New Game +: Chapter 1, Rough Gem
Masterlist for New Game + available here.
Title: Rough Gem
Song Link: I have a weird fondness for the Islands cover.
Characters: Kotone, Silver, Clair
Word Count: 1614
“Silver, how did you know you were gay?” Kotone wrapped an arm around Silver in bed, pushing the blanket over her shoulder and feeling around for his hand in the dark.
“I... what? Context?” He opened his eyes, barely able to make out the lights of the clock across the room.
“Well, that you liked boys. I mean, you can’t have been that young, you must have known by the time you had the thing with-”
Silver laughed and squeezed Kotone’s hand, shaking his head. “It’s not like that. I mean, I guess it sort of is, but it’s not like I grew up socialized, I just... sorta figured it out. I’ve always like people more than men or women anyway.” He rolled onto his back, turning his head to kiss in the rough direction of Kotone’s lips. “And you more than those.”
“You sure do like dick, though.” He could feel her smirk.
“Dick is attached to people!” He leaned in and nipped lightly at her shoulder, and then left his head there, closing his eyes. Kotone let go of his hand and ran her fingers through his hair for a moment, petting the back of his head, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness of the room until she could faintly make out the fan turning on the ceiling.
Before his breathing could slow entirely she asked “How would I know if I were gay?”
“You probably wouldn’t have turned down the opportunity to bang Cynthia. I am just saying.”
“Oh.” She had in fact had the opportunity once, on a trip through Sinnoh; the two had shared a bed, done each other’s hair, and gossiped about boys, but Kotone hadn’t thought of it as sexual at all until Cynthia tried to kiss her and the younger woman flipped out. They had worked things out, and remained vaguely in touch, sending letters back and forth via Cynthia’s Togekiss, until a couple of years ago, when Cynthia had decided to retire to Unova and live out her days in some sort of beach resort hustling trainers for drinks. It was very Cynthia.
Kotone watched the fan spin, cuddling up to Silver, who grunted and rolled back onto his side. It was much cooler than a summer night had any right to be in Kanto, but not quite cold enough to bring out Typhlosion and have him warm up the bed. (Silver always complained, anyway. “It’s like trying to sleep next to a giant Meowth who is also on fire.” That was the point.) At least he radiated body heat, though not quite as much as a fire-type. His breathing started to even out and his shoulders relaxed, and Kotone fretted, spinning his hair around a finger.
“Silver?”
“Urgh.”
“I want to date Clair.”
-
A few weeks earlier, Kotone and Silver were at a celebratory party for a new champion in Johto-Kanto, a plucky young girl by the name of Chartreuse who had traded Pokémon over the network with someone in Unova and steamrolled the competition. Kotone thought it was a little unsporting, though she never would have said anything to the girl, and Silver could only just barely hide his excitement over Pokémon he’d never seen before behind his loathing of gatherings. He and Green spent most of the evening hiding in a corner, drinking seltzer water out of highball glasses and trying not to make eye contact with anyone who might mistake them for social beings. Kotone, in contrast, wandered through the party, offering congratulations and condolences as appropriate, trying to find all of the Elite Four and let them vent about their battles.
Clair in particular was sitting slumped at the bar, and not wearing something ridiculous, which immediately made Kotone nervous. When Kotone sat down next to her, immediately started griping. “I don’t even know what that thing was! How was I supposed to know it was a dragon? It doesn’t look like a dragon, it looks like some kinda horribly deformed Tyranitar.”
“That’s what the new girl beat you with?”
“Yes.” Clair pounded on the bar, which made a couple of gym leaders down the way raise their eyebrows before Kotone waved them off. “An ice dragon! I can’t believe she had the gall to import-”
“Clair.” Kotone put a hand on her shoulder. “Not the time.”
“But-”
“No.” She grabbed the dragon trainer’s drink and took a sip, gesturing over her shoulder. “It’s the new champion’s party, let her fuck it up if she wants to. We had our turn.” Clair lifted her head and the two held eye contact for a moment, and then both laughed. When Kotone had taken the championship, Ethan had been in the processing of coming out and the Pokémon Council had forbidden him from bringing his date along. Kotone, furious, had caused a scene by publically making out with Clair, who she hadn’t even much liked at the time, and when Kotone eventually handed over the Championship to a young fellow, he was able to bring his boyfriend along with relatively minor fuss, although things didn’t really get better until Green finally came out to his grandfather. Professor Oak, until his death, had been the one who called all of the shots in Johto and Kanto; Elm was technically in charge now, but he didn’t have the same force of personality, and the League was in a strange position.
Clair grabbed her glass back and downed the rest of her drink, and then grabbed Kotone’s hand. “We could do it again.”
Kotone laughed. “Well, it wouldn’t be that shocking, really. Everyone would say ‘Oh look, it’s the two kids who never grew up but who still train better than any of us so we should humor them.’ Don’t you think?”
“Oh definitely!” Claire rolled her glass in her hand, watching the ice settle. “Either that or they’d be jealous. Probably both, for some of them. Your man, probably.”
“Oh, he’s more of a kid than you’d think.” She swiveled around to look across the room, where Silver and Green were still standing, Silver in a corner now and oblivious that Green was taking up some of his space. “I mean look at that. I bet you anything there isn’t alcohol in either of those drinks.”
“Ugh.” Claire put her glass down and turned around with Kotone, resting a hand on her shoulder. “I know he doesn’t like me. Never has. I mean, he’s cordial and all after working in the Dragon’s Den forever, but we always invite him to things and he never comes, and the way that Crobat rides around on his head just weirds me out.”
“If he doesn’t say mean things to you, that probably means he likes you.” Kotone leaned forward, and then turned suddenly left. “Oh hello, Professor Elm!”
“Why hello there! I’m so glad you were both able to make it. Isn’t it exciting that we have a new Champion? We hardly ever get to have these big parties!” He smiled widely and shuffled his feet, wearing a white lab coat even here. “It’s exciting that Pokémon from new regions are making their way here, too. We’ll have to update the Pokédex!”
“Oh, definitely,” said Kotone, “Have you spoken to Silver about it? He’s been doing a lot of the work in the Oak lab recently, although I don’t know if he’s working on the Pokédex right now or not. After the dragon project I know he was collaborating with Bill on something or other.”
“What a brilliant idea! I’ll do that right now!” Elm lurched through the crowd, and Kotone and Clair shared a look.
“Where is Bill, anyway? He usually comes to these.”
Claire shrugged. “He’s probably one of the Pokémon people are carrying around with them, the pervert.”
“Oh come now, he’d never...” Kotone stopped and looked around the room, and saw that Green’s ever-present Eevee was both nuzzling at the Champion’s leg and curled up at Green’s feet. “Never mind. You’re right. I’m really not sure how to feel about that.”
“He’s been doing it for years, it’s just way more obvious now that you’re not supposed to walk Pokémon around with you anymore. Which is terrible, if you ask me. Just because it’s illegal in Unova shouldn’t mean anything about here.” Claire sighed, and reached into her purse to run a finger along one of her Pokéballs.
“I have mixed feelings,” said Kotone, trying to figure out which Eevee was which.
“You always have mixed feelings.”
“Hold on a moment.” Kotone managed to make eye contact with the Eevee laying at Green’s feet, who had been woken up by Elm’s excited cornering of Silver to discuss adding Chartreuse’s imports to the National Pokédex. Eevee looked spooked, and skulked off out of sight into the kitchen. “Did you see that?”
“What, that you expertly trained Elm onto your partner because apparently you like him when he’s even more angry than normal?”
“No, the Eevee that was Bill wasn’t the pervy one. He just wanted to curl up with Green.”
“That’s not pervy? You are such a fag hag, Kotone.”
“No! Well.” She watched the way Green reluctantly leaned in to distract Elm, protecting Silver and getting him a bit more space. “Maybe a little. But there’s a big difference between wanting to attend the party as an Eevee and being all up on the girl’s calves, you know?”
“You’re so nice to people.” Clair looked at Kotone, and bit her lip a little. “Even me.”
Kotone looked back, and neither said anything for a moment. Then, quietly: “Maybe especially you.”
-
Title: Rough Gem
Song Link: I have a weird fondness for the Islands cover.
Characters: Kotone, Silver, Clair
Word Count: 1614
“Silver, how did you know you were gay?” Kotone wrapped an arm around Silver in bed, pushing the blanket over her shoulder and feeling around for his hand in the dark.
“I... what? Context?” He opened his eyes, barely able to make out the lights of the clock across the room.
“Well, that you liked boys. I mean, you can’t have been that young, you must have known by the time you had the thing with-”
Silver laughed and squeezed Kotone’s hand, shaking his head. “It’s not like that. I mean, I guess it sort of is, but it’s not like I grew up socialized, I just... sorta figured it out. I’ve always like people more than men or women anyway.” He rolled onto his back, turning his head to kiss in the rough direction of Kotone’s lips. “And you more than those.”
“You sure do like dick, though.” He could feel her smirk.
“Dick is attached to people!” He leaned in and nipped lightly at her shoulder, and then left his head there, closing his eyes. Kotone let go of his hand and ran her fingers through his hair for a moment, petting the back of his head, letting her eyes adjust to the darkness of the room until she could faintly make out the fan turning on the ceiling.
Before his breathing could slow entirely she asked “How would I know if I were gay?”
“You probably wouldn’t have turned down the opportunity to bang Cynthia. I am just saying.”
“Oh.” She had in fact had the opportunity once, on a trip through Sinnoh; the two had shared a bed, done each other’s hair, and gossiped about boys, but Kotone hadn’t thought of it as sexual at all until Cynthia tried to kiss her and the younger woman flipped out. They had worked things out, and remained vaguely in touch, sending letters back and forth via Cynthia’s Togekiss, until a couple of years ago, when Cynthia had decided to retire to Unova and live out her days in some sort of beach resort hustling trainers for drinks. It was very Cynthia.
Kotone watched the fan spin, cuddling up to Silver, who grunted and rolled back onto his side. It was much cooler than a summer night had any right to be in Kanto, but not quite cold enough to bring out Typhlosion and have him warm up the bed. (Silver always complained, anyway. “It’s like trying to sleep next to a giant Meowth who is also on fire.” That was the point.) At least he radiated body heat, though not quite as much as a fire-type. His breathing started to even out and his shoulders relaxed, and Kotone fretted, spinning his hair around a finger.
“Silver?”
“Urgh.”
“I want to date Clair.”
-
A few weeks earlier, Kotone and Silver were at a celebratory party for a new champion in Johto-Kanto, a plucky young girl by the name of Chartreuse who had traded Pokémon over the network with someone in Unova and steamrolled the competition. Kotone thought it was a little unsporting, though she never would have said anything to the girl, and Silver could only just barely hide his excitement over Pokémon he’d never seen before behind his loathing of gatherings. He and Green spent most of the evening hiding in a corner, drinking seltzer water out of highball glasses and trying not to make eye contact with anyone who might mistake them for social beings. Kotone, in contrast, wandered through the party, offering congratulations and condolences as appropriate, trying to find all of the Elite Four and let them vent about their battles.
Clair in particular was sitting slumped at the bar, and not wearing something ridiculous, which immediately made Kotone nervous. When Kotone sat down next to her, immediately started griping. “I don’t even know what that thing was! How was I supposed to know it was a dragon? It doesn’t look like a dragon, it looks like some kinda horribly deformed Tyranitar.”
“That’s what the new girl beat you with?”
“Yes.” Clair pounded on the bar, which made a couple of gym leaders down the way raise their eyebrows before Kotone waved them off. “An ice dragon! I can’t believe she had the gall to import-”
“Clair.” Kotone put a hand on her shoulder. “Not the time.”
“But-”
“No.” She grabbed the dragon trainer’s drink and took a sip, gesturing over her shoulder. “It’s the new champion’s party, let her fuck it up if she wants to. We had our turn.” Clair lifted her head and the two held eye contact for a moment, and then both laughed. When Kotone had taken the championship, Ethan had been in the processing of coming out and the Pokémon Council had forbidden him from bringing his date along. Kotone, furious, had caused a scene by publically making out with Clair, who she hadn’t even much liked at the time, and when Kotone eventually handed over the Championship to a young fellow, he was able to bring his boyfriend along with relatively minor fuss, although things didn’t really get better until Green finally came out to his grandfather. Professor Oak, until his death, had been the one who called all of the shots in Johto and Kanto; Elm was technically in charge now, but he didn’t have the same force of personality, and the League was in a strange position.
Clair grabbed her glass back and downed the rest of her drink, and then grabbed Kotone’s hand. “We could do it again.”
Kotone laughed. “Well, it wouldn’t be that shocking, really. Everyone would say ‘Oh look, it’s the two kids who never grew up but who still train better than any of us so we should humor them.’ Don’t you think?”
“Oh definitely!” Claire rolled her glass in her hand, watching the ice settle. “Either that or they’d be jealous. Probably both, for some of them. Your man, probably.”
“Oh, he’s more of a kid than you’d think.” She swiveled around to look across the room, where Silver and Green were still standing, Silver in a corner now and oblivious that Green was taking up some of his space. “I mean look at that. I bet you anything there isn’t alcohol in either of those drinks.”
“Ugh.” Claire put her glass down and turned around with Kotone, resting a hand on her shoulder. “I know he doesn’t like me. Never has. I mean, he’s cordial and all after working in the Dragon’s Den forever, but we always invite him to things and he never comes, and the way that Crobat rides around on his head just weirds me out.”
“If he doesn’t say mean things to you, that probably means he likes you.” Kotone leaned forward, and then turned suddenly left. “Oh hello, Professor Elm!”
“Why hello there! I’m so glad you were both able to make it. Isn’t it exciting that we have a new Champion? We hardly ever get to have these big parties!” He smiled widely and shuffled his feet, wearing a white lab coat even here. “It’s exciting that Pokémon from new regions are making their way here, too. We’ll have to update the Pokédex!”
“Oh, definitely,” said Kotone, “Have you spoken to Silver about it? He’s been doing a lot of the work in the Oak lab recently, although I don’t know if he’s working on the Pokédex right now or not. After the dragon project I know he was collaborating with Bill on something or other.”
“What a brilliant idea! I’ll do that right now!” Elm lurched through the crowd, and Kotone and Clair shared a look.
“Where is Bill, anyway? He usually comes to these.”
Claire shrugged. “He’s probably one of the Pokémon people are carrying around with them, the pervert.”
“Oh come now, he’d never...” Kotone stopped and looked around the room, and saw that Green’s ever-present Eevee was both nuzzling at the Champion’s leg and curled up at Green’s feet. “Never mind. You’re right. I’m really not sure how to feel about that.”
“He’s been doing it for years, it’s just way more obvious now that you’re not supposed to walk Pokémon around with you anymore. Which is terrible, if you ask me. Just because it’s illegal in Unova shouldn’t mean anything about here.” Claire sighed, and reached into her purse to run a finger along one of her Pokéballs.
“I have mixed feelings,” said Kotone, trying to figure out which Eevee was which.
“You always have mixed feelings.”
“Hold on a moment.” Kotone managed to make eye contact with the Eevee laying at Green’s feet, who had been woken up by Elm’s excited cornering of Silver to discuss adding Chartreuse’s imports to the National Pokédex. Eevee looked spooked, and skulked off out of sight into the kitchen. “Did you see that?”
“What, that you expertly trained Elm onto your partner because apparently you like him when he’s even more angry than normal?”
“No, the Eevee that was Bill wasn’t the pervy one. He just wanted to curl up with Green.”
“That’s not pervy? You are such a fag hag, Kotone.”
“No! Well.” She watched the way Green reluctantly leaned in to distract Elm, protecting Silver and getting him a bit more space. “Maybe a little. But there’s a big difference between wanting to attend the party as an Eevee and being all up on the girl’s calves, you know?”
“You’re so nice to people.” Clair looked at Kotone, and bit her lip a little. “Even me.”
Kotone looked back, and neither said anything for a moment. Then, quietly: “Maybe especially you.”
-