Chapter Text
Asami's entire body was vibrating the whole ride up the elevator. God, that car ride home was the most stressful twenty minutes of her life. She was terrified Peony would be able to tell she'd just slobbered all over his daughter if he made eye contact with her. She was still going back and forth over whether or not he'd be cool about it, or if he would've gotten overprotective. Sure, Asami was only five foot nil and she'd never thrown a punch at anyone not named Ifelewa before, but maybe Peony would've perceived her as a threat anyway. Maybe he still would.
Suddenly, a wave of regret crashed over her. She'd been aggressive. She pinned Penny to the bed and had her way with her! Holy shit, maybe Asami was a threat to Penny after all. Penny had been crying, and the sight of Penny so broken and vulnerable... It lit a fire in her. She wanted to ruin her. She wanted to push her into blissful delirium. She wanted to be the one to put her back together. She wanted to know Penny inside and out, to be the one she fell apart to.
Where the hell did this even come from?! It wasn't even like she and Penny were particularly close. They were casual friends at best. Asami had always been intrigued by her for some reason, yet even she didn't predict this turn of events. Even she could tell this possessiveness was a bit uncalled for. Was there something wrong with her brain? What the hell was her deal?!
She barely had the patience to unlock her door, she was so amped up. She wanted to scream, to bash her head into the wall, to do something with all this energy burning under her skin. Instead, she quietly slipped inside the apartment, finding the place dark and quiet. Ifelewa was probably already asleep. Asami kicked off her shoes, tip-toed across the hall and back into her room, and threw herself on top of her bed. Christ, what a day. She fought with Penny, saw her cry, followed her home and kissed the living daylights out of her...
Oh, and Robin was back. She almost forgot about that little detail. And Peony was eerily fond of Ifelewa now. Eugh.
She wasn't going to sleep for a good while, that was for sure. There was so much running through her brain, the delicate sobs Penny let out as Asami mouthed at her pulse point, the feeling of Penny's heart beating against her chest, the tears in Penny's eyes... It was gonna be a long night.
Penny was rather pointedly ignoring any discussion of the Pokemon World Tournament Invitational Championship. That was another little thing she'd have to cede to freaking Robin Ambrose. She was the greediest bitch Penny knew. Uva Academy, sure. Nemona, fine. Team Star, that stung, but that was probably her own fault. But this? This fantastic opportunity to get to know Asami more that didn't even take place in Paldea or Unova or any other region Robin had sunk her claws into? This was a bridge too far. Penny had given up so much, run so far, and now her demons were coming for her in her own backyard.
It wasn't that she'd never fought back against her bullies before. Obviously, she had. But she couldn't do it alone. She'd had to assemble her own little army to find the strength. She'd had to siphon their strength to do it. But Robin Ambrose was a beast she'd have to fight solo, because for whatever reason, everyone just loved her. Penny sort of understood the appeal, she was charming and effervescent when she was in a good mood. She could make you feel so special. She also happened to be the most vengeful, ruthless woman Penny had ever met. That combination was dangerous, so much more dangerous than the schoolyard bullies that tormented her before. It'd be like boxing a Ghost-type. Penny couldn't hope to rise up against her, because no one else wanted to. She had them all fooled. She showed them the prettiest pieces of herself, and casually squashed Penny like a Razz Berry under her heel while their backs were turned.
"Oh, Pen-Pen!!" Peonia chirped cheerfully at her door, not bothering to knock before bursting into her room. "I've decided to accompany you to the matches today. Jessa totally bailed on me last minute to hang out with her uber lame boyfriend, so you're my Plan B. Wear something nice! We're not only watching the matches, but we're also farming some super aesthetic photos for my Palafinstagram highlights. I hear that's the chic thing to do these days. Textless pictures of 'candids' taken on outings. It makes one look worldly while maintaining one's sense of nonchalance."
Penny absorbed maybe 20% of the words Peonia just uttered. "You can go. I'm not going today," she grumbled, furiously tapping away on her laptop as she laid in bed. Damn quick-time events.
Peonia blinked. "You're not going?"
"That's what I just said."
"You- What the hell?! You were so freaking excited the whole week, and now you're just gonna sit in your room coincidentally when I want to come too?" Peonia demanded shrilly. "You literally have friends you could meet there!! Genuine, honest-to-God friends!! A smoking hot gym rat with abs that could cut glass and a tongue piercing and piercing golden eyes and- And his sister!" she blurted out, her face flushing bright red. "And you're just gonna hang them out to dry?! Jesus, Pen-Pen, what happened to you?! Were you not the girl who pulled together an entire army of buddies out of loyalty?!"
"Yeah, and look where that got me," Penny muttered under her breath.
"I don't remember you being dragged out of Paldea by your hair. I don't remember a gun to your head."
Penny snorted. There may as well have been, with Robin breathing down her neck. She'd literally promised to drag Penny by her hair to Mela's feet. It felt like the walls had big pink eyes everywhere she went in Paldea.
"This is pathetic, Penny. It's pathetic and it's sad. You do realize that- That people miss you when you're gone, right?" Peonia asked in disbelief. "You don't think your new friends aren't gonna sit and wonder, 'Hey! Where's our gal pal Penny? Why isn't she here? Why didn't she want to come? Is it something I did? Does she not like me anymore?' Like, you think they're just gonna shrug and move on?"
"Why do you care? I thought you'd be happy I was out of your way. Maybe then you'd get a clear shot at Ifelewa. I should warn you, though: He's way more into our dad," she informed Peonia rather harshly. "Have fun at the match. Or don't. Your choice."
Peonia's nostrils flared. "Fine! Fine!! I'll leave you alone. I'll go, because clearly Princess Penny is way too good to even be seen with me in public!!" she shouted, her face heating up to a brilliant scarlet. "Why do I even bother?! I'll just let my little sister die alone in her room from scurvy and neglect and let her body get eaten by her million Veevees. See if I care! Do I look like I care?! Because I don't! I don't care! Why should I care?! You don't care! You don't care about anything anymore! You don't care about me, or Dad, or anyone but yourself!" she barked, slamming the door behind her with a thunderous crash.
Peonia then opened the door back up a crack, just to get one last barb in. "And tell whoever was in your room last night to stop leaving marks on my baby sister!" And with that and one more thunderous crash for good measure, Peonia left, her stomping back to her room quite audible through the walls.
Shit, did Asami actually leave a physical mark? Not just a psychological one? Penny turned to her now black laptop screen to inspect her reflection and sure enough, there it was. Not quite a hickey, but certainly a red mark on her neck. Faint, but noticeable. Shit. That wasn't something she could just shove out of her mind and bury under something easier. She'd have to wear a turtleneck or something, but she hated the way they chafed!
The doorbell rang out of the blue, startling Penny out of her inspection. She didn't get the door, of course, she'd leave that to Peonia or something.
She could vaguely hear Peonia talking to another woman on the step, followed by the conversation abruptly ceasing. Instead, Peonia threw her door open once more. "It's for you," she informed her, her confusion evident on her face.
Penny frowned. She wasn't expecting a visitor today. Maybe she had to sign for the new mousepad she'd ordered online? That seemed odd. Nevertheless, she stepped to the door, gingerly pulling it open.
Instead of any courier, she was met with a girl towering over her. Thankfully, this time the girl didn't smell so violently of Chanel No. 5.
"Heya, Penny," Nemona greeted her with only 30% of her usual enthusiasm. "I wanna talk to you. If that's alright."
So all was not well in Robin's world. Good news: she was collecting old friends like Infinity Stones these days, and this time was looking to be far less painful than the dreaded League Bratz reunion, and she had even more besties in tow. And her old besties knew her new besties! They'd meshed decently well when Asami wasn't so distracted by Penny's drama, too. It was all very heartwarming stuff.
Bad news: Team Star knew where Penny was and they were not okay.
"I can't believe Nemona gets to go deal with her," Ortega complained for the umpteenth time that day. The group had gone for lunch, and while Arven was relatively unbothered and eating his curry like a normal person, the others weren't especially appetized given the situation.
"Penny would spontaneously evolve into an Excadrill and burrow her way out of her own home if we all showed up there at once," Eri reasoned, though she seemed similarly dejected. "Nemona's the safest bet if we want her to not run away." The group, after being rather sternly told by Robin that only one person would be allowed to see Penny at first, had eventually come to a decision that Nemona should be the one to lure Penny out into the light. It took a lot of pride-swallowing, but they got there.
"'Tis a tragedy how- How we used to be her greatest treasure, her elixir, and now-" Atticus trailed off, covering his mouth with his hand. "Now, we are her greatest nightmare. We are the dragon she yearns to slay. How could- How could she be so frightened of her friends?"
"To be fair, we're all chummy with Robin. Girl's terrified of her," Mela noted.
"I thought you said you guys, like, made up. Kind of," Giacomo said, narrowing his eyes at Robin. "Why's she still so scared of you?"
Eri scoffed. Robin elected to let that one go. Even Carmen herself had forgiven Robin for her admittedly crazy attitude towards her when she'd stormed the Caph Squad base, but Eri had proven to hold a bit of a grudge.
Robin shrugged. "Beats me. I thought I'd made it pretty clear that despite our differences, I still wanted her to have friends."
Arven snorted. "While threatening her in the same sentence. You threatened to drag her back to Mela by her hair if she didn't make things right with Team Star."
"Yeah, what happened to that? Kept her a secret from us for eight whole hours," Mela muttered under her breath.
Robin bit her lip. So, she did kind of hide it from all of them until after the matches were over. In her defense, she was having too much fun with all her friends to drop a bombshell on them and ruin their fun. She'd let the hangout die, and then she told them. To preserve their happiness for as long as she could. And to preserve her own mental peace.
"In Lady Ambrose's defense, our friend had already departed by the time she was able to inform us. It would have changed nothing, and only made us miserable," Atticus chimed in. "Er... More miserable than we are at the present moment, of course."
Mela sighed. Apparently that sigh wasn't quite enough for her, because she followed it up with an aggressive growl and by slamming her fists against the table. Poor Arven got so startled he nearly spilled curry all down his front. "I hate this!" she exclaimed, alerting almost the entire restaurant to her outburst. "I hate that she just left! She just- She just left and she's never coming back and- And she doesn't even care!!"
"She cares," Robin said quietly.
"Oh, and how would you know?! You don't even like her. You never have. How would you know how she feels?!"
"I just do," she said firmly. "She cares but she's scared you all hate her, and you spilling Ortega's curry everywhere in a fit of rage doesn't do much to dispel that misconception, does it?" she asked gently, putting her hand on Mela's shoulder and softly guiding her away from the table. "C'mon. Let's go for a walk."
Ortega whistled. "Girl, she is getting walked like a Houndour..."
"Hang on, I gotta get in on this. No way am I not the goodest boy," Arven insisted, hurriedly getting up from his seat to join them. "Hey, guys! I hear there's some kind of walk going on...?"
"Girl talk walk for girls," Robin informed him. "Sit down, eat your curry. I'll be back soon." She patted his head before dismissing him back to the table.
"Aww..."
They took a stroll outside the restaurant, Robin leisurely leading the way while Mela seethed. Mela was kind of annoyed by just how calm Robin was. Like she'd dealt with Mela's type her whole life. Tch. Since when was Robin the expert on defusing the anger of teenage girls?!
"Penny and I talked in Area Zero," Robin said out of the blue. "She felt guilty about it all. Thought you guys would hate her. Probably still does. And I could tell she was tearing herself apart over it. That's how I know she cares."
Mela's jaw nearly hit the ground. "And you- God, you don't tell us anything, do you?!"
"I thought it'd be best if you could move on. All of you. So I tried not to bring her up. Thought that'd make you guys happier," she explained quietly. "But I guess I didn't realize that you couldn't move on, just like that. That it's not that simple. It never is."
"Wow, way to get all weirdly emotional in a back alley," Mela grumbled. "It's just- It makes me so mad. That she gets to just walk away from it all. Like it didn't matter. I thought- I thought we were a family, and she just- She went to get Galarian milk or some shit! She went to get Galarian milk and she- she replaced us with some- some- some people!!"
"I appreciate your reluctance to call Asami and Ifelewa mean names."
"I don't know 'em well enough to insult them properly," Mela muttered bitterly. "What makes them so special to her? What the hell do they have that we don't?!"
"Melanin, I suppose," Robin mused. "I mean, they're perfectly nice people. Asami is- Y'know, she's sweet and perky and adorable and patient and ambitious and kind, and Ifelewa's very friendly and such a good big brother, but- I dunno, I think it's less to do with specialness and more to do with the fact that there's no blood in the water with them," she remarked, crossing her arms. "You guys- You guys came together out of necessity. You bonded over being bullied. Literally trauma-bonded. You left school and holed up in little squads together. And then she left for a year and a half, took down the team and ran away again. That's- That's a lot of baggage, you know."
"Yeah. It's a lot for us too. But we- We don't run away from each other. We get through it together, because we're a family and we love each other and- And- Fuck, I couldn't imagine not having them. Apparently she- She can absolutely imagine not having us. She doesn't need us anymore. Maybe she never did," Mela complained, the fire in her eyes momentarily dimming as her voice broke.
Robin frowned. "Do you need her?" she asked gently.
Mela's eyes flashed with fury once more. "Wha- What the hell kind of question is that?! She's- She was our big boss! Our leader!"
Robin shrugged. "You guys managed for a year and a half without her. And- I mean, you guys were having a great time before you found out about her. We've- Like, we're all friends now, and she hasn't been here, and it hasn't been the end of the world, has it? Haven't you been happy? At all?"
"That's not fair. What, were we supposed to be constantly miserable without her? That sounds exhausting."
"Well, you clearly didn't need her to be happy," Robin retorted. "It's- It's okay to let it go. Alright? The- The 'Team Star vs. The World' era has ended. You're back at school, the bullying's over and you're gonna graduate next year. And the fact that the five of you managed to keep your friendship intact is great, but- But it's alright if you can't with her. You don't owe her that. And she doesn't owe you that either."
"Well, she owes us something," Mela grumbled. "I didn't do that fuckshit for eighteen months and get absolutely destroyed by your Musharna just to get ignored into oblivion. I just want- I just want something, man! Don't I deserve something?!"
Robin sighed, putting her hand on Mela's shoulder. She didn't have any more words of wisdom for Mela, unfortunately. She was usually the one leaving, not the one being left. She wasn't very familiar with how it felt on the other side of the aisle, watching someone you love slip away. Apparently, she and Penny had more in common than she thought.
Mela clenched her fists, before letting out an aggravated huff and crashing into Robin's chest, aggressively hugging her. Huh. Mela had never hugged her before, even after a good six months of being friends. Really, none of Team Star were big huggers. Well, Eri was a hugger, just not to Robin. Robin was okay with that, Nemona was enough of a hugger for all of them, but it really warmed her heart to know that someone from Team Star actually liked her beyond her wallet.
Eventually, Mela pulled away, fiddling with her hair. "...Sorry," she muttered under her breath.
"It's okay. I don't mind," Robin assured her.
Mela snorted. "Yeah, I should hope not. You got that big lug draped over you every second of the day," she joked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Betcha Penny's crushing on the sister."
"Oh, ew. I don't like that."
"Is she gay? As much as I think it'd be hilarious for Penny to go after two straight girls in a row, I'm not quite that evil."
"Y'know, the sexualities of my female friends tend to evade me," Robin remarked thoughtfully. "I still have no idea if Nemona's straight, gay, bisexual, asexual..."
Mela gasped. "I forgot asexuality was an option! We've totally cracked the code," she announced triumphantly. "D'you think Pokemon battles are like sex to her?"
Robin grimaced. "I hope not. She'd be kind of a whore if they were."
Nemona was sitting on Penny's bed, taking in all the various posters pinned to the wall. "Your room is very decorated," she noted.
"Is that a bad thing?" Penny asked, fiddling with the collar of her big, fuzzy turtleneck she'd put on to hide the mark. Dammit, Asami! This was all her fault. She should've gone lower.
"No, I think it's very you," Nemona opined quietly. "You were there yesterday, weren't you? Robin said she saw you."
"...Yeah, I was- I was there," she admitted.
"You didn't say hi," Nemona said simply, an observation rather than an accusation. "Why?"
"I dunno," Penny muttered under her breath. "Didn't think it was a good idea."
"The others probably would've been pretty upset," Nemona agreed. "I hear you've taken my advice to a T. You gave them a while to miss you, and meanwhile you've found new friends with no baggage."
Penny blinked. She was expecting to be scolded, raked over the coals, not praised. On one hand, it was Nemona, she wasn't really the type to be scolding, but on the other, she was just so used to being lambasted that it almost seemed routine to her. "...Yeah," she offered timidly. "I guess."
"...I'm not sure it worked out as well as I hoped," Nemona admitted bashfully. "I-I mean, if you still wanna be friends with them again. Are- Is- Like, are you... happier here, or...?"
Penny shrugged. "Less miserable."
"Well, that's a start." Nemona giggled despite herself, averting her gaze to the pile of sleeping Veevees on the Pokemon bed by Penny's desk. "...I missed you, you know."
No, Penny did not know. Honestly, she didn't even think Nemona would've cared enough about Penny to miss her. She'd always been on Penny's periphery, she was Giacomo's successor, Geeta's prodigy, Robin's friend. Penny didn't realize she was anything more to Nemona than the girl Robin destroyed. "You did?" she breathed, still in disbelief.
"Of course! You're my friend, you dummy!" Nemona grinned, lightly shoving Penny in the shoulder. "You kept me sane when Robin and Arven wouldn't stop eating each other's faces off in Area Zero. I'll always be grateful for that. And I don't understand how anyone could kiss for that length of time. Don't you get bored?"
"U-Uh... I wouldn't know," Penny admitted. She wished Asami's kiss could've lasted for that long. Unfortunately, her stupid dad had to go and ruin everything.
"Yeah, me neither. Kissing sounds like no fun," Nemona huffed. "I don't know how they don't get bored. They genuinely can mix their saliva together for two hours."
"Eugh. Boy tongue," Penny agreed.
"I'm sure it's an acquired taste," Nemona mused. "You know, I wasn't sure about him considering some of the hell he's put her through, but he's a very good boyfriend. Er- Fiancée, I guess."
Penny blinked. "...Oh." Damn. It was all coming up Robin, wasn't it? Her and her picture perfect life, doting husband, group of gal pals, wealth and power. She was getting what she always wanted: complete assimilation. A nuclear family and a white picket fence despite it all. How quaint. She got to escape their shared curse. Penny wondered if in twenty years, she'd still think it was worth it.
"Yeah, I know. Robin told me the story. Arven's... Well, he's doing better than he has been. I think he mostly just proposed because he was scared of losing her," Nemona mused. "Anyway, that's neither here nor there. How are you?"
Penny snorted. "You wearing a wire?"
"No, but the others are absolutely gonna interrogate me after this," Nemona admitted freely. "C'mon, I can keep some secrets! Tell me! How do you and Asami and Ifelewa know each other?"
"Well, Asami and Ifelewa are siblings..."
"Okay, well, I knew that."
Penny chuckled, an honest to God exclamation of mirth. She barely remembered the last time she did that. "I met Asami in the Isle of Armor, and her brother shortly after. I'm- Well, I'm modelling for her newest collection. I wonder how that's coming along. I have been kind of distracting her with the tournament."
"Oh, that's right! Asami sews! She and Atticus were totally bonding over that. I think he likes her," Nemona remarked, inadvertently creating an empty feeling in Penny's stomach. Of course he liked her. Of course that was another wedge between them. Why wouldn't he like her? They actually had things in common. Whereas Penny still felt so awkward around Asami, and it was only gonna get worse after-
Well. Maybe they can let their lips do the talking next time.
"They seem like good friends," Nemona continued innocently. "I wonder if she's gonna get one of his poems..."
Penny's blood started to boil.
"Robin got one of his poems. It was a very beautiful, misguided, rejection sonnet. Whole time the girl was just grieving."
Penny's blood got reduced to a gentle simmer.
"I bet a love confession poem from him would be even more beautiful!"
Penny's blood boiled over once more.
"Ah, but who knows if it'll get that far. He's only here a week longer, after all."
Flying-types were singing in the streets. He would be gone in a week. Robin would be gone too. They all would. This whole thing would just blow over. And she'd be left alone. Everything would go back to the way it was before she was ambushed by Robin and her fucking perfume.
Somehow, that felt less like a victory than she thought it would.
"You can talk to him, you know. All of them," Nemona reminded her gently. "You- I know, a week doesn't seem like a lot of time, but- Y'know, you've got a chance! A chance to make things right, before they go back."
"...They hate me," she mumbled. "Why would I voluntarily go into a Seviper pit?"
"They don't hate you," Nemona insisted. "They're angry, yes. They're hurt. But they can control themselves... I think."
Penny snorted. "When'd that happen?"
"Okay, so maybe they're a bit impulsive, and overbearing, and- And terrifying sometimes, but they're your people," Nemona reminded her softly. "They're your friends."
"They were," Penny agreed blankly.
Nemona chewed on her lip, tapping her fingers on the bedspread. Seeing that she'd made seemingly little progress yet her welcome had expired, she stood up, escorting herself to the door. "Think about it, alright? You still have my number. Text me if you change your mind."
"I will," Penny murmured, knowing full well she wouldn't change her mind. "It was nice seeing you."
"Likewise," Nemona agreed. "Goodbye, Penny."
The sound of the front door opening and closing followed that, which was succeeded by a crushing silence. No one else was home, her father and sister were off having fun and- And her friends probably were too.
That was fine. She could make her own fun. She closed her door, and booted up her desktop...
Kubfu burst out of his Poke Ball sitting on the desk, startling Penny and the pile of Veevees. Penny's poor heart couldn't take many more surprises, Robin had done quite a number on her.
"Oh, hi. Do you want to go play outside?" Penny asked.
Kubfu shook his head.
"Do you... wanna eat?"
Kubfu shook his head again, more forcefully this time.
"Okay. What do you want, then?" Penny asked, narrowing her eyes. Kubfu looked kind of sad, its normally high-strung posture slouchy and defeated.
Kubfu let out a loud screech, before leaping off the desk, carrying its Poke Ball with it. It managed to punch Penny's door open without needing to turn the knob, and then it did the same to the front door.
"Wha- Kubfu!! What are you-" Penny squealed, following the Pokemon outside. "Okay, I get it! I shouldn't spend so much time indoors, it's just- Y'know!! She's here!!" she protested. "I'm sorry. I'll do better."
Kubfu shook its head, disappointment evident on its face. Penny wasn't quite sure she'd ever seen a Pokemon look quite so sad before.
It then threw its Poke Ball to the ground, and stomped it to pieces with just one kick.
"Kub kub!!" it shrieked, before darting away, disappearing under a fence before Penny could follow.
Penny was too stunned to even breathe. She'd gone pale, tears welling up in her eyes. Kubfu... left her. Kubfu, a Pokemon so loyal and bonded to its master that it will literally die if its devotion is not reciprocated... Left her. She'd failed a test she didn't even realize she was taking. She'd failed to do even the bare minimum of keeping Kubfu happy. And worst of all, she didn't even know what she did wrong. She fed it, bathed it, gave it all the affection in the world, and somehow she'd still missed something.
Maybe it decided it had been wrong to choose her. It must have figured out that she wasn't cut out to be like the big strong Trainers who frequented the Master Dojo. She wasn't good enough. Penny thought she shouldn't have been surprised. She knew what she was. She knew she lived with a curse that mutilated her body and alienated her from almost everyone she'd ever met. She knew that even beyond that, she didn't wear it gracefully. She wasn't the picture of glamour, she was kitschy and nerdy. But for even a Pokemon to reject her? That was a new low.
She was stuck between her instincts and what she knew was the proper thing to do. She wanted to bunker down and cry, drown her sorrows in whatever bullshit popped up on her screen, put something bright between her and the yawning void of hopelessness. She'd had the fight stomped out of her so many times over by now. It was easier to be a ghost than to confront why she felt so empty.
Her fists clenched together. She'd run so far, ceded so much ground to the void and it still wanted more. She'd run out of places to hide. Maybe she wasn't the same girl who'd thrown wild, unfocused punches at her bullies once before, maybe the new Penny would curl into a ball and take it, she'd run screaming from the scent of Sinistchanel No. 5, but the old Penny had to still be in her somewhere. The old Penny was someone Team Star put their faith in.
The old Penny was someone she could be proud of.
She could be that girl again. She'd felt like a shadow of her in the Dojo, a far cry from who she'd once been but someone again. It was still in her.
Her back was against the wall now. It was time to stand her ground.