Archive of Our Own

After the nonsense that was the whole “Mochi Incident”, Arven was very much looking forward to a normal festival night in Kitakami, the previously derailed visit finally back on track to the group’s collective excitement. 

The collective Uva and Blueberry students were currently spread out in the Festival of Masks, trying out the different stalls in smaller groups. Shockingly, for once, Arven didn’t find himself saddled with the role of Violet’s babysitter, as the excitable racer had grabbed Kieran and took off, demanding the Kitakami native show him everything that the tiny town festival had to offer, the two quickly getting stuck into Ogre Oustin’ with the big lug Miraidon helping them tear through the competition like paper.

Although, seeing the way Violet was currently hanging around Kieran… Well, the aspiring chef couldn’t help but feel a touch protective of the boy, and thus was watching the two like a Watchog whenever possible, leading him to hang around the signup area for the festival game like a bad smell. The racer is his little buddy, after all. It was practically his duty to make sure the socially oblivious kid stayed out of trouble.

But as he watched Violet finish out another clean round of Oustin’ those inflatable Ogres, he couldn’t help but smile proudly, knowing his friend was doing fine. With that, his mind turned to sampling some of the local cuisine-

“You! Sandwich boy! I need you for a second!”

And just like that, his peaceful festival night was gone, reduced to ashes as the shrill voice interrupted the otherwise quiet and calm night. “The name’s Arven, but sure, what’s up?” He responded with a sigh.

Carmine, having successfully grabbed the tall boy’s attention, directed his focus with a pointed finger. “Do you see what I’m seeing?” She asked. “Because I’m seeing three when I should be seeing two !”

Following the direction of the gossipy girl’s finger, he found himself looking at the final members of their group. Scarlet, Nemona and Penny, all nicely dressed for the festival with their Jinbei and masks resting on their heads.

“Oh, you mean Letty and Nemona? Yeah, they’re an item.” Arven confirmed with a nod. “They got together a bit after Scarlet came back from Kitakami actually. Everyone’s been waiting for it for ages , since Nemona’s pining was getting kinda annoying-”

“No no, not that!” The tall Kitakami girl cut in, waving as if the Paldean boy’s words were physical and she could actually just swat them away. “I know that , even if Letty was annoyingly sparse on the details when she came to Blueberry.”

Arven winced. “Yeah, she was kinda furious when she finally agreed to date Nemona just to be ripped halfway across the world.”

Carmine rolled her eyes. “ Anyway , that’s not my question! My question is ‘Why is Penny third-wheeling on what’s clearly a date? Is she nuts?! Why is she getting in the way of romance?” She asked seethingly, sending a harsh glare the way of the nerd.

Arven was unable to help the anger that boiled up there. “Hey! There’s nothing saying the two are strictly on a date right now! Maybe they just want to be around Penny as a friend!” He argued back, turning his attention away from the trio to instead focus solely on his verbal foe.

“Are you kidding? The festival is prime date material right here!” Carmine argued in turn. “It’s late at night, there’s only the glow of festival lanterns, plenty of snacks designed to be shared with a lover…” She trailed off in the middle of her sentence, blinking rapidly as her eyes gained a new glow. “...Or maybe… With lover s . ” She suddenly finished, emphasising the S, a devious smile making it’s way onto her face.

While the chef stood there in confusion, someone else decided to chime in with a chipper voice. “Oh, are you talking about Penny’s crush on those two?”

Arven yelped at the sudden surprise appearance of Violet, with Kieran not too far behind the tactless boy. “Don’t do that!” He scolded the rich student. “And what do you mean Penny’s crush?! Isn’t she the one who got them together in the first place?”

Carmine gasped, her eyes shining like stars at the juicy tidbit that was just bestowed upon the group, while Kieran looked at the scene longingly. “Wait, those two are dating…?” He muttered sadly. “Aw man…”

“Sorry Kiki, I don’t think you had much of a chance. My gaydar was going off from the moment we met Letty.” The elder sibling admitted. “But still! I need the deetz, now you two! Tell me more about this saucy lil’ love triangle we’ve got here!”

Realising there was no way out of this, Arven sighed and began to explain. “After Area Zero, we saw a bit of a change in how Letty acted towards people. She was still really critical and blunt, but she was more willing to give people a chance, and the whole group got a lot closer after some hatchet burying.” He rambled, wagging his finger as if he were a teacher giving a lecture. “And after she came back from Kitakami, she started acting really different around Nemona and started staring at her a bunch. At first, I thought she was mad at her again!”

“But it wasn’t anger, was it~?” Carmine asked rhetorically in a sing-song tone. “They were in love~!”

The chef-to-be rolled his eyes as he went to dismiss such a notion, only for Violet to jump in. “Yep! Totally head over heels! And Penny saw it too!” The hyperactive boy claimed. “So she created a whole operation to get them together!”

“Wowza… An operation?” Kieran asked, surprised by the lengths the hacker went for the others despite how closed off she appeared. “But… You said she has a crush on them too?”

“Oh, a big one!” Violet confirmed with a nod. “But she really wanted them to be happy!”

“I think Scarlet knew about the operation beforehand, honestly.” Arven said, crossing his arms in thought. “She’s scarily good at reading people, so it really wouldn’t surprise me if she knew it was a setup the minute she got Penny’s message.”

“But it still worked!” Carmine refuted dramatically, gesturing at the group as they got some fried noodles, Penny more hesitantly and slowly taking a bite to eat versus Scarlet’s absolute gusto to eat as much as she could as quickly as she could, lest the food suddenly vanish. “And now there she is, hopelessly in love with the very relationship she helped to form! But unbeknownst to her, they too have begun to fall for… Whatever her charms are!” She narrated as if it were a soap opera, placing the back of her hand to her forehead as Arven looked on in confusion.

“Wait wait wait, what do you mean they’re falling for her?!” He demanded to know. “They’re dating each other already, why would they suddenly decide they like Penny too? Besides, you’ve known Penny and Nemona for like, a day!”

But the romantic expert that was Carmine merely brought a hand to her mouth smugly, looking mere moments away from laughing like she was five billion dollars richer. “Silly sandwich boy-”

“Arven. My name is Arven. ”

“- You simply don’t get romance like I do!” She continued as if he never opened his mouth to begin with, bringing a finger to her lips in order to silence the group. “Observe…” With that, she began to wave her hand to the trio, calling out to them. “Hey you three! C’mere for a sec!”

Unable to simply ignore the Kitakami girl due to her volume, the three girls made their way over, Penny flanked on either side by Scarlet and Nemona. “Yeesh, you’re a noisy one…” The hacker mumbled, receiving a nod of agreement from the treasure hunter to her right.

Nemona, however, decided to match said energy. “ ¡Ey! What’s up Carmine? Did you wanna battle again?!” She asked excitedly, the battler already getting out a Pokeball. “I caught a Sinistcha earlier, and I’ve love to hear your thoughts on raising one-”

“Ah, no no!” Carmine quickly interrupted, waving her hands. “You’ve already battled me eight times, I really don't need a ninth…!” She grumbled, refusing to meet the other girl’s eyes as grimaced. “Anyway, Letty! I set a new high score in Ogre Oustin’!”

“...Is that all you brought us here for?” The stoic girl asked, clearly annoyed by what she perceived as pointless bragging, indirectly enraging the Kitakami girl further. “We have better things to do-”

“Oooh, that’s that game you mentioned doing on your first trip, right Letty?” Nemona asked excitedly, pumping her fist. “ ¡Está bien! I totally gotta give that a go! Violet, can I borrow Miraidon?” The Champion rank Trainer asked.

Said boy smiled and nodded, handing over the ball containing his beloved ride. “Go for it! It’s a ton of fun!” He said cheerily, smiling brightly as always.

“ ¡Gracias Violet! ” The sunny girl replied, rushing off to the stand and leaving the group in the dust. “Letty, Penny! Come watch me!” She ordered the two girls as she ran, not checking behind her to see if they were following or not.

Penny shook her head, readjusting her glasses afterwards. “Man, I was on the money saying her ability was Own Tempo, huh?” She commented, though her snark lacked any true annoyance like it had long ago, managing to sound fond instead, only furthered by the way she muttered “Classic Nemona…” With that, she turned at Scarlet, the only girl shorter than her. “C’mon, we better go catch her and watch, or else she’ll be all pouty after.”

Nodding in agreement, the two walked off side by side to catch up with the runaway Paldean as she prepared to take part in the game, Carmine gesturing at the retreating forms with a smug expression.

“...What was that supposed to prove? Looked like pretty normal friend stuff to me.” Arven asked, raising an eyebrow as he completely missed the point, punctuated by the sound of a slap as Carmine facepalmed and began to seethe.

“Oh come on! You can’t be this dense!” She complained in a harsh whisper, gesturing once again at the trio. “They walked over with Penny between them! The couple willingly let her be between them! And the moment they heard Nemona was going to take part in Ogre Oustin’, they switched from being annoyed to completely fine with it!” The romance ‘expert’ explained in plain terms. “Also, I totally saw Penny and Scarlet brush hands on the way over!”

For a moment, the group was silent.

“...Wowza, they really are crushing on each other…!” Kieran mumbled in surprise, observing the group in a new light, causing his sister’s ego to swell as another was converted to her theory.

“Ahh, I can’t wait for the next operation if it’s as fun as last time!” Violet cheered in excitement.

“Who would even run it…?” Arven wondered, shaking his head. “Wait, no! There won’t be any operations because we don’t even know for sure if she’s right!”

Clearly not deterred by Arven’s scepticism, Carmine shook her head and tutted. “Just watch then, sandwich boy! They’ll be making out by the end of the month, you’ll see!”

“ Would you please use my name?! ”

For the rest of the Paldean quintet’s Kitakami trip, Kieran kept a much closer eye on the group. Hearing the news that he had no shot with Scarlet had been just a touch heartbreaking for the boy, due to the fact he obviously admired the stoic girl quite a lot, as even when he was at his lowest, he was desperate to prove himself to her and earn her respect. But seeing what he saw now…

“Man, I never really had a chance, huh…?” He mumbled to himself as the mixed group made their way up the mountain.

He watched as the short and quiet treasure hunter walked alongside Nemona, her complete and total opposite. Whereas Scarlet rarely said more than a few words at any given moment, the sparse sentences she did say spoken with all the emotional cadence of a rock, Nemona was bright, loud and colourful, showcasing every emotion on her face like an open book, inviting you to partake in her joy alongside her.

They couldn’t be more different. Yet they also couldn’t be more obviously perfect for one another. Although Letty always threw up an indifferent front, she clearly cared more than she would ever admit, judging from the fact that Nemona had been talking to her for nearly the entire hike and she hadn’t glared even once , seemingly content to let the Paldean girl’s words wash over her like a refreshing shower. Instead, she stole occasional glances at her, her usually harsh eyes melting into something softer, something fond.

They were exactly like a couple from one of Carmine’s cheesy movies she used to make him sit down and watch with her, the classic ‘opposites attract’ duo who found love in spite of their vast differences.

Except there was one more complicated piece to this puzzle; The reason the two were together to begin with. The girl beside him.

Kieran had opted to walk alongside Penny today, the two introverts bringing up the rear of the hike. The Kitakami boy wanted to make sure nobody got lost and thus decided to bring up the rear, his sister leading the charge up front and attempting to wrangle the ever excitable Violet from running off on his own.

But Penny? She clearly had other goals. Kieran recognised the longing glances she threw at the couple’s back, the desire to simply run up and join them clearly overwhelming, yet hesitation and fear continued to win out over and over again. She was an anomaly to him; The hacker had such obvious feelings for them, yet was the reason why the two had ultimately decided to start dating in the first place. How someone could just stuff aside such feelings and do that was strange and foreign to the boy, even if he knew the answer likely boiled down to ‘I want them to be happy’, he could not bring himself to make the same connection within his own heart.

And so, with his curiosity piqued, he cleared his throat and attempted to speak up. “So…”

Penny turned to look at him, curious as to what Kieran wanted to talk about.

“...”

“...”

Yet the words would not come out, as they quickly ran into the most effective barrier ever conceived; Introverts attempting to hold a conversation by themselves. With their poor social skills combined, they couldn’t even possess five percent of the conversational power of the common extrovert, and thus, neither could quite figure out how to properly converse with one another, hemming and hawing hopelessly.

“...Um…” Kieran attempted to will the words to leap forth from his throat to no avail, finding an impassable lump in his throat that prevented any of his questions from taking form. “So…”

Penny wasn’t much better of course, the soft-spoken hacker bringing a finger up to her forehead as she desperately attempted to think of any of her practised conversation starters. “Ah… Quite a hike, innit?” She said at long last, the first true sentence between the two exchanged.

“Y-yeah. It’s a bit of a climb for first timers.” The ex-Champion of the Blueberry League admitted with a nod, the girl beside him agreeing with a hum and a nod of her own…

And just like that, the conversation fizzled out once again, with neither of the introverts really being able to find much common ground without someone to facilitate the conversation first.

Fortunately, a saviour clad in a red arm brace suddenly appeared. “Hey guys!” Nemona greeted, having turned back around to talk to the two. “Sorry Kieran, but I really gotta borrow Penny for a second!”

“H-huh? Me?” The girl in question exclaimed in surprise. “Oh, I mean, sure I guess. Not really sure what I could bring to the conversation though… I mean, unless the topic is about computers or something…”

The extrovert shook her head. “Nope! It’s about Veevees; Letty is talking total nonsense! She thinks they’re no good for battles!”

Evidently, from the way Penny went from slumped over with a meek expression to suddenly standing straighter and seeming determined , this was a truly inexcusable offence. “ What? That’s bonkers. Let me talk to her.” The Eevee enthusiast insisted, speed walking to catch up to Scarlet and give her a good scolding for daring to speak such blasphemy, Nemona trailing behind her and quickly moving to the other side of the heathen currently under scrutiny.

Kieran watched as the very same girl who was just as quiet as he was a moment ago suddenly began talking animatedly with the other girls, clearly getting into a fierce debate about the strengths of her favourite Pokemon.

“Huh.” He muttered softly, watching as Scarlet effortlessly stirred the pot with quiet, impossible to hear words, her eyes sparkling with mischief that Kieran had never seen before, her lips twitching as she resisted the urge to smile as Penny became louder with each point she made, Nemona acting as her backup.

Kieran, on the other hand, didn’t hesitate to smile as he watched the scene before him. It hurt to know she would likely never look at him the same way she did for those two…

But another part was starting to understand how Penny was able to put aside her feelings in the first place to help them get together.

Carmine couldn’t help but smirk as she took stock of the situation in the Club League room, feeling her ego swell as she realised who the two ‘special coaches’ were today. ‘Good friends - Yeah right, sandwich boy!’

Scarlet had expressed several times how unhappy she was with the fact she couldn’t just go back to Paldea until the situation with how to handle her newfound status as Champion of the BB League was resolved, glaring at anyone who dared try to refer to her by said title. Although her sourpuss attitude wasn’t great, Carmine did have to admit it was nice to see Drayton getting his just desserts for his hand in the situation.

And then the grumpy girl found out she was allowed to use League Points of all things on inviting people to act as ‘special coaches’ to help teach willing students about their unique styles of battling. She had been astonished that for some simple chores, she could pay for someone to fly out, be accommodated and even get fed in exchange for some teaching.

And wouldn’t you know it - The coaches in question were her girlfriend Nemona and her “friend” Penny.

Carmine quickly realised the opportunity that had practically landed in her lap snickering to herself as a plan formed in her mind. ‘If Letty is taking advantage of the situation, surely she won’t mind if I do the same!’ She thought deviously, making her way over to the currently single guest while the current BB League Champion was stuck in a conversation with her partner.

“Hey Penny, you’re pretty good with machines, right?”

Operation: Jealousy was a rather simple little plan, but one that was oh so delicious in nature; All Carmine had to do was start chatting away with Penny, maybe throw a flirty remark or two within earshot of the others, and she was sure in no time at all they’d scoop up the tiny nerd for themselves.

‘Allowing myself to be rejected by someone… Ah, the sacrifices we make for true love!’ The tall Kitakami girl thought wistfully, already picturing herself going down as a martyr for the sake of the relationship, only vaguely paying attention to the conversation as much as she needed to.

“I mean, at least on the outside you’re really pretty, so-”

Carmine’s mind instantly went into overdrive at the fact she heard a compliment about her appearance. ‘Oh, this is even better than me flirting with her! If they hear her complimenting me, they’ll go nuts! And I even get to hear about how beautiful I am on top of that!! A win-win for all! Carmine, you’ve really done it this time!’ She praised herself internally as she clasped her hands together, bouncing in place excitedly. “Huh? Wait, what did you just say? That last bit in particular. Speak up please!” She goaded the much shorter girl loudly, hoping that she could ensure the others hear said praise of her appearance.

Penny blinked in confusion at the sudden interruption, before sighing tiredly and bringing a finger to forehead as she attempted to speak a bit louder. “I said you’re really pretty, so it doesn’t matter who takes the ph-”

Carmine began clapping excitedly. “Oooh, music to my ears! One more time! Repeat it for me, come on!” She cheered loudly, certain that the others were paying attention now. ‘Hehe! This is great! Everything is working out perfectly, and I can keep milking this for all it’s worth! Nothing can go wro-’

And then she felt it. A chill that ran up her spine and froze her to her core. It felt as if someone was not just walking across her grave, but trampling on it, as if whatever life she had was so long ago that she had been forgotten to time.

She turned to look behind her, and was met with the many faces of death itself.

Although Scarlet didn’t showcase too much of her positive emotions very often, she certainly had no trouble expressing the more negative ones. She would scoff in annoyance often at Carmine’s shenanigans, and she had been quite vocal in her displeasure at Kieran’s actions during his time as Champion. So it hadn’t come as a surprise to see the Kantonian girl’s glare aimed at her, given the nature of the plan. But what did take her by surprise was the sheer intensity of it; It was as if she had disrespected everything the treasure hunter stood for, her purple eyes like pin pricks.

And although Nemona stood there smiling… There was no warmth to be found in such an expression. It was somehow the most sinister, threatening smile she had ever seen. Carmine hadn’t gotten to know the Paldean girl for very long, but everything about her expression made it clear this was not one of her typical looks. This was an unnatural smile filled with what she had explicitly planned on stirring within the two; Jealousy.

“Hey Carmine!” Nemona greeted, and although her tone was seemingly as peppy as always, it was as if they were spikes dripped in honey. “ Wanna have a battle? ”

Everything in the vain girl’s body was screaming a simple command, as if she were looking down the vicious jaws of a Krookodile about to use Crunch on her skull; ‘Run.’ Her mind ordered her desperately as her heart began to hammer out of her chest.

Yet as she took a step backwards, Nemona’s hand shot out like a Scizor’s Bullet Punch, latching onto her wrist and preventing any hope of escape. ‘Carmine, you’ve really done it now…!’ She repeated one of her earlier thoughts, lacking any of the pride it had prior and replaced with sheer regret.

But then, from nowhere, a meek voice made their presence known, providing light at the end of the tunnel, and the smallest glimpse of survival. “Uhh, Nemo? Letty? Is… Everything okay?” Penny asked with concern, picking up on the harsh aura that had engulfed the conversation. “You two seem right pissed about something…”

‘Yes! Penny! Thank you! I’m saved!’ Carmine thanked Arceus for the hope brought to her in the form of the tiny nerd, barely resisting the urge to cry at the well-timed save. “W-Well, I’d love to battle, but we’re in the middle of a conversation, so-”

“Penny.”

Yet just as her continued survival was in reach, it was suddenly and viciously ripped away from her as Scarlet’s seemingly calm tone snatched the attention of the IT wiz away from Carmine’s impending doom, her presence as always demanding the attention of whoever she was talking to. The tall Blueberry Academy student gulped as the typically indifferent girl looked at the nerd with none of the ferocity that had been trained on Carmine earlier.

“You never finished explaining how an Umbreon’s poison works back in Kitakami.”

And just like that, Penny’s eyes began to sparkle like stars, and the meddling girl knew her fate was sealed. A part of her wanted to scream out desperately as she felt Nemona tug on her arm to lead her towards the battle court, yet she had a feeling that would only make things worse for herself as she was dragged towards her impending doom.

The last thing she heard before the club room doors sealed shut in front of her was Penny explaining how Umbreon used their poison, which was too weak to be translated into proper Poison type attacks, by flinging it into predator’s eyes in order to blind their opponents.

For all his time spent with Arven, Violet knew that he still wasn’t the best with social situations. Just knowing that about himself was leaps and bounds above what he was like a while ago, and was certainly a sign of his personal growth, but he still wasn’t the best about it. And yet, he was somehow ahead of the curve when it came to recognising that there was something about the girls of the group.

Either that, or they really are that obvious.

Study sessions between the quintet had become a recurring event ever since Arven had finally broken down and revealed just how bad his grades were, and that he was in danger of repeating the year. Nemona, in all her wisdom, immediately brought everyone together to see how they could help… And promptly discovered that Scarlet and Violet were likewise struggling academically.

For all her street smarts, Letty wasn’t the best with any task she deemed pointless and not worth her attention, and sadly, most of Uva Academy’s curriculum fell under this umbrella, leaving her grades lower than what was clearly acceptable for the student council president’s standards. And Violet soon found himself under the same scrutiny after he told Nemona how pointless academics would be once he took the racing circuit by storm.

It appeared that the only ones who were truly on top of things was Nemona… And shockingly, Penny. Although like Scarlet she hardly seemed enthused about class work, she seemed to get through it all just fine. As for why she attended the study sessions…

Well, even Violet could tell why, given she sat beside Scarlet and Nemona had a habit of getting in someone’s personal space when offering aid, and for some reason despite her academic success, she seemed to ask the taller girl to help double check her work.

It wasn’t exactly uncommon for someone in the group to fall asleep during study sessions. Penny was well-known as an insomniac due to her many late nights spent catching up on the anime she missed, and Arven’s sleeping habits were what prompted the creation of the study group in the first place, since he had started to sleep in class due to staying up all night in a desperate attempt to play catchup. Usually by the time he passed out, that was the end for studying.

Today had proved to be much the same in that regard; Arven was currently passed out on top of his half finished history homework, and Penny had decided to lay her bag on the table and use it as a pillow, her glasses gently put to the side as unlike the struggling chef-to-be, her nap had been a conscious decision after seeing him pass out.

And thus, only three were still standing - Nemona was of course, offering help wherever it was needed to the two still conscious students, being careful not to wake the other two, and Violet remained bright eyed and bushy tailed as always. And although Scarlet was awake as well…

Her focus had long since shifted from her biology homework in favour of watching Penny rest, her gaze firmly locked onto the girl’s gently slumbering form, the treasure hunter’s expression remaining as difficult to read as ever.

Violet looked over his shoulder at Nemona, who was similarly watching the scene before her curiously, as not even she could gleam what the stoic student was thinking in that moment.

And then, much to their shared surprise, Scarlet leaned over the table and gently lifted Penny’s head off the bag via her chin, repositioning the bag until it spilled over both of their halves of the table. The sleepy nerd seemed to stir for a moment until her head was gently deposited back onto her bag, where she promptly fell back asleep, snoring softly. 

Violet watched this scene with rapt attention, fascinated by what was happening in front of him. It was rare to see Scarlet so gentle , at least in front of others. He simply couldn’t know if things were different in private with just Nemona or even Penny at this point. “Well, now what are you up to?” He wondered aloud, taking care to not be too loud lest he wake their companions, kicking his feet as he observed with a curious smile.

“Stop talking.” The morose girl responded, glaring at him as if daring him to keep speaking and see exactly what the consequences were. For once, he complied with the ‘request’, keeping his mouth shut in order to see what she would do next. Seemingly satisfied that he was indeed going to be quiet, Scarlet closed her eyes…

And slowly lowered her head onto the Eevee bag, sighing through her nose as she found out just how soft and welcoming the Pokemon shaped accessory was. The ever present tension in her shoulders seemed to melt away as she relaxed beside Penny, her head beginning to lean inwards until it rested gently against the soft blue and red hair of the bag’s owner, who likewise seemed to lean into the new source of warmth beside her.

Violet heard a choked noise behind him, and turned to look up in surprise at Nemona, who was currently watching the scene with her eyes shining and one hand covering her mouth, as if physically restraining herself from audibly cooing over the sight of her girlfriend.

Her free hand was in the process of lifting her phone out of her pocket to take a photo.

As if sensing the action, Scarlet’s eyes snapped open, revealing that though she was resting, she was not in fact asleep, leaving her capable of glaring at the student council president venomously. “ Don’t you dare . ” She warned Nemona, her tone cold and harsh like a blade, threatening to slice said girl to ribbons should that shutter go off. It would’ve stopped anyone from taking a photo.

Click!

Anyone except her girlfriend, that is.

With the craziest treasure hunt Paldea had ever seen finally coming to a close, it only seemed fitting to send it off by getting the entire friend group together once last time before school consumed the rest of their lives. Thanks to Nemona’s influence, the Kitakami twins found themselves flown out to Paldea, with the group collectively hoping there would be no mind-control mochi or trips to life threatening craters.

The group of seven kids found themselves reunited by the Fury Falls in the Northern Province, enjoying a nice, relaxing picnic and unwinding after the craziness they had been through together, solid steel bonds forged through adversity shining bright as they feasted and chatted the day away. There were plenty of reasons to celebrate among the group, as Arven found his grades beginning to improve, Scarlet was free from responsibilities at the BB League and Kieran was making amends with those he wronged.

There was, however, one last thing that still hovered over the group, ever since Kitakami;

‘Are those three an item yet or not?!’

At the very least, this question was on Arven’s mind. Ever since that fateful night at the Festival of Masks, his image of the innocent trio of girls had been shattered, and he was now picking up on things he previously brushed off as the trio just being good friends.

Nemona, who usually bounced from place to place, forever unable to sit still, instead focused on hovering around the two introverts as much as she could, making sure to bring them into conversations and making their voices heard.

Scarlet, who normally didn’t display any emotion other than annoyance, continuously shot small, fond looks the way of the other girls, and even allowed the rare smile to shine through, a sight more sparse than any shiny Pokemon could ever dream.

And Penny, who normally couldn’t give much of a hoot about Pokemon battles, watched with rapt attention as the two Champion rank Trainers battled again and again, as if she was watching the most important events of her life…. Even though it was the fifth time today they fought.

As the battle came to an end and the lovestruck hacker sighed wistfully and walked over to the other two, Arven could feel his frustrations boiling as he turned to his beloved Mabosstiff and asked “There’s no way they’re not going out yet, right?”

The Dark type merely looked at him and huffed.

“Really? All these people here and you’re choosing to talk to your Pokemon over us sandwich boy?”

Arven looked to his side to see Carmine with her head on her hip and her face contorted into an annoyed scowl, judging him harshly. In response, the outdoorsy student shrugged, sadly used to the nickname. “Mabosstiff tends to be better company than most people.” He replied snarkily.

Carmine rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she stood beside him, turning to watch the trio as they chatted on their makeshift battlefield. “They have to be together though, right?” She mirrored his previous question. “I mean, Penny doesn’t strike me as the oblivious type, and those two are so obviously into her. She has to know, doesn’t she?”

“I’m not so sure…” Kieran chimed in now that the battles were seemingly at an end, tuning into the conversation at the picnic table instead. “If Penny’s anything like me, she might not really think anyone is interested in her like that, let alone people who are already dating…”

Arven sighed, turning to see what Violet may think… Only to find the boy in the middle of a culinary crime, stacking meat paddy after meat paddy onto a sandwich lined with mayo, horseradish, marmalade and a sour Herba Mystica. Temporarily distracted, he rushed over with a “Oh no you don’t!” and tried to end the mistake of nature that was the rich boy’s sandwich.

“Arven! You said cooking was an art!” Violet whined, attempting to preserve his sandwich to the best of his ability. “Isn’t art all about doing what’s avant garde and experimenting?!”

“Not like this, it's not!” The certified Sandwich Boy™ shouted, struggling to rescue whatever meat patties he could from the horrific creation before him. “This isn’t art, this is just an assault on all things good and precious about this world!”

“What are you doing?” A harsh voice pierced the ongoing argument, sounding downright exhausted with what they were seeing, as if the fight had been going on for years and they had grown tired of trying to intervene. Both boys had their focus promptly diverted from their fight, finding the voice’s owner to be Scarlet, who shockingly was holding Nemona’s hand, the usually withdrawn girl not known for her public displays of affection-

And on Nemona’s other side was Penny, who was holding the other hand, albeit more bashfully.

“Oh you’ve gotta be kidding.” Arven blurted out, his previous beef with Violet fading at the blatant sight of affection before him.

Nemona, as oblivious as ever, tilted her head in confusion, yet didn’t let go of either hand. “What’s wrong Arven?” She asked. “All we saw as Violet making a sandwich again.”

The sandwich connoisseur put his hands on his hips and shook his head as he spoke. “First of all, what he was making shouldn’t constitute a sandwich in any definition of the word.” He stated, ignoring the comically sad look his little buddy was giving him. “Second of all… I can’t take this anymore, we deserve to know!”

Scarlet seemed to be catching on to what he was talking about, if the glare she was suddenly giving him was any indication. But while Nemona picked up on her girlfriend’s suddenly bad mood and seemed to be connecting the dots, Penny simply seemed lost, taking the chance to speak up. “Deserve to know what, exactly?” She asked.

Before anyone could step in and run damage control on this rapidly out of control conversation, Violet suddenly spoke up. “Are you dating Nemona and Scarlet, Penny?” He asked innocently.

…Silence. Nobody dared speak up as the question hung in the air, vocalised at long last, as four sets of eyes turned to look at the trio of students. In turn, Scarlet met each gaze with a harsh stare, as if just looking at them would somehow inflict physical damage and turn back the clock simultaneously. Nemona, at the very least, had the decency to look embarrassed by the question, her face tinged red as she sweated nervously at the various curious looks being sent their way.

And Penny?

She looked positively mortified, her face drained of all colour and turning her already pale skin ghostly, as if the query had taken her life. “D-dating?” The timid hacker mumbled, blinking rapidly in a vain attempt to suddenly wake up from whatever crazy dream she found herself in. “We’re not- I mean, they are, but I’m not- I-” Despite her best efforts, her tongue was truly tied in that moment, and she failed to produce any truly coherent sentences.

“Penny, breathe.” Scarlet ordered the neurotic and panicking girl, while Nemona launched into action and started rubbing Penny’s back gently as she tried to help her calm down. While the student council president focused on aiding their friend, the stoic student turned to the quartet, her previous gaze returning and darkening even further. “ What do you think you’re doing? ” She demanded to know, her tone causing all four of them to flinch and wither under her intensity.

“W-we didn’t mean anything bad by it!” Carmine attempted to reassure the furious girl, bringing her hands up placatingly in a surrender. “We’ve just seen how you two act around her and thought that maybe, you were… You know!”

For a moment, nobody really seemed sure how to proceed. The quartet, previously fired up to find out the truth, now seemed more awkward than ever after seeing how the situation had escalated, while the fierce treasure hunter continued to silently scorn the group with her gaze.

Penny, meanwhile, seemed to be calming down thanks to Nemona’s persistent aid, clearing her throat as she managed to get her thoughts in order, deciding to address this problem head on. “Nemona… What are they talking about? What’s going on?” She asked, suddenly hyper aware of how little distance there was between her and the tall Paldean… Not to mention the fact she was currently holding said girl’s hand .

Nemona suddenly seemed much more sheepish than anyone had ever seen her, judging from the way she finally removed a hand from the Galarian girl’s back in order to rub the back of her own neck nervously. “Ah, see, ehehe…” She stumbled over her words as she tried to reply, looking at Scarlet desperately for some kind of backup, who seemed… Oddly frozen by this turn of events.

“Okay, this is going nowhere…” Arven said, shaking his head as he was officially done with the two skirting around the subject. And so, in spite of the way the shortest girl of the group seemed to be shooting daggers at him, he decided to press onwards. “Penny, be honest with us; do you have a crush on Scarlet and Nemona?”

The girl in question quickly went red in the face at such an accusation, her mouth turning into a wavey, unstable line as she seemed ready to panic once more.

“Nobody’s judging you!” Kieran suddenly spoke up, withering under the sudden attention of everyone else present until he took a deep breath to reassure himself. “I-I doubt Letty and Nemona would stop being your friends no matter what, right?” He asked, gesturing to the two to respond.

While Scarlet hesitated, her partner quickly took the presented opportunity and ran with it. “Yeah! No matter what, we’re your friends first, Penny!” Nemona declared with a determined nod. “You can tell us anything!”

Penny seemed to consider this for a moment, the effective one-two combo from Kieran and Nemona hitting her hard… And she nodded with a soft hum, refusing to meet anyone’s eyes as her face matched the red half of her hair. “I-I do.” She confirmed nervously.

And just like that, a weight had been lifted from the group, evident from the way they all collectively felt the building tension lessen thanks to the admission. Nemona grinned happily, turning to her girlfriend. “Guess your idea worked, huh Letty?” She said proudly, her fellow Champion pulling her best impression of Penny and looking in any direction instead of meeting anyone else’s eyes.

Carmine, latching onto the comment, tilted her head curiously and rested it against a pointed finger in thought. “What idea?” She asked. “Did you two have a plan or something?”

“ ¡Sí! You see, me and Letty have wanted to go out with Penny for a while!” The socially oblivious girl announced for the entire group to hear, ignoring the way the other two girls involved in this plot baulked at her boldness. “So Letty suggested we subtly ease her into it with little dates!”

For a solid minute, nobody said a word. They merely stared at Nemona silently.

“...Subtle.” Arven said in deadpan. “You two. Were being. Subtle. ”

Scarlet, picking up on the disbelief in the boy’s tone, raised a questioning eyebrow. “What about it?”

Kieran rubbed the back of his neck, the introverted boy finding a particularly fascinating speck of dirt on the ground to look at. “Well, um… Gee wiz, how should we say this…?” He muttered and mumbled as he tried to think up the kindest way to break the news.

“Oh, I know!” Violet raised his hand as if asking permission to speak, taking a deep breath as he prepared to speak-

Only for Carmine to suddenly dart over and cover his mouth this time, muffling whatever the rich boy was about to blurt out with all the grace of a Tauros on ice. “What we’re trying to say is that you two haven’t really been as subtle as you think…!” She said hastily, ignoring the way Violet fought for his freedom in her grasp.

To the shock of the quartet, even Scarlet looked mildly surprised by this revelation, judging from the way her mouth hung open in a small ‘o’ shape. Nemona was far more vocal about her surprise, however. “Seriously? How’d you guys know? What gave us away?”

Violet, employing the age-old tactic of ‘tongue, meet hand’ in order to free his mouth, was finally free to speak again, and exercised that right. “Probably the festival date!” He blurted out loud as the vain Kitakami girl wiped her hand free of spit on his shirt. “That was when everyone else caught on anyway.”

Much to his surprise however, Penny scoffed. “No? I mean, we just did usual friend stuff.” She explained as she pressed a finger to her forehead in recollection. “We got food, we bought masks- Well, okay Nemona bought the masks… Okay, and our Jinbei… And we… Held hands… And hung out all night…” Each moment she recalled about the festival started to cast doubt over her, and it showed as she slowly realised what was going on, her face once more becoming increasingly red as she finally took her hand back in order to bring it against her head. “...Nemo, Letty, have we basically been dating for a month ?!”

The indifferent girl in question merely shrugged while her outgoing counterpart made noncommittal gestures as she spoke. “Sort of?” The battler answered. “I mean, we didn’t want to pressure you into anything, so…”

“Pressure me…?” The nerd asked, seeming unsure. “What do you mean?”

At this point, the otherwise silent Scarlet finally stepped in to explain. “We wanted to date you for a while. But you’re skittish. If you thought we weren’t genuine or were putting too much pressure on you, you’d run.” She stated bluntly, each argument as solid and straight to the point as always.

The taller half of the relationship chimed in. “She compared you to a wild Eevee! A shiny one!”

The treasure hunter rolled her eyes. “It was the simplest way to explain it to her.” She stated. “Regardless, I knew we had to be careful if we were going to make it work. So I thought it best to ease you into it by taking you out without telling you they were dates. We started pushing our luck when it looked like you weren’t picking up on our interest in you.”

Carmine, sensing a rare opportunity, slid over with a smug expression plastered on her face. “Are you suuuuure you didn’t just want to basically flirt with her, Letty~?” She asked, nudging the short girl when she refused to respond. “Violet told us about your study snuggle session, you knoURK!” She cried out as Scarlet grabbed her collar, murderous intent swimming about in her ironically coloured violet eyes.

But it was too late; Penny was already connecting the dots, rethinking every scenario she had simply brushed off as the duo simply being eccentric friends and overthinking what she had dubbed ‘innocent’ actions. “You guys really were interested in me…!” She realised with stunning clarity. “I just thought I was reading the signals all wrong!”

Arven took in a sharp inhale of air. “How did you not-” He started to ramble, only to shake his head. “You know what? No. Better question - What are you guys gonna do now?” He asked instead, gesturing to the three. “I mean, everything’s out in the open now, right? So what’s next?”

And thus, the spotlight returned to the ex-founder of Team Star, leaving her with sole control of what to do with this newfound information. Although they had assumed she would jump at the chance, she instead seemed to be debating long and hard internally over the matter, her eyes screwed shut in concentration, each passing second seeming to increase the uncharacteristic nervousness in the couple, Nemona stimming with her now free hands, while Scarlet watched the situation with uncertainty dancing in her eyes.

At long last, Penny seemed to have come to a decision as she turned towards the established couple. “Well, I would’ve really preferred a direct approach and not one that goes behind my back. I know that’s a bit ironic all things considered, but… Yeah.” She said, watching as Nemona squirmed and Scarlet seemed frustrated, likely over having made the wrong call. “I also can’t really act like it wasn’t helpful either though. I… Probably would’ve run away or assumed it was a prank if you guys just up and told me you wanted to date me. And I don’t think that would’ve been a great note to start this off with.” The nervous nerd admitted, her confidence beginning to fade as the conversation dragged on. “Wh-what I’m trying to say is… Yes. I’d really like to go out with both of-”

She never got to finish her sentence before the tallest of the newly acquired polycule tackled her into a hug, swinging the lightweight nerd around. “ ¡VAMOSSS! Did you hear that Letty?! She said yes!” Nemona cried happily, ignoring the flustered protests of the newest member of the relationship.

Scarlet watched the scene with a soft gaze, seeming serene and at peace from the decision as she approached, the tallest of the trio finally setting the now dizzy Penny on the ground. “She’s the physically affectionate one. That’s your problem now.” The stony girl declared simply, and although her words were somewhat harsh… There was an amused, almost teasing tone to them, enough that the nerd picked up on it and smiled in response.

“Sounds like public affection might make a good punishment then if you behave like a twat.” The Galarian girl threatened good naturedly, earning a glare for her troubles from the shortest of the trio, yet there was an almost approving twinkle in the grumpy girl’s eyes at the way the hacker already seemed to be settling into her new position in the relationship.

Arven audibly gagged. “Not that this cluster of feelings hasn’t been sweet, but the longer you three wait to eat, the worse the sandwiches are going to taste.” He informed them, before smacking his hand into his palm in a chopping motion. “C’mon people! Chop chop!”

“Curry’s the better picnic food anyway…” Penny mumbled, earning an agreeing nod from Scarlet. Nevertheless, the three convened at the bench, hoping to enjoy some quality food courtesy of the chef, the conversation now lighthearted and fun as everyone enjoyed yet another reason to celebrate the day and congratulate the new trio.

Carmine, rather than slide up beside the new polycule in order to tease them mercilessly, instead slyly scooched up beside Arven, smirking. “Not bad, sandwich boy. ” She said teasingly, earning an eye roll for her trouble.

Rika glared at the collection of students she once would’ve once described as responsible before her, tapping a finger against her forearm as she levelled them all with a disapproving and frankly disappointed glare, the trio of the League’s newest worker and both Champion rank trainers sitting in a row of chairs with varying levels of guilt on their faces as they faced down the Elite Four member.

When she had first heard that the trio had finally stopped dancing around their obvious feelings and gotten together, she’d been thrilled for them. Now, however, she could only sigh in disappointment at where it had ended up.

After leaving them to sit in silence and reflect on what they did for five whole minutes after ranting at them for their crimes, she cleared her throat to grab their attention. "Now. Repeat what I told you three, one at a time." She ordered the trio.

Nemona took in a deep breath, unsurprisingly being the one to speak up first. "Challenging people to battles for spreading rumours about your partners is not a healthy expression of love." She declared, seeming truly remorseful for her actions as she repeated what she was told earlier. 

Rika nodded, satisfied, and turned to the next girl in line. "Penny?" 

"...Doxxing people for being rude online is not a healthy expression of love." Although the hacker had repeated her words verbatim like she was asked, Rika could still tell that the girl didn't completely regret her actions as much as the Elite four member would have liked.

“Right. And unless you want me to escalate this to Geeta, you’ll keep that in mind next time.” She said threateningly, and judging from the way the tech head flinched, it had the intended effect. "Scarlet?"

"..." The last of the trio remained silent as she was called on, making eye contact and challenging Rika without a word.

" Scarlet? " The Ground type specialist asked again more forcibly, placing a hand on her hip in an effort to look more intimidating. “You know this won’t go well for you.”

"...Threatening people with the Treasures of Ruin is not a healthy expression of love." The girl repeated robotically, clearly not even the slightest bit guilty for her actions and sounding very likely to repeat said actions if need be.

Rika sighed once again, shaking her head as she felt a headache coming on thanks to the trio. 'Is this what qualifies for romance now? Or is it just these three…?’