went to hell and back (but it was worth it)

Every step Melli took through the marsh granted him the feeling of his usually-pristine black boots sinking deeper and deeper into the mud. With the heavy rains from the storm spattering his face (making it impossible to even see where he was going), and the heavy weight on his back making the trek even slower, he could definitely chalk this day up to be an incredibly shitty one. Grumbling to himself, he knew he was going to have to chastise Toy good whenever they woke up – he’d just washed his hair that morning too, and now here he was, wet, mud-spattered…!

“Sorry…” Melli heard a soft mumble against his rain-sodden shoulder, the brush of lips there making him shudder from something other than the cold.

The brat must have heard my thoughts , Melli internally lamented. They adjusted Toy’s weight on their back with a small hop, and continued following his Golbat through the rain. “Shut up,” he demanded, though without any bite. “Save your energy.”

Even with Melli being a mountain man, always perched near the very top of Coronet Highlands looking after the godly entity Electrode and doing his duties as a warden, he had to admit this was quite the workout. Already his body complained against him as he climbed the steep hill towards Electrode’s arena, where at least they’d be somewhat comfortable at the makeshift tent Melli had set up some days earlier. It was too late to call for reinforcements; Golbat would probably never make it to Jubilife Village in the storm.

The end was in sight when he made it to the summit, the man practically panting and shivering as he returned Golbat to its ball and made the crawl towards the tent. It was a bit wet on the outside, but luckily, the inside was completely intact. With a groan, he somewhat unceremoniously dumped the completely drenched and muddy Toy onto the small mat of tatami beside the futon.

“My back,” Melli complained as he bent over, grabbing his soaked Diamond Clan hoodie by the bottom hem and pulling it over his head in one motion. It hit the ground in a wet thwap.

“Sorry,” Toy said again, seeming not-very-present. Their eyes were closed and their mouth was agape, face flushed, body shivering from the cold.

“Shut up,” Melli repeated himself, now in a black long-sleeve undershirt. He crawled over to the other on the mat on all fours, and then rested the back of his hand on their forehead, immediately wincing. “Sinnoh above! How can you be so hot?”

Toy simply groaned, raising a hand to feel around their damp obi. “Tilde?” They asked, a hint of urgency there.

“Don’t worry, dummy. All your Pokemon are on me, and – Sinnoh, am I stupid?” Melli smacked his forehead in irritation. “I could have had that obnoxious Alakazam carry you! Ugh . I truly get leech life’d when I’m around you.”

The exhausted patient smiled vaguely, opening their eyes a bit to allow a glint of playfulness to show. “I’m glad. Wanted you to carry me.”

“I should have left you there.” Melli spat just as playfully, leaning over his friend. “Raise your arms a bit. I’m taking these clothes off.”

“ Well , Melli…!”

“If you crack a joke, I’m really going to throw you out. Arms up.”

Letting out a small snicker, Toy complied, albeit slowly and groggily. Melli efficiently pulled the hoodie off, as well as the mud-slicked shoes and obi. 

“I have no desire to see you in the nude, so you’re going to have to put up with being a bit damp. But clearly you wanted to get wet since I found you on the shore of the Sinnoh-damned river, so I’m sure you’re fine.” Melli rightfully nagged in annoyance, taking off his same assortment of wet clothes – it was all thrown in a pile to be cleaned tomorrow. For now, it was all about ‘good enough’.

“Such a gentleman,” Toy groaned, shivering worse now that more skin was exposed than before.

“You should be kissing my feet instead of being a brat,” Melli hissed suddenly, grabbing a spare towel from the clothes he’d brought and beginning to towel off Toy’s hair and face. His bedside manner was not great. “—I am genuinely mad at you, you know. I could bite your head off but I’m choosing to be nice.”

Toy was quiet for a moment, breathing softly as Melli toweled away some of the excess dampness. Melli sat with his legs crossed beside the tatami mat, allowing the other to rest on the floor while keeping the futon clean for later use. The shivering thanks to the raging storm was getting worse and worse, however, and Toy soon huddled closer to the other in an attempt to alleviate it. They rested their head in Melli’s lap, letting out a soft sigh from the effort of the movement.

“You’re right,” They said, looking up at him with apologetic eyes. Toy moved one hand to gently caress the hand of Melli’s that held the towel. “I’m sorry… I should be more careful. I didn’t mean to scare you…” They let out another small, labored breath, closing their eyes. “Please don’t be mad anymore.”

How am I supposed to stay mad at that? Melli wasn’t sure what emotion the pounding of his heart in his ears stemmed from, but all of his movement ceased from the surprisingly sweet and gentle apology. Sure, he was mad – he had a right to be mad, after all, with his Diamond Clan companion promising to be back before the storm was supposed to start and him suddenly finding them lying prone on the shore of the river, occasionally hit by raucous waves and pelted by rain, not sure if they were already dead or not. But the overwhelming feeling in his heart, the one that felt like a drink of fresh water on a hot day or the first cherry blossom of spring, signaled to him just how strong the relief was that Toy was okay. They would be okay. He’d never really thought about it before, but… life in the Diamond Clan, life high in the mountains, would be too damn quiet without his annoying little groupie around.

“Well,” Melli pouted, a hand carefully, gently, brushing a curly strand of brunet hair across Toy’s forehead. “As long as you know it was dumb. And don’t do it again.”

Toy smiled softly, feeling lots of relief themselves, wishing that contact on their forehead would stay. A droplet of water suddenly dripped from Melli’s front strand on to Toy’s nose as he leaned above them, catching their attention. “Melli, your hair… it’s wet… let me…” They reached to take hold of the towel.

“No. Stupid,” Instinctively, Melli hurled the affectionate insult at them once again, recoiling. “I can do it myself. Here – bed. Now.”

With some effort and assistance from Melli (who, Toy thought with some humor, was like a doting yet grumpy nurse), Toy crawled under the futon’s comforter, letting out a breath of satisfaction at the warmth and comfort. Melli wrung out the excess water from his tragically-unstyled lavender hair, toweling himself off to an acceptable level of dryness. Then, he reached into the pile of around ten Pokeballs, recognizing the plain Ultra ball Toy had used to capture the once-rambunctious Eevee that was Tilde. He let it out.

The Espeon materialized and instantly had words to say, scolding Melli in a language he couldn’t understand. He raised his hands in something like surrender, irritatedly shooting back: “Hey, don’t look at me – I nearly died getting here myself! Keep your partner warm and think about thanking me sometime, why don’t you?”

The reminder of her partner made Tilde shoot over to Toy’s side, where she automatically curled up beside them, cooing and whimpering worriedly at the trainer’s feverish state. Toy’s hand appeared from under the cover, stroking the Espeon’s light-colored fur. “Sorry to worry you. Good girl…” They muttered more quiet words of affection as the Espeon, succumbing to the restful encouragement, also closed its eyes.

All of Toy’s other Pokemon – namely, Regigigas, the God in Psychic Pokemon form Arceus, Alakazam, Mespirit, and Mr. Mime – were all rather unsuitable as bedmates (mostly due to size), so Melli dug into his own stash of plain Pokeballs to unleash his Skuntank. Hilariously enough, Skuntank, aptly nicknamed ‘Stunning’ for its silky fur and alabaster colored claws, instantly went to Toy’s side as well. The skunklike Pokemon laid beside Toy’s legs, one arm draped haphazardly across their lap, as if to protect them.

“What, no hello?” Melli asked it. “Since when are you such a mother hen?”

It just glanced back at him in something like annoyance before closing its eyes to sleep.

“Everyone is in top form today. The things I do…” Melli tsked, shaking his head. Though, internally, he knew that if he and Skuntank could understand each other’s words, Skuntank would ask Melli when he became the mother hen he was clearly being.

Now that business was taken care of, all that was left was to curl up on the tatami mat for a bit of rest. He’d nap a little, wait for the storm to subside, and have one of Toy’s own damn Pokemon carry them back to Jubilife Village for medical treatment… he was sure they’d be able to handle the fever for that long.

His hip had hardly rested on the tatami mat before he heard Toy shifting in the futon. “Melli…? What are you doing?”

“Sleeping. What are you doing?” An obvious and blatant lie, seeing as he became instantly alert at the sound of the other’s voice.

“Come in here… it’s warm, it’ll be warmer with you.” Toy weakly lifted the edge of the comforter, offering a sliver of space for Melli to fit within.

“It is way too crowded in there.”

“Please…? I don’t want you to get sick.”

“ You’re the sick one, stupid.”

“Then you’re going to ignore a sick person’s pleas…? You’re cruel… crueler than I thought…” Toy pretended for a moment to be crying, though it was all a playful trick they’d exhibited before today.

“How are you this evil even when you’re ill?!” Melli exclaimed, in awe of the other’s ability to quip. Skuntank cracked open an irritated eye at Melli, so with a sigh, he complied, scooting into the futon’s white edge. “Ugh. Fine.”

“Thank you. I don’t want you to hurt your back more…” Toy admitted with a hint of guilt in their voice.

The words gave Melli pause for a moment. Toy was probably the first person to care about his wellbeing like that since – well, his own family members and clanmates. Most people around didn’t give a damn what happened to him, and didn’t ask about him. What kind of relationship was it when you both cared like this? What other people would he walk through mud and rain to protect? What did you call this?

“Your heart’s beating,” Toy noted in a murmur, breath warm from the fever.

“I’m still alive , aren’t I?” Melli grumbled, scooting to be nearly chest-to-chest with the other. Awkwardly, very awkwardly, he draped his arm over Toy’s torso, hand fearfully placed on Toy’s lower back, more because there was no other place for it than out of a desire to snuggle. “-- I don’t think I’ve shared a bed with anyone since Adaman and I were just a couple of ankle biters.”

“I like it,” Toy admitted. Shamelessly, they curled into him, forehead resting on his collarbone. “This is the first time I’ve ever seen you shy.”

“I’m going to kick you out,” Melli threatened emptily, more sass in his voice than malice. Though, he had to admit, it was nice and warm underneath the covers. “Stop being bratty. Just rest.”

“Melli?”

“What? I just told you to go to sleep.”

“Thank you for finding me in the rain,” Toy sleepily murmured against the man’s undershirt, eyes closed and demeanor exhausted. “I was hoping it would be you… I was hoping you would come and save me when I tripped and fell. Thank you…”

When were they going to stop catching him off guard like this?

A slight red flush dusted Melli’s face, and the hand against Toy’s lower back held them with more confidence, more surety. He couldn’t so much as look at their face as he bashfully, stubbornly, muttered: “Yes, well… you don’t have to go and almost-die if you want me to come to you. I’ll come when you need me... the Great Melli is always here, you know. So don’t scare me anymore – I mean it. You hear me?”

Silence. He looked down, and sure enough, they had fallen asleep, snug against his chest. Melli let out a sigh of relief. Being vulnerable like that was like swallowing Bramblin thorns. Although, he also wasn’t without a shameless side, much like the other – he allowed himself to hug Toy’s smaller form close to himself (somewhat shamelessly now that there was no one awake to mock him, and also under the excuse that it would be warmer this way), and closed his eyes. They’d continue stepping on each other’s toes when the storm subsided, but for now… it was all about making it through the night. He held them tight knowing that that image of them lying prone on the shore could fade away, like nothing more than a bad dream. Soon, the group all were fast asleep in a warm pile of fur and cloth, and the rain continued to fall.

 

 

“Tip your head up. A purple stain on my sheets is the last thing I need.”

Toy let out an annoyed noise but complied anyways, lips parting and chin raising. Their head rested on the pillow of the futon; Melli was beside them, holding a teacup full of crushed Oran Berry juice that some of their Pokemon had gathered in the wee hours of the morning. Without hesitating, Melli poured the drink down their throat, hoping that the bitter taste would go down easier without the unfortunate chance of savoring it. Of course, Toy’s face immediately scrunched up in displeasure, lips puckering, head shaking at the shock of the flavor after they finished swallowing it.

“Nasty!” Toy remarked, miserably.

“Yes, well, you should have some of your strength back after drinking it. You’re ever-so-welcome.” Melli tsked, setting the cup aside and moving to stand. “Maybe now you’ll be able to carry yourself up the mountain next time you decide to use the river as your own personal waterslide.”

“Noooo,” Toy complained playfully, rolling onto their side slightly with their arms open. “Stay, don’t go outside. I want you to play Nurse for me some more.”

“That was ‘play’? Sometimes, I wonder what’s wrong with your head.” Even with the other’s grabbing hands vying to cling to him, Melli continued to pull himself away before dealing one of his dangerous flicks to Toy’s nose, which earned a little ‘ow’ from them. “Let me go, our clothes are drying outside and I don’t intend to let a Staraptor swoop down and take them. It took me months to embroider that hat.”

“I’ll come with you! I’m feeling better already.” Toy clasped their hands together, looking dreamy. “After spending a whole night being clasped in the arms of the wonderful Melli, I don’t think I’ll ever feel pain again!”

“Do not go around telling people that story,” Melli insisted, flushing red – even though, of course, nothing happened, the implication was way too embarrassing. “Do you want me to play Nurse or do you want to come help me? I’m beginning to think that fall dealt you permanent brain damage.”

“Jeeez! You’re even meaner than usual!” Toy pouted playfully. “Keep it up and Nurse Pesselle won’t hire you to be a bedside assistant, with that nasty attitude of yours. You’ll drive the poor patients to their graves.”

“Hmph. I wouldn’t want to work with Galaxy louts anyways.” Melli turned his nose up, unlatching himself from the other and making his way out of the tent with Toy giggling as he left. Such a brat .

When he emerged into the fresh morning air this high into the mountains, he noticed Toy’s Alakazam had already begun collecting the clothes. Just as well, Regigigas was sitting on the edge of the cliff overlooking the Coronet Highlands, accompanied by the neatly-perched Arceus. They watched Mespirit making figure eights in the cloudy, fresh sky, nothing more than a pink blip at times. The whole mountain smelled of petrichor and coolness, the land looking lush and green after the tumultuous night’s rain – though Melli and Toy’s Lord, Electrode, was nowhere to be seen. It was probably deep in a cave somewhere with its Voltorb followers.

Melli approached the Alakazam to take the dry clothes away, but the Pokemon met eyes with him and instantly bowed his head in respect. This nearly made him recoil in shock – since when had any of Toy’s prank-playing or else completely standoffish Pokemon ever had an ounce of respect for him!? However, he could sense strong waves of gratitude emanating from Alakazam, another perk of having Psychic Pokemon close nearby. The readability of it all.

“He’s thanking you with this whole heart.” Toy said, crawling out of the mouth of the tent.

“Oh?” Melli instantly put on his best smug face, and turned to Alakazam to address him. “Well, it’s no problem at all. It’s a warden’s job to watch over these lands and protect those within.”

“Well, yeah,” The other trainer smirked at him, recognizing that overconfident front Melli put up instantly. They nudged him gently with their elbow, looking up at him. “But you still deserve thanks. I could have seriously died, so… thank you, so much, Melli. From all of us.”

This was why Toy always kept Melli on the very tips of his toes, he swore – that earnestness in their eyes, that sincerity with which they spoke their emotions – it was all too foreign to him. He was someone who had to destroy his past shy self in order to become someone of use to Adaman, someone of use for Sinnoh and Electrode and all of Hisui – but Toy always seemed to look through him and tell him that it was okay. It was in moments like these where he could feel the other’s desire to nurture that quiet, genuine side of him – the one that he’d deemed useless and weak long ago. It almost made him want to surrender and let that be nurtured. Almost.

“Well.” Melli raised a hand, rubbing his nose sheepishly, not quite able to make eye contact with the Psychic trainer, nor their Pokemon. “… You’re very welcome. I suppose.”

Toy couldn’t help but smile at that. They hugged Melli’s arm close to them, coaxing him into leaning down from his great height so they could plant a kiss on his cheek. He made no noise or complaint at the gesture – just allowed it to happen, some of his stubbornness melting away as the warmth from the kiss traveled to the tips of his fingers and toes. Even as Toy relinquished their grip on him in order to quickly touch foreheads with Alakazam and go check in on Regigigas, Melli could still feel the ghost of their lips there, quieting his loud and insulting ire. He shook his head insistently, as if to get rid of this absurd status condition.

Alakazam watched him evenly, only a hint of judgement in his eyes.

“Oh, shut up, you,” Melli hissed, unprompted, snatching his Diamond Clan hoodie from the Pokemon’s arms and pulling it over his head in one swift motion. He followed Toy to where they had taken a seat on Regigigas’ leg, as if the ancient, unmoving Pokemon was nothing more than a stone picnic seat.

“Hey. I’ve been meaning to ask you – what the hell were you doing in the river anyways? That’s not usually the way you come to visit us in the arena.” Melli remarked, trying to push down his overwhelming curiosity (and a bit of dread) as he also sat on the edge of the cliff, beside Regigigas’ massive foot.

“Oh! I almost forget to tell you! It’s a funny story, actually.” Toy turned to their focus on the beautiful morning sky to Melli, grinning. “—I was totally trying to collect all the lost pouches on the Galaxy Team’s wanted board! This poor girl, Katy, lost her pouch in the Highlands, and it, like, totally called out to us… I’d be so sad if I lost my pouch, you know? I keep all my stuff in there! So I went to try and find it!” Toy laughed, waving their hand as they explained. “I was riding Wyrdeer in the rain, and we slipped and totally ate it! He must have gotten spooked from the tumble ‘cuz he totally abandoned me!! Have you ever fallen off a Wyrdeer’s back? You’re so high up it feels like falling for miles! I must have passed out right away from the shock, I just remember getting the wind completely beaten out of me!! I’m lucky nothing’s broken!”

Melli just stared.

He stared in silence for such a long moment that Arceus even turned its head and blinked at him.

“You nearly died… for someone’s pouch?” He spoke very slowly.

Toy blinked at him, too. Was this not the funny story they thought it was…? “Umm, I guess so? The job board said it was full of Crunchy Salt that Katy really wanted back, and I know gathering Crunchy Salt is a pain, so!”

“ You nearly died for someone’s pouch full of Crunchy Salt?!?” Melli yelled, aghast.

“I wasn’t trying to die-- ! I swear--!” Toy couldn’t help but to start laughing as Melli lunged up, grabbing by the shoulders to give them a vigorous shake.

“I cannot believe that Starly-brained head of yours for the life of me – you’re going to end up a corpse on the mountains because some board-poster could have sworn an Absol swallowed their wedding ring! I am never letting you out of my sight ever again!”

“Well, I—”

“And you!!” Melli pointed in the direction of Arceus and Regigigas, ranting loudly. “You let your trainer lay unconscious in a storm?! With a fever?! They could have busted their head and broken all their bones!! And what were you doing? Drinking cocktails in the luxury of your ball!?”

Arceus snorted through its nose, a very horse-like noise.

“He said –” Toy was giggling, still being shook around like a ragdoll by the very gestural Melli. “—to ‘stop barking, mortal’.”

“Oh, now you’ve gone and said it, you overgrown pink packhorse!” Melli exclaimed with maximum offense taken, standing to presumably engage the godly Pokemon in fisticuffs.

Even with all the ruckus, all the silly bickering, all the walls that Melli put up that had to be whittled away with the skill of a great sculptor, Toy wouldn’t trade any of this for the world. They giggled into their hand as they watched Arceus effortlessly ignore Melli’s shouting and gesturing. Petting the cool stone of Regigigas’ leg, Toy could feel a deep peace and pleasance emanating from the slow-moving creature through their psychic bond, and they looked up at it in joy. Even with all the faux-annoyance, Toy knew that their loving team of Psychic Pokemon would feel too lonely without the boisterous Melli around – they’d be able to feel the longing pain in Toy’s heart without him, too. He filled a space that none of them had even known was missing.

A light blush dusted over the Diamond Clan surveyor’s face as they thought of the past night – their foolish tumble, Melli’s unending effort to carry them up the mountain – Melli cleaning them up and holding them tight throughout the night, despite the hammering of his heart against their chest. Had last night been real …? That close hug under the futon covers that seemed to scream Melli’s desire, as he said, to never have them leave his side again? They weren’t sure if any or all of it was fever-dreamt, but still.

They smiled, watching their friend, their something-more, their companion, look silly raving at a god. Even if they had almost died, they wouldn’t change or trade this memory for the world – the memory of Melli’s strong, warm arms around them in the middle of the night, seeming to promise he’d protect them from the storm for as long as it raged on. If this was how beautiful the dew-dropped morning was, Toy felt the two of them could weather any rain.