Thanks for the Memeories, a story by cicada858
In which N realizes Hilda, a sweetheart, is also the queen of memes. Fluff, one-sided FerrisWheelShipping (NxHilda), Anxiety!N
A/N: N has anxiety and is 17. Hilda is a memelord and is 16.
The cover image belongs to homosuckofficial (check them out on tumblr). Pokemon belongs to Nintendo.
N quickly walked down the hallway, the echos of his footsteps entirely too loud. His father and one of the Sages had gotten into a furious argument over the proper course of action for Team Plasma. It grated on his nerves to no end. What are the trivialities to the abuse the Pokemon were taking? Instead of arguing about minor details for days - weeks - they should take actions to protect Pokemon, shouldn't they?
But, he breathed in. He shouldn't lose his head; they know best after all. He breathed out. His feet placed themselves in front of each other, one after the other. The painful tightening of his throat was starting to ease, and his heart beat just a little bit slower. This happened all too often, especially when he gets overwhelmed. Anthea and Concordia called these anxiety attacks, but he was only ever truly anxious about Pokemon who got hurt. He had everything else he could ever ask for. N didn't think he should feel this way.
"Ah, N-" Concordia said as he passed the room she was in, but he just walked on, ignoring her calls. While Concordia was a gentle and caring sister, he only wanted to talk to one particular girl at that time. Her eyes were the kind of blue any artist would be memorized by, the perfect combination of the sky and the ocean. Her hair was mixed with the same color as the sweetest pine honey and the memory of a Teddiursa bear. She was every bit a toy bear herself, always kind to strangers and making sure her Pokemon wanted to travel with her and battle on her behalf.
He decided long ago that the world needed more people like Hilda.
N finally arrived to the room he was headed. Large doors creaked when he opened them to reveal a large Pokemon sanctuary. The ceiling was high above his head. The walls were painted a soft blue, not that he could see it very well from the various plant life creeping up the walls. A small, man-made stream snaked through the room, ending in a garbling fountain connected to a large pool. Many Pokemon of various types, shapes, and sizes roamed freely here.
It was their sanctuary, but it felt like N's sanctuary, too. A sense of tranquility settled in his bones whenever he walked into the room. To see Pokemon so happy and safe from harm made his heart swell with joy, but it stung with a bittersweet tinge of sadness. Not all Pokemon could be safe like this, but he could do something to change that. At least if he had his father's and Team Plasma's approval.
An emolga glided down from a tree and landed on his shoulder. He scratched the little electric- and flying-type under the chin where she likes it the most, and she let out a happy purr before flying back up to a branch with her friends. A smile found its way on his lips, something growing more and more uncommon as more fights break out over the strategies and organization of Plasma.
He found his old friend, a darmanitan, asleep in the shade of one of the trees. "Hello there," N murmured softly, alerting the fire-type to his presence. His darmanitan cracked open her sleepy eyes and patted the ground, indicating that n was welcome to sit by her. He did, and he felt the warm fur through his clothes. His darmanitan acted like a mother towards him, taking care of him before Ghetsis found him. She lazily wrapped her arm around him in a protective manner, which really became more of a habit over the years. N placed his hand on her arm to give her a pet, and the blazing Pokemon let out a hum.
N reached his hand into his pocket to produce a sleek smartphone. It made for easier contact in case of emergencies. The only people whose numbers when in his phone were his family, Team Plasma, and Hilda. The time on his phone made him realize it was late at night (at least for her,) and N was worried she would be asleep. Yet, her words echoed in his mind. He could always text or call her, she once told him, and she'll always answer.
He decided to text her. If she wasn't awake, at least she'll get a hopefully pleasant surprise. [Hey. Sorry I haven't talked all day.]
Her response was almost immediate. Her first text said [heyyy]. Another ding followed. [its ok :3]
N felt himself smile again, but that quickly disappeared when he received a text from his father. [Your presence is required at the meeting room. Return immediately.] He didn't want to. The thought started to make his heart race again. N would much rather stay here, cuddling with his Pokemon and talking to this amazing girl.
He texted Hilda back. [Some people are arguing.] This wasn't the first time he'd talk to her about this kind of stuff. She would always ask him why he was upset, and N would always rant to her. She would never belittle him or invalidate his feelings, like the Sages did whenever he brought his problems to him. His sisters were better, but they didn't calm him as well as Hilda did. Pokemon were Pokemon, of course; while they helped, sometimes they just didn't understand.
[aw man that sucks :( stay safe] she texted back. N slouched further into his darmanitan's embrace. She instinctively tightened her embrace around him. He didn't have to worry about Team Plasma, about anything now. He didn't have to worry because he was safe.
[I'm safe.] he typed to her. N focused on breathing. He was safe. While his own team was left in his room because of the meeting, the Pokemon in the sanctuary would also fight to keep him safe. Instead of arguing, N, Anthea, and Concordia dedicated most of their free time healing and comforting injured and abused Pokemon. Pokemon were loyal, more loyal than most people, and N was grateful for them to no end.
[:3 woo] Hilda's message said. [heres a purrloin for u] The image she sent had a slightly blurry shot of the feline dark-type. The Pokemon was standing on the couch, a clear image of the TV and coffee table in the background. N was definitely more of a purrloin person, even though Hilda was more of a lillipup fan. They sent each other pictures of their favorite Pokemon to cheer the other up.
Even though the picture was blurry, N still found it adorable. [I want.] he sent. It was no secret that they both loved Pokemon. Hilda's mother cared for many Pokemon, and her home was always a safe haven for any Pokemon. He could only imagine what Hilda was doing. Under the coffee table was a small Pokemon toy. Was she playing with her mother's Pokemon? Or just relaxing and watching TV? Or maybe she was saying good night to her family's Pokemon before going to sleep? He hoped nothing bad was going on.
N had so many questions he wanted to ask the girl, but the message ding brought him back to his current conversation. [he wants pets] They bantered about her moms dark-type 'mon. She sent him another picture, this one of the purrloin looking down at her and the camera from a tall Pokemon tree. The time passed by almost too quickly, and N all but forgot about his duties as the prince of Team Plasma. His thoughts wondered to what he would do about it tomorrow when his phone dinged to signal a message.
Hilda had sent an image. He opened it. It was normal for Hilda to randomly send an image that caught her fancy while serving the Internet while talking to her boyfriend, but this picture was unlike any she's ever sent before. Normally, it's screenshots of cute posts or Pokemon pictures. This picture, however, was of a famous Unovan chef with the nose edited off of his face, a fork with a sausage link near the bottom, and a capture proudly reading 'Sosig.'
N was at a lost of words. [Oh my goodness.] he typed back. Hilda got a little slap-happy sometimes when she was tired. He checked the clock. It was half past eleven. He knew Hilda wasn't used to staying up this late. Perhaps he should suggest to her going to sleep? She'd protest at first, but sleep would overtake her eventually. The trainer would always complain about being tired. N didn't want her health to decline because of a lack of sleep.
The message ding alerted him to another text. This time she sent an image of the top half of a skitty edited onto pair of human legs. It looked to be from the popular website TouYube, complete with a view, like, and dislike counter below it. The 'TouYube video' title was "10 Unexplainable Videos That Will Give You Chills." For some reason, this reminded him of a similar picture where a litten was swiping at a herdier.
What was the caption? Oh, he remembered now. [I got me a chilling.] was what he sent to her.
Almost immediately, Hilda sent back a long chain of random letters. [uve learned the art of meming well young grasshopper] she said at the end. When Hilda first explained what a meme was to him, it was as if a whole new world had been opened up to him. Memes certainly made the frustration of being Team Plasma's prince duller. Hilda never spammed him with memes, unless it was times like this when they had each other's undivided attention. He appreciated the brunette for her consideration. She was so thoughtful N often wondered how anyone could be so kind.
[I've learned only from the best.] he typed back, humming a tune of happiness. N felt a tickle from his leg and looked down to see that the emolga and gently laid her head down on his thigh to rest. Her fur felt like bristles as small, blue sparks of static electricity snaked across her body from where he petted her. The emolga chirped in happiness before her breathing slowed as she fell asleep.
A minute passed without a response from Hilda. Then another. N began to think she had fallen asleep; his own eyes started to feel heavy. His mind drifted to what it'd be like to see those pretty earthen locks hanging loosely from her usual ponytail as an expression of joyful tranquility replaced her usual bubbly smile. He wondered what it would be like to tuck a rogue lock of hair behind her ear, his girl blissfully unaware as she continued to dream. He thought of goodnight kisses, of sharing blankets during a cold night, of waking up to see the most beautiful girl in existence next to him.
His cheeks radiated heat, and N had to bite his knuckle to keep from making an excited squeak that would wake the sleeping Pokemon around him. Hilda was nothing but a sweetheart whom N admired and adored. He'd do anything for her and was happy she was safe and comfortable enough to fall asleep while talking to him. She said she hated not being able to say goodnight, but N reassured her that it was okay. Knowing that she could dream peacefully and her last thought was of him was goodnight enough.
After another few minutes of silence, N contemplated going to sleep and cuddling with pokemon like he used to do as a child when the ding alerted him to a message. It was from Hilda. She only sent a picture without words. The image had a big caption at the top that said, "When you try your best, and it still isn't enough." Below it was a car with eyes in the headlights, a silly imitation of a popular kids movie he once saw with Anthea and Concordia. There was a smaller caption, almost too small to read without zooming in, that said 'kerchoo.'
[this was the only one i could find with the word best lol] she clarified a second later, [the memes r noot in my favor tonight o.o] She then sent another image, this one of a glameow winking. The caption read, "You are the best!" [nvm i found a better one :3]
He let out a soft squeal causing the emolga to let out a hum in question. Hilda always had a kind word for him and was always so adorable. Sometimes he was utterly beside himself because of her. N never thought someone could be so cute or so perfect. He typed out a thank you, wondering if that would seem too full of himself when the message dinged again.
[swoosy just came back home! i need to go hes been missing for too long :( good night n! sweet dreams] she sent before he could hit the send button.
He hit the backspace. [Good night and sweet dreams, Hilda.] he sent back. N quickly worried about her swoobat, Swoosy. She wasn't one to run off like that, but that would explain why Hilda was up at this hour. Swoosy had been with her through thick and thin, so it was natural for Hilda to be up and worried. He hoped they could work whatever it was out.
N felt an uncomfortable buzzing in his chest, but darkened his phone. Something important must have happened for the swoobat to run away from Hilda like that. He settled back into the darmanitan's side and allowed his eyes to closed. He pushed his worries down and allowed his mind drifted to Hilda. His last thought before dropping into sleep was if he'd get to see Hilda smile anytime soon.