Red glanced around his cave one more time. It was completely barren; everything was packed in his bag already. The cave was empty and would remain empty for a week or two. Usually most people wouldn't pack everything they own when just leaving for a week or two, but Red didn't have much. Not to mention wild Pokémon have stolen his things on more than one occasion.
"Pi pi pi!" Pikachu cried from outside the cave. Red ran his gaze over the empty cave one last time before going outside to see what Pikachu was on about.
"Pika-chu!" the yellow mouse said to its trainer, pointing at clouds in the distance. They were dark clouds, slowly closing in on the summit of Mt. Silver. If they didn't leave now, they would be trapped in the storm.
"We're leaving, Pika." Red said simply, turning his back to the oncoming blizzard. Normally Red had no problems with snow storms. In fact, he found training his Pokémon most effective during a blizzard. But it was the middle of winter, and the storms were unbearable this time of year, especially during the Winter Solstice.
The first Solstice Red spent on Mt. Silver was terrifying. If Red had known any better beforehand, he would have left the mountain altogether until it was over. The blizzards that had raked Mt. Silver were the utmost treacherous to ever occur on the mountain, and Red would have died if not for his Charizard. Even with the Pokémon's fire, Red had been to the brink of death and back again that season.
"Pika?" Pikachu asked happily as it and its trainer wandered down a tunnel. Neither of them even had to pay attention as to where they were going or use a map like most people did; they knew the mountain by heart. They memorized every path, tunnel and cave with no trouble at all.
"Do you even need to ask? Of course I'm getting a cake." Red said. Since Red and his Pokémon left Mt. Silver during Christmas time, he felt it was only right to celebrate. He would scrape up what little money he had and buy a cake for him and his team. It was kind of a big deal to his Pokémon because Christmas was the only holiday Red celebrated anymore.
It was only a matter of minutes until they had reached the base of the mountain and were outside. The first trip down the mountain took Red longer than it did to reach the summit. It was cold outside, and snow fell lightly. But it felt like the middle of summer to Red.
"Pi?" Pikachu muttered, its ears pricking up. Red looked down the worn road to see what Pikachu had heard. Normally Red would assume it was just some Pokémon or traveler, but Pikachu appeared genuinely concerned at what it heard.
And there it was; a Pokémon running through the snow in the distance on all fours. Strange, it was about the size of a human. Red blinked in confusion before narrowing his eyes and trying to focus on the Pokémon. And then he realized that it was not a Pokémon, but a human… who appeared to have the ears and tail of a Pokémon.
Whatever or whoever it was, it running at full speed in Red's direction and was being chased by several Houndoom. Soon the figure collapsed in the snow, and the Houndoom was closing in.
Red was done watching. He pointed at the Houndoom and Pikachu ran forward, hopping over the fallen person in the snow. Pikachu used Thunder on the Houndoom and, in one fell swoop, they all fainted. When Red saw no more threats, he approached the figure in the snow.
Red gasped when he saw the familiar person crumpled in the snow, struggling to breathe and sweating despite the cold.
"G… Green?" Red whispered. The person in question shakily looked up at Red. That was most definitely Green's face. Red would recognize his best friend any day. Green barely glanced at Red before his face fell into the snow again. Red dropped to his knees and pulled Green onto his lap.
Green was dressed lightly in grey trousers and a black shirt that was a few sizes too large for his surprisingly small frame. Green was thin and frail; a clear sign that he never got enough to eat. But what really got Red's attention were the inhuman parts of Green; a pair of ears and a tail that greatly resembled that of a cat's.
"Pika?" Pikachu asked, not recognizing the stranger in its trainer's arms.
"You don't remember Green?" Red asked. Pikachu thought the name was familiar. It had only ever seen Green once; on the day Pikachu was given to Red by Professor Oak. With a single sniff of Green, Pikachu remembered who he was. Pikachu also caught scent of a few other things that it didn't recognize. Chemicals? Blood? Anti-septic?
Whatever the odors were that clung to Green, it made Pikachu nervous and it let out a growl. Red was shocked to see Pikachu growl at his old friend. Pikachu had only ever growled at bad people.
"What are you doing? Green's not our enemy!" Red snapped, standing up and holding Green in his arms. Red was caught by surprise both by Pikachu and the fact that Green was so light-weight.
Pikachu stopped growling, but still stared at Green with suspicion. Red stared down at Green in wonder. He hadn't seen his best friend in years, not since they both left Pallet Town with their new Pokémon. Green had gone missing at some point was never heard from. But now here he was, fleeing from Houndoom.
What the hell happened to him? He was scrawny, almost bony. His human ears were gone, replaced by cat-like ears on top of his head. His hair was matted from neglect and his clothes were torn in some areas. He had no shoes and ran barefoot through the snow (fortunately he had no frostbite that Red could see). He had a cat-like tail that limply brushed the snow.
Red barely stepped over the fallen Houndoom when he heard a helicopter somewhere and looked up. There, right in front of him and about to land was an unmarked helicopter. It lowered and blew the snow off of nearby trees, as well as blowing Red's cap off his head. Pikachu fetched the cap and held onto it for its trainer.
Red made no movement as the helicopter landed and a few men stepped out—two in bullet-proof vests holding guns and three men in white coats. The helicopter powered down and the men approached Red. When they were ten feet away, Red took a step back to show he didn't want them to get close. One man with jet black hair combed over that was far from greying held a hand up, and they all stopped in their tracks.
"You must be Red. A pleasure to meet you. I am Dr. Lurton." the man with the combed over hair said. Red didn't need to ask how the man knew who he was; everyone knew who he was. Pikachu caught a whiff of the same things it smelled on Green from the men in white coats and growled.
Red heard Pikachu's growl and ran his eyes over each of them. They all looked stone-faced except for Dr. Lurton, who looked like a bored man with a fake smile plastered onto his face. Red didn't trust any of them.
"Silent, I see. I like that. Loud people are very annoying, aren't they?" Dr. Lurton said. Red did not speak to him. Dr. Lurton cleared his throat. "Well, I'm sure you're a busy man, so we won't keep you. Please, hand over our pet." Dr. Lurton said, an outstretched hand demanding Green.
"Your 'pet'?" Red snapped. Who were they to insult Green with such demeanor?
"Yes, we mean Green. Hand him over, if you please. He can't be out in the cold for too long, he gets sick very easily. One of our most fragile specimens, he is." Dr. Lurton said.
Now Red understood. Whatever bad things happened to Green, these men were the ones at fault. Red looked down at Green's unconscious face. If Red hadn't known any better, he would have thought that Green had just taken a nap rather than give out from exhaustion. He looked so peaceful. How could these men hurt Green?
"What did you do to him?" Red demanded. The other men in the white coats looked bitter. Even Dr. Lurton appeared to be getting irritated.
"What does it matter to you? You're a champion, you shouldn't let yourself worry about people who do not matter." Dr. Lurton said, and with the snap of his fingers, the men with the guns took their aim at Red. "Now bring Green here, or put him down and walk away. He wouldn't make much of a bullet shield; he's breakable like glass."
Red didn't even have to think. He didn't even have to give a command. Pikachu had known Red long enough that it could almost battle for him completely without command. Pikachu, without making any sudden movements, shot out bolts at the men with the guns.
The men shot wildly as they were electrocuted, their bullets hitting all but Red and Green as they fell. The next attack was an Iron Tail that Pikachu had to leap for in order to strike the back of the men in white coats' heads. Finally, after Red got a running head start, Pikachu used Thunder on the helicopter. The explosion that sounded after the attack was immense and knocked Red to the ground; he turned around in time so that he wouldn't crush Green under his weight.
Soon the noise was over, and Red dared to sit up with Green still in his lap. Pikachu was standing nonchalantly in front of him, a burning helicopter and a few bodies around it. Red stood up slowly, his head spinning a bit.
"Whatever the hell that was about, he better tell me everything." Red said, glancing down at Green in his arms.
-
"If you don't sit still, you won't get any food or water until the end of the week!" Stop it, you're hurting me… "Quit your whining, it's only another needle! Don't make us strap you down!" I don't want it; it keeps hurting over and over again… "That's it, strap him down." No, stop it, I can stay still, I can be good, I'll let you use the needles— "We'll examine his inner tissue while we're at it, see if there's any immediate change." Don't cut me open again, just use an X-ray or something, please! "Don't bother with the morphine; it needs to be taught another lesson in obedience." W-W-What? You mean you're going to make me feel everything? Please, don't—I promise I won't act up again! I'll be good, I'll be good! "Pass me the scalpel." P-Put that down! At least put me to sleep first, please! "Making an incision." Ahh! Stop it, stop it, sto—AAH! SOMEBODY HELP ME! PLEASE! HELP ME!
Red startled from watching TV on the sofa when he heard screaming from upstairs. With Pikachu right behind him, Red ran up the stairs into his bedroom to see what was wrong. He found Green screaming and thrashing about on his bed.
Red ran over and pinned Green down, which only made the brunette scream louder. "Let me go, let me go, let me GO!" he screeched, struggling against Red's grip.
Trying a different approach, Red kept his grip on Green but sat up and held Green close to him. "Green, it's okay, you're just having a bad dream. No one's going to hurt you." Red said soothingly, sitting Green on his lap.
The brunette's eyes shot open at the sound of the unfamiliar voice and he stopped flailing. For a minute he stared into nothing, still waking up from the nightmare. And then his eyes focused, and his gaze darted all around the room; taking in the suddenly new but familiar location.
Green wasn't here before, was he? Before he fell asleep, where was he? Not in the lab, he was outside. He was running through the snow, away from the Houndoom. And then he saw someone before everything went dark… who was that?
"You're safe here." Someone said, and Green nearly jumped as he realized he was being held. He looked up at Red and he could only blink. Was it really Red? He didn't look very different, just older and a hell of a lot more muscular than Green remembered. No, this was impossible. It was a dream. That's it, Green's nightmare was true, except he was actually put to sleep while the scientists—
"What? Is there something on my face?" Red asked when Green continued to stare at him.
Green shuddered. Red's voice was so… Green couldn't find a word for it. His voice was deeper than Green remembered and he was more than happy to hear it. Red's voice convinced Green that he wasn't in a dream at all.
"R… Red?" Green asked, his own voice small and weak, especially after all that screaming.
"What is it?" Red asked, loosening his grip on Green now.
Green's heart started pounding and he wrapped his arms around Red's neck, crying into his chest. Red was caught by surprise at this, but mostly he was relieved. At one point he thought that Green wouldn't remember who he was, or wouldn't be able to speak, or maybe not wake up at all.
"Care to tell me what happened to you?" Red asked, finally embracing Green.
It was only a few minutes after when Green finally stopped his sobbing did he shake his head. He didn't want to talk about anything that happened to him. He couldn't even bear to think about it.
"Well at least tell me this; will those men in white coats come for you again?" Red asked.
Green looked up at Red in horror. Now he remembered; he was running away from the scientists. They had Houndoom and a chopper. They could be anywhere now, they could even be on their way here.
"Th… them? I… I don't know… they had Houndoom and a chopper… I don't know where they are now…" Green said, struggling to remember what had happened as he fled from the scientists.
"Are there more of them? Other than the ones who were after you today?" Red asked.
Green wondered how Red knew this, but he remained silent as he nodded his head. Red cursed under his breath. Of course there were more scientists who would no doubt track them down.
"B-But if they don't know I'm with you, they won't look here… where is here?" Green asked.
"My bedroom." Red told him.
"It's cold…" Green said, curling his toes in and hiding his face in Red's chest again.
Whenever Red came home for Winter Solstice, he never turned on the heat, used the shower or even turn on the lights. Professor Oak, knowing that Red still used the house from time to time, paid the mortgage for him but not the hydro. Red had just enough money for Christmas Cake.
"Don't turn on the heat or lights. If you do, it's coming straight out of my pocket." Red told Green, holding his shivering frame.
"Your mom makes you pay for that?" Green asked in surprise.
"No. My mother was murdered four years ago." Red explained solemnly.
Green looked up at him in horror. "I… I'm so sorry…" was all he could say.
"Don't be. Now listen. You disappeared several years ago. What happened to you?" Red asked, pulling away and picking up the blanket that Green had kicked to the floor. Green gratefully accepted the blanket and wrapped himself in it, but he did not move from Red's lap.
"I… I don't really want to talk about it…" Green muttered, curling up on Red's chest.
"Let me rephrase that. Tell me what the hell happened." Red said. There was no way he was keeping Green around without knowing anything. The amazement of seeing an old friend had passed; Red's main concern was the scientists.
Green swallowed hard, suddenly nervous. Why did he get the feeling that Red would hurt him if he didn't talk? Had Green really gotten so used to being punished every time he didn't obey someone?
"W-Well… I was… kidnapped." Green started shakily. Red did not speak, waiting for Green to go on. "I was kidnapped by these men in white coats…" he continued. "They took me to some lab, and… did things to me." Green told him. He did not wish to speak of the subject any longer.
"Things like these?" Red asked, poking one of Green's ears. It twitched and Green's heartbeat sped up for just a brief second.
"Yes… like those…" Green cleared his throat. "So… what have you been up to?" he asked awkwardly.
"Not much. I beat the Elite Four and became champion of Kanto. Being champion was boring and I wanted to get stronger, so I left the league and started training on Mt. Silver. I only leave for a bit during winter when the climate is absolutely unbearable, and I come here. That's all." Red said simply, as though it were nothing of importance.
Green, on the other hand, was more than impressed. "You mean you're the strongest trainer in the world?" he asked in wonder.
Something about what Green had just said, and how he had said it, made Red's heart flutter in an odd way. Never had he seen someone look at him in such awe and sound so much like an amazed child.
"Uh, well, I don't think so." Red said awkwardly, clearing his throat. "I'm sure there's someone else who's stronger than me by now. I haven't actually battled anyone in years." He explained.
"But you still beat the elites!" Green said excitedly, his tail automatically curling around Red's ankle. "You were still the best trainer at least at some point, and you still could be! You should enter the World Tournament; I think you could win!" Green said.
Red had to set Green down on the bed next to him. "Maybe," he said, standing up, "But I won't do that any time soon.
"I don't really have much choice but to let you stay here with me, but you need to find a place to go in a week or two, because I'm not going to be responsible for you on Mt. Silver. It's hard enough surviving alone up there without having to account for someone else.
"And don't be a burden while you're here, either. Don't turn anything on or use the shower; everything will come straight out of my pocket if you do. There's not much food, even less water, the bathroom is the forest and if you need to borrow any clothing you can look in that closet." Red said.
Red only felt a twinge of guilt being so strict with Green. But he had only ever had to worry about himself, and he literally could not afford Green costing him anything.
That and being strict helped to get Green's face out of his mind. Red mentally cursed himself every time his heart pounded when he saw Green. The brunette was just so… cute.
Cute? The very thought of that term disturbed Red. He never thought of anyone or anything being cute, especially not a person he may be attracted to. Red had figured out a long time ago that he was homosexual, but he had always had a preference for handsome men, not cute boys his own age.
"Chu?" Pikachu asked with a smirk as it and its trainer went down the stairs.
"I do not like him! I can't wait for him to get the hell out of here!" Red hissed when he thought they were far enough that Green couldn't hear.
But, thanks to his feline ears, Green's hearing was greater than that of most humans. He heard every word that Red said to Pikachu.
"Damn…" Green muttered, wrapping the blanket tightly around him. He thought Red had liked him. Green certainly liked Red, even though he had only been with him a few minutes.
Actually, Green used to have a small crush on Red when they were kids. But Green always denied it and pretended to prefer girls over boys. But after seeing Red for the first time in so many years—fully grown and more than just a cute face—Green was certain that his feelings for Red were more than just a childhood infatuation.
Apparently Red did not share the same feelings. Not that Green could really expect him to—Red had been living his own life, probably having forgotten about Green completely. Green had assumed that Red at least thought he was cute; Red had been blushing like crazy just a few minutes ago when Green asked him about being the strongest trainer.
Green didn't want to be separated from Red again. Whether he was in the hands of those damned scientists or not, Green didn't want to be away from Red. But of course, Red would be leaving for Mt. Silver again in a week or so. There was no way Green would be able to last up there.
There was really only one option: Green had to convince Red to stay in Pallet Town with him. And the first step would be getting Red to like him.
How would Green go about doing that? He had no idea what Red was into or how to seduce people. The men who Green had been involved with before were…
No. Don't think about them. They're gone now.
Suddenly remembering something that seemed to arouse most men, Green went over to the bedroom closet. He had assumed correctly—Red and his mother shared the only closet in the house. Red barely had any outfits, so most of the closet's contents were of his mother's clothing.
"Now if I were a mother," Green muttered to himself, "Where would I hide that sort of thing from my son? There we go, in the back behind all the normal clothes!"
-
Red shut the book and tossed it onto the coffee table. Sighing, he lay on the sofa in boredom. "Are there any other books?" Red asked Pikachu, who had been fetching books from the shelf every now and then.
Red never trained in Pallet Town and thought it pointless to leave unless he was leaving for good, so he had to content himself with whatever he could find at home. Usually Red would be able to busy himself with one of his mother's books, but he had read all of the good ones and the rest were uninteresting romances.
"Pika pi?" Pikachu suggested, handing Red another novel. Now this one didn't look like a dumb romance.
"Pet Sematary by Stephen King? Sounds like there shouldn't be much romance." Red said, opening the book and turning it to the first page.
Red barely started reading when he heard Green coming down the stairs and he glanced up over the book, only to stop and stare.
Green had changed into something more… comfortable. Rather than the large, baggy clothing Green had worn before, the brunette wore a skimpy pink dress about the size of a hair towel that barely went below his waist and only reached a little higher than his nipples.
"Um… when I said you could borrow some clothes, I was thinking you could borrow something of mine…" Red said slowly, his face heating up as Green approached him. It was even worse that Green's tail stuck up and revealed a lacy undergarment.
"Yeah, but this is much more comfortable." Green said, not waiting for Red to sit up as he sat on his stomach. Green picked up the book that Red hadn't even started reading and examined the cover. "Is this any good?"
"I don't know, I haven't started it." Red said. Green shrugged his shoulders and set it back on the table. "I'm not much of a reader anyway." He said, turning to face Red and straddling him.
"I guess not. You should go change into something else, it's getting late and it gets really cold at night." Red suggested. Green seemed to ignore him, subtly pretending to shift while he was really rubbing against Red.
"Green, go get changed. Seriously, it will be freezing tonight. And I thought you were cold?" Red asked, sitting up and doing his best to ignore Green and how arousing he was right now.
"I'll be fine. Besides, if I'm cold, I could just sleep with you, right?" Green asked, poking Red's chest.
"Go put something else on, you're wearing lingerie." Red informed him.
Green looked confused. "Lingerie? What's lingerie?" he asked innocently.
Red shoved Green off of him and the brunette fell back on the sofa, the lingerie doing nothing to hide what was in between Green's spread legs. The panties didn't help much, either.
"Go upstairs and put on some damn pants! You're not a girl!" Red snapped.
Looking hurt and genuinely frightened, Green didn't have to be told again. He left Red alone on the sofa and scampered up the stairs… on all fours.
Red swallowed hard as he reached for a couch cushion to cover his crotch, hoping that his arousal would fade as he tried to forget every little thought about Green that entered his mind in the last few minutes.
Unfortunately, he couldn't forget. Sighing, Red dropped the couch cushion and reached under the sofa. He took out one of his best magazines and picked up the box of tissues on the coffee table.
"Make sure I'm undisturbed." Red said to Pikachu before going into the bathroom.
-Meanwhile-
Consciousness was slow to return to Dr. Lurton. When he was finally awake, he was the opposite of content. His helicopter was destroyed, two of his most intelligent assistants were killed and so were his body guards.
All thanks to an orphan and his Pikachu.
Pounding his fists in the snow in rage, Dr. Lurton was already beginning to form a plot. Green would still be with Red, which meant they could only be in one of two places—Mt. Silver and Pallet Town. And, considering Red just came from Mt. Silver, they were definitely in Pallet Town.
Dr. Lurton grinned. They didn't know he was still alive. Red thought he had done a thorough job taking them out. Maybe he even thought that no one else would go after them. Oh, how the former champion of Kanto was dead wrong.
Dr. Lurton was still alive, and he would go after Green. He had to. Green was the last chance Dr. Lurton had when it came to his current genetic experiment. The boy's mother and sister both died during certain experimentation and there was no one else from the mother's side of the family who had what Dr. Lurton was looking for.
Usually getting Green would be no problem—the little freak had run off before and was easily found again. But now he was with Kanto's former champion, which only made everything difficult.
Dr. Lurton couldn't have Red murdered in his own home, the whole world would be aware of a champion's murder in a matter of minutes upon discovery.
That only meant Dr. Lurton had to take Red as well as Green, and maybe kill the damn trainer later. But wait a minute, maybe Red didn't just have to be an obstacle? Maybe Dr. Lurton could use Red to his advantage? Green and Red were childhood friends, were they not? Perhaps they were already bonding.
Dr. Lurton smirked maliciously as a whole new plan began to form in his mind. It was all too perfect. Everything would go even better than he expected.
Dr. Lurton reached into his pocket and took out his phone that managed to go undamaged in the attack. Dialing a number he could never forget, he brought the phone to his ear and spoke.
"Send in a stealth vehicle, I need to get out of here quietly."