there was a rumor going about of kidnappings from a pokemon that was too lonely and dangerous for its own good.

arthur had come mostly for the generous prize, but he quickly regretted it when he found out that it was actually quite cold here, and whoever was doing the kidnappings was somewhere up the mountain. ugh. he wasn't really equipped for hiking, but at least his intuition was right about finding a fire type. growlithe so far proved to be a bouncy, loyal new addition to the team, and he proved his power in a wild battle where the young man wanted to see if he had any battle experience. the answer was no, but the pup had a lot of fire power that he didn't know how to control well. still, he chalked it up as a lot of potential that just needed refining, and was quite happy with his catch.

now, it seemed that growlithe would be put to the test here. he had a hunch that it was an ice type doing the kidnappings, but he had no idea what kind of pokemon it was. some villagers were saying it was a glalie, mostly because they were one of the fiercest, native ice types to the hoenn region. others, though, insist that it was humanoid in shape (for those who were able to briefly witness the kidnappings). they claim it must be a beartic or an abomasnow. arthur had to search up these pokemon just to get an idea on what he was potentially messing with.

at the moment, growlithe was out of his ball, sniffing around and being his typical, happy-go-lucky self. that was, until he started barking at something in the snowy fog, and arthur had to squint just to see the outline of a tiny figure limping towards them. they were a bit a ways from former now, and to his surprise it was...a skitty, of all pokemon. he immediately thought of chu-e, but found it too much of a coincidence for this tiny, wounded thing to be his precious pokemon. still, he supposed he had to check. fate liked to play with people in strange ways.

"sweetness? is that you?" the growlithe had let out a snarl, but arthur had motioned for him to stand down. he had approached her cautiously, remembering their last encounter was technically with duosion, and she wasn't happy about that. still, if this was chu-e's, then...his heart started to pound a little. because if his skitty was this badly wounded, then her trainer...

he had a real bad feeling about this. he brought out a super potion from his pack in order to patch up some of the pink cat's wounds, but it would be up for her to accept the help.

---

o v o

whether this was chu-e's skitty or not, it was clear that something had happened to her trainer, and that she desperately needed help. what the heck hit her? when he had gotten close enough to examine the injuries, he realised then that her leg was injured, so after giving her the spray (it was all he had on to spare), he gently picked her up and cradled her body near his by placing her inside the thermal jacket he was wearing. he of course left the zipper half open so that her head can poke out, but at least her cold fur was no longer exposed to the elements. growlithe had let out a whine, not liking the fear he sensed within his trainer. the situation looked dire, and he did in fact catch a whiff of something dangerous in the other's fur. he let out a bark, running a little ahead towards the direction that he felt was right, asking his trainer if he should track whatever this was.

for arthur, he felt like they didn't have much of a choice. he was here anyway to fight the beast, and now the stakes were raised. "did you pick up the scent?" he asked as he approached his pokemon. thankfully the snow and wind had died down a little, but it was still hard to see anything farther than perhaps twenty or so feet. the pup barked in return as he continued to ascend the mountain in bounces, so arthur braced himself and continue climbing upward. he hoped to arceus that chu-e was alright, or that it wasn't chu-e at all who was kidnapped by the monster that lurked in these mountains. he had to admit that he...

he clenched his teeth, reaching some flat ground, and finding that there was a dark mouth within the fog. a cave, it looked like, and growlithe had let out a low snarl at it. one of his hands was on duosion's poke ball in the event that he needed a shield. he would let him out once they got to the entrance of the cave, and when the psychic type looked at arthur, he let out a yelp when he saw sweetness. what was she doing here?

---

arthur fears the worst as he ascends the mountain and makes it to the entrance of the cave. sweetness is in his jacket while growlithe and duosion are outside of their balls, cautious on what is to come.

well, neither arthur nor his pokemon would have time to think of past meetings after they heard the gristly, terrifying roar that echoed from the cave walls. growlithe let out a scared whine, but duosion tried his best to comfort their newest team member, albiet the psychic type was similarly shaken. whatever pokemon was in there was definitely going to be a challenge to defeat, but there was someone else in there and their trainer had all the intentions to save them, so they would follow that feeling through.

somehow, even if there was a ceiling to the cave, something like snow was still dripping down. would growlithe and duosion alone be enough to fight this monster? he hadn't used excadrill as much as he liked, but he felt like he would need him here in order to beat this menace. he simply hoped that the black market-bought pokemon would listen to him fully for this round. as he was about to release him, a pokemon suddenly flies out of the cave, startling all of them as they instinctively move out of the way. with the moment passed, arthur realized that it was a granbull that was now head deep into the snow, and that pretty much confirmed it for arthur that it was chu-e in there and he was going to die from whatever else was in there if he didn't do something.

"growlithe, find that monster and give it a good flare blitz! duosion, support growlithe with barriers if necessary." he quickly commanded before letting out excadrill to join in the fray. the large mole pokemon was a bit confused by his surroundings and also at how cold it was, making his mood somewhat irritated. "excadrill, carry that granbull to the mouth of the cave, then come with me."

usually excadrill wasn't much for orders, but there was an urgency in his trainer's voice that wasn't usually there, so for once he decided to accept, walking out to the snow to hoist the knocked out pokemon and place him where he wouldn't be exposed to the elements, at least, before joining his trainer deeper into the darkness. there was something sinister here that all of them could feel.

growlithe had ran ahead, very intent on playing hero as he already released some flames around his body before finding his target: a hulking, extremely large ice pokemon. he barely notices chu-e and the other pokemon before slamming onto the abomasnow in full force, making the monster stagger backward in surprise and in pain. it let out a loud roar, and the moment growlithe was able to get his feet back on the ground (hurting a little from the recoil), it was about to fight back with another wood hammer before getting socked in the face with a well-timed ROLLOUT from duosion. the psychic type then joined his teammate just in time before the abomasnow retaliated with a powerful ICE PUNCH, with duosion absorbing a bit of the blow with a quick REFLECT. the attack broke through and slams the green pokemon onto the ground, hurt but still conscious, so he activated RECOVER but was unable to move while his body lightly glowed.

the abomasnow was not done yet, though. he followed up with another ice punch, about to hit growlithe, but excadrill stepped in by catching those cold fists, responding with an up close METAL CLAW. that really hurt the monster, bearing a gash on its abdomen, which made it take a couple of steps back to get its bearings.

while arthur's pokemon were keeping the monster at bay, he found chu-e leaning near the cavern walls. he almost slipped from running but kept his footing, so he was able to get to his side and assess the damage, sighing in relief that he was still alive. "i really didn't expect for you to be in the middle of this mess." he said with a small laugh, "guess this makes you the damsel-in-distress, huh?" he wasn't sure if chu-e could walk, but it looked like he had taken a beating, so he let out of his arms sling over his shoulder as support and with a bit of difficulty managed to stand.

---

arthur enters the cave and does a few things: growlithe tackles the abomasnow, who is also hit by a rollout to the cheek, and then excadrill does a cool thing and scratches the snowman. meanwhile, our dashing prince charming tries to save his love interest, but the abomasnow wouldn't be too happy about that.

with the other growlithe further digging into the abomasnow, the large pokemon is still very much angry, but visibly weakened. duosion uses the extra time to finish recovering, finding himself able to float again. he sets up a REFLECT to keep abomasnow at bay while growlithe meets up with other growlithe, asking if he's okay and helping him back up. excadrill decides to use the barrier to perform a SWORDS DANCE, right before the monster crashes in with WOOD HAMMER. he breaks the barrier easily, though the recoil damage is more obvious now, but it manages to slam duosion, knocking him out. excadrill manages to move the two growlithes out of the way by scooping them up with his claws.

on arthur's end, he instinctively hugs the other a little tighter when he falls onto his arms. he does not voice out his relief, but chu-e could probably feel it from his gestures. they are certainly not out of the woods yet, though, and even if the other man is conscious, arthur notices that his speech is not as sharp as it normally is. "guess this is why someone needs to watch your back, huh?" it is hard to get him up, particularly because then he realises that chu-e isn't able to walk properly. he takes the comment about the white knight but doesn't respond to it. rather, he is unable to think of a response. something eventually forms after his eyes stare at the other's crippled form for a second. "if i am your knight, then it's my duty to get you out of here alive."

but he isn't sure what to make of catching it. that thing's pissed, and just as he thinks that, the abomasnow decides that he doesn't want to bother with the pokemon anymore. it's only then arthur notices that duosion has been knocked out. shit! the monster is now facing them and makes the ground shake as he approaches them, but he needs to move past it to get to the entrance. "growlithe, use flame burst at its feet! excadrill, use rock slide!" they both comply, and the fire pup gets to use his new move, shooting a ball of flame that ignite's the monster's tiny limbs, making it roar and fall over. right before that happens, arthur uses whatever adrenaline his body is pumping to half drag, half support chu-e to the other end where the entrance of the cave is waiting for them. excadrill, with the extra help of swords dance, commands the rocks from the ceiling to crumble on top of the abomasnow, burying it until only its appendages can be seen.

oh. guess he's not sure if they can catch a dead pokemon, if it is dead. he calls duosion back into his ball. "oh, sorry. did you really want to catch it? guess you could still press the ball on his foot." he lets out a tiny laugh at the absurdity of the situation. the cave is quiet for the moment and for now the danger is quelled. for now.

---

notes: i don't know if they'll be able to catch a bunch of rocks

"that's honestly pretty rich coming from you." and while he means that in jest, he doesn't say it with a smile, realizing that he might've overstepped a little there. still, there might be a faint chance that the pokemon is alive, right? just unconscious? as if reading his mind, growlithe does something stupid and approaches the buried pokemon, sniffing the foot sticking out and lightly paws it before immediately taking cover behind his trainer. the appendage, which looks more haunting by the second, does not even twitch. oof, it does appear to be dead.

he's conflicted on whether he wants to be right or wrong about this. they make their way to the edge of the cave where the granbull is still knocked out, but at least the blizzard outside has died down some. only then arthur noticed that the snow warning from earlier had chilled his body, though chu-e is noticeably colder. he shivers and echoes the other's sentiment. better it than them. "i guess a pokemon like that would suit you." he mutters, recalling his little life goal about death and destruction. he imagines for a moment what it might be like having that much raw power on their side. it took how many of his pokemon for him to kill it, and they were super effective hits too. what would've happened if he didn't have growlithe or excadrill? would he have been able to save chu-e? would he have died along with him in the icy cavern?

he turns to him at the mention of the whole princess / knight dynamic. the randomness of it made him laugh, quelling his dark thoughts for the time being. "what makes you say that? i ought to kiss you instead. i was worried about you, you know." he doesn't originally intend to be this open, but perhaps it's the adrenaline of making out of that gristly situation alive and fairly well, all things considered. none of their pokemon died either, but of course there is still the matter of going back down the mountain to get to the village. well, last leg of the journey. they should be able to make it.

---

notes: sounds good! they could do a little banter along the way unless the abomasnow decides to make a surprise visit lol

we're both tired. arthur thinks, but he has to be the stronger one here. he is by default since he is still able to walk, but at the same time he tries to imagine how it would be like walking down the mountain. he feels like there is a bigger chance for them to trip and cause a rolling snowball like in the cartoons, only it wouldn't be as funny. he muses for a moment if he should just try to contact someone to fetch them, but that would take quite a lot of time, and arthur isn't sure if he wants to stay at the entrance of the cave either. what if the abomasnow is still alive, he thinks. it's why growlithe and excadrill are still outside their balls, though he decides to return the fire pup because of too many flare blitzes that made the poor pokemon's legs quiver.

from all the running and almost dying bits, he had forgotten that there was something sitting in his jacket as well, so when chu-e mentions her, he looks down and has a small smile. "she was the one who brought me here. i feared the worst when i saw her." he says softly. the wind is no longer as intense as it was earlier. the snow is almost beautiful to look at as it is deadly. it falls onto the mountain's white surface without so much as a sound. he decides that if they are going to wait a while, there isn't much use to making chu-e stand. he lets him sit on the edge of the cavern walls, right where the snow changes into dirt. he also does a once over again in case he misses anything from his earlier assessment. his ankle looks a little twisted, and he has a number of cuts here and there, but as far as he can tell, there are no broken bones.

he sits beside him; their shoulders touching. he also listens quietly on what he has to say. so, he likes cute pokemon, huh? nothing wrong with that, really, and it somehow makes the man in front of him more human than he already is. he tries to wrack his brain though if his name sounds familiar. it does not. he wonders if it's a name that's only whispered on the lowest recesses of the violence, where everything happens. he notes about used to having a blissey and remembers his own pokemon nurse. he misses her too.

but his heart catches on his throat at the last bit. despite the cold, his cheeks flush red. he...what? he stares at the other, wondering if he is being serious or delirious. but he surprises himself that he isn't against the thought. it's just...he half feels that after he does so he's going to get punched. that's something that chu-e might do, but in reality he does not know him much at all. those few minutes are something that revealed much more about him than their past encounters. he wonders how much it all hurts and how he had to carry all of it alone. "guess i should stop being the coward then, huh? it's not very befitting of a knight."

he lifts himself up a little from the wall so that he can turn his body to properly face him. he then uses his free hand to gently coax him closer to his own face. this feels...strange. it certainly isn't where arthur had expected to share a kiss, and he isn't sure if this is what the other really wants. he isn't even sure if he would remember this afterward when they go their separate ways, but perhaps the last thought is comforting rather than strange. he leans in and lets their lips touch, and he isn't rough or forceful; instead he relishes the feeling and realises that it has been a while since he had done something like this...this intimate. it makes him tremble and he pulls away after a few moments. the feeling lingers.

he lets out a small huff and a small white cloud comes out. shit. did he just? "so, how was that?"

---

notes: s c r e a m s a t t h e g a y
notes2: excadrill is probably turning away for privacy but he's also blushing like heck like wow trainer