It was, in fact, a very stupid idea.

Gavin's sparring with his Lucario in a break between matches. After catching him off-guard with a nasty punch, the jackal administers HEALING PULSES to dull the worst of his pain and mend the split skin where its palm spike had grazed him.

The problem with a big tournament like this is that it's loud; he's learned to tune out most of the noise around him for the sake of focus. When he hears the telltale sound of steps-in-sand rushing toward him, he doesn't expect it's anything more than someone rushing to find their next match. He doesn't turn around.

Weight hits him like a truck from behind, pins his arms, and Gavin's reaction is immediate. He doesn't register the other's voice beyond the white-hot rage and panic that seize him in equal measure; there is only threat and response.

He jerks his arms up and shifts sideways, hooks his leg behind Temp's and pulls them both to the ground. His fingers wrap around the hilt of his knife as soon as his arms are free and in a flash the blade is pressed hard against Tempest Quinn's throat. His knee drives hard against the attacker's ribs to force breath from his lungs, and it's only then that he registers he knows this asshole.

"Could have fuckin' killed you, mate."

The blade draws gently against Temp's neck, enough to bite but not enough to bleed. It's a violent caress before the blade is flicked back into its housing and dropped into Gavin's pocket.

Temp finds himself slammed onto the hot sand with cold steel pressed to his throat. The retaliation isn't the only reason he's left breathless.

A gasp for air and the stupid grin won't leave his face.

"That's fucking' hot, bro."

He decides to lay there a few extra seconds to catch his breath proper, decide if it's worth it to grab Cillian Quinn and kiss him till they're both bruised and bloody.

A child's laugh echoes from nearby and he sighs. Well, Temp did have decency. He pushes himself to sit up, palms flat on the sand. The smirk is still there, smooth as ever.

"You out here scrapping, dude?" It looked like it.

Gavin's panting from the prior exertion of his spar with Lucario and the spike of adrenaline brought on by Tempest Quinn's unexpected intrusion; it leaves his laugh breathless as he leans forward, chestnut brown hair falling across his face and tickling Temp's nose.

"Yeah?"

There's a rasp to his voice as he shifts to press his lips against the red line left by his blade. Children's laughter sees him sigh against the other's skin.

Later, the glint in amber eyes promises as he rocks back to let Temp sit up and get his bearings. His Lucario watches them both with arms folded, no attempt made to hide its exasperation.

Gavin smooths back his fringe, nods.

"Bit of a bout between matches." His Galarian accent colours the words in a way Temp's only heard snatches of before, particularly when Gavin was too caught up in lust to be careful. "Next one's not for a bit. You competing?"

It's that accent that gets him.

Mister 'Liam King' was going to get his ass grabbed. Those mothers would just need to cover their kid's eyes.

Temp is reaching for his prize when the hand he's balancing with shifts suddenly, skittering and almost knocking him sideways again. He's quick to regain his balance, a strange, round stone unearthed from the sand in the process.

"What the hell?" Is grumbled out, sad he missed his chance. A thin bracelet tied to his wrist, worn and faded, would flicker to life when he picked it up.

".... Well, that's never done that before." He flips it around so Cillian Quinn can see the familiar glint of a mega accessory.

His gaze hungers, devouring Tempest Quinn as it sweeps over him and—

"Mm?"

Disappointment at yet another interruption is offset by curiosity as Temp plucks a marble-like object from the sand. Gavin's squinting, suspicious of the familiar glint behind grains of sand, when the bracelet Temp wears gives a telltale response.

"You didn't know you had a mega bracelet?"

Incredulous, he laughs, slowly taking off his sunglasses and tilting them so that Temp could see the keystone pin concealed within the rim. He beckons Lucario over, gestures to the round stone embedded in a chain around its neck.

"Don't recognize that one, though, wonder what it's for? Sometimes you can tell by the colour..."

"What's a 'Mega Bracelet'?" But Temp does squint at the familiar looking stone on the inside of the glasses. Curious, he reaches out to run a finger over it.

"This was just my mom's. I wear it all the time." He had always just thought it was a pretty heirloom and nothing more.

But, the stone itself is lifted up and dusted off so the two of them can get a better look.

"Looks... kind of like my Medicham. What do they do?"

"Mega accessory. They can be all kinds of things. Glasses, earrings, rings, bracelets..." He lets Temp run his fingers over the keystone but warns, "Careful, it'll activate if you pull the pin."

Once Temp's got a good look at it, Gavin slips his sunglasses back on, amber eyes safely shaded once more.

He squints at the stone. It is kind of reminiscent of a Medicham's color, isn't it?

"They let your Pokemon mega-evolve. You can battle my Lucario if you wanna test it out!"

Lucario, arms still folded, seems indifferent to the idea.

"Not much of a pokemon battler... but, sure."

Since they were still close, Temp leaned in to steal a quick peck from Cillian Quinn while he had the chance. Then he pulled away, the tease, hopping back onto his feet and plucking one his pokeballs from his hip. His Medicham was tossed out, the pokemon stretching before placing her fists on her hips.

As a bonus, Skipper, his Riolu, was also brought out. The puppy pokemon gave a big yawn and was still rather pudgy- but it seemed excited to see the Lucario.

"This one's mostly a healer; I imagine you'll hold up all right."

That was, perhaps, yet another bullet point in the long list of reasons this poor Lucario was so uncomfortable with the underboss. It was a healer, a support Pokemon, and Gavin was well known to be an aggressive all-offense combatant.

His cheeks flush as Temp pecks him on the lips; there's a giddy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Lucario twitches its ears at its pudgy kin, softening some, then looks to Gavin for instruction.

"First move's yours. Test out that stone, mate!"

"These dudes can heal? That's cool. So far Skipper just kicks stuff and bosses around my other pokemon." Maybe the Riolu could learn something from the Lucario. Either way, he would be sure to give the Big Dog a few ear pets if the pokemon would allow him.

Cillian Quinn gave the instructions to use the stone....

But Temp just kind of turned it in his hand. He glanced at his Medicham but she just shrugged at him. She didn't know what to do with it.

"How do I use them?"

He touched the mega stone to the keystone....

Nothing.

---

medicham - female - pure power - mind reader, force palm, recover, thunder punch, ice punch, counter

Perhaps sensing benevolent intent in Tempest Quinn's aura, Lucario is amenable to the pats.

"There should be some way of activating it. Like, for mine, I pull this pin..."

He tugs the pin free of its housing in his glasses and a brilliant flash of mega-evolution energy swirls between the keystone and the chain around Lucario's neck. It surges into the mega stone and when the light clears, Lucario has changed.

It looks somewhat uncomfortable with this new shape, as if this is the first time they've done this.

Gavin had intended this mega stone for use with Faolan, but...

Temp chews on his lip before letting out a low whistle at the glory of Mega Evolution.

His Medicham holds out her hand and he drops the stone in it.

Then he goes to messing with the keystone.

"I think... oh! I bet I know what...." It's half muttered to himself. He puts his finger on the flat surface and spins it in the casing. It was something he did as a child, sitting on his mother's lap as she read him stories. Now he only fidgeted with it when nervous.

As expected, his Medicham bursts into her own Mega form.

"Huh... Welp... Thunder Punch?"

Leaping for the Lucario, electricity cracked from a closed fist, aimed at the canine.

Gavin grins. "Nice."

As its instincts lead it to start with a MAGNET RISE in fear of ground-based retribution, Lucario has no way of avoiding the punch that crackles with electricity. Just their luck, the attack PARALYZES.

Lucario growls, shifting its stance to something more aggressive as it hovers in the air.