So Sweet – Embrace

by taitofan

Rated PG-13 for yaoi and shota

Disclaimer: Pokémon XD only hinted at Eldes's obvious undying love for Ryuuto. If I owned it, they would've had to up the rating for mature content.

Author's Note: This kinda jumped out of nowhere. I'd thought about this a bit, but I never thought I'd write it. Rest assured, none of the other themes use this theory. It's a one-time thing. No clue what I'm talking about? You shouldn't yet, but trust me, you will. Be prepared for a total 180 in the atmosphere, that's all I'll say… Fluff or something next time to make up for this.

7snogs theme: 3-Embrace

Flames do nothing but make me laugh, although I'll listen to any CC you have. Please read, review, and enjoy! Finished 07-14-06


Ryuuto entered the Crab Pavilion in Aio Port, trying his very hardest to remain calm. However, he was finding it very hard, considering that the object of his affections was probably somewhere within. After all, Mecharich was there almost every day, and where he went, his bodyguards faithfully followed…

His heart sped up ever so slightly as he imagined the redhead who'd stolen his heart. Eldes was handsome and seemed kinder than his fellow bodyguard, Ardos he believed the other man was named. He'd never actually spoken to Ardos before, but he and Eldes had met one on one at Mount Battle, and oh god… Sure, the meeting had been short, but Eldes had been so nice and sweet and sexy and…

'Okay, stop that. I have to find Eldes and fantasizing won't help me. I gotta do this before I chicken out… He must be somewhere…'

He walked up to the second floor, ignoring the sailors hanging around. Eldes certainly shouldn't be hard to spot… A flash of red caught his attention, and he had to use every ounce of willpower he possessed to keep a face-splitting grin off his face. He couldn't go up to his crush acting like a lovesick schoolgirl after all, even if he was lovesick. No, he had to play it cool… Thus, he walked calmly up to Eldes, ignoring the suspicious look the ever-smiling Ardos was giving him, and stood before him, hoping he didn't look too eager.

"Hi Eldes! I thought I might find you here… You remember me, right?" The older man nodded curtly, keeping his gaze forward rather than looking down at the teenager.

"Of course Ryuuto. I'm afraid that I cannot let you through though. Mr. Mecharich is meeting with someone at the moment." The fact that Eldes wouldn't look at him didn't go unnoticed. Ryuuto was sharp; he'd seen Eldes linger behind the others to look at him the first time they'd met, and there was something underlying the older man's words at Mount Battle. Maybe, just maybe, his feelings weren't completely unrequited… He could always hope at least.

"I didn't want to talk with him; I wanted to talk to you. You know, alone?" He caught Eldes peek out of the corner of his eye to see if Ardos was paying attention. He was, quite attentively actually.

"I'm sorry, but that is impossible. I must guard the door, and—"

"Come now Eldes," the blue haired man interrupted from his spot just a few feet away, "don't let me bother you. Talk to the boy right here. I could use a bit of amusement about now." The redhead looked worried, but then again, you had to look so hard to find even a hint of it that Ryuuto wasn't sure if he was seeing things. After all, what did Eldes have to be nervous about?

"All right then. How may I help you Ryuuto?" And he really couldn't have given the teen a more perfect setup. However… Could he really ask him in front of Ardos…? Well, he might not get another chance that was quite this perfect, so why not?

"Well, you could go out with me tonight." Ardos's eyes widened, but Eldes didn't seem to register his words at first.

"I'm rather busy tonig— Wait, what?" Ryuuto didn't bother to hide his grin this time. Eldes was much too cute when he was flustered.

"You, me, a date, tonight. Wanna?" Ardos looked like he was trying very hard to contain his laughter, while Eldes's face had gone almost as red as his hair.

"Ryuuto, I'm flattered, but I don't think that that would be very appropriate…" Contrary to his words, the smile he wore gave Ryuuto all the answer he needed. Seconds after the older man trailed off, he found his arms full of a bundle of energy and bright red hair. Trying to ignore the nasty smirk his older brother shot his way, Eldes readily returned the embrace. "But I suppose I can make an exception for you. Shall we meet here at six?" The teen nodded vigorously before letting go of the older man.

"Sure! I won't be late, I promise! See you then, okay?"

"Of course. I eagerly await it." The ecstatic grin on Ryuuto's face was more that enough to make up for the fact that Ardos had witnessed to entire event. Without another word, the younger redhead turned and sprinted off, most likely to ready himself for later that night. It was only seconds after he'd disappeared from view that the elder brother spoke up.

"You do realize that you just accepted a date proposal from a teenage boy, correct?" If scowling had been Eldes's style, he very well would have. "Well, it doesn't matter. His silly little infatuation with you is playing right into our hands, just as planned. You've done an excellent job manipulating him." Normally Eldes would have appreciated a compliment from his hard-to-please sibling, but now he felt too horrible to feel anything but pure self-loathing.

He knew he never should have accepted the job… Ryuuto was just an innocent boy… But as soon as his brother had noticed Ryuuto's liking for him, Ardos had recommended to their father that he try to use it to their advantage. And Eldes had to obey his father… That didn't mean he liked it though. Or that he didn't hate himself for it. This shadow pokémon business was no excuse to play with another human being's heart—especially someone like Ryuuto.

There was one good thing though. Ardos hadn't figured out that Eldes was just as fond of Ryuuto as the boy was of him. And he planned to keep it that way. As long as he was careful, he might never have to hurt the boy he loved more than anything…

And as Eldes stood at his post, all he could wish for was that when all this was over, he could hold Ryuuto in his arms without ever having to worry about his family's evil plans again.