curled against her and the sound of the rain outside their little sanctuary. He didn’t need any more than this, despite what his deepest heart of hearts told him.
--
Incineroar was lounging on her bed, paws behind his head and knee cocked in the ultimate position of relaxation. His eyes were closed to better listen to the sound of the shower in the adjoining bathroom. The flame belt around his waist was dimmed to a mere flicker so as not damage her sheets and blanket.
They had finally made it back to Melemele Island and to his trainer’s house. She had been away for months now, working on completing her Pokedex. She was still nowhere near finished, but had decided it was time for a break for her and her team. To tell the truth, he was quite enjoying the time off. The pads on his feet were sore from all the walking they had been doing. He flexed his feet as the thought crossed his mind and groaned as the tight muscle were stretched out.
His ears perked when he heard the water be turned off. Settling back into the pillows, he put on an act of nonchalance, but secretly watched her as she emerged from the bathroom, clad in a simple white towel wrapped around her midriff. Water dripped onto the floor around her, but he was paying more attention to the curves outlined by the piece of fabric. His eyes followed her as she flitted about the room, trying to put together an outfit from the clothes in her dresser and closet. She bent over once, allowing him a generous view of her private areas and he looked away respectfully, blushing under his fur.
Finally, she dressed in a pair of jean shorts and a tank top that he vaguely remembered her buying in Malie City at the behest of her friend Lillie. He appreciated the blond girl’s opinion at this moment because his trainer was adorable as she twisted and posed in front of her full length mirror in the corner of the room. A warm feeling settled in his chest and he closed his eyes to doze, completely at peace.
“What do you think, Keahi? Like it?”
He huffed in response. A few beats of silence and then he felt the bed dip down next to him. An eyelid lifted lazily to see her looking at him intensely. His brow furrowed and he let out a questioning rumble in his throat.
“You know I love you, right? No matter what?” She was starting to concern him. He lifted his head a little to get a better look at her eyes, but they seemed to be calm and collected, nothing for him to panic about. He nodded his head slowly and she looked down at her hand that had begun to pet the black fur along his side.
“Even if I knew that maybe you love me a little differently?”
He felt his belt go cold and his lungs stop working. She had figured it out. He had hoped she never would but the moment had come and his body was frozen as he waited for her to continue speaking.
“It’s okay, but I need you to know that I don’t feel the same way. We’re not meant to be together like that and you need to understand that. I’m telling you this because I want you to know that you’re still my best friend. That won’t change.”
She smiled faintly. “I believe that we were made for each other. And who knows? Maybe in a past life we were both Pokemon or both humans and we were together. But the point is that, in this life, it’s not meant to be.”
He started breathing again, glad at least to know that she wasn’t fully rejecting him. They were partners, nothing would change that. Incineroar turned his head to look out the window on the other side of the room. Life was still going on out there; the Wingull would keep flying and the sun would keep shining and the wind would keep blowing. If the world could continue as it was, so could he.
As he sat up, she fisted her hand in his fur, betraying her worry as to how this situation would turn out. In truth, he had been known to have a temper, but it worried him that she was afraid that he would lash out at her. He would have to work on that; he never wanted her to be afraid of him.
He reached out a paw and laid it on her head. Her eyes flicked up to look at him, apprehension swimming in their depths. But all he did was lean forward and touch his forehead to hers as he had seen some of the native islanders do with their loved ones. It was a sign of fondness and understanding rolled into one, given that he couldn’t voice his feelings to her. His trainer leaned into the touch, released the fur she had been holding, and came to hold his head in both of hers, signaling her relief. They stayed like that for a few moments and then broke away. She smiled radiantly up at him and he grinned back, showing off his pointy, white teeth. Then, he scooted over on the bed and patted the space next to him and she obliged. They napped away the afternoon together, both perfectly content with their places in each other’s lives.