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Tony tried not to sigh with impatience as he stood on the path that would lead him further into the forest. He was a good few metres inside the woods, but he’d been halted before he could go any further. The problem was currently at his feet, digging their heels into the dirt.“Honestly, guys,” he said, looking down at them, “I’m surprised at you. It’s just a forest!”His pokémon seemed to disagree. His litten had her ears down and her body hunched defensively. His aron and cubone were in front of her protectively while his dunsparce had burrowed slightly under the ground, only her eyes and part of her tail showing.“This is the fastest way to the next town,” he continued. “I thought you were keen to keep moving?”The little group shifted even closer together, eyeing the dark, imposing trees with worry. “Okay,” Tony tried, softening his voice. “I know there are a lot of stories about this place but-”His cubone made a worried noise and pointed his bone behind Tony. He looked over his shoulder to see the air shifting before a haunter appeared. Its fingers flexed in the air before they dived into his mouth pulling it wide and into a misshapen stretch. Tony just snorted. “Nice smile.”The haunter froze and its face dropped comically with surprise. Tony just turned back to his pokémon. “Seriously guys, it’s just a haunter! This whole place might be full of ghost pokémon but they’re just doing their thing.”He turned back to the bamboozled haunter that had been joined by a frowning misdreavus. Tony just smiled at them brightly. “Sorry to come crashing through your forest. It’s just quicker, you know? We won’t be here long, and I’ve got no intentions to capture any pokémon.”The misdreavus and the haunter shared a look and muttered something. Tony knew that ghost pokémon were slippery bastards and many of them had no respect for humans or other pokémon. They were tricksters. Tony knew that the best way to deal with a trickster was to either show no fear, or prank them back.Tony didn’t have time for pranks, especially in a forest he didn’t know. Politeness and indifference was the way to go. His fearless attitude had made his pokémon come closer. His litten was curled around his feet. His dunsparce has slid up to lie against his back, under his jacket in order to hide while his cubone had his bone raised threateningly as he stood on Tony’s shoe.Tony didn’t have the heart to tell him that any physical attack would go right through the ghosts. His aron was standing by his other foot, standing tall and ready to charge.The haunter and misdreavus were becoming more animated in their discussion, and although Tony wasn’t certain, he was fairly sure their body language was leaning less towards ‘let him pass safely’ and more in the direction of ‘let’s trick him and get him lost in the woods!’“Seriously?” Tony couldn’t help huffing, making the two ghost pokémon glance at him. “Are you really discussing your plan of attack right in front of me?”They looked startled, but a moment later they looked curious. The haunter came forward and poked one finger into his cheek. It made Tony grimace at the cold touch and his cubone gave a grumble of warning. The haunter just pinched his cheek and pulled it lightly while excitedly saying some to the misdreavus. She was nodding and starting to smile. The haunter let him go before floating backwards. They both made gestures for Tony to follow him. Tony eyed them flatly. “Uh huh, and I’m supposed to be that foolish, am I?”They looked frustrated and the misdreavus floated down to his very wary cubone and started speaking rapidly. It was disconcerting to watch his cubone’s defensive stance slacken for shock. His dunsparce even poked her head out from his jacket, curious in the proceedings. The haunter had floated down to talk to his aron and litten.The worst part was, they seemed to be listening.“You better not be getting sweet-talked into walking me into a-”He stopped when he felt a nudge to his back and turned around. He brightened instantly at seeing the legendary pokémon that had adopted him. “Rhodey!” he greeted before shifting carefully around his pokémon to hug the cobalion close.Rhodey had been showing up and travelling with him on and off since he was a teenager. When he was seventeen he’d found a recently hatched aron in distress on a crumbling cliff edge and hadn’t let the threat of life and limb stop him from climbing up to help the poor guy.He hadn’t known at the time that the cobalion was watching. He managed to get the aron down on solid ground and had thrust the aron out of the way of the falling rocks. A boulder almost landed on Tony's leg and crushed it, but the cobalion had stopped it, had saved him.You fool, the cobalion’s glare had said as he looked between Tony and the aron still clutched in his arm. He’d then softened and nodded his head, seeming to reiterate; a good fool.The cobalion had let Tony pat him once before the legendary pokémon disappeared as quickly as it came. The aron just snuggled closer into Tony’s arms. He became Tony’s first pokémon, and the cobalion became Tony’s friend and guardian, his ‘Rhodey’.Pulling back from hugging Rhodey, he watched the cobalion bend down so Tony’s other pokémon could happily greet him. The haunter and the misdreavus where gaping at Rhodey. He supposed it wasn’t every day you saw a legendary pokémon like Rhodey.The cobalion was part of a group of four pokémon who guarded and looked out for the rights and interests of all pokémon and punished any humans who were out to harm them. It meant Rhodey spent most of his time saving the pokémon world and dispensing pokémon justice. It was why Tony still felt special and touched that the cobalion would always visit him every few months just to check in and make sure he, and his pokémon, were doing okay.When he felt a tug on his arm, he looked away from Rhodey to see the haunter had wide and excited eyes. The misdreavus was edging closer to shyly greet Rhodey but the haunter was more insistently trying to get Tony to follow him into the woods.It made Tony think a trick wasn’t on the cards. The haunter couldn’t possibly be that ballsy with Rhodey nearby.“Why do you want me to follow you?”It was a pretty useless question, since he couldn’t exactly understand pokémon dialects, but when the haunter gestured at Tony’s pokémon then himself and the misdreavus. Tony was able to make the connection.“Wait, do you have a human companion?” The haunter nodded vigorously. “And they live here?” The haunter nodded again. “And you want me to meet them?” There was even more frantic nodding. “Huh.” He glanced back at his pokémon who were still talking with Rhodey, the little misdreavus included. “Hey guys!” They looked up at him. “Apparently I’m invited to meet the person who lives in the middle of the haunted woods. What do you think?”His pokémon all looked at each other, exchanging glances and the occasional word before they all turned back to him and nodded. It seemed his pokémon were on board. “Well, okay then,” he turned back to the haunter and smiled brightly. “Lead the way.”The haunter grinned back and the misdreavus floated over to join the other ghost pokémon. This wasn’t what Tony expected would happen when he walked into the haunted woods, but he could hardly complain.After all, if he didn’t like adventures and being drawn into the unexpected, he wouldn’t have become a traveller.It took the group almost forty-five minutes to navigate the woods and reach the cottage where the ghost pokémon’s human companion lived.A few wild pokémon had curiously watched them descend into the woods, but otherwise left them alone. Whether that was because of the haunter and misdreavus or because of Rhodey’s presence, Tony didn’t know.His own pokémon were calm now that the legendary pokémon was with them. His cubone was on Rhodey’s head, holding one of Rhodey’s horns with one hand while his bone was in the other. Tony’s litten was at Rhodey’s feet; his dunsparce was flying along beside the ghosts while his aron was being carried in Tony’s arms. They must have made one unusual sight. Tony was just grateful to reach the clearing and put his aron down. The cottage had smoke coming out of the chimney. An elegant froslass was picking flowers but stopped when she noticed them. She was startled, but turned her head to the window and spoke to whoever was inside before pointing. A few moments later, the door opened; an elekid ran out first, its arms raised and electricity flying from them threateningly. “Thor!” A man’s voice shouted, sounding agitated. “What have I told you about being rash?”The elekid, Thor, looked over his shoulder and glared as a pale-skinned man with dark hair walked out of the cottage. He had a mimikyu sitting on his shoulder that was looking around with nervous eyes.The man moved his gaze from Thor to Tony. His eyes widened and he blinked. His haunter and misdreavus were already floating over and chatting excitedly. He dragged his eyes to his ghost pokémon. Looking at them with incredulity, "I leave you alone for one day and you bring some hapless traveller home with you?”“I'm not hapless,” Tony chimed in, stealing the man’s attention. “I was quite fine avoiding their tricks and pranks, thank you. I think they just wanted us to meet.” “Why in the world would they-oh,” his words faded to a shocked exhale.Tony glanced over his shoulder and realised why. Rhodey had been lingering in the shadow of the trees, but he was now coming out to stand beside Tony in all his glory. The frosglass cupped her hands and hurried over. Her eyes were wide with awe and intrigue. The mimikyu hid shyly behind the other man’s hair while Thor bounded over and raised his fist towards the legendary pokémon. Rhodey seemed amused, but he touched his paw to it.Tony’s litten was sitting proudly, leaning against Rhodey with familiarity and pride. Tony’s cubone was watching everyone with narrowed eyes from his place atop Rhodey’s head. His bone was still raised in defence. His aron was coming over to investigate Thor and his dunsparce was still sniffing the distracted frosglass curiously.It was an entertaining sight, but Tony’s interest was quick to focus on the other man who had taken wary steps closer. “You know the Cobalion.”“Yeah, he’s been keeping an eye on me since I was a teenager,” Tony said. “I call him Rhodey, and he doesn’t seem to mind.” Rhodey side-eyed him, his expression a mix of fondness and amusement. “He travels with you?” The man asked, mystified.“Nah. He comes and goes.” Tony reached out and stroked the pokémon’s back. “He’s got more important things to do then trail after me.”Removing his hand he looked back at the other man, he was still a good metre away but he looked like he was itching to come closer. Tony smiled and reached up for his cubone, gently taking him off Rhodey.“He’s really friendly. I don’t think he’d mind if you touched him. Your pokémon like you, that’s usually good enough for him.”The other man still looked dubious, but when Rhodey even stepped forward, he closed the distance and very carefully brought out his hand, lightly patting the legendary pokémon’s head. His smile split his face and made him look young. It also made him look incredibly pretty.Damn, Tony thought. He also took a better look at the man. He wore casual black pants, a forest green tunic and dark boots. He was a very attractive guy. Time to flirt.Tony levered his cubone onto his shoulder before he stepped closer and offered his hand with a smile. “Name’s Tony.”The man tore his eyes away from Rhodey and looked between Tony and his hand. He eventually raised his own and a warm palm cupped Tony’s. “Loki.”“Pleasure to meet you, Loki,” Tony said, throwing in a wink for good measure. “I hope you don’t mind me showing up unannounced, but I swear I was invited.”A hint of a smile pulled at Loki’s mouth as they dropped hands. “I suppose it was about time my pokémon used their mischief to surprise me.”“Hey, if your friends aren’t playing tricks on you, are they really your friends?”Loki’s smile pulled wider. “True.” He flicked his gaze to Tony’s cubone and then over his other pokémon. “I see you also prefer not to use pokéballs?”Tony scrunched up his nose. “I don’t want to be confined to a prison. Why the hell will I make them suffer the same fate?”Loki looked delighted. “That is exactly my belief.” He made a gesture towards his house. “Come, bring your pokémon. The forest has a tendency to disorient and there is still a long path to navigate to reach the other side. Come have something to eat and drink.”Tony was surprised by the easy acceptance, but he wasn’t about to say no to the offer of a place to rest.“Come on kids,” Tony said, falling into step with Loki, “you heard the man!”It was an odd collection of sounds as ten pokémon and two humans made their way into a surprisingly spacious cottage, but Tony wasn’t about to complain. He was too curious to learn about the man who lived in the middle of a forest surrounded by ghost pokémon.Loki, it seemed, was just as much of a trickster as his pokémon. Ghost pokémon were drawn to him for his mischievous nature and tendency to laugh madly at the way they haunted and terrified other humans. He had also been a lonely, misunderstood child and ghost pokémon often felt the same in a world of cute and sweet pokémon brethren.Loki’s first pokémon was his misdreavus, followed by his mimikyu. His choice in pokémon hadn’t gone down well with his family and when he gained his even ruder and teasing haunter, he’d been told to get rid of his pokémon or get out. Loki had taken the second option and never looked back. He’d travelled for years, meeting his frosglass in the ice caves of Hoenn followed by his stubborn and clingy elekid who refused to be scared off or leave him alone. He’d found the abandoned cottage in his early twenties and decided to renovate it and stick around. The wild pokémon had accepted him with ease and he’d lived there ever since, only leaving to purchase supplies or travel.Tony, in return, had explained his own story of how he gained his aron and met Rhodey. How it was just him and his aron for a few years before he started travelling.He found his cubone second. The little pokémon had lost his mother and Tony could deeply understand that pain. He’d talked to the crying pokémon and ended up with it curled up in his arms. The cubone fell asleep and Tony held him until he woke up. The cubone then crawled up to sit on Tony’s shoulder and refused to budge.A few months later he found a stray and hungry little litten in the backstreets of a city hiding from the pouring rain. He’d fed, cleaned and let her sleep inside his tent, and then she’d never left. His dunsparce was much the same. She was curious about their group and made friends with them. She took to following them until, from one day to the next, she was a part of their family.The trading of their respective histories took a good few hours to impart. They also spoke about places they’d seen and what they’d done when free from their father’s sharp eyes and unfulfilled expectations. Both Howard and Laufey, it seemed, had been a matching level of asshole. Tony honestly hadn’t planned to get so caught up in talking to Loki, yet, before he knew it, one hour had turned into five. His stomach was rumbling and the sun was setting. Loki looked as surprised as Tony felt.“I didn’t realise the time,” he murmured. “I’m sorry, I’ve delayed you.”Tony waved it off. “I don’t exactly keep a schedule.”“Still, I’m sorry. You should not wander the forest at night. The pokémon are mischievous enough in the day, but there will be no leniency if you are out at night, even I avoid it.” “Damn.” Tony grimaced. He glanced around at his pokémon who had already made themselves at home in Loki’s cottage.Rhodey was resting in the corner with one eye partly open while Tony’s dunsparce slept on his back and Loki’s frosglass weaved a wreath of flowers for his head. Tony’s litten was sleeping in the last rays of sunlight on the window sill. Loki’s haunter was floating above her with a mixture of curiosity and fascination. He was a cat pokémon, apparently.Tony’s cubone was sitting in Tony’s lap while Loki’s elekid, Thor, was pacing in front of the door and keeping up a vigil. His back was straight and his chin was raised. He had a stick in his hand that was held over his shoulder like a weapon. Tony’s aron was watching Thor with pure befuddlement. Loki’s mimikyu was still on his shoulder and shyly watching Tony while Loki’s misdreavus was floating lazily near the ceiling. “I have a spare room,” Loki offered, “if you wish to stay the night.”Tony’s attention drew back to Loki. The other man had already been more then generous and while they certainly got on like a house on fire, even he was surprised at the offer. “You’re sure?” Tony questioned.“Certainly,” Loki insisted. “You may all stay.” He gave a teasing smile. “I would hardly complain about such pleasant company.”And that was the other thing that had been happening too; flirting. Tony had set the ball in motion, but Loki hadn’t been shy about keeping it rolling. There was a definite spark between them. They had similar ideas about pokémon and had common interests that overlapped. They were both intelligent and they loved a good prank. There was definite attraction, definite potential and while Loki had offered a spare room, making it very obvious that it was a friendly, platonic gesture, Tony had to wonder if there wasn’t a chance for more as well.Tony supposed he’d just have to see what the night would bring.“Okay, I'll stay. Thanks, Loki.”“You’re welcome.” The other man stood up. “Would you care to help me with dinner, Tony?”Tony grinned and lifted his cubone off his lap and up to his shoulder. “I’ll do my very best not to burn anything.”Loki raised his eyebrows but didn’t make another comment as they headed to the kitchen. Tony just hoped he wouldn’t accidentally set fire to the cottage.Luckily, the building remained unscathed, but Loki did realise that Tony’s worst enemy in a kitchen was distractions. When he discovered that, he took the more time crucial tasks from him and set Tony to slicing vegetables and cleaning dishes. Tony was happy enough to do both; after all, they still spent the whole time talking.They also spent the time brushing hands and elbows as they walked around the small space. Their pokémon had left their shoulders after a few minutes, growing bored with the proceedings. Tony’s cubone had encouraged the mimikyu to curl up with him and Rhodey. The two of them were now between the larger pokémon’s front paws. When they finished making dinner, Tony set down food for his pokémon. Loki’s, being of the ghost persuasion, liked the occasional berry but got their energy sources elsewhere. Tony’s pokémon however, needed a more stable diet and he always kept enough on hand to keep them well feed. Rhodey, of course, didn’t accept Tony’s food and fearlessly went out into the forest to find something for himself. Tony wasn’t worried about him navigating it and coming out okay; he was a legendary pokémon. He wouldn’t have any trouble.Despite the momentary distraction of looking after his pokémon, it hadn’t minimised the tension between him and Loki.Tony hadn’t known their pokémon had picked up on the mood between them, but it became obvious they had when Loki’s misdreavus and frosglass floated over candles to place on and around the table Loki had set up. Tony’s litten then walked by each one and lit them with a small blaze of fire.The three of them looked so proud of themselves. Loki’s misdreavus was smirking smugly while his frosglass was shooing them over to the table. Tony’s litten was encouraging the rest of their pokémon to give them some space. It was very much ‘turn around, nothing to see here, just our humans on a date’.Looking around the room, Tony remarked, “Why do I get a feeling your pokémon brought me here just to set us up?”Loki was rubbing his eyes with exasperation and a faint blush. “Because that would be an accurate deduction.” He sighed and dropped his hand. “They often think I’m lonely. They also recognised you were the kind of person I would be interested in.”Tony nodded. “You’ve got smart kids.”“I have meddling children,” Loki grumbled.“Hey, it wasn’t your kid lighting the candles. I think mine are in agreement with yours.” Tony shifted closer and lightly bumped their shoulders together, encouraging Loki to look at him. He smiled. “After all, mine know how to pick up on when I’m flirting with someone.”His words made Loki smile faintly. He also relaxed minutely. “It was still presumptuous.”“Let’s go with caring, and affectionate,” Tony corrected. “They wanted us to have a romantic evening. I say we give them what they want.”Loki’s smile was growing wider. “You mean you would consent to a date with me?”“Ah, yes,” Tony insisted. “You’re gorgeous, funny, smart and fun to be around. Why would I even think about saying no?”“Well then,” Loki reached out and took Tony’s hand before gently leading him to the table that had been set up. Tony didn’t try to fight the guiding hand. He also let Loki pull out and slide his chair in for him. When Loki was sitting in front of him, Loki took the bottle of water and poured them each a glass. Loki didn’t have alcohol and that worked for Tony since he didn’t drink much when he had his kids to look after. When Loki put down the bottle, he held up his glass and Tony did the same.“To our meddling pokémon,” Loki suggested.“To first dates,” Tony added with a wink.Loki chuckled and they lightly clinked their glasses together before taking a sip.It was certainly one of the most unexpected dates Tony had ever had, but that was what made it exciting and special. Tony’s life had always changed through chance meetings and strange connections. Tony felt the same pull today and with Loki.It made him hopeful that just like each pokémon he’d found, this would turn out to be another brilliant decision that would lead to someone interesting and new becoming a large and permanent part of his life.