Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Wow.”

Izuku gasps softly in amazement as he stares up. He hears a soft cry next to him and looks down, picking up his best friend and holding her up in his arms.

“Do you see this Leafeon? Isn’t it beautiful?”

“Leafeon!”

Izuku couldn’t believe his eyes. When he first entered Mt. Moon he walked right out because of how dark and damp it was. It took a bit of time for him to work up the courage to continue his journey, but with Leafeon by his side encouraging him he was able to enter inside of it. Everything was all dark. There were strange sounds echoing everywhere and the pokemon popping out of nowhere kept giving him heart attacks. Leafeon protected him though. He even saw a rare Clefairy as well! And quickly chased after it into a different part of the cave. He came across the Clefairy's home, a giant moon stone glowing, reflecting the moon shining down on it from up above. The stars looked so beautiful, really sparkling with the moon shining right in the center of the sky.

It was the most beautiful and cutest scene ever. The Clefairy he was chasing after ran back to his friends and now all of them were happily dancing. Izuku didn’t want to break up the happy family, he was grateful enough to have seen such a sight. It was enough for him to never forget. Izuku admires the view for a little while longer before he goes on his way. He really should hurry since when he entered the cave it was daytime and now the full moon was up in the sky. Unless he wants to spend the night in a pokemon invested dark cave on the cold hard ground he should really get a move on.

“Vul!”

Izuku stops walking all of a sudden and turns his head around, “did you hear the Leafeon?”

His Leafeon tilts her head and looks around as well.

“Vul! Vulpix! Vul! Vul!”

“Leafeon!”

“Ah- Leafeon, wait a second!”

Leafeon jumps out of his arms and takes off down one of the tunnels. Izuku quickly chases after her, his backpack smacking against his back as he goes. He sees his pokemon up ahead standing still and sighs out in relief.

“Leafeon! Don’t take off like that! You scar- oh… who is this?”

There’s another pokemon next to his Leafeon. Izuku thinks his eyes are playing tricks on him because it’s a pokemon he’s never seen before, but at the same time… it isn’t. It looks like a vulpix, but vulpixs aren’t an icy white color. Their fur is red, so he doesn’t understand exactly what he’s looking at. 

“Hello, who are you?” Izuku asks softly.

“Vulpix! Vul!”

“Leafeon! Leafeon!”

“Vul! Vul!”

The vulpix, or not vulpix, runs on ahead. It looks back for a second and calls out to them before running off again. Leafeon looks up at Izuku and cries out, nodding her head.

“You want me to follow?” Izuku asks.

“Leafeon!”

“Alright, let’s go.”

Izuku follows after the beautiful white vulpix down a tunnel. The walls begin to close in, getting smaller and a bit narrow. The floor is soaking wet and Izuku nearly trips. He has to hold onto the wall to catch him. He enters a small opening and gasps. The vulpix is crying out, sitting down right next to a body. Izuku runs over and kneels down next to the boy.

“Hey- hey, are you alright?”

He has his eyes close and doesn’t respond, but his chest is moving up and down so that’s a good sign. Izuku looks around, seeing all sorts of debris and rocks around him. He glances up and sees a gaping hole in the ceiling.

“Did he fall from up there?”

“Vulpix.”

“Are you his pokemon?”

The vulpix looks sad as it nudges against the boy’s face. Izuku reaches out and moves the hair out of his face. He looks young, probably around Izuku’s age. His hair was two different colors, there was a scar on one of his eyes, and he was freezing cold. How long had he been here? Izuku takes off his backpack and sets it down beside him. He pulls out his first-aid kit and gets to work. The one good thing about being so clumsy is that you learn quickly how to take care of yourself. There isn’t any blood, so that’s a good sign. His left ankle looks bruised, it’s beginning to swell, so he wraps that up. There’s a huge lump on the back of his head and whenever Izuku touches it the boy hisses at him. It’s a good sign he’s still alive. Izuku quickly tries to finish his work. He pulls out his sleeping bag and places it over the boy, knowing it would be difficult to drag him in it. Hopefully he’ll stay warm this way.

“Don’t worry little buddy, he’s going to be alright.”

Vulpix looks like she’s filled with relief. She sighs out and lays beside her trainer, curling up into a small ball. Izuku stands up and walks around the cave. He sees a bunch of things scattered around the floor he can only assume is the boy’s. He picks up the backpack, stuffing inside of it pokeballs, potions, clothes, food, things of the like, and once he collects everything he places it right beside the boy. Izuku wishes he had another sleeping bag or something because this is a cold night.

“Leafeon.”

Leafeon walks over and rubs against his leg before lying right down in his lap. Izuku smiles softly and strokes her back.

“You want to stay with me? It’s a bit cold though, you’d be a lot warmer in your pokeball.”

“Leafeon!”

“Alright, alright, I hope our little friend will be warm enough in his incubator.”

Izuku opens his backpack again and pulls it out. The light is still on and it feels warm to the touch. The pokemon egg doesn’t move, resting peaceful in its shell. Izuku hopes that it will be alright. He places it back in his backpack and leans against a wall.

He doesn’t realize that he’s fallen asleep. One second he’s watching little drops of water fall down from above and the next second he hears Vulpix crying out.

“Hnngh- quiet.”

Who said that? Izuku’s eyes widen and he looks ahead, seeing the boy begin to move. He raises his hand and tries to lean up, but groans out immediately after.

“Ah- wait! Don’t move too much!”

Leafeon cries as she’s rudely awoken and falls out of his lap as Izuku quickly gets up. He rushes to his side and places his hand on his chest, pushing him back down lightly.

“Please, you hit your head, you really shouldn’t be trying to move right now.”

“Who- who are you?” 

The boy looks up and glares at him. Izuku doesn’t notice that though, he notices his eyes are two completely different colors. Izuku stares into them and is lost for a second before he quickly shakes his head.

“I’m sorry- my name is Izuku. Izuku Midoriya. Your vulpix, I think she is your vulpix, found me and led us to you. We found you passed out on the ground here. I think you might have fallen from an upper level, do you remember anything?”

The boy groans as he tries to get up again. He doesn’t listen at all to Izuku’s warning and sits up, running his hand through his hair. He hisses when he touches the back of his head and flinches.

“I did the best I could to wrap you up, we really should get you to a hospital though. I didn’t want to leave you before you woke up. If you wait for a while I can go and get help-”

“Don’t worry about it, I don’t need it. I- gah!”

He cries out when he adds pressure to his foot and pain shoots up and down his leg. Izuku grimaces, wishing the boy would listen to him.

“Hey, what’s your name?”

He stares over at him, “does it matter?”

“Unless you want me to keep calling you hey and boy, I think it does.”

He breathes in and out loudly through his nose before answering, “Shouto.”

“Shouto, it’s very nice to meet you. Your foot is swollen, so I don’t believe you can walk. If you really can’t wait… I can try and help you. We have to go slow though, alright?”

“I don’t need you help.”

“Vulpix, Vul.”

The white Vulpix cries out softly and places a paw on Shouto’s lap. He looks down at his pokemon before looking back over at Izuku. He honestly doesn’t remember much. He was trying to find a fossil in this cave and when he did he was making his way out of here and then-... then blank. According to this strange person though he fell from above and knocked himself out. There’s not much he can do with a busted up head and foot by himself. 

“It’s really no trouble. I’m trying to leave myself, Leafeon and I would love some company. Isn’t that right Leafeon?”

“Leafeon!”

Leafeon cries out happily. Shouto’s face turns blank before he nods his head once. Izuku stands up and puts his backpack back on. He grabs Shouto’s as well and puts that one over his shoulder before he helps him up. Shouto wraps one arm around Izuku. He grunts a little to himself, pain rocking through his body a bit. He tries to keep it in though as he stands up on his feet. One is bad, but the other… it’s bearable. Slowly, one foot in front of the other, Izuku takes most of his weight as he supports him.

It’s a good thing that it’s daytime outside now because he can see the light at the end of the tunnel. The two of them were close and if he’s not mistaken the next town they’ll arrive at should be Cerulean City. Hopefully someone will see them and come help. The walk is slow and quiet; Izuku isn’t normally good in situations like these, so he does the thing he’s good at. Rambles.

“So I couldn’t help but notice your pokemon. Is it a girl or a boy?”

Shouto glares as he focuses on trying to walk.

“It kind of reminds me of a vulpix, but I’ve never seen a vulpix that color before. Is it a special kind? Or maybe not a vulpix at all? It looks strange- but a cool strange! I mean it’s cute! Really cute, you’re a really cute, maybe vulpix.”

“Do you always talk this much?” Shouto asks.

“Sometimes. I just thought… it would be nice to fill in the silence.”

“I’m alright with it being silent.”

“Oh… okay then. Sorry for- that.”

Izuku looks down at the ground and doesn’t say anything else. Shouto glances down at him real quick before looking up ahead. For some reason the bad feeling he has gets worse and he can’t believe that this happened to him. He can’t believe he’s in this position, having to rely on someone else for help. His vulpix brushes against his leg and looks up at him, whimpering softly.

“Alolan.”

“Huh?” Izuku turns his head.

“She’s an alolan vulpix.”

“Alolan? I’ve never… wait… I think- it’s a different region, right?”

“Yes, the Alola Region. Certain pokemon look different there.”

“Wow! Is that a far away place? How far away from Kanto? Are you from the Alola Region? Or were you gifted her? My father is away at work right now in the Sinnoh Region. He sent me back my best friend Leafon for my birthday. Apparently Eevee only evolves into a Leafeon around a certain moss stone in the Sinnoh Region, so I couldn’t believe my eyes when I first saw her. “

Shouto regrets saying anything. He just opened a floodgate; it’s like a pidgey pecking at his head over and over again the entire way. It feels like Izuku has talked his ears off when they finally make it out of the cave. They see the town up ahead and soon people come and help them when they see them. Shouto is more than grateful to finally be taken away from him.

“Ah- I hope you get better Shouto! Maybe we’ll see each other again soon!” Izuku smiles and waves at him.

Shouto meets his eyes and stares at him before looking away, hoping for the exact opposite.

Chapter Text

Izuku hums the catchy tunes the department store is playing as he skims through all the products. He still can’t believe a store this large exists. In his town they only have one market, but here in Celadon City they have a whole department store with five floors! Each floor sells something different, from pokeballs to potions to stones and everything in between. He was having a lot of fun right now shopping. He really shouldn’t be spending so much money, but he can’t help it. He likes to spoil his pokemon.

“What do you think Machop? Is this enough?”

“Machop!”

Machop calls out happily as he raises one of his fists in the air. Izuku laughs and nods his head.

“I think so too. Let’s finish up and pay and then we can go up on the rooftop. I think there’s a vending machine there, so we can enjoy a nice refreshing drink.”

“Machop! Machop!”

He definitely likes the sound of that. Izuku walks over to the cashier and waits in line. Machop places the basket on the counter and Izuku carefully holds his pokemon egg in one hand as he digs around for his wallet and pays. Soon the two of them are heading up to the rooftop. A fresh breeze hits them right in the face. Izuku walks out of the stairwell and looks around. He spies the vending machines in one corner and also a very familiar face.

“Sho-” Izuku begins to call out, but stops.

Shouto doesn’t notice. There’s an eevee sitting down in front of him on the floor. Shouto is kneeling and holding out a-a-... Izuku narrows his eyes. Before he can tell whatever he’s holding touches the eevee and the pokemon starts to evolve. A flareon appears in front of him and Izuku gasps.

“Wow.”

Shouto hears that and turns his head to the side. Izuku flinches a little from his intense stare, but quickly gives him an awkward smile and wave.

“Hey Shouto, remember me?”

Shouto stares at him for a long while and blinks, “... the trainer with the Leafeon?”

“That’s right! I’m Izuku, I’m happy that we ran into each other. I was always worried about your recovery. I know it’s been a while, but how are you?”

Shouto stands up and nods his head, “fine.”

“That’s good. How is your Vulpix?”

“Also fine.” 

Izuku waits for more to be said… he doesn’t add anything else though. Izuku looks behind him at the vending machines and then back at him, pointing over to it.

“I was just about to get something to drink for me and Machop. Did you want something?”

“That’s al-”

“My treat! Come on Machop, you can pick out whatever you want.”

“Machop!”

Shouto watches him leave and sighs out to himself. He reaches for his pokeball and returns his Flareon back in it before attaching it to his belt. He wonders if he can slip out before Izuku realizes it, but thinks about it for too long since Izuku comes straight back. Shouto glances at the egg in his arm before a drink is being shoved in front of him.

“Here, it’s lemonade. We also got soda pop and fresh water as well if you prefer something else.”

“... Lemonade’s fine.”

“Hehehe, you don’t like talking much, do you Shouto?”

Shouto narrows his eyes at him as he takes the drink he offers. Izuku simply chuckles lightly though and walks past him. He sits down on the bench, his Machop sitting down right now to him. Shouto turns around and joins him.

“Thanks Machop,” Izuku says when he offers him a soda pop.

“Machop!” Machop exclaims happily.

“So Shouto, are you a pokemon trainer as well?” 

Shouto opens the can of lemonade and takes a sip, “yes, soon to be champion.”

“Oh! That’s my dream too! To be the Pokemon Champion of Kanto! Or- well, that is only one of my dreams. I also want to fill up my pokedex, and become a professor, and travel! Definitely travel around to the other regions. I looked up more about the Alola Region after we first met Shouto. I had no idea that pokemon could change their looks depending on where they were from. Do you have any other different types of pokemon?”

“No, vulpix is the only one. She’s the only one I brought over when I came here.”

“Oh, so originally you’re from the Alola Region? What made you want to come to Kanto?”

Shouto drums his fingers against the can, “... so what’s with your egg?”

“Huh? Oh this little guy? He was another present that my father sent me from Sinnoh before I started my journey. He’s been moving a lot the past couple of days, so I think he’s going to hatch soon.”

“What is it going to be?”

“I have no idea, that’s kind of the fun part though. I could get anything in the world, maybe it could even be a legendary pokemon!” Izuku exclaims, eyes sparkling as he can only imagine.

Shouto gives him a strange look, “I don’t think it’ll be that.”

“Hahahaha! Probably not, but it’s fun to fantasize, right?”

Izuku laughs freely and smiles at him widely. Shouto stares at him before he goes back to his drink. He allows Izuku to talk to him more as he finishes his lemonade, standing up when he’s done.

“Thanks, I should be going now.”

“Oh Shouto! Hold on, did you want to have a battle with me?”

“A battle?”

Izuku stands up and nods his head, “yeah, a pokemon battle. It’ll be fun!”

“Fun?” Shouto repeats.

“Yeah, if you have the time. What do you say? It can be a quick one on one. You look really strong and my Machop here is pretty strong too!”

“Machop!” He nods his head and flexes.

Shouto takes a small breath. He wouldn’t really gain anything out of this. He may look strong, but Izuku… not so much. Like it or not though he may have saved his life back in Mt. Moon and Shouto never did repay him for that.

“Alright Izuku, one match.”

“Sweet! You ready to go Machop?!”

“Machop!”

The two of them walk to opposite ends of the rooftop. Izuku’s Machop walks over to the center while Shouto throws out a pokeball, his newly evolved Flareon coming out. The two of them stare off at each other before the battle begins.

“Flareon ember!”

“Flareon!”

“Machop! Dodge it and then use low kick!”

Machop dodges the ember of flames and sweeps his leg. It makes contact, Flareon flying back and rolling around on the ground. Shouto narrows his eyes as he quickly shouts out more commands.

“Flareon use quick attack!”

Flareon gets back on his feet and smacks dead center into Machop.

“Now use swift!”

“Ah! Machop! Stay strong buddy!”

It wasn’t a long fight. Machop got a few lucky hits, but the end was inevitable. Flareon stood as the winner and Machop collapsed as the loser. Shouto returns him to his pokeball and hooks it back onto his belt. Izuku walks over to Machop and kneels down beside him.

“Hey Machop, you were so awesome out there!” Izuku praises.

Shouto pauses for a second and watches their interaction.

“Machop, Machop.”

“You almost had him, I’m so proud of you Machop. Thanks for all your hard work, you deserve a good rest now.”

Izuku pats Machop’s shoulder and smiles before returning him back to his pokeball. He stands up from his position and Shouto walks over to him.

“Why did you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Praise him. Your Pokemon lost, he was weak. Why are you praising him for losing?”

“Because he did his best Shouto. I’m not going to get angry and hate him for losing, that isn’t right. You can’t always win. The important thing is that you had fun and that you learn from your losses. I had a lot of fun battling you Shouto! Didn’t you have fun?”

Shouto stares at him like he’s the weirdest person in the world. He has no idea what he’s talking about right now.

“Pokemon battles aren’t supposed to be fun.”

“W-what?” Izuku tilts his head, “that’s- that’s not true Shouto.”

“Yes it is.”

“No it isn’t. Pokemon battles are supposed to be a way to bond with your pokemon and with other people. Matches against other people are supposed to be fun.”

Shouto frowns at him, “that isn’t true.”

“Well it’s true for me. I had a lot of fun battling against you Shouto. Your Flareon was so amazing, I can see that you trained your Eevee very well. I promise you Machop and I won’t lose next time we battle.”

“Next time?”

“Yeah, we’re friends now Shouto! Let’s battle each other again the next time we run into one another and see who is victorious.”

Friends… friends? How exactly are there friends? Shouto has only met this man once before, and he certainly has never acted friendly around him. Izuku just called him that though, and is looking at him like- like… he believes they’re friends.

“Well, I should probably get Machop to the pokemon center to heal. See you later Shouto, hopefully real soon.”

Izuku waves as he leaves. Shouto watches him go and then continues to stare at the exit. He’s never had friends before. He wasn’t even sure if it was something he wanted, he didn’t care about other people. All he needed was his own strength and his pokemon.

…

…

Still… to be called a friend… Shouto sighs out loudly as he runs his hands through his hair. He honestly doesn’t know what to make of that.

Chapter Text

Shouto narrows his eyes as he sees a Kangaskhan out in the wild. He’s never seen one of those before and he’s pretty sure he isn’t supposed to see one. He thought you could only catch those in the Safari Zone, but here one was. He takes out a pokeball, ready to capture it as he heads closer. A Machoke appears beside it, and then a Ivysaur, and it takes Shouto a second to realize that there’s somebody there. He lowers his stance as he watches a Leafeon run through the grass with a small blue Pokemon chasing after it.

“Izuku?” He calls out questionable.

The trainer turns around and a bright, freckled splattered face stares at him. Izuku’s eyes go wide before he waves his hand at him.

“Shouto! Hey! Hey Shouto! How’s it going?!”

Was it a mistake to call out his name? Shouto doesn’t know what possessed him to do it; it was too late now though to walk away. He heads over to the small clearing he and his pokemon are resting at and nods his head.

“Hello Izuku. What are you doing?”

“Taking a small break with my friends. We just got our gym badge from Fuchsia Gym, so we’re relaxing now.” 

“Relaxing?” Shouto asks.

“Yeah, do you want to join us? Let out your Pokemon to play, I’m sure they’ll get along with mine. I recently caught a Kangaskhan yesterday, so she’s still getting used to everyone else.” 

An Ivysaur walks up to Shouto and sniffs his shoes before running away. Izuku giggles and shakes his head.

“Don’t mind him, he’s always searching for food. I should probably feed them, I have plenty enough for everyone. Come join me.”

Shouto… he’s never released his Pokemon before just to relax… he’s wondering if this is a normal thing or a Kanto only thing or simply an Izuku thing. He watches as Izuku sets out several bowls and fills them with Pokefood. All of his Pokemon come running up, looking happy and cheerful as they gather around him. Shouto doesn’t think he’s ever seen Izuku this happy either. He reaches for his pokeballs and releases his pokemon.

All of them are on edge, looking around for the battle. When none appears they kind of relax and just stand there, looking up at their trainer.

“Oh wow!”

Izuku’s loud booming voice shocks some of them. He comes running over and drops down to the ground.

“Look at all of you! Aren’t you the best pokemon ever? I didn’t know you had two vulpixs Shouto? Now this is the one I know. And Flareon, it’s so nice to see you again. Wow, a Charmeleon! Look how bright your flame is burning!”

Izuku reaches out and pets, brushes, and strokes all of them. Shouto feels kind of betrayed as all his pokemon open up and cling to Izuku. They like him immediately, and love him when he tells them that there’s food where everyone else is. Shouto’s pokemon leave him to mingle with the others. Izuku stands back up and moves to his side, a wide smile on his lips as he watches their pokemon eat.

“... did you want to battle?” Shouto asks awkwardly, because he honestly has no idea what he should be saying right now.

“Battle? On a beautiful day like this? Silly Shouto, it would be a crime to battle on a day like today. We should be relaxing, come on. When was the last time you took a break and relaxed?”

Shouto stares at him with a straight face, “I don’t… relax.”

“Really? Well then let me show you how it’s done!”

Izuku tugs on his arm and Shouto exclaims as he’s almost knocked off his feet. He struggles to catch himself as Izuku drags him underneath the shade of a tree. He pushes him down and Izuku sits down right next to him, the two of them resting their backs on the trunk. Izuku takes a huge inhale of breath before sighing it all out.

“There we go.”

Shouto looks at him with a scowl, “now what?”

“Now you close your eyes and relax.”

Close his eyes and relax? Easier said than done. Shouto watches as Izuku closes his eyes though and looks… pretty peaceful. He rests his head back against the tree and closes his eyes, trying to do the same. His body is all tight and stiff, the need to hurry up and get his next badge so he can fight the elite four and become the champion nagging at him. His skin begins to crawl and he can’t help the small twitches that go through him from sitting still for so long.

“Relax Shouto,” Izuku says warmly.

He reaches out and grabs Shouto’s hand, absentmindedly drawing small shapes on his palm. It sends tingles up his arm and Shouto feels a shiver run through him. His body relaxes a little bit, maybe just the tiniest bit, and he focuses on Izuku’s touch. Being under the shade out of the sun feels nice and the cool breeze they have here too isn’t bad at all. There’s a soft and sweet smell in the air that isn’t terrible.

Their Pokemon start looking for their trainers’ once all the food is gone. When they spot the two of them resting underneath a tree they all head over. Izuku giggles when Leafeon jumps on his lap. He opens his eyes and holds his arms out for his other pokemon, Riolu and Leafeon sitting on his lap, Ivysaur lying by his feet, while Machoke and Kangaskaun rest beside him. When Shouto feels Izuku’s hand slip out of his, he looks over and sees how comfortable and close all his pokemon are. They love him. Izuku’s pokemon truly love him and are happy to be his. Shouto looks at his own, seeing them keeping their distance a bit. Has he ever petted them? Praised them? Spoiled them like Izuku? 

He’s too much like his father. Shouto’s eyes harden before he shakes his head. He takes a small breath and sighs out, holding out his hand. His Alolan Vulpix is the first one who walks forward. She moves slowly and when she feels Shouto’s touch she stiffens up a little. Shouto rubs her fur though and soon she brushes up against his hand. His other pokemon start walking over, both of his vulpixs’ climbing on his chest, his Flareon curling up under his arm, and his charmeleon lying over his legs. Shouto grunts out as he’s attacked all at once and Izuku looks over, laughing a bit.

“Comfty?”

Shouto shoots him a glare, but there’s a smile on his face as well. The two of them pet their pokemon, closing their eyes back as they relax and enjoy the day.

Chapter Text

“... Izuku?”

Izuku slowly opens his eyes and stares up at the white ceiling. He blinks several times before he turns his head to the side.

“Shouto? What are you doing here?”

Shouto doesn’t look too happy; he never really does around him. Right now he looks every worse as he stands at the doorway, like he’s still debating whether to enter or not. Finally he makes his decision and walks in over to his bedside.

“I- I heard the news about Team Rocket- about Silph Co.- I heard a trainer got hurt and I-... I was afraid it was you, but judging from the description I knew it probably was.”

Izuku blinks before a wide smile appears on his lips, “you were worried about me.”

Shouto flinches, like the sound of that was the most terrible thing in the world, “no, I wasn’t.”

“Yes you were,” his smile turns into a grin.

“I assure you I wasn’t worried. I just-... wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Yeah, I’m alright Shouto. A little banged up, but still in one piece. I should be discharged today, I’m just waiting for my final check-up right now.”

Shouto sighs out in relief, “thank goodness.”

“Hehehe, worried.”

He shoots him a look, but Izuku knows his heart isn’t in it. Shouto should go now. He wanted to see if Izuku was alright and he found out that he was, so he shouldn’t waste anymore time… his feet refuse to move though. He was in the pokemon center healing his pokemon when he heard the news and couldn’t believe it. He probably scared Nurse Joy half to death when he demanded to know the patient’s name, scared that it might have been his friend. Fear. Shouto felt straight fear, the fear of losing someone close to him, fear that he hasn’t felt in a very, very long time since before he even started this journey.

Now all he felt was relief, and happiness, that nothing was wrong with his friend. He was happy that he was alright and he didn’t want to leave him so quickly… so he stayed. Shouto drags a chair over to Izuku’s bedside and sits down next to him.

“How on Earth did you get involved with Team Rocket?”

Izuku laughs awkwardly, “would you believe that I was at the wrong place at the wrong time?”

Shouto chuckles, “not really.”

“Well I’ve had a couple run-ins with them before. I had no idea Silph Co. was their hideout and things kind of got out of hands and… at least they won’t be a problem anymore. Officer Jenny said she rounded up mostly everyone who was involved. She’s saying that they’re going to disband now…”

Izuku lowers his eyes, like he wants to say more, but refuses to. No, he isn’t going to burden Shouto with this secret. Officer Jenny was able to get all the lackeys, but the true boss was still out there and Izuku had a feeling that he was going to see him again.

“What about you Shouto? What have you been doing lately?”

“I stayed in Fuchsia City for a couple of days after getting the badge. I’ve been fishing like crazy in the Safari Zone to try and get a dratini.”

“Oh wow, aren’t those rare?” Izuku gasps.

“Extremely.”

“So did you get one? Huh? Did you? Did you?”

“No.”

Izuku’s face falls, “oh Shouto, I’m sorry-”

“I did catch a dragonair though.”

Izuku’s eyes go wide and his mouth drops, “WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!”

Shouto smiles and chuckles, “yeah, I had the same reaction.”

“Oh my gosh Shouto you have to tell me! Tell me all about it! Go, go, I want the full story.”

Shouto laughs again and nods his head before he starts retelling the days that it took trying to find one single dratini. The two of them talk like old friends, because that’s precisely what they are, but before Shouto can finish the story Nurse Joy walks in. Shouto turns his head and stiffens up, bowing to her as he tries to excuse himself. Nurse Joy simply giggles and waves at him, telling him not to worry about it. Izuku also encourages him to stay because he really wants to hear the end of that story, so Shouto sits back in his seat awkwardly as he watches her fuss over Izuku.

It made him feel better hearing her say that he was back to full health, and happy when he was able to leave with him. Izuku stretches out his arms, taking a huge inhale of fresh air, and enjoys every second of it.

“Sweet freedom!”

“Careful. Just because you got discharged doesn’t mean you’re at full strength.”

“Shouto, stop worrying. You heard her, she said I was completely healthy now. All I have is a slight headache, and my limbs may feel a bit like jello, and I’m not used to walking after lying in bed for three days, but I’m fine. Perfectly fine.

Shouto rolls his eyes, “yeah, right.”

“Hehehe, so Shouto? What do you plan on doing now?”

He looks at him and blinks, “probably see if Sabrina is up for a fight. After I get her badge I’ll head over to Cinnabar Island.”

“I see, I see, well… seeing as how we both need Sabrina’s badge, and how we’re both going to head to Cinnabar Island sooner or later… did you want to perhaps travel together for a bit?”

Shouto blinks at him.

“I mean I really want to hear the rest of your story! You still haven’t told me the ending, plus since we’re heading the same direction anyway it would be nice to travel together and have a buddy, you know? And I think my pokemon miss your pokemon very much… and I would like to spend more time with you too. So? What do you say?”

Shouto knows he’s only going to slow him down. He knows this, he’s weak, he’s extra baggage, he hears a thousand no's echoing in his head, but the words that come out of his lips are.

“Sure, that’s fine.”

All of a sudden all those negative emotions completely disappear when he sees how bright and happy Izuku looks.

“Really?! Cool! After we get our badges we should head over to Lavender Town! I got these cool scopes that are supposed to let us see ghost pokemon! Oh, and we should also head over and visit my hometown as well! It’s right next to the sea, so we can swim down to Cinnabar Island after. I’m sure my Mom is worried about me and she is the best cook ever Shouto! I know you’ll love it and-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa Izuku, hold on a second. What’s with all these extra stops?”

Izuku pauses, “what? You don’t want to see ghost pokemon?”

“Ghost Pokemon?”

“Yeah, that Pokemon Tower graveyard in Lavender Town. Did you not go inside of it? There's all sorts of spirits there, ghosts of pokemon they say. I was never able to capture any of them though because I couldn’t see them, but I should be able to do it now. Aren’t you curious about that at all?”

Shouto’s eyebrow twitches. Ghost pokemon… certainly did sound interesting. He’s never seen a ghost pokemon up close before, so maybe that wasn’t so bad.

“What about visiting your hometown?”

“Come on Shouto, it’s on the way there. We can swim to Cinnabar Island right afterwards.”

“I was actually planning on flying with my Charizard.”

“Wow, your Charmeleon evolved? Cool! That’s not going to be fun though, how am I going to go with you if you fly? There’s a small boat that will take us to Cinnabar Island together that leaves my hometown, so we should take that. You don’t have to be scared, my Mom is really nice, I promise, and she’ll love you. I’ve-...” Izuku blushes as he starts scratching his cheek, “I’ve never brought home a friend before… I’m sure she’ll be really happy to meet you Shouto.”

… he can’t believe he’s agreeing to this.

“Let’s… just get our badges first and see how it goes later.”

“Hehehe, alright Shouto. I’ll flip a coin with you to see who battles Sabrina first.”

“Are you sure you should be battling in your condition? You just got out of the hospital.”

“Pssh, I’m fine Shouto. I feel like I could battle the Elite Four right now! I bet I could beat you! Riolu and I have been training like crazy.”

“Riolu?”

“Ah- my egg pokemon! It hatched; you met him before when we met last time.”

“Oh, that blue looking dog pokemon?”

“Yup! That’s my little Riolu, but don’t let his size fool you. He packs a real mean punch!”

Izuku goes on and out about his darling little angel and Shouto actually listens and nods his head along with the story as he walks with him.

Chapter Text

“Hello? Hello, Mom? I’m home!”

Izuku walks in and takes his backpack off, setting it down on the floor in the corner. He takes his shoes off next and neatly places them down. He turns around and looks at Shouto, smiling at him as he motions with his head.

“Come in Shouto, you can place your things here.”

Shouto nods his head and swallows down the saliva in his mouth. He follows Izuku into his home and repeats after him, taking his shoes and bag off. He hears something coming from the other room and looks up just in time for some woman to wrap her arms around his friend. Tears appear in her eyes and she starts bawling out loudly.

“IZUKU! IZUKU WELCOME HOME SWEETIE! I MISSED YOU SO MUCH! WHY HAVEN’T YOU CALLED OR WROTE OR ANYTHING?!”

“Ah- Mom! Mom stop! My friend is here- MOM!”

She stiffens up, blinking as she pulls away from him. She slowly turns her head and sees that her son isn’t lying, that there is someone standing right in their doorway, and he is her son’s- her son’s-

“Welcome to our home! My name is Inko, it’s so nice to meet you! Come on, come in!” Inko says cheerfully.

Shouto gasps as he’s pulled into a warm hug. Right after the hug Inko tugs him into their home; Izuku giggles lightly as he follows after. Inko drags Shouto into the kitchen and pushes him down into a chair.

“Are you hungry? I was just about to make lunch, you boys must be famished after traveling for so long. Would you like something to drink? I have a whole bunch of drinks and snacks for you-”

“Mom, please, you’re overloading Shouto.”

“Oh, am I? Sorry dear, I’m just really excited. This is the first time you’ve brought home a friend Izuku. I didn’t scare you now, did I Shouto?”

Shouto blinks as her beautiful green eyes that look so much like her son’s, “n-no.”

Izuku snorts underneath his breath and turns away to hide it. Inko smiles at him brightly before going to the kitchen. She starts moving around, gathering ingredients and pouring drinks. Izuku walks over and grabs a chair, sitting right beside Shouto. He pats his shoulder and gives him a small sympathetic smile.

“Sorry, she means well,” he whispers.

Shouto stiffens up and shakes his head, “n-no, it’s fine. I-.. I just can’t remember-... this is new territory for me.”

“You’ve never been over a friend’s house?” He whispers.

Shouto shakes his head, “not… no.”

“Well then I guess this is a new experience for both of us.”

“Here you boys are. Lunch will be ready in an hour, so until then Izuku? Why don’t you show Shouto a tour of the house after you finish the snacks?”

“Sounds great Mom, thanks.”

“Thank you very much.” Shouto bows his head.

Inko smiles and giggles to herself, “it’s so nice to have you boys here.”

Izuku reaches for a cookie and takes a bite, really missing his mother’s cooking. Shouto reaches out and takes an experimental bite. His eyes widen a little at how delicious it tastes and he takes a bigger bite, humming lightly.

“It’s good.”

“Yeah, told you my Mom was a good cook.”

Shouto finally feels himself relaxing. He looks over at Izuku and smiles lightly, feeling at peace in his home.

“I’m sorry Shouto. I know we wanted to leave tonight, but Mom’s… she’s really persistent.” Izuku whispers.

“Don’t worry about it, it’s fine.”

Izuku rolls around and lays on his side, staring down at Shouto sleeping on the extra futon on the floor.

“Did you enjoy today? My mother didn’t scare you, did she? You can be honest with me, I promise not to tell.”

Shouto opens his eyes and looks up at the ceiling, “no Izuku, today was really… fun. I’m glad you suggested it.”

“Really?” Izuku’s voice gets all light and fluffy before it lowers, “because um… I’ve noticed that sometimes you get this look on your face when you don’t seem entirely… comfortable.”

Shouto turns his head and meets Izuku’s gaze. The two of them stare into each other’s eyes, blinking softly, neither looking away. So he was able to notice. Shouto wasn’t truly aware that he was doing so. Sometimes he would get a feeling, get reminded of his childhood, his younger years, and… would fade away for a second. 

“I’m not used to this.”

“This?” Izuku asks.

Shouto rolls back around and stares at the ceiling again, “a family.”

Izuku frowns, “what about your family Shouto?”

“They aren’t like yours Izuku.”

“Well what are they like? I’ll listen if you tell me, I’m here for you Shouto.”

Shouto takes a huge inhale and exhales out, “... rough.”

Izuku hums and sits up in his bed. He grabs his pillow and tosses it on the floor, accidentally hitting Shouto in the face. He exclaims and knocks it over, glaring over at him. Izuku picks up his blankets next and throws that on the floor as well. He gets out of his bed and bundles himself up, lying down next to his friend.

“What are you doing?” Shouto asks.

“Sleeping next to you. My Mom always used to do this with me whenever I had nightmares. This way I can also hear you better too, so go ahead Shouto, whenever you’re ready.”

“I-... I don’t know where to start.”

“Then tell me anything. Anything at all- how did you first meet Vulpix? Your alolan one. Did you catch it in Alola before you decided to come to Kanto?”

“No, Vulpix was a gift from my mother. She was her pokemon originally, but when I told her that I wanted to be a pokemon trainer she-... she gave her to me. She was my first pokemon, my first own pokemon.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“My father- he used to force me to train with him. I didn’t think pokemon battles were for fun- they never were with him. He wanted me to be strong like him- he wanted me to be just like him, but I-... I just wanted to be a regular trainer like-... like Ex-Champion All Migh-”

“All Might! You are a fan of All Might too?!” Izuku gasps in the middle of his sentence.

It shocks Shouto; he jumps up a little bit and looks at him, “you- you know him?”

“Are you kidding Shouto?! He was a Kanto Champion! I saw that match ten years ago when I was six- he’s what inspired me to want to be a Pokemon Trainer! That match changed my life!”

Shouto blinks, “m-me to-too.”

“I really wanted a Pikachu as my first pokemon! Just like the one All Might had, but I could never find one! They’re so rare! What was your favorite part of the match Shouto? I loved it when All Might’s Pikachu was face to face against Agatha’s Gengar!”

“Yeah, I have to agree. That was a really good match, but then again during the entire tournament I couldn’t tear my eyes away. Every battle was special.”

Izuku laughs as he starts telling all his favorite things about the match, which he had to agree with his friend that it was everything. Shouto nods his head in complete agreement, smiling as well.

They spend the entire night talking until they pass out in the early morning.

Chapter Text

Shouto pants heavily, his heart racing inside of his chest. He watches as the dragonite in front of him faints, winning him the match. He lets out a loud breath, running his hands through his hair before a huge smile appears on his face. Lance returns his dragonite back to his pokeball and smirks at him. He crosses over the battlefield and reaches out, squeezing his shoulder.

“I still can’t believe my loss to you Shouto. You are now the pokemon league champion!”

Champion… the champion, his goal. Shouto feels his heart swell with pride.

“Or you would have been, but you have one more challenge ahead.”

“Wh-what?” Shouto asks, his face scrunching together.

He- he doesn’t understand. Kanto didn’t have a champion anymore, not after All Might retired. He should be the champion now since he was the first one to beat the elite four since then. That title should be his, but Lance is telling him otherwise.

“Sorry my friend, but you have to face another trainer. He beat the elite four before you. He is the real pokemon league champion. His name is-”

“Don’t! That’s- that’s alright, I’ll see for myself. I already have a feeling who it is. He’s just past these doors?”

Lance nods his head and stands aside, “whenever you’re ready.”

Shouto thanks him for the match before calling his pokemon back into his ball. He stands up tall as he crosses the field, heading into the other room. He heads down a long hallway, lights appealing as soon as he crosses. There’s a bright light at the end of the hallway and Shouto’s blinded for a second as he walks in. It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust, but when it does he sees a giant green field. Standing in the middle was a familiar face and Shouto can’t help the huge grin that appears on his lips as he stops walking. Izuku notices him and perks up. A huge grin that matches Shouto’s appears on his face as well as he spins a pokeball on his finger.

“Congratulations on making it this far, I knew you could do it though.”

Shouto chuckles, “congrats on becoming champion, I knew you could do it. Is this why you left me back in Cinnabar Island? To get ahead?”

Izuku’s grin falls and he frowns, shaking his head, “of course not Shouto. I wish I could have stayed with you, there was something I had to do though… and I didn’t want to burden it with you.”

“Burden me? With what?” Shouto asks, raising an eyebrow.

Izuku closes his eyes and shakes his head, “let’s save the story for another time, huh? Are we here to talk or are we here to battle? You’re my first official match as champion! I don’t plan to lose my title so soon. There’s a place right over there in the corner where you can heal your pokemon, and then it’s me against you Shouto. I hope you’re ready for the fight of your life!”

“You haven’t won a single match against me Izuku.”

“Well I’m not the same as I used to be Shouto, neither of us are. Whenever you’re ready.”

Excitement. That’s what he’s feeling right now. That’s what’s coursing through his veins, through every inch of his body. When was the last time he was looking forward to something so much? Even his fingertips are shaking for the match that’s about to happen. Shouto heals his pokemon and goes to stand across from Izuku. He knows no matter what, win or lose, that this is going to be a fun match. Shouto reaches for his pokeball and throws it out.

“I choose you! Flareon!”

His Flareon comes out and cries out loudly, ready for the fight. Izuku chuckles and throws out a ball.

“Go! Machamp!”

Machamp comes flying out and pats on his chest. Their eyes meet, Shouto’s and Izuku’s, and the two of them stare at each other before smirking.

“Ninetails ice beam!”

Ninetails’ tails rise up and spread apart as ice shoots out of her mouth.

“Leafeon! You can do this! Dodge it and use iron tail!”

Leafeon cries out and starts running. Ninetails follows after Leafeon, trying to hit her. She’s too quick though, closing the distance between them. Leafeon runs up close. She roars out as she spins around in circles, smacking right into Ninetails. 

“Ninetails!”

Ninetails tries to stay standing, but waves side to side before falling over. Ninetails is unable to battle any longer and that was Shouto’s last pokemon. He lost. He just lost to Izuku. He lost to his best friend and he doesn’t feel sad or bitter about it at all. Shouto just smiles sadly and walks over to Ninetails, petting her fur.

“Thanks for all your work Ninetails, you deserve a good rest.”

Leafeon turns around and goes running back to her friend. Izuku laughs as he opens his arms wide and catches her as she jumps into his arms.

“Leafeon! Great job! I’m so proud of you, we did it! We did it!”

“Leafeon! Leafeon!”

“Thank you so much, I couldn’t have done it without you. Take a rest and we’ll celebrate with everyone else later.”

Izuku kisses Leafeon’s head before he returns her to her pokemon. He looks over at Shouto and smiles at him. He starts to walk over, then runs, heading straight towards him. Shouto grunts as Izuku launches himself at him. The two of them go falling over on the ground and stare at each other before they start laughing out loudly.

“Shouto that was so much fun! Thanks for the great match!”

“I feel the same, thank you Izuku. I can’t tell you how much you’ve helped me grow as a trainer. Congratulations on your win, Champion.”

“Hehehe,” Izuku giggles to himself, “come on. I believe you’re my last match for the day, let’s go home. I’m sure my Mom has a huge meal waiting for us. No one knows I’m the champion yet, so she’s in for a surprise. You can tell me how you beat the other guys, weren’t they hard?! Believe it or not I struggled with Bruno more than anyone else. His fighting pokemon were hard!”

Izuku gets back to his feet and dusts himself off. He holds out his hand for his best friend and smiles at him. Shouto stares at his face for a second before he looks down at his hand. He feels a really warm feeling inside of his chest and reaches out, holding onto his hand tightly as he’s lifted back up to his feet.

“Sounds like fun.”

Chapter Text

Shouto hums softly to himself as he goes over his pokedex. It’s mostly filled, only a couple dozen or so missing. Not that he cared all that much about filling his pokedex. It was a nice pastime while he went on his journey, but now that journey was over. Like it or not, he’s probably stayed in Kanto for longer than needed. He could go out and try to find the legendary birds, stay here for another month or so, but that’s not something he really wants to do. He doesn’t want to leave either though. He has someone here that he wants to stay with… even if it’s slowly making him bored.

“Hey, here you are! I was looking for you!” Izuku exclaims.

He huffs as he pulls himself out of the window, climbing on top of the roof. Shouto immediately leans up and grabs his arm, holding onto him as he helps him over.

“Be careful.”

“Don’t worry Shouto, a fall from this height won’t kill me. I’ll just break a bone or something.”

“That’s definitely something to worry about.” Shouto shakes his head at him.

“Hahaaha, what are you doing up here Shouto?”

Shouto lays back down on the roof and stares up at the sky, “I liked the view.”

“Huh? Oh wow, it is pretty nice. If we stay here until nightfall I’m sure we’ll have a really nice view of the stars.”

Shouto hums in acknowledgement, but doesn't say anything else. He bends his hands under his head and watches the orange sky slowly lose its color. Izuku turns his head over to the side and watches Shouto for a minute.

“So?”

“Hmm?”

“Don’t hmm me, there’s something you want to say to me, right?”

Shouto turns his head and narrows his eyebrows, “no… should there be?”

“Hahaha, I like to think of myself as your best friend Shouto, so as your best friend I’m really good at reading your face... although you keep it blank most of the time. What’s wrong? I know something’s bothering you Shouto, you don’t have to be afraid to tell me. You can be honest with me.”

“No, it isn’t like that.”

“Isn’t it? I know something is bothering you. Is it being Champion? Did you want a rematch with me?”

“No Izuku, I meant it when I said that I was happy for you.”

“But that was your dream also and you haven’t challenged the Elite Four again, not once.”

“I still want to be the champion, just… maybe not here anymore.”

Izuku leans up and blinks, “not here? Are you thinking about leaving Shouto?”

He grimaces, wishing he didn’t say anything. He didn’t want to have this conversation today because he still wasn’t completely sure about anything definitely. He was still on the fence, leaning back and forth. He slowly leans up and meets Izuku’s eyes.

“Not really. I mean- I have been thinking, but I haven’t made any definite plans. I’m just-... I feel kind of restless here doing nothing, but I’m also happy here. I’m happy with you here Izuku, so I don’t want to leave you behind.”

Izuku looks at him like he’s an idiot, “what are you talking about leaving me behind? I’d go with you obviously Shouto if you wanted to go to another region.”

Shouto’s eyebrows raise as he stares at him, “wh-what?!”

“Yeah, let’s go! Where did you want to go next? Johto? Sinnoh? I think my Dad is still there, it would be nice to visit him. Maybe we can go to Alola Region as well and I can see your hometown.”

“Izuku- wait a second, stop talking!”

Izuku closes his mouth.

“You- you can’t be serious. Izuku, you're the champion here. You're the Pokemon Champion of Kanto, you can’t leave that all behind to go with me.”

“And why not? It’s my life, isn’t it?”

“But-but! Wasn’t this your dream!?”

Izuku blinks before he smiles warmly, “Shouto, you know the great thing about dreams? After you accomplish them you get to find a new one, and I’ve found my new dream. Can you guess what it is?... No? It’s pretty obvious I think. I wish to travel the world with you.”

Shouto feels his heart race inside of his chest for a quick second. He gulps thickly and feels his palms get all clammy and sweaty.

“That’s-... a dumb new dream.”

“Hehehe, but I know for a fact that it’s going to be fun! I did what I wanted to do Shouto, I became Champion. It’s not like I’ll never be champion again. I can always come back and regain my title, I’m not always going to get the chance to go with you on an adventure Shouto, so what do you say? Unless… this isn’t something that you want?”

“I’m not saying that!” Shouto immediately yells out at him.

It shocks Izuku for a second before he giggles while Shouto’s face turns red in embarrassment. He groans and covers his face with his hands.

“Izuku… are you sure? I can’t stop you if this is something you really want, but… you’ve barely lived your dream for a month and you’re about to throw it away for me.”

“I’m not throwing anything away Shouto, like I told you before I’m living out my new dream. What? Now that I’m champion at 16 do you simply expect me to just stay champion? For the rest of my life? Never leave Kanto at all? Battle day after day after day, the same old thing all the time?”

“Well when you put it that way… it doesn’t sound like that big of a sacrifice.”

“That’s because it’s not a sacrifice at all. Trust me Shouto, I know what I’m doing. I don’t know if I could have came to this new dream by myself, but it’s thanks to you that I have the courage to leave home and try something new again. So what do you say? Please? Can I join you on your new adventure? I promise not to ramble so much and do my best not to annoy you.”

Shouto snorts, “you never annoy me Izuku.”

He gives him a look.

“Alright, in the beginning you did, but now… I’m used to you. Izuku… since we’re both being honest here, the reason I was staying so long, why I kept wondering about leaving or not, is because I really wanted to stay with you. I feel so lucky right now that you’re actually willing to come with me to someplace new. Thank you. I would love to have you with me Izuku.”

“Well then you have yourself a partner! Partner! So where should we go? Johto? Sinnoh? Galar? I hear there’s this island region as well, I can’t think of the name of it. It sounds very tropical though and I love the beach. We can maybe go there too and-”

Shouto appreciates this moment. He takes a second to stare at Izuku, watching how happy his eyes are lightening up as he makes new plans for their future. Together. He wants to memorize this moment forever. He was alone when he came here. He ran away from his home because he couldn’t take it anymore and abandoned his family. He only planned on coming back once he was stronger, more confident, a champion so he could defeat his father and take his title. Izuku showed him a whole new world though. A world where Pokemon and people are partners, are friends, and care and love for each other. He taught him so many things, to enjoy battles, and have fun, and just… Shouto owes so much to his friend. So very much.

He can’t wait to see what’s going to be in store for them on their next adventure.